26 



The Weekly Florists^ Review. 



May 19, 1010. 



and should then receive a good coating 

 of hot lime. This, while acting as a 

 preservative to the wood, is a great help 

 in destroying insects. 



Planting and Future Gire. 



When filling the benches, the soil 

 should be spread evenly and each lump 

 of any size should be broken up, so that 

 it may settle evenly with the future 

 watering. 



Particular care is necessary to pre- 

 vent taking wet soil into the house, as 

 soil that is handled in that condition is 

 bound to pack, which greatly impairs its 

 usefulness. 



At tne time of planting in the benches, 

 it is well to give the soil a sprinkling of 

 bone meal. This is done by simply 

 spreading the meal on the surface, with- 

 out stirring it in, as all the bone the 



young plants need at that time will fall 

 around them at the time of planting. 

 ■ When planting young stock they should 

 be handled with the same care and inter- 

 est that they have received smce propa- 

 gating time. This should 6e watched 

 closely, for the success of a house de- 

 pends a great deal on this one point. 



The plants should .^e disturbed as lit- 

 tle as possible when turning them out of 

 the pots, and should be planted firmly, 

 just deep enough to cover the balls and 

 leaving a small depression around the 

 plants to receive water. 



The plants should be disturbed as lit- 

 as to prevent the formation of mud. Each 

 plant should be watered separately for 

 a week or so, until the roots begin to 

 spread. It is well to syringe Irequently 

 during favorable weather, to encourage 

 leaf development. 



W. J. Vesey, Jr. 



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SEASONABLE 



SUGGESTIONS 



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Gardenias. 



We like to plant our new stock of gar- 

 denias in the benches early in June. They. 

 are now nicely rooted in 3-inch pots and 

 it may be necessary to give them a shift 

 into 4-inch pots, rather than allow them 

 to become potbound. Some growers think 

 it pays to carry over old plants. Some- 

 times these can be pruned back and 

 break nicely. The trouble, however, is 

 that collar rot is liable to attack them. 

 No matter how carefully they are looked 

 after, once this appears the plants are 

 useless. Eather than run any risk of this 

 kind, it is better to plant afresh each 

 summer. Much of the success of gar- 

 denia culture lies in having the compost 

 sufficiently porous so that water passes 

 readily through it. In fine soil which 

 holds moisture long, the plants will inevi- 

 tably fall a prey to the yellows. 



Good fibrous loam two-thirds, and the 

 other third dried, rather lumpy cow ma- 

 nure, broken charcoal and coarse sand 

 makes an excellent compost. A few 

 shovels of soot, mixed through the pile 

 before housing it, will assist materially in 

 keeping the foliage a dark, lustrous green 

 color. Do not use over five inches of 

 soil; four inches is better than six. Allow 

 the plants eighteen to twenty inches be- 

 tween the rows and set them fifteen to 

 eighteen inches apart. Do not soak the 

 whole bed when watering them; merely 

 water around each plant and never satur- 

 rate the beds, even in the hottest, most 

 drying weather. Benches with some heat- 

 ing pipes below them are best when flow- 

 ers in winter arc wanted, and the house 

 they are grown in should be piped to 

 maintain a minimum of 68 to 70 degrees 

 in the most severe weather. 



Bedding Out. 



The weather has been so unseasonably 

 cool during May that it has militated 

 against the sale of tender bedding plants. 

 It is always a great advantage to the 

 average country florist if orders come 

 along in good season and climatic condi- 

 tions permit of at least a fair propor- 



tion of the bedding-out being done before 

 Memorial day. The cut flower business 

 in itself taxes one's energies at that 

 season. A great many customers want 

 their flower beds filled at home and vases 

 or small grave lots filled in the cemetery 

 and every effort should be made to get 

 this work done. It will probably mean 

 long hours for all hands, but then Me- 

 morial day comes but once a year and we 

 can stand it. ** 



Geraniums remain tlie most popular of 

 all bedding plants, and if well hardened 

 will not suffer any harm from even a 

 light frost. One variety to a bed is the 

 most effective way to use them. A band 

 of Mme. Salleroi around Jean Viaud or 

 Jacquerie does not add to its beauty and 

 it is the same in vases. One filled, say, 

 with S. A. Nutt wants no variegated 

 vinca to ' ' set i^ off, ' ' to .use a hackneyed 

 phrase. If a drooping plant is used, let 

 it be one with green foliage. 



