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August 3, 1911. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



13 



NITRATE OF SODA FOB BOSES. 



Can you tell me how much nitrate 

 of soda to use in each gallon of water? 

 I want to use it for my roses. The 

 soil is not rich and I want to bring 

 them along and make them grow. 



C. & W. 



One pound to fifty gallons of water 

 is a sufficiently strong dose of nitrate of 

 soda to apply to roses. This is a power- 

 ful stimulant and must be used with ex- 

 treme caution on all plants. Be sure 

 not to apply it unless the roses have 

 plenty of roots to take it up, or it will 

 do more harm than good. A better 

 and safer food is liquid cow manure. 

 A mulch of this manure, spread on the 

 surface an inch thick, will also be of 

 much benefit, feeding the plants and 

 preventing the beds from drying out. 

 • C. W. 



A STABT IN BOSE OBOWINQ. 



I intend to grow some roses in 

 benches. Will you tell me when to 

 make cuttings and what wood is usedf 

 When should disbudding be done and 

 howf What pruning has to be done 

 during the season, after planting new 

 roses t When cutting flowers, how far 

 down can they be cut, or how many 

 eyes should be left for new growth? 



E. D. 



From Christmas until the end of Jan- 

 uary is the best season to propagate 

 roses for forcing. Of course they can 

 be rooted later than this, but at the 

 time specified solar heat is at its mini- 

 mum and fire heat is fairly steady, 

 which will give an even bottom heat 

 in the propagating bench. A tempera- 

 ture in the sand averaging as near 60 

 degrees as possible will be found right, 

 with an atmospheric reading 5 degrees 

 lower. Use coarse, gritty sand, which 

 w:ater will pass quickly through, and 

 pUck it well in the bench. Firm it well 

 apd soak well with water before put- 

 tii^ in any cuttings. 



Propagating wood from flowering 

 shoots is generally preferred. Some 

 growers have found that blind wood 

 does not give as satisfactory results. 

 Two eyes are sufficient for a cutting, 

 although three may be left. Bemove 

 the bottom leaf and cut clean across 

 below this leaf. Cut half of the other 

 leaves away. Firm the cuttings well. 

 Keep sun away from them. Never al- 

 low them to get in the least dry, and in 

 from four to six week^ they will be 

 rooted and ready to go into 2i4-inch 

 pots, using loam with only a little 



SES 



manure. Keep them shaded until es- 

 tablished. Shift into 3-inch pots when 

 they have become well rooted. 



Unless you want early flowers, pinch 

 off all flower buds until early in Oc- 

 tober. The only pruning needed prior 

 to and after flowering is the cutting 

 out of blind, weak wood. When carry- 

 ing plants over a second season, a rest 

 of six weeks to ripen the wood should 

 be given. They should be pruned back 

 to plump eyes and all useless wood 

 should be cut away. In cutting the 

 flowers, as long a stem is wanted as 

 possible. Two eyes can be left on 

 shoots of moderate strength and three 

 on strong ones. 



C. W. 



HABDY BOSES LOSUTO COLOB. 



My outside roses, in light, sandy soil, 

 seem to be light coloired. Can you 

 suggest anything to add to the soil to 

 deepen the color in the blooms, or do 

 they need shading overhead in bright 

 weather, or a combination of both kinds 

 of treatment? Klondike strawberries in 

 the same soil come well colored. I live 

 in Texas. C. W. B. 



Shading overhead with cheesecloth 

 will help to prevent the flowers from 

 fading out so quickly. All roses fade 



out quickly in hot, sunny weather, and 

 in your warm climate the color will not 

 hold so well as farther north. In the 

 case of hybrid teas, which are probably 

 the kinds which succeed best with you, 

 if you mulch with well rotted manure 

 through the hot months and have facili- 

 ties for watering the plants, they will 

 be vastly improved. If you have no 

 barnyard manure, try top-dressings with 

 dried blood, which will have a bene- 

 ficial effect on both foliage and flow- 

 ers. A light overhead shade, as sug- 

 gested, is the only way to prevent flow- 

 ers from fading out quickly. 



GLADIOLUS COLVILLEI. 



I wish to grow some Gladiolus Col- 

 villei for Memorial day. How shall I 

 keep the bulbs until it is time to plant 

 them? Shall I grow them in flats or 

 benches, and do they have to be set 

 away to form roots, like hyacinths? 

 I have grown only carnations until the 

 last year and do not know much about 

 other plants. A. A. S. 



These gladioli can be grown either 

 in benches or flats. You would find it 

 most profitable to use flats four inches 

 deep. Each flat, 4x12x24, will hold 

 seventy-five to 100 bulbs. The bulbs 

 arrive usually about October 1 and 

 should be placed in soil right away, 

 well watered and stood in a coldframe 

 or on a cellar floor on a bed of ashes. 

 They do not need covering with sand 

 or ashes, as do hyacinths, tulips and 

 narcissi. G. Colvillei The Bride is quite 

 early, but for Memorial day trade you 

 will find G. nanus Peach Blossom, 

 Blushing Bride, Ackermanni and Sappho 

 far superior. Blushing Bride and Ac- 

 kermanni are inexpensive. To flower 

 at the end of May, place them in a 

 carnation temperature about April 1. 

 These gladioli need an abundant water 

 supply and enjoy liquid pianure. They 

 can be flowered from April 1 to July 

 10 by starting successional batches. 



SEASONABLE NOTES. 



Cattleya Oigas. 



Cattleya gigas has been making a 

 good show for some time past. The 

 flowers, while large, do not possess the 

 substance of such better known com- 

 mercial sorts as labiata, TriansB or 

 Mossiee, but they come at a season when 

 orchid flowers are scarce and often 

 in good demand. To flower this cat- 

 tleya well, the plants must be grown 

 in a rather strong light. Those with 

 big, deep green bulbs and leaves are 

 liable to come entirely blind. Sus- 

 pended, while growing, near the ridge 

 of the house, gigas is in its element. 

 It needs the warmer end of the house, 

 and in bright weather two or three 



syringings a day are relished. Care 

 must always be taken, however, to keep 

 gigas where it is well shaded while 

 in flower, as it is more easily scorched 

 than any other cattleya. As the plants 

 pass out of flower an^ repotting can be 

 done. It is often unnecessary to repot 

 all the plants, but any with roots hang- 

 ing over the sides need overhauling. 

 Pot flrmly, using a moderately coarse 

 brand of osmunda fiber. 



Calanthes. 



This is the season of active growth 

 of calanthes. The pots or pans should 

 now be well filled with active roots, 

 and, this being the case, they can be 

 given an abundant water supply and an 

 application of liquid cow manure twice 



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