March 5, 1908. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



mens. The all-silk ribbon which runs, for 

 instance, from a delicate pink to a dark 

 green, or some such combination, is very 

 effective. Yellow is good to use in fall, 

 with foliage plants. At Easter purple 

 and white are good colors. 



Various Plant G>mbinations. 



While there is a gre^t variety of stock 

 available for plant baskets from Christ- 

 mas to Easter, one illustration will suf- 

 fice and the florist'? own stock at hand 

 will suggest many other pleasing combi- 

 nations. The basket pictured contains 

 straggly Azalea Hexe or Firefly in the 

 background. A white cyclamen and a 

 single dracsena add color. The draceena, 

 kentia and fern add a little variety to 

 the effect and the ribbon is looped from 

 one handle to th^ other, with a bow on 

 each. 



In a hamper of birchbark or wicker- 

 work, almost any plant looks well. This 

 style of basket you will find a little more 

 difficult to make up than the regular 

 style. Use some bushy plant for the 

 body and then something tall to stand 

 out between, as, for instance, a cocos. 

 Tie a bow to match, either on top of the 

 cover or on its edge. 



Dracaena terminalis is effective in bas- 

 ket work. 



A prettily arranged basket of begonias 

 will please the ladies. This may be a 

 dainty 'handle basket, with a bow of deli- 

 cate pink or blue ribbon tied to the han- 

 dle. 



There is really no limit to the number 

 of pretty combinations a floral artist 

 can make in the basket line. In fact, it 

 does not even require an artist, as any 

 man with good taste can arrange sortie 

 nice baskets. 



At Easter, when we have plenty of 

 lilies and such a great variety of other 

 plants at our disposal, is the time to dis- 

 play baskets. The Eeview frequently 

 shows half-tones of plant arrangements, 

 some of which are exceptionally fine. An 

 observing person can learn much from 

 these studies. 



At times when you have no blooming 

 plants at your service, there are many 

 pailms, crotons, dracsenas, ferns, pan- 

 danus, etc., which will make fine combi- 

 nations. 



In planting baskets you must exercise 

 the same care about not having the 

 plants looking stiff as you would in 



making up a bouquet or spray of funeral 

 flowers. Hugo Schroeter. 



EASTER LILIES. 



1 have 200 multiflorum lilies and 100 

 giganteum lilies that were planted last 

 October. They were outside and brought 

 in about three wefeks ago, and are now 

 from tliree to five inches high. Can I 

 bring these in for Easter, and what 

 treatment would you advise? 



W. J. S. 



I am afraid it will be no use your 

 attempting to force your lilies into bloom 

 for Easter if they are no more than 

 from three to five inches high now. The 

 date of Easter this year comes unusually 

 late, being April 19, but to be fairly cer-' 

 tain of having them in flower at that 

 time the buds should be seen when Lent 

 comes in, whicfi this year was on March 

 4. Rather than make a futile effort to 

 flower them for Easter, it will be much 

 better to keep them iii a moderately cool 

 house, say 45 degrees at night, and hold 

 them for Memorial day, when such flow- 

 ers are in good demand. C. "W. 



CARNATION NOTES.— EAST. 



Indoor Culture. 



There is no question as to indoor cul- 

 ture being practical, even from a com- 

 mercial standpoint, and in these days of 

 rapid changes it is fitting that this 

 method should receive attention. 



It will Aot do, however, to discard that 

 which has given good results and accept 

 without question a plan which may not 

 be suited to every grower's requirements. 

 My experience with indoor culture began 

 in the year 1901, when we grew the old 

 varieties, such as Eldorado, Daybreak 

 and Jubilee, under glass all summer. The 

 venture demonstrated the possibility of 

 its being done successfully and that by 

 this means long-stemmed flowers could be 

 had early in the season. But after care- 

 ful comparisons, extending over several 

 years, with results obtained from field- 

 grown plants of the same varieties, it 

 could not be said to add sufficiently to 

 the returns to offset the extra attention 

 and increased expenses demanded by the 

 method. 



At that time carnations commanded 

 only a moderate price, but were gaining 

 in favor, and with the birth of Lawson 

 we saw not only a substantial advance in 

 the popularity and profitableness of the 



divine flower, but also secured a variety 

 peculiarly suited to indoor culture. 



As was predicted at the time of this 

 variety's introduction, many changes 

 have come about, one of the most notice-' 

 able being the increased tendency to 

 grow under glass all summer. It would 

 be against my general principles to dis- 

 courage the practice of any system calcu- 

 lated to bring about an advance in car- 

 nation culture, but I think it proper to 

 present the following conclusions, reached 

 after several years ' close observation and 

 inquiry. 



What Have Experiments Proved ? 



To the large wholesale grower or the 

 carnation specialist, indoor ciiftu^ at 

 least to some extent, is almost imperative, 

 but to the average grower of a general 

 line for his own retail trade this method 

 offers no particular inducement, and to 

 none does this plan present any advan- 

 tage unless his market appreciates and 

 demands first-class, long-stemmed stock 

 and is willing to pay accordingly. 



We occasionally read reports of in- 

 stances where indoor-grown plants have 

 given a remarkable yield over field-grown 

 ones, when perhaps the grower leaned 

 somewhat toward the former method at 

 the outset. Quite likely, if two growers 

 of equal ability had each been given a 

 house to demonstrate the possibilities of 



the two methods, the results would not 

 have been far apart at the season's end. 



Now, I do not mean to imply that 

 there was any partiality shown in the 

 experiment of Dr. Galloway, nor do I 

 wish to criticise the methods of the De- 

 partment of Agriculture, but would call 

 attention to the fact that the field-grown 

 plants were not brought in until Sep- 

 tember, which date at the present time is 

 considered far too late for the commer- 

 cial grower to entertain hopes of profit- 

 able returns. In fact, some of our lead- 

 ing sorts, if held in the field until early 

 fall, give indifferent account of them- 

 selves until spring. 



My contention has always been that 

 plants should be housed when somewhat 

 under sized; then, in making further 

 growth in the bench soil, their thorough 

 establishment and acclimatization are as- 

 sured. Benched in September, a month 

 or six weeks of growth essential to their 

 very existence as bread winners is lost. 



Geo. S. Osborn. 



CARNATION NOTES.- WEST. 



Topping Young Plants. 



I notice that some of the young plants 

 which were potted out of the first prop- 

 agation are ready for topping. This 

 I should not be neglected after they once 



