14 



Hic Weekly Florists' Review* 



Februakt 11, 1000. 



I 



SEASONABLE -^^Ai^i 



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SUGQpSTIONS I 





Show Pelargoniufflt. 



With the increasing sunlight and 

 lengthening days, pelargoniums 'are now 

 growing quite rapidly and any which 

 have not been shifted into their flower- 

 ing pots should be potted as soon as 

 possible. For compost use two parts 

 fibrous loam and one part old dried cow 

 manure, also adding a dash of fine bone 

 and sand. Eam the compost in the 

 pots firmly and be sure the drainage 

 is efficient. Stand the plants in a cool, 

 light, airy house and space them out be- 

 fore they become crowded. Any pinch- 

 ing should be discontinued after this 

 date, or the blooming period will be late. 

 These showy pelargoniums are of no use 

 for bedding out, but make good house 

 plants and will flower quite a long time 

 on a shaded piazza if kept well watered. 

 Their arch enemy, green aphis, must 

 never be allowed any quarter. White 

 fly also has a special liking for these 

 pelargoniums. Hydrocyanic Acid gas is 

 the only remedy. Use it on a cool night. 

 Experience has shown that two ounces 

 sulphuric acid, two ounces water and one 

 ounce potassium cyanide for a house 

 20x50 will overcome the white fly. Leave 

 the jar in all night, being sure to lock 

 the door and allow no one to enter. 



Cinerarias. 



Plants of the early batch of cinerarias 

 are now in flower. These have nice foli- 

 age right down to the pots aijd sell well. 

 As house plants they are satisfactory 

 until they get an attack of green aphis. 

 Their large, showy flowers seem to have a 

 peculiar attraction for many retail pur- 

 chasers. Cinerarias can hardly be grown 

 too cool; anything short of absolute 

 freezing suits them to a nicety. They 

 are speedily ruined in a high temperature 

 and simply will not stand forcing. 



The late batoh^ftiould now be in their 

 flowering pots iaWGw^ the sun's rays are 

 now getting quite strong, a light sha^e 

 on the glass should be afforded, or, better 

 still, a length of shading, cloth be ^hung 

 over them. Pots well fiR^jSi^-'^jpots 

 should be afforded liqimT^aaurd' tnce 

 in four or five days. Go ;siow.''pn chem- 

 icals or you will find the foliage lying 

 down quite limp on sunny days.' 



Spiraeas. \ 



. Any spirseas wante^ for EaSter must 

 now be moved into^l^^fit without delay. 

 Thd common variety, '-S'. Japonl|pa, comes 

 in JEdiead of the' other varietit* but its 

 inferiority to stfch sorts as (Badstone, 

 Washington, compacta and astilboides is 

 so pronounced that many gro^trers have 

 noTT droppi^d the old variety , and are . 

 growing the newer sorts. Spiifeas gcowj 

 fast in a warm house and will ' require ' 

 spacing out frequently. They can hguf^ly 

 be overwatered, and later in tlje season 

 it pays to place a saucer under each one. * 

 Go light on fumigation wheii|L.. your 

 spirseas are growing. ReraelnlJtr that 

 they will stand even less smoke than 

 adiantums. Either place the plants on 

 the floor or cover with paper, if yoti' 



must fumigate other plants in the house 

 where they are growing. 



! Lilies. . < 



How are the Easter lilies coming 

 along? To be absolutely sure of your 

 plants being in. on time, you should 

 be able to see and count the flower buds 

 the first week in March. If you can- 

 not do this, your plants will need hur- 

 rying. A night temperature of 60 de- 

 grees should be allowed plants which 

 are \ a little backward ; increase the heat 

 5 degrees after buds show. If any 

 plants are already showing" buds, they 

 must be retarded.- Do not, however, rush 

 them from a temperature of 60 degrees 

 to one of 40 or 45 degrees, or you will 

 probably ruin most. of the buds. A house 

 kept at 50 degrees wili.-suit them. As 

 the buds open they can have a house 

 several degrees cooler. 



To time lilies exactly needs a lot of 

 care and judgment. The bulbs from 

 one batch would flower over a space of 

 three months if uniformly treated. Much 

 moving around of backward plants into 

 heat, and retarding of too advanced ones 

 will be necessary during the next few 

 weeks. Spray the plants overhead once 

 or twice a day and see that they do not 

 suffer from want of water. Do not let 

 up on the usual fumigating, or aphis 

 will soon cause trouble. 



Rhododendrons. 



Rhododendrons, if nicely bloomed, 

 make salable Easter plants, the pink and 

 white colors being the best sellers. The 

 variety Pink Pearl, still scarce and high 

 in price, is the queen of the family. Such 

 sorts as album elegans, Boule de Niege, 

 delicatissimum and floriosum make good 

 pot plants. Cunningham's White is the 

 best early forcing variety, coming in a 

 fortnight ahead of the other kinds named. 

 These rhododendrons, if placed now in a 

 temperature of 50 degrees and syringed 

 twice a day, will be along in nice season 



for Eastw. When pttiSaally expanded, 

 they may be given cooler quarters. 



Kalmia Latifolia. 



Quite a few kalmias, or mountain 

 laurels, are in evidence at the better 

 class stores each Easter. Thete is no spe- 

 cial treatpient required to flower them 

 successfully." If the plants, which should 

 have been well budded, were potted up 

 in late fall, all the better, but this work 

 can still be done. They will come into 

 flower in seven or eight weeks in a tem- 

 perature of 50 to 52 degrees and can be 

 treated similarly to the rhododendrons. 

 All these shrubs appreciate frequent 

 sprayings overhead. 



Sweet Peas. 



Sweet peas are now growing rapidly 

 and the length and strength of flower 

 stems will soon reach their maximum. 

 A night temperature of 48 to 50 degrees 

 suits plants which are flowering. This 

 is exceeded' by many growers, but our 

 experience has been that quality has gen- 

 erally been lacking where they have 

 been grown warmer. More abundant 

 water supplies and free ventilation will 

 be needed to keep the vines in a healthy, 

 growing condition. Do not pick the flow- 

 ers in aay iiapRazard. manner. Go over 

 certain 'rows thoroughly each day and 

 then give them two or three days' rest. 

 Pick the flowers clean; allow none to go 

 to seed. Pull up any dead haulm and 

 be sure not to neglect the ties, or twisted, 

 unsalable flower stems will speedily re- 

 sult. Be sure you have supports in readi- 

 ness for the late batches. It is really 

 surprising how fast they grow now. 



To secure a good, early batch out- 

 doors, start a quantity of seeds in a 

 cool house about February 20. Place 

 three or four seeds in a 3-inch pot. These 

 can later be placed in a frame and 

 planted outdoors in April. You will get 

 far finer and earlier flowers from seed 

 started in this way, as compared with 

 what you may sow in the open six weeks 

 hence. 



Rambler Roses. 



Rambler rose plants wanted for Easter 

 flowering should by now have broken 

 freely and have shoots several inches 

 long. Be sure they have a sunny house 

 and avoid cold draughts, which will 

 speedfly cause an attack of mildew. 

 There will be little danger from red 

 spider if you keep a moist, genial at- 

 mosphere and use the ' spray nozzle on 



Store of Buffalo Cot Flower Co., Buffalo, N. Y. 



