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The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



August 27, 1908. 



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SEASONABLE 



SUGGESTIONS 



1 



I 



Bouvardias. 



While we may not have any frost for 

 some time yet, it is well to lift the bou- 

 vardias during the present month and 

 either pot or bench them. Where a con- 

 siderable number are grown, the bench 

 system is to be preferred. A house 

 where a winter minimum of 55 degrees 

 can be maintained will flower bouvardias 

 finely. In lifting, try to retain a little 

 soil on the roots. Some growers, we are 

 aware, prefer to shake away all com- 

 post when lifting such plants as these, 

 but our experience has been that when 

 a little ball is retained the plants wilt 

 for a much shorter period. 



A soaking of water as soon as planted, 

 shade for ten days or so, and frequent 

 light sprayings overhead are necessary 

 to allow the plants to become estab- 

 lished. Pot plants will require a little 

 shade during the hottest part of the 

 day. This can be provided by running 

 lath shadings over them. Keduce the 

 shading a little daily, and root action 

 will soon become active. Do not stand 

 the plants under trees or in dense shade. 

 They will take longer to establish them- 

 selves under such conditions. 



Berried Solanums. 



Berried solanums planted in the field 

 will now be full of berries. While there 

 is no immediate hurry about lifting 

 these, the work can be commenced at 

 any time. As a rule, 6-inch pots will be 

 found sufficiently large for the biggest 

 plants. Ram the soil in the pots firmly. 

 Keep well soaked with water, and it is 

 surprising how fast the plants will estab- 

 lish themselves. A little shade will be 

 needed for a few days, but within a 

 week they will stand full sunshine. So- 

 lanums arc inexpensive plants to grow, 

 but shapely, well berried specimens al- 

 ways meet with a ready sale at Christ- 

 mas. 



Chrysanthemums. 



Growth with the mums is now rapid, 

 and the work of keeping side shoots re- 

 moved and tying is one of increasing 

 magnitude. It does not pay to neglect 

 this work, for too often growers wait 

 until they can rub off the side growths 

 literally by the armful. It is poor policy 

 to allow your stock to get into this con- 

 dition. Look over a bench each day, 

 choosing morning or evening for the 

 work, and you will soon take care of a 

 large number of plants. The early 

 benched stock will now require a lot of 

 water, and if a mulch of well rotted cow 

 manure has not been applied, it should 

 go on now. Do not use green cow ma- 

 nure. It will do more harm than good. 



Bush plants should now be in their 

 flowering pots. Any not yet lifted from 

 benches or the open ground should be 

 potted as soon as possible. Get neces- 

 sary staking done or high winds will 

 damage them badly if outdoors. As the 

 pots become well filled with roots, liquid 

 stimulants alternated with a top-dress- 

 ing of a good chemical fertilizer can be 



applied once in four or five days. Ex- 

 cept on robust growing kinds, pinching 

 should now cease. On these the strong- 

 est shoots can still be stopped. Aphis 

 must be fought persistently, either by 

 fumigation or syringing with a nicotine 

 extract. 



Stevias. 



The every-day, easily grown, winter 

 blooming stevias are rather a common- 

 place subject, but can hardly be dis- 

 pensed with by any country florist. There 

 should be no more pinching done to 

 these after this time. It is not a good 

 plan to leave the plants in the field until 

 frost threatens. By that time winds 

 will have shattered them badly and lift- 

 ing will be a harder task than if done 

 now. We like to see our plants potted 

 before September 1 and the tall variety 

 will be made all the safer if a stake is 

 used in each pot. The dwarf variety does 

 not require any support. It is well to 

 keep the pots of stevias outdoors as late 

 as possible, but remember that the least 

 breath of frost spells death to them. 



Gittleya Labiata. 



The Cattleya labiata can now be se- 

 cured so cheaply that it is no wonder 

 that more and more florists are trying 

 a few each year. As a rule, the first 

 crop of flowers will easily pay for the 

 initial cost of the plants, and there is 

 no reason why any florist, who can give 

 them a winter temperature of 55 to 60 

 degrees, should not produce enough to 

 make an attractive show at his store, or 

 to use in design work or help out his 

 group at the local fall exhibition. Just 

 now the sheaths are well advanced and 

 the plants should have a little less shade. 

