Adqcst 10, 1911, 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



19 



Partial View of the Greenhouse Establishment of the C C PoUworth Co., Milwaukee. 



to the full sun, are growing finely. We 

 also have 3,000 young plants in frames, 

 with shaded sashes three feet above, 

 which are thriving well in the same 

 weather that is injuring the greenhouse 

 stock. 



The house is 29x94, three-quarter 

 span to the south, fifteen feet high to 

 the ridge and about six feet to the 

 gutter. It has had two coats of white 

 lead shading — seemingly enough. The 

 south side is open, as another house is 

 being built there. A dozen lights of 

 16-inch glass are out on the north side, 

 and there are nine ventilators, seven 

 feet by forty-two inches, hinged at the 

 ridge J also two doors at each end. 

 There seems to be plenty of air and 

 there is less than 10 degrees of differ 

 ence between the inside and outside 

 temperatures. Would it give better re- 

 sults to put more ventilators in the 

 roof or hinge them at the header? I 

 thought of putting several ventilators 

 in the north wall. E. S. 



Too hot and dry an atmosphere is the 

 most likely cause of the scorching of 

 the tips of the asparagus in question. 

 A three-quarter span house, facing the 

 south, is naturally a hot one in bright 

 weather, unless the prevailing wind is 

 also from the south. Such a house 

 would work better with continuous ven- 

 tilation from end to end, instead of 

 about two-thirds of its length, as in the 

 house described. Some ventilators on 

 the north would also be a help in keep- 

 ing down the temperature in extremely 

 warm weather. During such weather a 

 light syringing twice a day would be 

 beneficial. W'. H. T. 



CANTERBURY BELLS FOR SPRING. 



Is it too late to plant Canterbury 

 bell seeds for Easter and Decoration 

 day blooming? C. G. J. & S. 



It is getting too late now to sow 

 Canterbury bells for spring flowering. 

 Of course, you could still get plants of 

 fair size, but the chances are against 

 more than a small percentage of them 

 flowering. Your best plan would be 

 to purchase, if possible, plants which 

 have been transplanted. Failing this, 

 wait and get some strong field-grown 

 plants later in the fall. Another sea- 

 son sow your Canterbury bells in May 



or June and you are then sure to have 

 strong plants which will flower. 



C. W. 



BEGONIAS NOT FLOWERING. 



Will you tell me why my tuberous 

 begonias do not bloom? They are green 

 and apparently healthy. After the 

 buds reach a certain size, they blight, 

 and some never bloom at all. 



I. G. M. 



The most probable reason for your 

 begonias not blooming is that they 

 have been attacked by thrips. These 

 in the spring and summer months are 

 destructive on tuberous begonias, strep- 

 tocarpus, gloxinias, achimenes and 



gesneras. The upper surface of the 

 foliage will look all right, but you 

 will find it discolored underneath, and 

 the buds, after attaining a certain size, 

 fail to open. You will find they are 

 brown in color and practically eaten 

 up with thrips. These are difficult 

 pests to exterminate. Hard syringing 

 through a spray nozzle would be too 

 much for begonias, but you should 

 spray them moderately once or twice 

 a day, and also syringe with one of the 

 nicotine solutions, of which a number 

 are now on the market. If you have 

 not many plants, you could mix up a 

 small tub or large pail Of the nicotine 

 and dip the plants in it every second 

 day for ten days. C, W. 



SWEET PEAS NOT FLOWERING. 



Can you tell me why my sweet peas 

 all run up to growth, but few or none 

 bloom? I do not think it is due to 

 the cultivation altogether, as some are 

 on deeply dug, rich ground and some 

 on comparatively poor soil, with no ex- 

 cess of manure. Yet they are all alike. 

 Can anything be done for them? 



J. F. 



Your experience is not by any means 

 exceptional. Not infrequently sweet 

 peas run up to growth in the way 

 yours have done and the early flowers 

 blight before opening. The cause of 

 this is, I think, some peculiar climatic 

 condition, rather than improper soil. 

 The plants will flower satisfactorily a 

 little later; do not despair of them, but 

 keep weeds away and the ground well 

 cultivated. When flowering really 



commences, give them a mulch of 

 strawy manure, old hay or grass, and 

 in dry weather water freely. C. W. 



SHEEP MANURE FOR SWEET PEAS. 



Can I use pulverized sheep manure, 

 instead of cow manure, for my sweet 

 pea beds? If so, please advise quantity 

 of manure to use for 1,000 square feet 

 of beds. The soil is twelve inches deep 

 and is fresh soil in ground beds. E. C. 



If unable to secure cow manure, well 

 rotted horse manure would do well if 

 you can secure it. Give a liberal coat- 

 ing, spreading it on two to three inches 

 thick over the surface and working it 

 in well with a spade. If you cannot 

 get the horse manure, use the pulver- 

 ized sheep manure at the rate of one 

 pound per square foot of bench space 



-«...:-.,iM^-4^'-.^j:-Ui. ^ 



ridAIL^db^^^ 



Tlj-»^xa::iiiLS:.,Tmc 



