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FEBBDABY 29, 1912. 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



17 



Isaac S. Hendficloon. 



(President American Oladiolus Society.) 



■when he can not get florists' prices, 

 takes a spite at the florist who can, 

 and sells for any old price, which, of 

 course, hurts the local trade. We have 

 had experience in this line and know. 

 The other florists in our locality, hav- 

 ing specialties in other lines, have the 

 flame trouble. People who are not in 

 the trade seem to have no difficulty in 

 getting wholesale prices, and at the 

 prices for which the goods are some- 

 tiines sold we wonder if they are ever 

 paid for. The wholesale man has to 

 dispose of the greater part of his out- 

 put to the retail florist and he should 

 protect him by making sure the party 

 IS in the trade before giving wholesale 

 prices. Tom O'Connor. 



FLOWERS AS A FIELD CROP. 



[A paper by I. S. Hendrlckson, of Flowerfleld, 

 ^ Y., read at the New York State College of 

 Agriculture at Cornell University, Ithaca, N. Y., 

 Ill Che Fifth Annual Farmers' Week, February :<j 

 to 24, 1912.] 



Jt seems to me that, as the general 

 public begins to awaken to the real 

 ''i'> e and taste for flowers, particularly 

 t: ose grown outdoors, there will be 

 i'l'^sented to the fruit and vegetable 

 J umer, or anyone cultivating the land, 

 ;j'io of the greatest opportunities for 

 1'! reasing his income that one could 

 •" agine. While at the present time we 

 'li'u too dependent on certain markets 

 ^" justify every farmer or fruit grow- 

 I'r in going into the growing of flowers 

 Jor profit, yet I believe the time is 

 ■'oming when conditions will change, 

 •iiid it will be the expected and com- 

 ^'lon thing to see a flower section on 

 *^'ery farm. This condition will be 

 hastened when the housewife looks 



upon flowers as a necessity, or at least 

 an important part of the home decora- 

 tion. There are some sections of Eu- 

 rope where this condition prevails, and 

 as the marketing is done each day a 

 bunch of flowers for the table, or other 

 decoration, is .included, just the same 

 as vegetables, fruits, etc. 



While there are many flowers that 

 can be grown for cut flower purposes 

 with profit, we want to deal in this 

 paper particularly with peonies and 

 gladioli. One advantage of these two 

 flowers is that we can get returns at 

 both ends; that is, from both the roots 

 and blossoms. 



The Gladiolus. 



First we take up the gladiolus. The 

 popularity of this flower has increased 

 amazingly during the last five years, 

 and it is no wonder when we con- 

 sider the wonderful beauty of the 

 newer varieties, and the many good 

 qualities of this king of summer flow- 

 ering bulbs. When we also take into 

 consideration the possibilities of de- 

 veloping its popularity by judicious ad- 

 vertising and exhibits, it presents one 

 of the best propositions as a side crop 

 for the farmer for several reasons. 

 Among these reasons is its ease of cul- 

 ture. There is no flower grown that 

 will thrive and do well under nearly 

 all conditions as will this flower. While 

 it enjoys special care in the way of 

 good soil, yet it will give splendid re- 

 turns and do the best it can under 

 ordinary conditions and in ordinary 

 soil. 



Again, the bulbs are' easy to care for 

 over winter. Of course they are not 

 hardy, so must be taken up before 



freezing in the fall and stored in 

 some frost-proof place. If they are 

 put into trays and stacked up so that 

 a circulation of air can reach them, 

 they will keep in good condition until 

 planting time in the spring. The blooms 

 are easy to handle and make one of the 

 best flowers to ship, as they have con- 

 siderable substance in the stalks, and 

 even after a trip of two or three days 

 they will freshen up soon after being 

 put in water. The lasting quality of 

 the flowers is another point in their fa- 

 vor, as a spike will last in fairly good 

 condition from one to two weeks, if 

 the water is renewed every two or 

 three days and old flowers are removed 

 and part of the stem cut off. 



Varieties of Oladioli. 



As to varieties, while the gladiolus 

 enthusiast will enjoy testing every va- 

 riety put on the market, I believe that 

 when it comes to growing for commer- 

 cial purposes it is much better to con- 

 fine ourselves to a few varieties. The 

 important part is to have the main crop 

 in the principal colors, such as light 

 and dark pink, a good red, and a white 

 or light colored variety. There is occa- 

 sionally a call for yellows and other 

 combinations of colors, but what is true 

 of roses, carnations, etc., is true of the 

 gladiolus; that is to say, what is most 

 generally wanted is solid colors con- 

 fined to a few 'varieties. As has been 

 stated before, if the gladiolus crop is 

 haadled properly there is a good return 

 for labor and trouble, as the sale of 

 flowers will usually pay the expense of 

 cultivation and more, and if such va- 

 rieties as America, Augusta, May, 

 Brenchleyensis, Shakespeare, etc., are 

 grown, there is always a good market 

 for the bulbs at a good profit, as you 

 would sell the large bulbs that have 

 bloomed and save the bulblets that 

 form around the base of the old bulbs. 

 These are sown in much the same way 

 as garden peas in the spring, and dur- 

 ing the summer they will make growth 

 to the size of hazelnuts or larger. They 

 are then lifted in the fall, and in the 

 following spring they are again sown 

 like garden peas, but not quite so thick- 

 ly as the first year. They will make 

 considerable growth during this sec- 

 ond season and a large number of them 

 will run from one-half to one and one- 

 fourth inches, and a small percentage 

 larger. These are usually sorted out 

 and graded into different sizes and in 

 the following spring are set up in 

 straight rows, some two, some three and 

 some four in the furrow, about four 

 inches apart, and are covered three or 

 four inches with soil. They will then 

 give you their flowers during the sum- 

 mer and salable bulbs in the fall. 



Another great advantage in the gla- 

 diolus is the length of its blooming sea- 

 son, as by early and late planting we 

 can have the bloom from July to Octo- 

 ber. It is a good plan, and can be 

 carried out successfully, to divide your 

 bulbs into three or more lots and plant 

 them ten days or two weeks apart. 

 They can be planted as early as the 

 ground can be worked and as late as 

 July 1, provided you store the bulbs in 

 a cool, dry place to keep them from 

 starting. 



Planting Gladiolus Bulbs. 



In growing gladioli commercially I 

 believe the best way to handle them 

 is to plow the ground in the fall and 

 again in the spring, in order to pul- 



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