 A good water supply is still needed, for 

 the sun still has great power. An 

 abundance of fresh air and a position 

 as near the light as possible is what all 

 cattleyas enjoy. The earliest labiatas 

 usually open in September and the crop 

 lasts until after Thanksgiving. The long 

 season of bloom makes them of particu- 

 lar value to florists who have calls for 

 choice flowers for design work. 



Tritomas. 



For decoration of store windows the 

 tritomas, or kniphofias, as botanists now 

 prefer to call them, are of great value 

 in the fall. For room decoration they * 

 look well arranged in large vases. In 

 the garden border, clumps are very tak- 

 ing at this season. These plants are of 

 such easy culture that no florist need be 

 without a row in his garden. Seed sow- 

 ing is the best means of propagation. 

 It is not too late now to sow seeds to 

 produce flowering plants for next fall. 

 Sow the seed in rows rather thinly in a 

 coldframe and afford sash protection 

 after freezing-up weather. Plant out 

 in nursery rows two feet apart in April 

 and a large proportion of the plants will 

 bloom in the fall. In the following year 

 a much heavier lot of flowers will be 

 produced. If your land is of a sandy 

 or gravelly nature and the plants are 



on a slope, they will winter out with 

 a coating of leaves or strawy manure. 

 On land with heavy soil, where water is 

 liable to stand, it is safer to lift and 

 store the roots on a cellar floor, giving 

 them a covering of sand or dry loam. 

 The old variety Tritoma Uvaria grandi- 

 flora, with spikes of rich crimson and 

 orange flowers, blooms freely in Septem- 

 ber and October. The variety Pfitzerii 

 starts blooming in August, continuing 

 until frost, and makes a brilliant show 

 with its orange scarlet flowers. It makes 

 a striking feature for a show window 

 or in a decoration. 



German Iris* 



To keep them in excellent condition, 

 Iris Germanica should be transplanted 

 every other year. It is true that we can 

 see clumps which have not been moved 

 or separated for many years, and which 

 still flower freely each year. These same 

 plants would, however, be vastly im- 

 proved by being lifted, divided and re- 

 planted in fresh land. It may seem 

 somewhat early to start transplanting 

 iris, but the plants are now in a good 

 condition for removal, and the earlier 

 the work is done the better crop of 

 flowers will you have next May and 

 June. 



Entirely apart from any value it may 

 have for cutting, and this is consider- 

 able, the iris appeals strongly to all 

 lovers of hardy plants and the florist 

 who carries an up-to-date variety is sure 

 to have many orders for plants. The fol- 

 lowing list comprises a few fine sorts: 

 Pallida Dalmatica, Mme. Chereau, L 'In- 

 nocence, Queen of May, Her Majesty, 

 Gracchus, aurea. Bridesmaid, Celeste, 

 Florentina and flavescens. The German 

 iris likes ground which has been well 

 manured, but should not be planted 

 where water will stand in winter. 



Miscellaneous. 



With weather conditions such as exist 

 now, it would seem to be a far-off cry 

 to winter, but each year frosts occur in 

 many of our northern states sometimes 

 as early as the middle of September. 

 Temperature changes, when they come, 

 are often sharp and sudden and it be- 

 hooves us to be prepared for them. 

 There is a lot of work still to be done 

 on most places before all benches are 

 filled with their winter crops, and in the 

 rush of such duties the heating plant is 

 apt to be overlooked. Attend to any 

 necessary changes now, while the weather 

 is warm, and do not wait until frost 

 threatens before commencing on them. 



There can be no better time than the 

 present for painting and glazing. Get 

 this work under way now. How about 

 the coal supply? Prices are this season 

 strictly moderate on all greenhouse coals. 

 Better lay in a good store now, while 

 your dealer can deliver the goods with 

 promptness. This is the time to do any 

 necessary pointing to the stone or brick- 

 work about chimneys or cellar walls. 

 Cement sets quickly now. It will be 

 otherwise if you postpone doing it until 

 the early winter blasts remind you of the 

 necessity for it. 



SCRANTON, Pa. — The florists of Lacka- 

 wanna and Luzerne counties held their 

 second annual outing at Moosic Lake, 

 August 12. A large number were pres- 

 ent. A basket lunch was partaken of 

 at noon, and the afternoon was occupied 

 with athletic events, including a base- 

 ball game between Wilkes-Barre and 

 Scranton florists. The party returned 

 late in the evening. 



