1« 



The Weekly Rorists' Review. 



Atjau^T 24, 1911. 



of the K. H. S. men hold positions of 

 prominence in all parts of the world; 

 one ofj^hem is a director of the S. A. F. 

 at tlufl-time and another is prominently 

 mentioned for your jJresidency. 

 i This, it seems to me, at some future 

 time could be started in some good and 

 practical way by the members of this 

 splendid organization. There are men 

 who would be willing to finance such 

 a project; there are plenty of them in 

 the S. A. F., and it would greatly help 

 the florist and gardeper in the ever in- 

 creasing and perplexing question of se- 

 curing efRcient help. 



Some may say, "While there are 

 plenty of men coming from the other 

 side, what is the use of all this?" 

 But it must be remembered that a good 

 deal of chaff gets in with the wheat. 



Amalgamation with the S. A. F. 



I have failed to know the reason why 

 so few gardeners are members of the 

 S. A. F. Perhaps it is because each 

 locality has its own local society and 

 they think that membership in it is all 

 that is necessary and feel content with 

 local condition's, but the effects of such 



a course are soon evident and their 

 usefulness is likely to be narrowed 

 rather than broadened. If it. were pos- 

 sible for all the societies to. amalgamate 

 with the S. A. F.— and I see no reason 

 for not doing so— then I believe our lo- 

 cal societies would also be incorporated 

 with it and then perhaps the gardeners 

 would become a part of the S. A. F., 

 as in my opinion they should be. / 



Several attempts have already been 

 made, I believe, to form a gardeners ' 

 society and one has been organized, but 

 with what degree of success I do not 

 kijow. At any rate, I believe, the time 

 to be opportune for such a consolida- 

 tion of florists and gardeners for the 

 best interests of all, and one that would 

 make of our S. A. F. such a national 

 organization as would easily" become 

 the greatest of its kind in the world. 



In conclusion I might say that I will 

 do all in my power to advance the in- 

 terests of your society, and ; will also 

 endeavor to interest as many of my pro- 

 fession as possible and explain to them 

 the broadness and scope of your organ- 

 ization and the good work it is carry- 

 ing on. 



i 



' W^<<^<»^'<^^»^<»^<*^-fe*><#K<^^^k:*>'fer»>'^#>*'y^-^^»>-fe^-'fe»>^^?»>'fe»S 



I SEASONABLE 



l'^^^^ SUGG ESTIONS ^ 



1 



Show Pelargoniums. 



The old plants of show pelargoniums 

 which have had several weeks of rest 

 should have been pruned before now. 

 If not already cut back, do so at once. 

 Do not immediately commence to soak 

 them with wateT, or the chances are 

 that some will rot off altogether. Spray 

 several times a day. When they have 

 commenced to break nicely shake them 

 out, loosen the soil well, cut back the 

 long roots and repot into pots about 

 two sizes smaller than they have been 

 growing in. They can stand outdoors 

 for some time yet, but' are better if 

 placed so that sashes can be stood 

 over them in case of drenching rains. 

 A suitable compost is one consisting 

 of two parts fibrous loam and one 

 ])art old cow manure or spent mush- 

 room manure, with the aaaition of some 

 sharp sand. Cuttings put in when the 

 plants were headed back root and grow 

 quickly. Keep these potted along, so 

 that they will not become too matted 

 with roots. 



Bouvardias. 



Bouvardias are somewhat tender 

 winter-flowering plants and they should 

 be lifted and repotted before there is 

 any danger of frost. Do not attempt 

 to lift a large ball, as you will only 

 break off more roots in doing so. It 

 is well to get all possible roots, to pot 

 firmly and to keep sprayed and shaded 

 for a few days, when they will soon 

 strike out new roots and stop wilting. 

 B. Humboldtii flowers naturally out- 

 doors in August and September and 

 some plants can be left out to provide 

 an early crop of flowers, but it is better 

 to stake them up a little; otherwise 

 heavv rain storms will soil the flowers. 



This bouvardia can be benched in a 

 warm house, and when thus planted it 

 can be relied upon to give a fine crop 

 of flowers on excellent stems until 

 Christmas and will also, if left, give 

 another spring crop. This variety 

 flowers more persistently than any 

 other variety and is sweet scented. 

 Its flowers, also, are larger than those 

 of any other bouvardia. 



Bambler Boses. 



