H 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



OCTOBEB 1, 1908. 



Washington club, and wanted all present 

 to make a note that Mr. Vincent, with 

 all his business and vast estate, still finds 

 time to thank his Creator for the many 

 blessings bestowed on him, as is evi- 

 denced by the fact of his giving the pro- 

 ceeds from the-Juncheon, fancy tables, 

 etc., to his church, for the betterment of 

 his fellowmen. Peter Bisset also made 

 a few remarks on the work accomplished 

 by Mr. Vincent. 



Mr. Patterson, of the State Horticul- 

 tural College, spoke of the good the col- 

 lege gets from Mr. Vincent's achieve- 

 ments and urged the boys present to 

 stick to the farm and pattern after the 

 man who had showed them what could 

 be done; and let their ambitions rise 

 higher than the average country boy, 

 who wants to be a motorman or con- 

 ductor on a trolley line. He also spoke 

 of Maryland being first in the produc- 

 tion of strawberries, first in tomatoes, 

 and fourth in sweet corn and peas. 



Among the speakers were also Mr. 

 Walker, president of the Farmers' League 

 of Delaware; Mr. Harris, and others. 



After this the growers scattered all 

 through the dahlia fields and could be 

 seen everywhere with their notebooks, 

 getting the names of the varieties that 

 looked good to them. Eureka, in the 

 field, attracted special attention, as it 



had an abundance of long-stemmed, beau- 

 tiful pink blossoms of good size. 



Mr. Smith, of the United States Forest 

 Bureau, gave a talk on preserving green- 

 house timber. He showed samples of 

 pine and other wood, treated with creo- 

 sote. His best authority on creosote 

 treatment was Mr. Vincent himself, as 

 he has used it with success for the last 

 three years. All the posts under the 

 benches were dipped at each end and, 

 after three years' use, are perfectly 

 sound. All the lumber used in the con- 

 struction of Mr. Vincent's houses has 

 been treated in this way. Just recently 

 the benches in one house were treated 

 with it, with no bad effects. He also 

 spoke of other experiments, with differ- 

 ent chemicals, now being conducted at 

 the Agricultural Department. 



Arriving in Baltimore, we were taken 

 in charge by a committee of the Balti- 

 more florists. After a good •old German 

 dinner, we were taken to the bowling 

 alleys and we bowled until the wee hours. 

 The score was as follows: 



WASHINGTON. BALTIMOEB. 



Player. Ist 2d 3d Player. Ist 2d 3d 



Shaffer 179 154 172 MacRlch'd. . 145 173 170 



Supper 120 175 169 Perry .....148 193 141 



Jones 100 127 107 T^hr 113 153 196 



McLennox.. 83 186 162 Boone 146 132 155 



Ernest 128 179 170 Seybold ...233 169 198 



Totals 710 821 770 Totals 785 817 856 



o. o. 



ip 



M^S0^S^>P>.<^^.^4^^S0^S^^^*^.'■^=^^^i^^U^^^fm'^^i9i'^;^^M:9^^^i^^ 



SEASONABLE 



SUGGESTIONS 



I 



I 



Lilies. 



The early batch of Harrisii are now 

 two to three inches high and have the 

 pots well filled with roots. From a 

 frame they have been removed to a light, 

 sunny house kept at 55 degrees at night. 

 It is hoped to have a good proportion 

 of these in for Christmas, but in the 

 case of lilies there is ever "many a 

 slip between the cup and the lip." 

 A proportion of these will undoubtedly 

 show disease. A few will be too early 

 and others too late, but in the winter 

 months cut lilies are always useful. It 

 is better not to overwater these lilies. 

 Have you ever taken notice of a batch 

 where the plants which were allowed to 

 become dry looked remarkably clean, and 

 the moister ones the reverse? All the 

 trouble with lilies is not with the grow- 

 ers in Bermuda and Japan, but vrith the 

 man at home. Careless watering seems 

 to spread diseases. 



Cold storage L. speciosums for Christ- 

 mas are now a foot high and should be 

 in season. These are growing in a house 

 kept at 50 degrees at night, and we pre- 

 fer not to force them any more than 

 we can avoid. Be sure that aphis is 

 not allowed to get a footing in any of 

 the lily shoots. A fumigation once a week 

 will keep the plants clean. 



Do not leave any longiflorum bulbs 

 lying around in boxes or benches any 

 longer than you can avoid. The scales 

 will soon show a shriveled appearance if 

 you do not pot them. If unable to pot 

 at once, cover with sand and place in a 

 cool shed or cellar. 



Variegated Vinca. 



