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14 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



NOTBUBKU 4, 1909. 



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I SEASONABLE 



SUGGESTIONS 



?^ 



Calendulas. 



Of late .years bunches of calendulas 

 have been seen in the windows of many 

 of the flower stores during late winter 

 and early spring, and the color of the 

 orange-colored variety, Orange King, is 

 a popular one. If a piece of bench is 

 now at disposal, the present is a suitable 

 time to make a sowing. The seed should 

 be sown rather thinly; individual plants 

 a foot apart each way are sufficiently 

 thick. A cool house, kept about 45 de- 

 grees at night, grows calendulas well. 



Canterbury Bells. 



For Easter Canterbury bells are now 

 extremely popular, and certainly well 

 bloomed plants of the hose in hose, or 

 single varieties, are handsome. Plants 

 in the field are now strong, having dou- 

 bled in size within the last few weeks. 

 In the more rigorous northern states 

 Canterbury bells cannot be relied upon 

 to winter outdoors, even if protected, and 

 it is better to carry in coldframes and 

 plant out in April. To return to the pot 

 culture of these, some of the strongest 

 stock should be potted forthwith and, 

 after potting, may be carried in a cold 

 pit or frame for some weeks. It is bet- 

 ter to subject the plants to a few freez- 

 ings before starting them in gentle heat 

 early in the new year. For Memorial 

 day trade, Canterbury bells for cutting 

 are useful. It is easy holding a batch 

 back for that date. 



Mignonette. 



No fire heat is necessary for mignon- 

 ette yet, except on frosty nights. It is 

 one of the plants which succeed better 

 where as little fire heat as possible is 

 used, 40 degrees at night being a suit- 

 able winter minimum. If the earliest 

 growths which ran up to a flower were 

 pinched back, the resultant breaks should 

 be coming away nicely now. Mignonette 

 wants a good, generous water supply, but 

 the beds or benches should dry out tol- 

 erably between waterings. Keep the sur- 

 face soil stirred. Every stirring means 

 the liberation of more food for the 

 plants. The ventilators will not require 

 closing entirely, except on the coldest 

 nights. 



Begonia Gloire de Lorraine. 



Plants of Begonia Gloire de Lorraine 

 which have been grown in a moderately 

 warm house — and this begonia likes a 

 fair amount of heat — are now quite nice- 

 ly in flower, the earliest ones being suffi- 

 ciently advanced to make them quite de- 

 sirable for the store windows. We hope 

 the necessary supports were given t^e 

 plants before they commenced to open 

 their flowers. Often in the rush of other 

 duties this important matter is laid over 

 until a more convenient season, and, as a 

 consequence, what should have been 

 pretty and shapely plants are hanging 

 over the pots and pans and will never be 

 as salable as if the staking had been done 

 six weeks earlier. 



As the plants get a fair number of 

 flowers expanded we like to give them 

 a lower temperature; one averaging 50 

 to 52 degrees at night suits them per- 

 fectly. The flowers opened in cooler 

 quarters have more substance and the 

 whole plant becomes more sturdy than 

 when kept in strong heat. Lorraines re- 

 quire no shade whatever now. The plants 

 grown without it are tougher and far 

 better fitted to withstand the more arid 

 conditions of ordinary dwelling houses 

 than such as are held in shade and heat. 



Antirrhinums. 



The early chrysanthemums, such as Pa- 

 cific, Monrovia, Polly Eose, Halliday, 

 October Frost and others, are now all cut 

 and bench space they have been occupy- 

 ing should not be allowed to lie idle. 

 There is no need to clear out the mum 



The Kdltor la plMied 

 ^Iien a Reader 

 presents liii Ideas 

 on any subieot treated In 



As experience Is tbe best 

 teacher, so do \r» 

 learn fastest by an 

 ezchanKe of experiences. 

 Many valuable points 

 are brouKbt out 

 by discussion. 



Oood peninaDshlp. Bpelling and 

 grammar, though desirable, are not 

 necessary. Write as you would tallc 

 when doinK your beet. 



