Fbbbiiaey 17, 1910. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



n 



Removing to the House. 



Do not have too many plants dug at a 



time, 80 that the roots dry up and the 



plants wilt. Get them in place as soon 



;i:i possible and put a support around 



i.'iem at once. We plant a small section 



ittd then put a support around them 



,efore watering. This holds the plant 



or all time and, when watering or 



^ringing through the summer, holds 



hem upright and in place. 



We find that later in the season we 



lave gained considerably by staking at 



ilanting time. The plants are upright; 



,ew growth will be straight, and, if the 



econd support is not put on as soon aa 



\e would wish, the plants are not lopping 



U over the bench. 



Do not shade the glass unless to keep 



(he sun from taking all the moisture out 



)f your own and the help's carcass. A 



little mud will do this trick, but a much 



better and cleaner shading is whiting and 



water put on by a force pump. This will 



t;ome off by its exposure to the wind or 



rain and does no harm to the paint or 



putty. 



The Endless Round of Details. 



I do not believe in shading the newly 

 planted stock. Keep plenty of moisture 

 around the plants and under the benches 

 for the first week, and your plants will 

 take hold better than if you shaded. 

 Their growth will be firmer and they will 

 not have that wilted appearance when the 

 light strikes them. 



Now comes the time when the best of 

 one's knowledge and intelligence must be 

 brought out. Don't water too much! 

 Don't allow the soil to get too dry! 

 Don't allow the house to get stuflfy! 

 Don't allow the strong wind to strike 

 the plants.! So many "Don'ts, " but 

 there are just as many "Do's," possibly 

 more. Go over every bench, all around 

 every bench; dig in the soil carefully; 

 study the condition of it and the condi- 

 tion of the plants. Water where needed 

 and no more; do this twice a day on 

 bright days, in hot weather. Lots of 

 bother, but one will have been well repaid 

 for bothering before the holidays have 

 passed. There is no such word as failure, 

 if these little "Don'ts" and "Do's" 

 are carried out carefully. They are the 

 minutest details I started with in my 

 paper, and on them is laid the founda- 

 tion for your future profits. 



CAEN ATIONS,PAST AND PRESENT 



[A tmptr by W. H. TapUn, of Brooklyn, 

 N. Y., read at a meeting of the New York 

 Florists' Club, February 14, 1010.] 



So much lias been said and written 

 on the subject of carnations and carna- 

 tion culture during the last few years, 

 and has also been expressed so well, 

 that it seems scarcely possible that I 

 may present anything new on this sub- 

 ject for the consideration of such an 

 up-to-date organization as the New 

 York Florists' Club. The literature of 

 the carnation has become extensive, 

 and there are doubtless many repeti- 

 tions to be already found in it, so pos- 

 sibly a few more will be pardoned at 

 this time. 



The Oversupply of Inferior Blooms. 



That the output of carnations is 

 steadily increasing will, I think, be 

 readily admitted by anyone familiar 

 with the wholesale trade of our city, 

 and that there is no better market for 

 high grade flowers will also be con- 

 ceded by the majority, but it is also 

 unquestionably ti'ue that there are still 



many carnations sent into market that 

 are far from ideal, either in size or 

 condition, and the oversupply of such 

 flowers breaks the market to such a de- 

 gree that good stock is frequently sacri- 

 ficed. It has been said that New York 

 is the dumping ground for the growers 

 of flowers in all the surrounding coun- 

 try at any time when the home markets 

 of these growers become overloaded, 

 and there may be some truth in that 

 assertion, but at the same time one 

 cannot blame the growers for hunting 

 for a market, and the commission men 

 would probably not refuse to accept 

 the trifling percentages that come their 

 way from this outside business. 



Still, the New York market is criti- 

 cal in regard to carnations, as well as 

 other stock, and it is more profitable to 

 the grower to supply the varieties and 

 the grade that the market calls for, 

 rather than to produce simply an ordi- 

 nary run of stock. 



Thirty-five Years Ago. 



To look back some thirty-five years 

 and recall the varieties of that time, 

 and then to glance at the carnations of 

 today, gives room for tl|oughtful com- 

 parison. 



Astoria, Edwardsii, Peerless, Degraw, 

 La Purite — these were among the stock 

 from which in later years an improved 

 race sprang. In fact, it would seem 

 that Astoria was the original parent of 

 most of the yellow varieties that have 

 since been grown. But the onward 

 movement from Degraw and Peerless, 

 down through the multitude of whites 

 that have followed them, until we reach 

 White Enchantress and White Perfec- 

 tion, shows many strides of improve- 

 ment, and what the next ten years may 

 bring forth we can only guess. Pos- 

 sibly that traditional 4-inch flower, on 

 a free growing and free blooming plant, 

 may be among the good things the 

 hybridizers will surprise us with. 



Progress in Pinks and Reds. 



Then there have been the successive, 

 steps from Daybreak and Grace Wilder, 

 through the various shades of pink, 

 until Peter Fisher brought forth En- 

 chantress, the most popular light pink 

 of today, and in all probability the 

 most widely grown variety in the car- 

 nation world. 



And from Portia onward through the 

 various shades of red, there have been 

 many changes. A red of the size of 

 Portia, free-blooming though that vari- 

 ety was, wouldn 't stand much chance in 

 the market in comparison with Victory 

 and Beacon. And, according to the re- 

 turns from Pittsburg, even these latter 

 fine sorts are not in the same class, in 

 regard to size, with Iloosier Lad, Dor- 

 ner's latest triumph. 



Victory, Its Strong and Weak Points. 



But the majority of scarlet varieties 

 have an unfortunate habit of being fa- 

 vorite hosts to the rust fungus, and 

 Victory is no exception to the rule; in 

 fact, it is decidedly the exception to 

 find a bench of .this variety that is free 

 from rust. Of course, we all know that 

 rust is not such a handicap to the grow- 

 er as stem-rot or spot, but at the same 

 time it does not help the appearance of 

 a carnation house; neither does it im- 

 prove the stamina of a variety infected 

 by it. In addition to this. Victory does 

 not branch very freely in the field and 

 as a natural result the plants are likely 

 to be small at the time of lifting. Yet, 

 in spite of all these drawbacks, it is a 

 fine flower and a good keeper, and as 

 such sells readily. 



A Noteworthy Trio. 



The later red, and I had almost said 

 the favorite red of the present day, i« 

 Beacon, also a product of .that clever 

 hybridizer, Peter Fisher. It is a great 

 record for one grower to have produced 





