The Florists' Rfeview 



O&tOBKK 31, 1612. 



THE EVERYDAY WORK. 



A Test of the Grower's Skill. 



The grower who had foresight enough 

 during the hot summer days to keep the 

 foliage of his young Beauty plants hard 

 and substantial by admitting ample air 

 and avoiding too heavy watering and 

 spraying is in a decidedly better posi- 

 tion now than he who kept his houses 

 close and moist, encouraging the plants 

 in every way to make a soft growth. 

 Anyone of any experience in rose grow- 

 ing likes to start the winter with the 

 foliage robust and thick, even if the 



ftlants are small. The pale green, anemic 

 ooking leaves, on long, slender stems, 

 do not give promise of any great things 

 in regard to bloom and they are likely 

 to get worse as the dark winter days 

 come on. 



Fortunate, indeed, are the southern 

 growers who can depend on sunny days 

 right up to and after Christmas, for, 

 QO matter what variety of rose is 

 handled, there is a natural awakening 

 after the turn of the year and the plants 

 thrive with little or no care much bet- 

 ter than during the last two months of 

 the year. It has been truly said that 

 the best test of a grower of roses is the 

 condition of his plants during these 

 two months, and those plants will al- 

 ways look best that have been carefully 

 grown earlier in the season. 



The High Cost of Bose Food. 



Plants in the healthy condition just 

 described are now hungry for food of a 

 manurial character. They have in a 

 great measure used up that contained 

 in the soil provided at benching time; 

 this will be run through with roots and 

 each root will have live, feeding tips, 

 ready to make use of the food provided. 

 Good cow manure is more and more dif- 

 ficult to procure each year in most 

 places, but there is nothing that can 

 take its place as a food for roses. It 

 is cool, yet full of nutriment, and, al- 

 though some folks talk glibly of analyz- 

 ing it and applying the chemical con- 

 stituents, no chemical concoction can 

 ever equal it. No matter what it costs, 

 then, if within reason, the price must be 

 .paid, for it is sure to come back in an 

 increased cut of fine, high grade roses. 



As soon as the manure is applied to a 

 bench, it should be watered; it should 

 not be washed away, as is done in so 

 many places. Frequently, in walking 

 through neighboring plants, I have seen 

 the section men soaking the water 

 through the fresh-laid manure until the 



drainings of the benches were quite 

 high colored and at least one-half of 

 the nutriment was lost. Water little 

 and often until the manure is all gone 

 and keep a good crack of air on at the 

 ridge all night, increasing it early in 

 the morning and using sufficient steam 

 to maintain the temperature. 



Rational Ventilation. 



It would be a good thing were more 

 attention paid to instructing young men 

 in the art of rational ventilation. In 

 my young days we grew considerable 

 fruit under glass and it was frequently 

 a close race between the early morning 

 sun and the man on duty to get to the 

 house first. Modern methods of heat- 

 ing and the employment of night fire- 

 men have done away with a good deal 

 of this kind of drudgery, and there is 

 danger now of the men going to the 



Tbe Editor is pleased 

 T7hen a Reader 

 presents bis ideas 

 •on any subject treated In 



As experience Is the best 

 teacher, so do we 

 learn fastest by an 

 exchanee of experiences. 

 Many valuable points 

 are broueht out 

 by discussion. 



Good i)enman8hip, spelling and 

 grammar, though desirable, are not 

 necessary. Write as you would talk 

 when doing your best. 



WK SHALL, BS 6^JU^ 

 TO HEAR FROM TOO 



other extreme and neglecting the venti- 

 lation until the cutting is done, then 

 rushing on full air to lower the tem- 

 perature. 



A natural and slow rise of tempera- 

 ture should be the aim of the grower, 

 and this cannot be attained without a 

 good deal of care on his part. Never 

 wait for the temperature to reach a 

 certain point before opening the ventff. 

 This has been the cause of more burned 

 foliage and more insect attacks than 

 any other item of mismanagement. Put 

 the air on gradually in the morning at 



this season and take it off the same way 

 in the afternoon. Ne"#er wait until a 

 chill in the air warns yoil that the sun 

 has left the house/but take a little of 

 the air off before the sun has lost its 

 power and let the temperature decline 

 as gradually in the afternoon as it rises 

 in the morning. 



The Night Temperature. 



As to the night temperature, a good 

 deal of misconception exists. Some men 

 pin their faith to an exact degree of 

 heat every night, regardless of outsidf 

 temperature or other conditions. It is 

 much better to be too precise in this 

 way than too careless, but we oftei 

 have mild nights at this time of year 

 when the outside temperature is actually 

 higher than that essential to success in 

 rose growing, and it is folly to think 

 that the temperature should be exactly 

 the same on such a night as on one 

 when a high wind and sharp frost com 

 bine to thwart the efforts of the night 

 fireman. 



Again, what is right in New York 

 or Maine may not be right in Call 

 fornia or Florida. Hard and fast rules 

 are the signs of incompetency; the ex 

 perienced man knows to the full the 

 truth of the old saw that "circuui 



stances alter cases." * » 



' - .*■ ^ 



ROSE CROPS F9R CHRISTMAS. 



Will you kindly inform me through 

 The Eeview when Beauties and Killar- 

 neys ought to be pinched in order to 

 have them in for Christmas? Also 

 what is the proper night temperature 

 for Killarneys in cold weather? 



J. C. S. 



Allow two clear months for the Kil 

 larneys from the time of pinching until 

 they are wanted in flower. For Beau- 

 ties allow eight or ten days longer. Of 

 course, weather conditions may affect 

 these spaces of time to some extent. A 

 temperature of 56 to 58 degrees at night 

 suits Killarney in cold weather, the 

 lower temperature for cold nights. 



^ C. W. 



HOW'S THIS FOR HIGH? 



The following is scissored from the 

 Horticultural Trade Journal (English): 



"Killarney, as a forcing rose, has for 

 years held pride of place among pink 

 shades in TI. S. A. It is the beau ideal, 

 and every new; variety that comes into 

 American hands is measured up against 

 Killarney, which for cropping, outdi? 

 tances anything sent out. 



" Killarney 's position in America is. 

 however, threatened, and by another 

 Irish variety. McGredy & Son, it will 

 be remembered, exhibited Colleen last 

 summer, and to the casual eye it lookdi 

 like Killarney. When, however, E. 

 Hill said that Colleen was great, I tooU 

 it for granted that he knew more about 

 it than I did. E. G. Hill is not the 

 man to buy a pig in a poke and now 

 that we know he has secured the Amer 

 ican rights of Colleen, and that it will 

 not be distributed here until his firm is 

 ready to do likewise in U. S. A., on*' 

 must take it as gospel that Colleen i^ 

 a winner. It has been tested thoroughly 

 in America, and it has proved to be the 

 finest forcer ever sent to the States. 

 By some Americans it is considered the 

 rose of the century, from the bread ani 

 butter point of view, of course. 



"Colleen has proved a stronger grow- 



