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JANUABT 18, 1912. 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



17 



WEAK-STEMMED ENCHANTBESS. 



Is there any way to strengthen the 

 stems of Enchantress carnations, be- 

 sides adding lime to the soilf Our 

 blooms are magnificent, but the heads 

 droop. Would a few degrees above 52 

 degrees, night temperature, cause spin- 

 dling stems? V. A. A. 



You are growing your Enchantress 

 too warm. Drop the night temperature 

 to 48 degrees. Lime is valuable for 

 strengthening the stems, but growing 

 them cooler will help the stems more 

 than any top-dressings. C. W. 



WASHINGTON. 



Washington, the bright pink sport of 

 Enchantress, A. T. Pyfer thinks will be- 

 come one of the standard sorts; indeed, 

 Mr. Pyfer says, there will be numerous 

 growers who within the next few years 

 will have nothing in their benches ex- 

 cept the Enchantress varieties: En- 

 chantress, White Enchantress and 

 Washington. 



The accompanying illustration is re- 

 produced from a photograph made in 

 one of the greenhouses of the Chicago 

 Carnation Co., at Joliet, 111. Washing- 

 ton occupies the bench in the center 

 of the house. The variety at the left 

 is Princess Charming. 



THEIPS AND WEAK STEMS. 



I am sending under separate cover 

 some carnations, and if you can tell 

 / me what causes them to act in this 

 way, I shall be greatly obliged to you. 

 I have given them, or some of them, 

 two applications of ashes, and have 

 also given them well-rotted cow ma- 

 nure. The stems, as you can see, are 

 weak, and the flowers do not open right. 

 They act as though they had been kept 

 too warm. The soil is a compost of 

 two-thirds prairie sod and one-third 

 well-rotted manure. I am at a loss to 

 know what to do. The soil seems to 

 dry from the bottom of the bench up. 

 Would that cause the trouble! 



K. C. H. 



The specimens forwarded were badly 

 frozen, as might be expected in this 

 severe cold spell. There were, how- 

 ever, unmistakable signs of thrips, and 

 they are no doubt responsible for your 

 blooms not opening properly. Direc- 

 tions for combating this pest have been 

 given in these columns frequently this 

 season. Nicotine applied in the most 

 practical way is the thing to use. 

 Fumigation, vaporizing and spraying 

 are all good. 



Your weak stems may be caused by 

 more than one thing, and I am rather 

 inclined to the opinion that they are. 

 Your light prairie soil is probably too 

 light, to begin with, and the addition 

 of one-half as much manure wouldl 

 lighten it still more. A better propor- 

 tion would be three or four to one. 

 Dressing with wood ashes ought to 



strengthen the stems. Perhaps the 

 main cause for your weak stems may 

 be found in the prolonged cloudy 

 weather. If you have not been par- 

 ticularly careful to give ventilation at 

 every opportunity, and to hold the 

 temperature down, you would likely 

 have weak stems, regardless of the tex- 

 ture of the soil. When the prolonged 

 cloudy spells set in, and the growth 

 seems to stand perfectly still, the 

 grower is tempted to put on a little 

 extra heat to bring the blooms out. 

 This is just the opposite of what should 

 be done, and it usually results in a 

 weak, soft growth and weak stems. 



A. F. J. B. 



LEAN-TO FOE CARNATIONS. 



We wish to build a small greenhouse 

 with as little outlay of money as pos- 

 sible. We have a strong board fence 

 running east and west, seven feet high, 

 and propose to build a lean-to against 

 the south side of this fence, seven feet 

 high on the back, five feet in front 

 (three feet solid and two feet of glass), 

 fifteen feet wide, with two benches 

 each five feet wide, a 2-foot walk 

 between the benches and a 1%-foot 

 walk along each side, ventilation in 

 top and south side. Do you think 

 we could successfully grow carnations 

 in this house, or would you advise 

 building a different one? We propose 

 to build it about fifty feet long and 

 put in 500 carnations, and the rest 

 of the house in chrysanthemums. 



W. S. G. 



I think it would be a great mistake 

 to build as you contemplate. Such a 



building would have some decidedly ob- 

 jectionable features which could not 

 possibly be counterbalanced by the 

 slight saving in cost. For instance, 

 that high board fence on the north 

 side would cast a shade, even though 

 it were on the north side. Then, you 

 would have only two feet drop in fif- 

 teen feet for the sashbars. With this 

 pitch you could not possibly keep a 

 tight roof. If you were to use a ridge, 

 placing it about five feet south from 

 the fence and about nine feet high, it 

 would help matters some. But I would 

 advise a new house, built properly, and 

 you will be more likely to be satisfied 

 with it in the future. A. F. J. B. 



GARDENERS' ASSOCIATION. 



The executive committee of the Na- 

 tional Association of Gardeners held its 

 first meeting since the organization ob- 

 tained its charter at the Herald Square 

 hotel, New York city, Friday, January 

 12. President Logan called the session 

 to order at 3:30 o'clock. The invitation 

 from Charles H. Totty, of the National 

 Flower Show committee, inviting the 

 National Association to cooperate with 

 the Society of American Florists in the 

 holding of the national show to be held 

 iu New York city in 1913, was acted 

 on and a resolution was passed pledging 

 the support of the National Association 

 to the national show, it being decided 

 that the National Association would 

 not hold any exhibition of its own dur- 

 ing the coming year aifd that its mem- 

 bers should make every effort to pro- 

 duce fitting exhibits for the big show. 



The invitation from President Sim, 

 of the American Sweet Pea Society, 

 was acted on and it was decided to hold 

 a summer meeting in Boston at the 

 time of the sweet pea show, as it is 

 expected that many National Asso- 

 ciation members will be present at 

 that time in competition for the liberal 

 prizes which are offered by the Sweet 

 Pea Society in the private gardeners' 

 classes. 



President Logan appointed the follow- 



Prlncess Charmln)?. Washington. 



View in One of tiie Houses of the Chicago Carnation Co^ Joliet, 111. 