WK SHALL BK GLAD 

 TO HEAR FROM TOU 



compost and refill for such crops as antir- 

 rhinums. Give the benches a good dress- 

 ing of well decayed manure, that from 

 cows being preferable if procurable, and 

 spade or fork it over thoroughly. The 

 antirrhinums planted in this will quickly 

 start into active growth and in late win- 

 ter will furnish a fine crop of spikes. Do 

 not overwater the newly planted stock. 

 Frequently scratch over the surface soil 

 and encourage them in every possible 

 way to get a good start before the short 

 winter days arrive. 



Plants set out in early fall are show- 

 ing a disposition to flower. Just now 

 there is but little profit in them and it 

 will be better to keep them pinched back 

 80 that a crop will come along for the 

 Christmas holidays, when flowers are 



worth several times their present Belli i,|» 

 value. ' ^ 



Cfarysanthemum Stock. 



Without desiring to trespass on :\;r. 

 Totty's special department, we shoii 

 like to say a word on the carrying o-, r 

 of chrysanthemum stock. Far too oft .i 

 this is given but scant attention. Hi ; 

 often do we see pots and boxes sto 1 

 along the sides of the paths, below t j 

 benches or in any old out-of-the-w 

 place, and kept there until near t 

 propagating season! How anyone e 

 carry stock over in this slipshod fashi 

 and expect good results to follow, baffl 

 comprehension. 



The ideal place for mum stock is 

 bench or benches in a house held abo 

 40 degrees at night, where the plan 

 will be close to the light. A violet tei 

 perature answers well for them. Son 

 growers may claim that this is so mu< 

 bench space wasted, seeing that there j> 

 no crop to cut from it. The up-to-dat- 

 grower knows full well that strong, succii 

 lent cuttings in abundance mean mucli 

 finer plants and flowers, which will easilv 

 pay for the little bench space allottcl 

 prior to propagating. If a bench cannot 

 be spared, use coldframes which can bo 

 rendered practically frost-proof. We know 

 quite a few growers who plant all their 

 stock in this way and claim that they get 

 stronger cuttings under this plan than 

 by growing in benches. Either one plan 

 or the other should be adopted. Get the 

 stock all together, label it plainly, and 

 when you want cuttings you will have 

 them of flrst quality and in any quantity. 



Bedding Geraniums. 



In the northern states, cuttings of the 

 ordinary bedding geraniums should now 

 be rooting. Hold them on the dry side; 

 in fact, they should only have sufficient 

 water to prevent shriveling. You do not 

 want to start them into active growth yet. 

 It is needlessly early to do so and, fur- 

 thermore, bench space is at something of 

 a premium at this time. Pick off decay- 

 ing foliage; pull out any damped off 

 cuttings; keep the stock in the full sun 

 and do not play the hose over them when 

 damping down the house. Geraniums want 

 a cool house and an abundance of fresh 

 air to keep them stocky and free from 

 mold. 



Myosotis. 



There are a number of small crops 

 which seem trifling and inconsequential 

 in themselves. One of these is myosotis 

 The demand for bunches of these in lat. 

 winter and spring is quite good, and i 

 pays many a country florist to plant 

 few along the edges of the benches coi 

 taining snapdragons, stocks or oth( 

 crops. You have no doubt rememberc 

 to propagate some of your favorii 

 strains of myosotis, and as you cleji 

 away the mums and plant in other crop 

 do not forget an edging of forget-mi 

 not. It is indeed surprising how mac 

 months these will give you flowers, pr 

 vided you keep them free from aphis ar 

 do not allow seeds to form on them. 



Cedar Falls, Ia. — Joseph Bancroft 

 Son are installing the Taylor double trr 

 system in their heating plant. Mr. Ta. 

 lor is superintending the job. 



East Brookfield, Mass. — Howard 

 Hill, an enterprising young man froi i 

 Gardner, is now running the greer 

 houses at the head of the lake. He ' ■ 

 growing cucumbers for the market an! 

 will also grow tomatoes. 



