Skptkmber 2, 1009. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



Winter-flowering Sweet Pea Christmas Pink, Grown ty Vm. Sim, Cliftondale, Mass. 



WINTfeR SWEET PEAS. 



As Staple as the Violet. 



Especially in February and March of 

 1909 tho growers who had a really j^ood 

 article had a fine business on sweet peas. 

 [t is only a few years that sweet peas 

 have been grown under glass, but they 

 have by now become as staple as the violet. 

 But there is just this much to remember: 

 It does not pay to have poor sweet peas. 

 Because of the success which some grow- 

 ers had in the preceding season, many 

 others planted peas last fall, and not all 

 will agree that the crop is a profitable 

 one. The trouble was, the stock was not 

 good enough. First-class peas paid well. 

 Their popularity is firmly established, 

 and good peas may be expected to be 

 profitable right along. 



The Kind of House. 



Most growers plant winter llowcring 

 sweet peas on raised benches, perha.ps 

 following a crop of mums, but William 

 Sim, of Cliftondale, Mass., who has 

 made a national reputation on the sweet 

 peas he sends to the Boston market each 

 winter, uses ground beds, employing the 

 house for a spring and summer crop of 

 tomatoes. "To grow tho sweet pea to 

 perfection," says he, "yon must have a 

 house suitable for the purpose. It should 

 be at least eight feet high on the sideg, 

 four feet six inches being glass. My 

 houses are seven feet, and- I find the 

 side rows strike the glass, thereby cut- 

 ting down the crop. My center rows are 

 about right; they are twelve to fifteen 

 feet high. The higher they grow the 

 more and better flowers you get. We 

 plant the rows five feet apart and in a 

 line with the supports of the greenhouse. 



The uprigiits are twelve feet apart, so 

 in supporting we run twine from one 

 support to the other on each side of the 

 row. This I have found the best method 

 of supporting. I have tried wire net- 

 ting. This is only a nuisance, as the 

 vines do not cling to the wire, which 

 causes just as much tying as if it were 

 not there. The side rows are planted 

 live feet from the sides of the house, 

 and all the heating pipes are on tho 

 sides. Peas are very susceptible to red 

 spider, and as they will not stand syring- 

 ing, the farther you can afford economi- 

 cally to have them from the pipes the 

 better. 



"We have not changed the soil in the 

 houses for several years, and find the 

 \inc3 are more vigorous each year. The 

 soil was originally eighteen inches deep, 

 Init by the applicatif>n of manure each 

 >ear the depth is now coTisiderably over 

 two feet. The tomato crop is on the 

 uano by the middle of August. When 

 these are cleaned out we trench the 

 house over as deep as the soil, bringing 

 Ihe bottoTu soil to the .surface. In the 

 bottom of the trench we put three 

 inches of decomposed cow manure; one 

 foot from the surface we put on three 

 inches more of the same material. The 

 house is allowed to remain in this state 

 until nearly time for sowing the seed. 

 The soil is then usually very dry, so we 

 dampen it down enough to eling tojrether 

 while the house gets another fork over. 

 This time we go down one foot and mix 

 the top layer of manure with the surface 

 soil. We then make the surface as nf^arly 

 level as possible, and thoroughly water 

 the soil, giving enough to penetrate the 

 entire mass, with a strong dose of liquid 

 horse manure. In about three dnvs. de- 



[)ending on the weather, the house will 

 IPC ready to plant. 



Cultural Details. 



"We sow the seeds about an inch and 

 :i half apart. Wo make the drills one 

 inch deep and do not allow more than 

 <iue inch of soil over them. We do not 

 i)ull any more soil toward the root, as is 

 often recommended, but let it remain 

 level. If more soil is pulled around tho 

 hase of the plant, stem rot is sure to fol- 

 low. We do not water the plants again 

 until they are up about thret' inches. Of 

 course, you can grow them on a bench 

 with a few inches of soil, but the results 

 will be just what you make them; a 

 weak growth and a crop of short stemmed 

 llowers. These soon play out, as there 

 is not enough soil or food for the vines 

 to live on. 



"The peas may be made to flower any 

 lime you wish by increasing the tempera 

 fure, but the best results are obtaine<l by 

 i^rouing at a leinjierature just above 

 freezing until the buds can be felt in 

 iho crowns of the plants. Then the tern 

 jicrature should bo gradually increase<l. 

 -ay 1 degree a night, until you reach I** 

 degrees. This, I think, is aliout right, 

 :ilthonr^h in midwinter I think they move 

 n little better at .^0 degrees. As the <lays 

 lengthen, a little cooler temperature 

 <eem3 to suit better. .\ rise of 10 to Ifi 

 ilegrees should be given during the -lay 

 in sunny weather. In spoUs of cloudy 

 weather, 55 degrees is high enough dur 

 ing the day. If a high temperature is 

 given in dark weather, the growth gets 

 soft and wilts when tho sun comes out 

 bright again. 



"While the plants are young they 

 should be regularly fumigated, so that 



