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The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



J^NB 18, 1008. 



GENERAL NOTES. 



Exterminating the Black Fly. 



One of the first things to be done after 



{>lanting out is to get the plants perfect- 

 y clean from black fly. Sometimes there 

 are lots of ladybugs around and they 

 will do the work very nicely, but, fail- 

 ing these, smoking must be resorted to. 

 Dusting with tobacco dust, or spraying 

 with any of the liquid preparations, does 

 not seem to do the job thoroughly. 



In my experience the best thing to use 

 is the fumigating kind of tobacco dust. 

 Have everything arranged, and at night- 

 fall close up the house and light the 

 dust. This will give a gentle smoke all 

 night and, if the ventilators are opened 

 early in the morning and the plants 

 sprayed well, no harm will result. If 

 one night does not kill all the flies, use 

 the dust a second time, and after the 

 second application the plants will, gen- 

 erally speaking, keep entirely clean all 

 summer. 



Too many growers are careless about 

 this fly, thinking that it does little harm, 

 but it must live off the plant and of ne- 

 cessity detracts from its general health. 



Staking. 



The staking of the plants should be at- 

 tended to before they get top-heavy and 

 begin to fall over the bench. Most 

 growers have their own system of sup- 

 ports. The one I like best is an iron 

 stake for each plant, which i^ supported 

 by wires running lengthwise over the 

 bed, one wire catching the row of stakes 

 about halfway up and another wire catch- 

 ing them near the top. When the stakes 

 have this double tie, if the wires have 

 been drawn tight, a solid support is 

 secured, to which the plants can be tied 

 with no danger of their being pulled 

 over by heavy syringing or getting top- 

 beavy when growth is completed. 



Many growers run two wires parallel 

 with each row of plants, one down at 

 the bed and one well up in the air, run- 

 ning strings between, to which the plants 

 are tied. This is all right for the aver- 

 age run of plants, but if you want exhi- 

 bition stock and a perfectly straight 

 stem, it is better to have a rigid support, 

 80 that after the plant has made a break 

 it can be closely, tied. 



Spraying. 



Spraying should be diligently attend- 

 ed to on hot days. While the beds uo 

 not need to be kept too wet, but in fact 

 are much better a little on the dry side 

 until the soil is full of roots, yet the at- 

 mosphere should be kept well charged 

 with moisture. Spray the plants and 

 roof and paths and everywhere several 

 times a day on bright days. This keeps 

 down the temperature and the plants 

 positively revel in such treatment. There 



is nothing like it for putting fine foliage 

 on the plants, and it will keep them 

 clean and in a soft, growing condition. 



Ventilation. 



Keep the ventilators open night and 

 day, likewise the doors, and never close 

 them at this season of the year, unless 

 it be to smoke, or unless a storm is brew- 

 ing. A house equipped with side ven- 

 tilators, as well as top ones, will grow 

 better stock than one not so furnished. 

 A close, stuffy atmosphere is bad for 

 the chrysanthemum, and in houses where 

 there is no side ventilation I favor tak- 

 ing out a row of glass, if no better way 

 presents itself of getting a current of 

 air through the plants. ' 



Stock in Sand* 



Stock in sand should be watched and, 

 as soon as it is rooted, should be taken 

 out. Cuttings run weak and sickly very 

 soon if not handled at once. If the house 

 is ready for planting, cuttings can be 

 taken right from the sand and planted. 

 If they are shaded by a pot during the 



hottest part of the day, they will take 

 right hold and come along just as well 

 as potted plants. 



If the house is not ready, there are 

 lots of frames in most florists' establish- 

 ments that are at liberty when the bed- 

 ding stock is gone, and no better place 

 for young stock can be found. 



Charles H. Totty. 



TO POISON ANTS. 



What would you recommend io keep 

 ants out of seed flats? We have con- 

 siderable trouble here with ants in seed 

 flats, particularly salvias and tomatoes. 

 We have had them take all the salvia 

 and tomato seed out of flats in one 

 night. J. W. Y. 



Secure some cyanide of potassium, mix 

 with powdered sugar and drop near the 

 haunts of the ants in the evening. This 

 is the most effective poison we have tried. 

 Use great care in handling the cyanide, 

 as it is deadly poison. The ants are fond 

 of this mixture. , C. W. 



CARRYING OVER ROSES. 



Will you please tell a beginner how 

 to carry over a house of roses. Brides 

 and Maids, that have been in the 

 benches one year? When should I begin 

 to dry them off, and how dry should I 

 keep them? Dry enough to make all 

 the leaves fall off? Do roses require 

 shade at any time during summer? 



Please give explicit details in regard 

 to cutting them back, stating when it 

 should be done and when they should be 

 started again. A. L. K. 



This method of culture requires more 

 care, skill and labor than young stock 

 and, unless carried out by an expert, 

 the results are seldom satisfactory. Some 



experts who have adopted this method 

 have had wonderfully good results, but 

 the majority of growers are content to 

 experiment along these lines on a very 

 limited scale. 



If the plants are in solid benches, be- 

 gin to dry off at once and do it very 

 gradually, never allowing them to be- 

 come so dry as to cause wilting of even 

 the young growth. This process may 

 require three or four weeks, according 

 to weather, quality of soil and other 

 causes. 



If the plants are on raised benches, 

 the same condition can be reached in 

 about half the time. Remove as much 

 of the top soil from between the plants 

 as can be done 'without destroying the 

 roots; then fill up the space with a rich 

 compost. The compost should be of 

 about one part good cow manure to 

 three parts loamy sod, with a generous 

 sprinkling of bone meal. It is a good 

 practice to give a good sprinkling of air- 

 slaked lime before applying the mulch. 

 The whole mass should then get a thor- 



