May 14. 1908. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



Wutaria Oiinmrit/a Usefttl Eaiter Plant If Focced a Little. 



BEST PEAS FOR FORCING. 



I would like to know which are the 

 two best sweet peas for growing under 

 glass for winter bloom. L. N. B. 



The two best sweet peas for green- 

 house use are Christmas Pink or Earliest 

 of All, pink and white; and Mont Blanc, 

 pure white. There are several other 

 colors raised by A. C. Zvolanek, which 

 do well and might sell in a limited way, 

 but the two shades named are the best 

 commercial ones. C. W. 



STANDARD WISTARIAS. 



As climbers, the Chinese wistarias have 

 no equal. Quite a number of small speci- 

 mens are now annually grown in pots 

 or tubs for Easter sales. In the majority 

 of cases these are but sparsely bloomed, 

 being dug up and potted in the previous 

 fall. In order to obtain good standards, 

 the best plan is to secure some strong 

 nursery stock. Plant these out in the 

 field and cut away all but the strongest 

 shoot. Tie this to a stout stake and 

 top it at any desired height. Grow in 

 the field a couple of years to strengthen 

 it. Then dig it up with as good roots 

 as possible and place in a large pot or 

 tub. When established in these recep- 

 tacles they will give each season a wealth 

 of racemes. They can grow for a num- 

 ber of years in the same tubs by giving 

 a rich annual top-dressing and feeding 

 well with liquid manure during the 

 summer. 



Shoots showing a tendency to run 

 should always be pinched back, in order 

 to keep the heads as bushy as possible. 

 A cold pit or cellar makes a suitable 

 storage place. Care must be taken that 



the plants do not become dry at the 

 roots, or a loss of flower buds will ensue. 

 If the temperature falls to 15 degrees 

 no harm will result. W. Chinensis and its 

 white form are better than the looser 

 racemed W. multijuga for tub culture. 

 Some of the finest specimens of wis- 



tarias we have ever seen are on the es- 

 tate of Prof. C. S. Sargent, in Brookline, 

 Mass. Some of these are of a great age, 

 stand ten feet or more in height and an- 

 nually carry thousands of racemes each. 

 Such plants are splendid for piazza 

 decorations. W. N. C. 



PREPARATIONS FOR PLANTING. 



Collecting the Soil. 



To have soil in good condition for 

 the planting season, it ought to be col- 

 lected in good time. If the collecting 

 has not already been done, no time should 

 be lost in having this most necessary 

 work performed. 



For my own use I prefer soil col- 



lected during spring, as I find it not so 

 liable to produce that green scum on 

 the surface as that which has been 

 piled up during the winter. 



The top spit, four or five inches deep, 

 from old pasture land, where the soil 

 is of a yellow, loamy nature, is, in my 

 experience, suitable for nearly all va- 

 rieties of roses. This should be built 

 in a neat pile and not thrown loosely 

 in a heap. The sides should be kept 

 as nearly vertical as possible by building 

 up with sods until the pile is about 

 a foot high, keeping count of the num- 

 ber of loads. Then, on top of this, to 

 every five loads of soil spread one load 

 of rich old cow manure; then another 