Except in the warmer states, it is too 

 early to risk alternantheras, acalyphas, 

 crotons, coleus and similar tender foliage 

 plants outdoors, but geraniums, verbenas, 

 begonias, lobelias, ageratums and other 

 varieties can go out with safety. Cannas 

 are rather more delicate. Dahlias, or at 

 least green ones from cuttings, should be 

 kept under cover a little longer. Helio- 

 tropes and scarlet salvias are both tender. 

 On the other hand, such annuals as stocks, 

 asters, Drummond's phlox and dianthus 

 can go out any time now. Excepting 

 geraniums, which flower best when the 

 soil is not too rich, other bedding plants 

 like plenty of well rotted manure incor- 

 porated in the beds. 



Vases and Window Boxes. 



Rich soil should always be used in 

 vases and window boxes. As the plants 

 have but a moderate root run. they soon 

 ramify through it and, unless it has been 

 well enriched, they will show speedy 

 signs of starvation. The use of window 

 boxes shows a surprising increase and 

 many of the retailers in the cities find 

 thi.s no unimportant part of their busi- 



ness. As an advertisement keep one or 

 two filled outside the store to show would- 

 be customers how boxes look if properly 

 planted. As a general rule, 'it is best to 

 fill these boxes at home, unless they are 

 large and heavy. There are some custom- 

 ers who want their boxes refilled from 

 time to time. When this is the case a 

 number of plants which are not perpetual 

 bloomers are permissible and at this time 

 an arrangement of marguerites, fuchsias^ 

 hydrangeas, show pelargoniums and Cal- 

 ceolaria Golden Gem, with suitable droop- 

 ing plants,, like Lobelia gracilis, vinca, ivy 

 geranium or tradescantia, can be used. ■ 

 Ivy geraniums make a beautiful box in 

 themselves and are not nearly enough ap- 

 preciated. 



For piazza boxes greater depth and 

 height is possible than is tlie case with 

 window boxes; six to eight inches deep 

 for the latter is about the limit, but on 

 piazzas this may well be increased to ten 

 or twelve inches deep and proportionate 

 width to allow of the use of some of the 

 hardier palms, crotons, dractenas, ficus, 

 etc., of tolerable size. In shady spot» 

 nephrolepis and other ferns do well. Fan- 

 cy caladiums are excellent later in the 

 season, if they are not too wind-swept. 

 All boxes, if at all possible, should be 

 filled now and kept in a greenhouse until 

 wanted. In using palms. Phoenix rupicola 

 or Carariensis stands sun and wind well. 

 Kentias are not adapted for a sunny lo- 

 cation, neither are latanias. Dracjena Aus- 

 tralis and D. congesta are good green 

 plants for centerpieces and will stand suik 

 or shade equally well. 



Memorial Day Crops. 



More flowers are sold at Memorial 

 day than any other holiday in the year 

 and the uncertain weather conditions have 

 feept growers guessing as to what flowers 

 will be in season. It looks at thLs time 

 asi though indoor flowers would be par- 

 ticularly valuable and every effort should 

 be made to have as large a cut as possible 

 ready. About every florist has a host of 

 orders for bouquets to fill and a large 

 variety of flowers can be used for thift 

 purpose. Crops of ten weeks ' stocks, 

 double feverfews, snapdragons, gladioli, 

 larkspurs, candytuft, Spira-a Japonica 

 and lilies want careful watching. If 

 rather late, give them more heat ; if early, 

 retard as much as possible. Gladioli, lilies, 

 callas and a few other flowers will keep 

 some time in the cut flower room. Every- 

 thing with bright flowers is in great re- 

 quest, so that any late tulips which can be 

 cut and kept fresh will net good prices. 

 While we disapprove of the wholesale 

 pickling of supplies, there are a number 

 of flowers which it will pay every florist 

 to cut and hold on hand for ^Icniorial 

 day. 



Cyclamens. 



In the rush of other duties do not over- 

 look cyclamens. A little scratching over 

 of the surface soil, removal of weeds and 

 occasional spreading out will be all that 

 is necessary until the plants are ready for 

 larger .sized pots, which should be five 

 inches in diameter. A night reading of 

 52 to 55 degrees, shade during the warm- 

 est part of the day, a spraying with some 

 nicotine extract once in ten days and 

 careful watering will help to build up 

 nice, stocky plants. Avoid using any 

 heavy shade, as it only causes a spin- 

 dling growth. When time permits, pre- 

 pare some compost to use when the plants 

 are ready for larger pots. Sterilization 

 of the soil will help to ward off attacks 

 of mite, and also accounts for all insects 

 and larva; contained therein. 



