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8 



The Weekly Florists^ Review^ 



Fbbbuabt 27, 1908. 



SEASONABLE -^^^ I 



SUGGESTIONS 



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Seed Sowing. 



The time has arrived when a good 

 many flower seeds should be sown. It 

 will probably seem like repeating old 

 advice to give any cultural notes on this 

 subject, but there are so many readers 

 of the Review who have probably taken 

 up floriculture as their vocation and who 

 may not have had as much practical 

 training as they would like, and there 

 are, furthermore, so many of the rising 

 generation, who are to fill our shoes some 

 day, and who, unless they are of the 

 "know it all" class, are ever ready to 

 improve their minds, even by reading cul- 

 tural hints, that we make no apology for 

 touching briefly on this important branch 

 of propagation. 



It may seem somewhat stereotyped, but 

 we would say again, do not buy cheap 

 seed. The best is the least expensive in 

 the long run. Seeds of all kinds, which 

 aire to be sown under glass, seem to pre- 

 fer a lighter compost for germination 

 than that which they are to grow in when 

 well established. For this reason leaf- 

 mold should always form the major por- 

 tion of the compost. For the finest 

 seeds, if a little sand is added to the 

 mold, germination will be better than 

 if loam is also used. For the general 

 run of greenhouse annuals, three-fourths 

 leaf -mold and one-fourth loam, with some 

 sand added, make a suitable mixture. 

 For choice seeds, such as begonias, gloxin- 

 ias, primulas, etc., it is well to add a 

 little powdered charcoal to keep the 

 compost sweet. If you use steam and 

 can sterilize the soil to kill all weed seeds 

 and insect larvee, it will be a great ad- 

 vantage. 



Flats three inches in depth, or pans, 

 are to be preferred to pots for seed sow- 

 ing. They should in every case be per- 

 fectly clean.' Earthenware should be well 

 soaked if new. For choice annuals or 

 those slow of germination, more drainage 

 is necessary than for the quick-growing 

 varieties. Many growers use bo other 

 drainage for such seeds as asters, zin- 

 nias and stocks than some rough pieces 

 of turf, but it is always better to be on 

 the safe side in this respect. When you 

 water you want it to pass away quickly, 

 or sour conditions will soon arise. In 

 covering seeds, a safe rule is to scatter 

 compost over them to their own depth. 

 With minute seeds, such as gloxinias and 

 begonias, after the surface has been made 

 smooth and watered, the seeds should be 

 scattered evenly on the surface and a lit- 

 tle fine sand spread over it. You must 

 use fine sifters for your soil, especially 

 if you are sowing small seeds; use the 

 sifter to drop it evenly over the seeds. 

 After sowing, a good plan is to gently 

 firm the surface with a smooth piece of 

 board. 



In the germination of seeds, much 

 depends on their treatment after being 

 sown. As a general rule, a temperature 

 of 60 degrees at night will suflBce for all 

 seeds; many will grow freely in 10 de- 

 grees less heat, but the higher figure in- 

 sures earlier growth and a removal to 



somewhat cooler quai-ters is easy in a 

 few days. Flats containing seeds should 

 never get direct sunlight. Covering with 

 newspapers is often resorted to. These 

 should be removed at night and during 

 sunless weather, and must be gradually 

 discarded as germination starts. If 

 your shelf room is scarce, you can stack 

 several flats one over the other until the 

 seedlings start to grow, but you must 

 watch them sharply or spindling plants 

 will result. 



The present time is opportune for sow- 

 ing batches of the following seeds: As- 

 ters of such early varieties as Queen of 

 the Earlies, ten weeks' stock; verbenas, 

 petunias, fibrous-rooted begonias, vincas, 

 torenias, Santolina maritima, abutilons, 

 primulas in variety, Clerodendron fallax, 

 draceenas, eucalyptus, impatiens and 

 browallia. 



It is rather too early to sow such rapid 

 growing subjects as Salvia splendens, 

 zinnias, ricinus, wigandias, sunflowers, 

 cosmos. Phlox Drummondii and balsams. 



Among hardy perennial plants, the 

 sowing of aquilegias, hollyhocks, Campa- 



yield plenty of good cuttings. Where 

 you root your carnations will suit chrys- 

 anthemums, ericas, acacias, genistas, mar- 

 guerites, verbenas and snapdragons, 

 while in the warmer bench heliotropes, 

 acalyphas, begonias, fittonias, panicum, 

 salvia, coleus> achyranthes and alternan- 

 thera will root best. 



Shamrocks. 



The day for "the wearing of the 

 green," March 17, will soon be here. The 

 demand for little shamrock plants in pots 

 and pans is now quite considerable. A 

 cool house is needed for these clovers. If 

 they are getting crowded, spread out the 

 pots a little. Keep well v»ratered. An 

 occasional fumigation will ward off the 

 attacks of thrips, which is quite partial 

 to this plant. Quite a number of florists 

 now make a specialty of shamrocks and 

 find a good profit in growing them. 



Easter Lilies. 



From the number of inquiries recently 

 received in regard to the condition of 

 various growers' Easter lilies, it is evi- 

 dent that many are on the anxious seat 

 about them. If your plants will show 

 buds at all by March 5 to 10, you can 

 get your lilies in for Easter in a night 

 temperature of 60 degrees. If you can 

 see these buds now, you can hold them 

 all right in a slightly cooler house, but 

 if the buds are three inches in length 

 they are too forward. Do not make the 

 mistake of rushing the earliest ones into 

 a house kept at 40 to 45 degrees at night, 

 as we once knew a florist to do; as a re- 



A House of Shamrocks at John F. Rupp's, Sbiremanstown, Pa. 



nula pyramidalis, primroses, pyrethrums, 

 lychnis, lupinus. Lobelia cardinalis, Mal- 

 va moschata, delphiniums, Canterbury 

 bells and other sorts is now timely. Many 

 of these latter, sown now, will bloom the 

 first season. 



Propagation. 



While the weather remains cold, when 

 heavy firing is still the rule and before 

 the sun becomes too powerful, is the best 

 time to propagate. The genial, moist 

 bottom heat soon makes the little cut- 

 tings root. The propagating bench 

 should be kept well filled, for there are 

 many bedding plants now which will 



suit he lost nearly every bud. Encour- 

 age plants which are a little backward 

 by frequent light sprayings, and a little 

 nitrate of soda in the water once a week 

 will hurry them along. Squirt tobacco 

 extract into the tops of the growths to 

 clean out aphis and, if you want plants 

 with nice foliage, never allow them to 

 become dry at the root. 



Lilium candidum can be had in bloom 

 four weeks from the time the buds are 

 so that you can count them, in a night 

 temperature of 55 degrees. Do not force 

 in a warmer house, as this fine lily re- 

 sents such treatment. 