There never appears to be much of an 

 overstock of variegated vinca. While 

 it does not mind a little frost, it will 

 not be wise to risk it outdoors any 

 longer in the northern states. Potted up 

 into 4-inch and 5-inch pots and stood 

 along the edges of the benches, they will 

 make beautiful stock for vases next sea- 

 son. If your supply is not so large as 

 you would like, get in a good, generous 

 batch of soft cuttings. These, rubbed 

 off with a heel, will root quickly and 

 make nice, serviceable little plants for 

 spring. This plant really wants to be 

 planted out and grown a year to give it 

 the size necessary for use in vases and 

 window-boxes. 



Lemon-scented Verbenas. 



Do not forget a few cuttings of lemon- 

 scented verbenas. No garden is really 

 complete without one or two plants of 

 it. The propagation of Aloysia citri- 

 odora, as the plant is called botanically, 

 is less easy than that of many other 

 bedding plants. We always find it roots 

 best where it can have a gentle bottom 

 heat, and short, soft cuttings, taken vHth 

 a heel, are the best. In a cold house 

 the cuttings will rot off, but if placed 

 in sharp sand and well watered once a 

 day, there will be no trouble in rooting 

 them in a temperature of 60 degrees. 

 It is always well to lift a few old plants. 

 These, if kept cool and somewhat dry 

 over winter, will yield a fine crop of nice 

 cuttings in March, which will make nice 

 little stock for Memorial day. 



Verbenas. 



Verbenas are so easily raised from 

 seed that few trouble to keep the old 

 plants over winter. A better plan than 

 lifting and heading back the old plants 

 is to root a few cuttings of any specially 

 desirable kinds it is desired to keep over. 

 When rooted, place half a dozen cuttings 

 in 5-iuch pots. Pinch once or twice dur- 

 ing the winter and they will make a nice, 

 stocky lot of cuttings. Verbenas resent 

 coddling and should be carried over in a 

 cool but dry house. Too much moisture 

 will mildew the leaves. They will carry 

 over in a frame until the middle of No- 

 vember and could almost be wintered 

 there if well protected at night. Damp- 

 ness would be their greatest foe. 



Lobelias. 



In some localities the dwarf blue lo- 

 belia does well for bedding. To get a 

 first-class strain, one that will come com- 

 pact and not vary in character, cuttings 

 are far preferable to seeds. The seed- 

 lings are a variable* quantity and quite 

 lack the neat, compact habit of those 

 raised from cuttings. Lift a few old 

 plants. Pot into 4-inch or 5-inch pots. 

 Cut back and stand on a shelf where they 

 can get plenty of sun. On a low bench 

 an excess of moisture will speedily rot 

 the whole plants. In late winter the 

 plants can be cut back again and will 

 then give a big crop of succulent little 

 cuttings, which will make the best of 

 plants for be^^ing- 



Dahlias. 



Frosts have already blackened the 

 dahlias in some places and they cannot 

 be expected to last long in the colder 

 northern states. The undesirable sorts 

 should be marked and any labeling done 

 to prevent confusion another season. 

 There are now really yfar too many va- 

 rieties of dahlias. The average com- 

 mercial florist has little use for more 

 than a few, and a dozen sorts of popu- 

 lar colors are preferable to trying single 

 plants of a hundred or more kinds, many 

 of which even an expert has trouble in 

 detecting points of difference in. Do 

 not cut down the plants as soon as frost 

 has killed the tops. Let them get well 

 dried first. Frequently we get spells of 

 warm weather for a month after the first 

 frosts, and this induces a second growth 

 on cut back plants, which is not to' be 

 desired for the sake of the tubers. 



Gardenias. 



Plants in benches should not have any 

 further pinching after this date, unless 

 they are wanted for spring blooming. 

 Ply the spray nozzle among them twice 

 weekly to keep mealy bug within bounds 

 and fumigate once a week for aphis, 

 which will speedily disfigure the young, 

 soft shoots. Be careful not to over- 

 water the plants. Any sogginess or sour- 

 ness will assuredly start the yellowing 

 of the leaves, which is the bane of so 

 many growers. If the soil is porous, 

 there is less likelihood of this trouble, 

 but if the compost used was not fairly 

 rough, greater care will be necessary to 

 keep the leaves from assuming a golden 

 hue. A temperature of 60 to 65 degrees 

 at night just now is about right. 



Enclosed you will find a cheek for the 

 renewal of my subscription to the Re- 

 view. I let it run out a few weeks ago 

 and I have missed the paper very much. 

 I think it is the best trade paper pub- 

 lished.— H. C. Holmes, Morristown, N. J. 



