The Weekly Florists' Review. 



Mat 28, 1908. 



the piece should be high and it should 

 taper toward the points. When called 

 upon to make up a star for the ladies' 

 auxiliary of the Masons or, in other 

 words,' the Eastern Star, five colors are 

 necessary, namely, red, blue, yellow, 

 white and green. Each color should run 

 to the center of the star, ending in a 

 point. 



Bases for Various Designs. 



There are numerous ways of making 

 up a base for designs. Often all that 

 is needed is to cover the base with galax 

 leaves. To do this nicely stem two to- 

 gether, the same as for a wreath. Then 

 commence at 'the bottom of the base and 

 insert the leaves over one another, work- 

 ing upward, the same as you work along 

 in making a wreath of galax leaves. 

 When your base is a long one, as on a 

 gates ajar, a good plan is to arrange 

 some flowers nicely on one side and bal- 

 ance the design on the other side with 

 some green, using probably some small 

 cycas leaves in with the rest. On an 

 extra large base some calla or other 

 lilies look well. 



Many florists overdo the use of cycas 

 leaves in a base. These look fine when 

 used judiciously, but not when a number 

 of 24-inch leaves are stuck in the base 

 of a small design. When you have let- 

 tering to put on a base, unless by spe- 

 cial request, do not have the letters so 

 large as to cover the whole base. 



Now, to make a long story short, there 

 are a hundred and one ways of making 

 up floral designs; in fact, no two are 

 ever made just alike. Neither do any 

 two florists make their work alike. As 



BEGONIAS. 



Hints on Handling Lorraine. 



At this season it will be timely to give 

 a few hints on the care of winter-flower- 

 ing begonias, especially Begonia Gloire 

 de Lorraine and its types, for the time 

 is close at hand when those who do not 

 propagate their own stock will be re- 

 ceiving their plants from the wholesale 

 plantsman for growing on ana flower- 

 ing. 



The propagation by leaf -cuttings takes 

 place here from November till January. 

 The stems of single leaves are inserted 

 firmly in the sand bed, about one inch 

 deep, where they remain from six to 

 seven weeks. Great care is exercised in 

 watering, and a temperature of 62 to 65 

 degrees at night is maintained during 

 this period. 



In January, or when the leaves are 

 well rooted, they are potted singly into 

 2-inch pots, in a compost of two parts 

 loam and one part sand. Here one must 

 exercise the greatest care in watering, as 

 during continued damp and rainy weath- 

 er they are liable to damp and rot off. 

 From this time on, the night tempera- 

 ture is kept at from 60 to 62 degrees. 



About June 1 these leaf cuttings 

 should have become nice little plants, 

 with several shoots coming up from the 

 center of each one. They then are ready 

 to ship, or to repot into 3-inch or 4-inch 

 pots. At this time use two parts loam, 

 one part sand, and about ten per cent of 

 old, well-rotted cow manure. 



They should at all times be moderately 

 shaded. The young plants like some sun. 



Lorraine Begonia from Leaf Cutting. 



this is a fact, it is impossible to make 

 any set rules. Therefore my advice to 

 the beginner is, when working on a de- 

 sign, keep in mind the design, or rather 

 article you are trying to represent, add- 

 ing such embellishment as will add to 

 the general appearance of the piece with- 

 out making a wreath look like a dough- 

 nut without a hole in it. 



Hugo Scheoeter. 



Westport, Md. — Louis Strunz says 

 business has been very good and that 

 he has no complaint to make of spring 

 plant trade. 



but not too much. On the other hand, 

 too deep shade does more harm than 

 good. Watering at all times must be 

 done carefully, for they don't like ex- 

 tremes, either too Met, or too dry. Dur- 

 ing the growing season, however, they 

 require an abundance of water, but 

 should be allowed to dry out fairly well 

 every time, then watered thoroughly. 



The final repotting of Begonia Gloire 

 de Lorraine and its varieties is done in 

 August, into 6ineh or 7-inch pots. For 

 this shift use two parts loam, one part 

 sand, and one j)art well-rotted cow ma- 

 nure. Allow plenty of space between 



the pots when placed on the bench. As 

 a preventive from insects, tobacco stems 

 are put between the pots, and these 

 should be changed every four weeks. Do 

 not syringe the plants overhead at any 

 time. During continued dull or rainy 

 weather, keep the plants and greenhouse 

 as dry as possible. 



In September begin tying up. For 

 training plants, one stick in the center 

 is quite sufficient. During fall and win- 

 ter months a temperature of 58 to 60 de- 

 grees at night is enough for their well- 

 being. " 



The culture of Lorraine is really quite 

 simple, consisting principally of careful 

 attention — failure, in nearly every case, 

 is due to neglect — and I hope these few 

 lines may help to put more growers on 

 the right lines for success with this beau- 

 tiful winter-flowering plant. 



- ., - J. A. Peterson. 



DRYING OFF CALLAS. 



How soon, and how, should callas be 

 dried off for the summer? The plants 

 in question are large ones and have been 

 in a solid bench all winter. Should the 

 plants or bulbs be lifted or left in the 

 bench? Should water be withheld alto- 

 gether, or daily syringings be given ? How 

 soon in the fall can they be started and 

 in what manner? This is our first at- 

 tempt at solid bench planting for cut- 

 ting and has been much more satisfac- 

 tory than pot culture. X*. 



The blooming period for callas being 

 now practically over, the callas should 

 be kept drier at the root from this time. 

 In the case of pot plants, these can be 

 laid on their sides outdoors in a sunny 

 spot. It is not wise to dry off too sud- 

 denly. If, however, you want to use the 

 bench for some summer crop, you can 

 dig them up now, packing them in boxes 

 of earth, and stand either on an unoc- 

 cupied bench or outdoors. Give them 

 a little water after lifting and light 

 syringings for a couple of weeks. Then 

 keep quite dry. When the foliage has 

 disappeared, take out the tubers and store 

 in dry sand until you are ready for 

 replanting. 



If you wish to increase your plants, 

 select a number of the longer offsets 

 and plant outdoors. These will make 

 quite strong stock by fall and will bloom 

 well next winter. You can either plant 

 the tubers directly into the benches or 

 start separately in pots. If you plant 

 in the benches, be careful not to over- 

 water for a time, or the tubers are liable 

 to decay. I prefer starting them in 

 pots outdoors before planting inside. The 

 beginning of August is a suitable time to 

 start the tubers. C. W. 



EXPERIENCE IS BEST TEACHER. 



"Experience has taught me," said 

 Wm. Turner, in a recent address before 

 the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, 

 "that some soils will take much inore 

 fertilizer than others. I claim there can 

 be no hard and fast lines laid down in 

 regard to how much fertilizer a certain 

 crop shall receive for best results. My 

 theory has always been that each grower 

 in different localities, and different soils, 

 by studying the condition of his grow- 

 ing crops, is the best judge as to how 

 much feeding will be of benefit. I have 

 no doubt there are various opinions on 

 this important subject, but the grower 

 who carves his own road, using his own 

 good judgment, will usually come out the 



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