Do not neglect the watering of ram- 

 bler roses that are being grown in 

 pots. Remember that they are now 

 growing and rooting strongly, and liq- 

 uid manure, in addition to copious water 

 supplies, is necessary to finish their 

 growth satisfactorily. Keep the shoots 

 tied up. This is particularly necessary 

 with the pink varieties, which are nat- 

 urally of a prostrate habit in most 

 cases; at least. Lady Gay, Dorothy 

 Perkins and others are of this class, 

 while Tausendschon is more erect in 

 habit. Even where the ramblers are 

 planted out in the field it pays to tie 

 up the shoots, as the wood then ripens 

 much better. Light fences are as sim- 

 ple a method of support as I have used; 

 this, of course, means a little additional 

 work, but it pays in the long run. 

 Keep rubbing off the surplus shoots 

 which will continue to start from the 

 pink ramblers of the Dorothy Perkins 

 class. Three to five shoots per plant 

 are ample; rub away all others. 



French Trumpet Majors. 



If you are growing the trumpet nar- 

 cissi and want a batch for the Christ- 

 mas holidays, do not depend on the 

 Dutch grown bulbs. These may be had, 

 of course, but it is doubtful whether 



it pays to force them unduly, as many 

 will not flower, and even at 5 cents and 

 6^ cents per flower, wholesale, they 

 ^I'not pay so well as they would at 

 akfi these prices three weeks later. The 

 French bulbs have been here for some 

 days and there is no trouble at all in 

 flowering Trumpet Major, Goldea Spur 

 and Bnjperor for Christmas. They are 

 rather snorter stemmed than the Dutch 

 bulbs, but flower satisfactorily and are 

 well wprthy of a trial by any who 

 have uQt^ yet grown them. They have 

 been iiiuiprted in larger quantities than 

 usual this season. 



Sweet Peas. 



Probably sowings of sweet peas have 

 already been made by growers who 

 want an early indoor crop. I have 

 found that while there is an avalanche 

 of mums these do not sell well, but if a 

 crop is timed to come in after Thanks- 

 giving the flowers will be in much 

 more active demand. Judging from 

 inquiries .which come to hand from 

 time to titne, some beginners in indoor 

 sweet pea culture are yet uncertain as 

 to the best varieties to plant. The 

 Spencer peas are not adapted for early 

 forcing at all; do not plant any of 

 them unless you have ample head room 

 for them and are prepared to wait for 

 a spring crop. Neither are any of the 

 outdoor reliables, such as Dorothy Eck- 

 ford, Helen Lewis, Frank Dolby, Lady 

 Grisel Hamilton and King Edward VII, 

 of any value to sow now. The race of 

 winter flowering sorts, of which Mont 

 Blanc and Earliest of All were among 

 the first introduced, are what, should 

 be sown. 



A suitable list has been given many 

 times, but so many new growers are 

 this season essaying sweet pea culture 

 indoors for the first time that it may 

 be well to give a select list of reliable 

 winter bloomers. In white there is 

 Mont Blanc, Christmas White, Florence 

 Denzer and Watchung. In clear pink 

 of varying shades we have Christmas 

 Pink, the most popular variety of all; 

 Mrs. W. W. Smalley, of a satiny shade, 

 and Mrs. Wm. Sim, of a lovely salmon 

 color. Wallacea and Mrs. A. Wallace 

 are splendid lavenders and Flamingo 

 is a good scarlet. Pure white, clear 

 pink and lavender are the shades most 

 in demand. 



Sweet peas can be flowered success- 

 fully on raised benches, and in the dead 

 of winter they flower satisfactorily if 

 they have the needed head room. Solid 

 beds are, however, what they do best 

 in. They should have a foot of good 

 soil, liberally enriched with cow or sta- 

 ble manure, well decayed. The drain- 

 age should be good. If sowing in drills, 

 thin out the seedlings to four inches 

 apart. If they are left unthinned the 

 result will be weak flower stems. Many 

 growers sow in flats and transplant. 

 I prefer this method to sowing in drills. 

 It gives an even row and there is little 

 waste. The rows can be anywhere from 

 three to six feet apart, preferably 

 lengthwise of the house; the more 

 head room, the better. In the case of 

 the wide rows allowance is made for 

 other crops, such as violets, which are 

 pulled out in late winter. Where peas 

 only are grown the rows can be closer. 



The question is often asked, "Do 

 winter sweet peas pay wellt" Much de- 

 pends on how the plants are grown 

 and on whether there is a ready retail 

 market for them or not. When they 

 have to be wholesaled, it is doubtful 

 whether they return as much money 



