The Weekly Florists' Review. 



NOTBMBBB 6, 1008. 



ROOTING THE CUTTINGS. 



In propagating geraniums, I think it 

 is a good plan to pick out short cuttings 

 and lay them in the sun for several hours. 

 I made some hundreds of cuttings in 

 August and laid them for a whole day 

 on the lawn, in the blazing sun. After 

 that I put them straight into pots, gave 

 them a good watering and then kept them 

 pretty dry until they were rooted. From 

 these very plants I am able to take some 

 cuttings again, as they are from five to 

 six inches tall. I have always believed 

 that the roots of those struck in boxes 

 get damaged too much while potting. 

 W. M. 



GENERAL CULTURE. 



I am not in the least surprised that C. 

 W., whose communication on geraniums 

 appeared in the Review of October 15, 

 did not find shade of any advantage in 

 prevention of damping in geranium cut- 

 tings. In fact, shade should be avoided 

 absolutely when caring for geraniums, no 

 ^matter whether in the process of rooting 

 or growing after being rooted. 



After the plants are rooted it may be 

 safely enough advised that the cooler 

 they are kept the better the plants will 

 be. By that is not meant that they 

 should be subjected to a freezing tem- 

 perature; everybody knows better than 

 that. 



I have never believed in or practiced 

 what is known as sprinkling. Instead, 

 when the plants are in need of water I 

 let them have it in suflScient quantity, 

 and no more until they get into a like 

 condition again. 



The plants should be kept in low 

 houses and as near the glass as possible. 

 All decayed foliage should be removed 

 from the plants. M. 



TROUBLES IN PROPAGATING. 



Though my experience in propagating 

 geraniums dates only from the fall of 

 1907, it may be interesting and helpful 

 to other beginners. My son, not then 

 twenty years of age, had for several 

 years been growing geraniums and other 

 bedding plants in a small way — about 

 7,000 geraniums and several thousand 

 other plants each year — and had good 

 success in rooting the cuttings. He con- 

 tracted typhoid fever in August, 1907, 

 and died in September. 



As I bad paid little attention to the 

 rooting of cuttings and had failed to 

 get information from a paper that my 

 son had been getting regularly, I was 

 obliged to go on without knowledge of 

 the best methods, and the result was 

 that I lost 6,000 out of 7,000. Later I 

 received some information on the sub- 

 ject and toward spring was succeeding 

 well, rooting a high per cent. 



This fall, August 1, we put in two 

 lots of cuttings, one of zonal and one of 

 scented geraniums. Of the zonals every 

 one rooted well, and of the scented al- 

 most all. August 15 I went over the 



stock plants and broke some cuttings 

 almost off, letting them hang about ten 

 days. I then took off these cuttings, to- 

 gether with a lot of others that had not 

 been previously broken. In 2,000 of 

 these I lost not over fifty, and I saw no 

 difference in their rooting. But my suc- 

 cess, I think, was on account of the dry 

 weather, which put the growth in better 

 condition for rooting than was the case 

 a year ago. 



I put the cuttings in about three 

 inches of sand, on a bed in the green- 

 house, and keep the ground moist and 

 shade a few days during the hottest part 

 of the day, but never while the tops are 

 wet from watering. 



I know very little about this matter, 

 but am anxious to learn all I can and 

 would be glad to hear from others. 



E. BUSHYAQEE. 



REPOTTING A LARGE PALM. 



A customer brought a large palm, 

 something on the order of a latania, but 

 more slender, to be repotted. I cannot 

 remember the name of it. It had been 

 growing in the yard during the summer 

 and had been thoroughly potbound, be- 

 ing in a 14-inch pot. We cut the roots 

 some from the bottom, enough to get it 



into a 12-inch tub — Fibrotta ware — and 

 sent it home. They placed it on the 

 third floor, under a tin roof, in a room 

 50x120 feet, where the fresh air was not 

 plentiful. There have only been two or 

 three days when the sun was very hot 

 and all the other plants were there with 

 it, with no signs of decay on them. 



My customer states that the girl only 

 took a gallon of water for seven plants^ 

 none of them being in less than 9-incli 

 pots. The palm tub was filled to the- 

 very top with soil, as we did not like to- 

 cut the roots more than was necessary,, 

 and she should have gone back and re- 

 watered it in order to give it enough.. 

 They have had many palms and always- 

 have them around, but this is the first 

 one to act so, and as it is a valuable- 

 palm, I feel badly about having a part 

 in the trouble. 



I meant to say that it began dying,, 

 the lower leaves first, and while the new- 

 est five leaves are still in fine condition^ 

 the rest are past all help. The leaves- 

 died at the outer edge first and then to- 

 ward the center, where they have already 

 turned a light yellow and are fading: 

 fast. D. B. 



It was a mistake to prune the rooter 

 of this palm and also to repot it at this 

 season of the year, when the active grow- 

 ing season is past, and especially when 

 the plant was to be subjected to such 

 treatment as seems to have -been given 

 in this case. The cause of the trouble 

 undoubtedly is the root pruning and lack 

 of care, and from the description givent 

 ^t would seem doubtful if the plant willl 

 recover. The roots of a palm should not 

 be cut away, except in the spring, and! 

 even then the plant needs extra care, in 

 a warm and shaded greenhouse, for some- 

 time afterward to enable it to become re- 

 established. W. H. Taplin. 



I THE RETAIL -^^A^-^l 



FLORIST...... I 



PLATEAU OF ROSES. 



The accompanying illustration shows a 

 plateau of roses, an arrangement so fre- 

 quently used on, the luncheon or dinner 

 table. This was made by Charles Henry 

 Fox, Sign of the Rose, Phil^idelpbia, 

 who also employs it effectively on a 

 sadder occasion. It is only necessary to 

 add that but one variety of roses is used 

 in any plateau. Either Bride, Kaiserin, 

 Ivory or Killarney would be effective in 

 such an arrangement. Phil. 



SHOWER BOUQUETS. 



Will you please give us a few brief 

 directions how to make shower bouquets 

 of lily of the valley, sweet peas or vio- 

 lets? R. E. T. 



After any of the finer or smaller flow- 

 ers are made up into a shower bouquet, 

 the general appearance is about the same 

 — it is in the arranging or making up 

 that the difference lies. Let us first con- 

 sider lily of the valley, which is the most 

 popular, as well as the flower best adapt- 

 ed for this purpose. 



A medium size valley bouquet will re- 

 quire from 100 to 125 sprays, depending- 

 somewhat upon the fullness. This of" 

 course does not include those flowers to- 

 be used in connection with the shower- 

 of ribbon. 



Before beginning work on the bouquet 

 itself it would bo wise to prepare the 

 narrow ribbon for the shower, as this- 

 will not be so apt to wilt as the valley. 

 It will take from twenty to fifty yards 

 of ribbon to produce a nice, effective 

 shower. You can use either the regular 

 baby ribbon or, if a wider ribbon is 

 wanted, use No. 1% or No. 2 gauze or 

 satin taffeta. The gauze ribbon makes 

 up prettily. There are several ways of 

 making up the shower of ribbon. One is 

 to use the whole piece, the other to cut 

 it into various lengths. In either case 

 have someone handy at tying bows to tie 

 little bow knots about seven inches to 

 ten inches apart on the ribbon. If yovt 

 want the effect of streamers, cut the 

 ribbon into lengths varying from one to- 

 two feet, gather these pieces up at one 

 end and hold them together with a rosette 



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