T/y*?*,*^ -^ 



February 20, 1908. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



benefit. Give the bench a thorough soak- 

 ing and keep the house cool and moist 

 for a couple of weeks. When the leaves 

 begin to push, gradually resume water- 

 ing and give ordinary rose treatment. 



BiBES. 



BEST HARDY ROSES. 



What do you consider the best hardy 

 monthly and ever-blooming varieties of 

 roses of the following colors: White, 

 yellow, pink, scarlet, cherry red, crimson, 

 rose? J. L. D. 



The most persistent flowering roses 

 are, in most cases, a little tender and 



should be well earthed up and protected 

 in winter. If lifted, laid in a trench 

 and buried, they will come through all 

 right. Among the hybrid perpetuals, 

 Mrs. John Laing, soft pink; Mrs. R. 

 G. Sharman-Crawford, rosy pink; Ul- 

 rich Brunner, cherry red; General Jac- 

 queminot, crimson, and John Hopper, 

 rose, are good summer and autumnal 

 bloomers. All of these are very hardy. 

 Among the so-called monthly roses, York 

 and Lancaster, striped red and white, 

 and the Centifolia or Cabbage, pale pink, 

 can be recommended. 



A few other roses which are persistent 

 bloomers are: Baby Rambler, bright 

 red; Gruss an Teplitz, crimson scarlet; 



Hermosa, pale pink; Mme. Georges Bru- 

 ant, white, and Conrad Ferdinand Mey- 

 er, pink (these two latter are rugosas 

 and very vigorous) ; Clothilde Soupert, 

 white, shaded pink; Blanche Moreau, 

 white moss; Apolline, pink; Maman Co- 

 chet, pink; Maman Cochet, white; Cath- 

 erine Zeimet, a white Baby Rambler; 

 Mme D. Matrat, yellow; Mme. Gillemot, 

 yellow. Of the foregoing the yellows 

 are the least reliably hardy, except the 

 rugosas and Blanche Moreau. It would 

 be better to dig and bury the balance 

 late each fall. I am aware that a num- 

 ber of the sorts mentioned are often 

 listed as ironclad, but I have not found 

 them so. C. W. 



CARNATION NOTES— EAST. 



Treatment of New Varieties. 



The articles in the Annual Carnation 

 Number of the Review, relating to the 

 introduction of new varieties, recite the 

 possible . shortcomings of the dissemi- 

 nator, and now it would seem proper to 

 call attention to the treatment which 

 stock of new arrivals should receive at 

 the hands of the buyer. 



Neglect of proper handling after dis- 

 semination is, to my mind, responsible 

 for much of the unsatisfactory behavior 

 of new introductions. No matter how 

 much care the disseminator may exercise 

 to insure honest, vigorous stock being 

 sent out, unless it is intelligently han- 

 dled afterwiard, we can expect nothing 

 but indifferent results. 



Promptly on arrival the shipment 

 should be examined for evidence of frost, 

 and if such condition exists, each bundle 

 should be dipped, without unrolling, in 

 very cold water and then rearranged 

 loosely in a larger box, in which they 

 should be carried to a moderately cool 

 liouse to slowly -thaw. Any dryness at 

 the root would be remedied in much the 

 same way, but in all cases unpack at 

 mce on arrival and allow the cuttings a 

 few hours to gradually reach a tempera- 

 ture about the same as that of the prop- 

 agating house before potting. 



Use new soil composed of rotted sod, 

 without the addition of fertilizer in any 

 form. Be particular to have this in readi- 

 ness a few days in advance, so that it 

 may become warmed to the inside tem- 

 perature. See that the pots are clean 

 and, when potted, stand the stock on a 

 shaded bench which you would take 

 pleasure in inviting the originator him- 

 self to inspect for cleanliness. Give suf- 

 ficient water to moisten the soil to the 

 'bottom of the pot, and no more. 



Remember, these cuttings have been 

 packed in damp moss and denied the 



least ray of light for several days, mak- 

 ing it reasonable to expect a degree of 

 softness in growth not present in home- 

 rooted stock. Therefore extra care must 

 be taken to protect them from drafts, 

 lest serious damage result through wilt- 

 ing. 



An Injurious Practice. 



A practice which cannot be too se- 

 verely condemned is that of planting 

 cuttings in very rich soil to encourage 

 tall, rapid growth, with a view to making 

 a cutting from the portion removed at 

 the first topping. I confess my reluc- 

 tance in bringing such a matter to your 

 attention, but it is indulged in to a 

 greater extent than would on first 

 thought be supposed. A grower is free, 

 perhaps, to do as he pleases with stock 

 bought and paid for, but when he de- 

 liberately follows a practice which under- 

 mines the work of another he is in. a 

 certain sense morally wrong. 



Regarding the quantity necessary to 

 be purchased in order to give a variety 

 a thorough trial and at the same time be 

 in a position to propagate for the season 

 following trial, I would advise arranging 

 for at least 250 cuttings. If one could 

 count on growing every one to maturity 

 and on through the blooming and propa- 

 gating seasons, a less number might 

 answer, but there would still remain the 

 doubt as to whether from among them 

 sufficient desirable plants could be se- 

 lected from which to propagate without 

 resorting to high pressure, or, to borrow 

 expressions, "chopping down," "massa- 

 cring, " " using just anything that will 

 strike roots. ' ' 



In case one wishes to grow a few for 

 personal amusement, for hybridizing pur- 

 poses or to ascertain which of a number 

 of sorts is best suited to his soil, that is 

 another matter. 



Having never lieen interested finan- 

 cially in the launching of any new vari- 

 ' ety and writing wholly in the interest of 



growers, I feel that what has been 

 pointed out will not be taken in any sense 

 as retaliatory or as given in a spirit of 

 censure. I agree with all that is set 

 forth in the articles before mentioned. 



Geo. S. Osborn. 



INDOOR CULTURE. 



Will yoii please tell us what tempera- 

 tures are best suited for the following 

 varieties of carnations: White Perfec- 

 tion, Queen, N. Fisher, Enchantress, Vic- 

 tory and Beacon? We expect to grow 

 these varieties the coming season and 

 would like information along that line. 

 Also, what varieties are best for in- 

 door culture? E. A. Harvey, in his pa- 

 per published in the Review of February 

 6, spoke of using "a stronger and 

 quicker acting commercial fertilizer, ' ' 

 but does not tell iis what it was. We 

 wish he would. J. W. M. 



The night temperatures best suited to 

 the varieties you name are as follows: 

 White Perfection, 52 to 54 degrees; The 

 Queen, 52 degrees; N. Fisher, 52 to 54 

 degrees; Enchantress, 50 to 52 degrees; 

 Victory, 52 degrees; Beacon, 50 to 52 

 degrees. Of all these I wonld grow onlj 

 Beacon inside, if at all; personally, I 

 would grow even that outside. 



Do not allow yourself to be carried 

 away by this idea of indoor culture. 

 Under certain conditions you will find it 

 desirable, but when conditions are normal 

 you will find the field culture preferable. 

 I say t^is advisedly, knowing that some 

 will disagree with me. If I had only 

 my own experience to govern me, I 

 might hesitate, but I have seen one ex- 

 pert carnation specialist after another 

 take up this method with enthusiasm, 

 only to drop it again and return to the 

 field method. Perhaps some day we will 

 have a race of carnations which will re- 

 quire indoor treatment, but we do not 

 have it now and I am not sure that 



