8 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



October 7, 1900. 



FIELD OF ASTERS. 



The accompanying illustration shows a 

 part of the field of asters grown by A. G. 

 Lake, Wellesley Hills, Mass., and photo- 

 graphed September 18. The patch in 

 question contained 33,500 plants. The 

 varieties were principally Scrapie's and 

 Vick's Branching. The plants showed 

 remarkable vigor, many standing three 



to three and one-half feet high and 

 carrying forty long-stemmed flowers per 

 plant. A fair average per plant would 

 be twenty good flowers. Mr. Lake had 

 an earlier batch, containing some 36,000 

 plants, which immediately preceded those 

 illustrated. They were the finest lot of 

 asters I bad seen for a long time. 



W. N. Craig. 



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SEASONABLE 



SUGGESTIONS 



^^ 



Lilies* 



The earliest batch of Harrisii lilies are 

 now six to eight inches high, and have re- 

 cently been placed in a house where the 

 night temperature averages 62 degrees. 

 These are wanted for Christmas flower- 

 ing, and as they have the pots well filled 

 with active roots they can be assisted 

 with weak manure wHter, or somewhat 

 higher temperature can sJso be afforded 

 later if they appear to be ." little late. 

 Plants for Christmas 6houl<i have the 

 buds showing by the middle f Novem- 

 ber at the latest. Forcing for Christmas 

 is quite different from Easter. We now 

 have a decreasing amount of light and 

 heat, while in the early months of the 

 new year, while the cold is more severe, 

 we have a daily gain in light. Do not 

 allow aphis to get any hold on the plants. 

 If fumigation once a week is done, there 

 will be no trouble. Spraying with a 

 nicotine solution is equally effective, if 

 carefully done. 



Numerous inquiries come in regarding 

 the holding back of lilies for Easter. 

 These each refer to Harrisii. Easter in 

 1910 comes unusually early, and it may 

 be possible to hold back Harrisii for that 

 date, provided they are given a cool 

 house for the next two or three months, 

 a temperature of 45 to 50 degrees being 

 about right. Probably some of these will 

 flower before the last of March, but the 

 average florist can generally use a few 

 lily flowers in his business. 



Multiflorum and Formosum will, or 

 should be, potted before now and held in 

 a coldframe or pit. Giganteums are al- 

 ways late in arriving. They will need 

 considerable pushing to get them in 

 flower, and no time must be lost in pot- 

 ting them after their arrival. 



Ouuia*. 



Frost will have cut down the flowering 

 cannas in many places by this time. 

 They should not be dug right away. Usu- 

 ally after a freeze we get a spell of 

 clear, warm weatter. Take advantage 

 of this dry weather to cut down the tops * 

 to within a few inches of the ground, and 

 in digging allow some of the soil to ad- 

 here to the roots. The clumps should not 

 at this time be cut in pieces or disturbed 

 in any way. The roots will keep under 

 a greenhouse bench, tut this is not a 

 good place for them, owing to the mois- 

 ture in the atmosphere and the constant 

 drip. A cellar where potatoes, gladioli 

 and dahlias will winter is ideal for can- 

 nas. If the floor is inclined to be damp, 

 raise them on boards. A tier of shelves 



makes the best possible storage place for 

 them. Be sure to keep the roots away 

 from furnaces or other drying heat. 



Romans and Paper Whites. 



The earliest batch of Bomans and 

 Paper Whites can now be introduced to 

 heat, and in the case of Paper Whites, 

 which are much quicker to start than 

 Koman hyacinths, blooms can easily be 

 had by the beginning of November. At 

 that time there is usually a glut of 

 chrysanthemums, but the average country 

 florist will find a few boxes useful, espe- 

 cially where he has design work almost 

 every day. Succession batches of Paper 

 Whites can be stood below the benches in 

 a cool house and lifted up to the light 

 before the flowers open. Boman hya- 

 cinths bad better be kept in the dark a 

 little longer, until they are well started. 

 It wiU only take three weeks to flower 

 them in a temperature of 60 to 65 de- 

 grees at night. 



Stevias. 



If your stevias are still outdoors, and 

 it is always well to leave the bulk of the 

 plants outdoors as late as possible, keep 

 a close watch on them. Heavy wind 

 storms will raise havoc with them, unless 



securely staked, while the least bre;ih 

 of frost will kill them. If there is a 

 deep frame or pit which will afford p o- 

 tection from the elements, the stev is 

 will do nicely without fire heat for a 

 number of weeks yet. Of course, a t. w 

 may be placed in a warmer house ;o 

 furnish an early cutting, but where a 

 Christmas or January crop is wanted, t e 

 plants should be kept as cool as possib ;. 

 Anything above absolute freezing w U 

 suffice for them. Stevias are cheap ai (1 

 commonplace plants, but the flowers ae 

 useful not only for design but for bo i- 

 quet work. Cannot some hybridizers gi' o 

 us a light pink and lavender blue vari- 

 ety? Such would be in big demand. 



Hydrangeas. 



Hydrangeas are tolerably hardy plant ^^^ 

 and will endure considerable frost when 

 their wood is thoroughly ripened. When, 

 however, the leaves and ends of shoots 

 are soft and green, it requires only a few 

 degrees below freezing to destroy the 

 soft wood and foliage. Every year ;i 

 number of growers, anxious to leave all 

 their plants as late as possible, get 

 caught. If spare frames are at disposal, 

 it will pay to place sashes over the plants 

 after the middle of October, or even 

 earlier in the colder states. Keep the 

 soil somewhat drier and endeavor to get 

 the wood as well ripened as possible be- 

 fore cold weather sets in. If sashes can- 

 not be placed, let the plants be stood 

 where they can get the fullest sunlight, 

 and make arrangements for covering 

 them with sail cloth or some other similar 

 material when frost threatens. 



It is unsafe to leave the plants in the 

 fields much longer. Of course, we may 

 get no frost to injure them for weeks, 

 while, on the other hand, a 10-degree 

 drop below freezing will probably ruin 

 all flower buds for another season. 



Lorraine Begonias. 



The growth Lorraine begonias are now 

 making cheers the heart of the cultivator 

 The plants practically double in size, v 

 though by magic, during the last half of 

 September and first part of October. 

 Any potting of late stock should be fin 

 ished forthwith. Nice 6-inch pans can 



Field of Late Asters at A. G. Lake's» Wellesley Hills, Mass. 



