18 



The Florists^ Review 



FKBBUABr 26, 1914. 



last mentioned variety may appeal to 

 R. N. W., since it is a Canadian seed- 

 ling which we introduced several years 

 ago and ranks first as the latest true 

 pink. C. n. Totty. 



DETAILS TO WATCH. 



Hints for Builder^ of Greenhouses. 



Much has been said about practically 

 every part of the greenhouse, what to 

 buy, how to buy, and where to buy, 

 all for the education of the grower. 

 Little has been told him, however, 

 about the erection of the house after 

 the materials have been secured, and, 

 after everything else is considered, the 

 best greenhouse materials improperly 

 erected could not make a good green- 

 house. 



One of the common errors of those 

 inexperienced in building greenhouses 

 is the extravagant use of the carpen- 

 ters' level. Generally speaking, all 

 greenhouses should be built with a 

 slight pitch in the length to allow for 

 water drainage and assist in drying 

 the gutter bottom. Not long ago, my 

 attention was called to a greenhouse, 

 the erection of which had caused the 

 owner considerable trouble and ex- 

 pense. The carpenter, in setting the 

 gutter posts, had allowed correctly for 

 a pitch in the gutters to drain the 

 water. After setting up the forms 

 for the concrete wall, building the wall 

 and removing the forms, he discovered 

 that he had built the walls level in- 

 stead of allowing the same pitch as he 

 had for the gutters. The material in 

 the side wall between the concrete wall 

 and the gutters of course did not fit. 

 In another case a man ordered iron gut- 

 ters five feet six and three-quarters 

 inches in length and, without waiting 

 for their arrival, set up all the posts 

 for the walls. As the gutter hubs on 

 the cast-iron gutters are not evenly 

 spaced, he was compelled to reset near- 

 ly all his posts to conform to the posi- 

 tion of the post hubs on the gutters. 



Too Much Carpenters' Level. 



Many cases of the too frequent use 

 of the level and plumb-bob occur in 

 setting up the roof sashbars. The sash- 

 bars should be set on the square with 

 the gutters, but not infrequently a car- 

 penter will build the sashbars plumb 

 and, after everything is nailed tight, 

 discover that the glass does not fit, 

 but rests on two corners instead of 

 flat. It is often the case that a man, 

 if he is careful and uses good judg- 

 ment, gets his house up in good shape, 

 but, by the time it is up, he has become 

 so obsessed with the idea of avoiding 

 the use of the level that he builds the 

 benches with the same pitch as the 

 greenhouse. As benches should be 

 buUt level, it may cost the owner a 

 considerable sum to correct the error, 

 especially if the heating pipes were in- 

 stalled before the discovery of the 

 error. 



Most manufacturers send full instruc- 

 tions for setting up boilers, but to one 

 not familiar with them, they are not 

 easy to understand completely. A 

 boiler not properly bricked up and ce- 

 mented, or improperly connected, how- 

 ever, usually is the cause of an unjust 

 tirade against the boiler manufactur- 

 ers, or if nothing worse, in the abnor- 

 mal consumption of fuel. 



Installing Heating Pipes. 



After the boiler is set up, the heat- 



ing pipe is installed, a work which pre- 

 sents a hundred and one difficulties. 

 In connecting the pipe, several things 

 must be borne in mind. The pipe 

 should be laid straight, not wavy; all 

 pipe ends should be reamed; all pipe 

 joints should be red-leaded before be- 

 ing connected; as few turns and angles 

 as possible should be made in the lay- 

 out of the heating system. All pipe 

 should have a uniform pitch; it should 

 never be set level. The judicious plac- 

 ing of the air vents and valves some- 

 times determines the efficiency of a 

 heating system. Many times, in a de- 

 fective heating system, the substitu- 

 tion of one fitting for another will 

 cause the system to work properly. A 

 twin ell instead of a tee fitting has at 

 times, been the sole remedy necessary 

 for a system wiiich has generated sufii- 

 cient heat in some coils and little or 

 none in others. Occasionally some one 

 who is installing a mercury generator 

 for a hot water heating system for the 

 first time revolves the generator around 

 the pipe, and the consequent loss of 

 mercury makes the generator worthless. 



Construction Details. 



Often when the manufacturers of 

 greenhouse supplies and boilers are 

 blamed for the grower 's trouble, it is 

 really due to faulty construction. There 

 are many things to be considered, so 

 many that those who put up glass for 

 the first time have more than their 

 hands full. The size and number of 

 nails should be figured out carefully; 

 lumber that is split by too large nails 

 will not make a strong, decay-resisting 

 greenhouse, but it is almost as bad to 

 use nails that are too small. Glazing 

 points must actually hold the glass, not 

 be just stuck in. It is best, both for 

 appearance and economy, to scrape 

 away all surplus putty. All material 

 should be evenly painted, especially the 

 roof sashbars, so that the condensation 

 on the bar will flow properly. It pays 

 to see that the concrete for post and 

 purlin support footings is mixed prop- 

 erly. All joints and splices ought to 

 be thickly white-leaded. The closer 

 the plans are followed the better. 



It is the business of a good builder to 

 check every article carefully before 

 starting erection and to notify the 

 manufacturers at once of any error, so 

 that it can be rectified without delay 

 to the work. It this is neglected, as it 

 often is, the error will not be discov- 

 ered until the article is needed. The 

 result is much inconvenience and delay. 



Out of curiosity I have several times 

 asked growers who had erected their 

 own houses, what were their expenses. 

 I found that in every case the amount 

 was more than the cost of securing a 

 first-class builder. Generally speaking, 

 the grower will find it quite difficult to 

 apportion the work to inexperienced 

 help so as to gain the full benefit of 

 their time, and he will find it as cheap 

 or cheaper in the end to secure the serv- 

 ices of experienced builders, at least on 

 his first greenhouse. 



George Willens. 



STABTINa TUBEBOUS BEGONIAS. 



Can tuberous begonias be started in 

 a hotbed? F. H, 



Tuberous begonias can be started to 

 good advantage in a hotbed. Water 

 sparingly at first, or there is danger of 

 the tubers decaying. C. W. 



STATE FLOBISTS' ASSOCIATION, 



While the florists of Danville have 

 been busy with plans for the enter- 

 tainment of those who are to be their 

 guests March 10 and 11 and with the 

 arrangements for the decoration of the 

 Armory hall for the exhibition, the 

 officers of the Illinois State Florists' 

 Association have been busy preparing 

 the program of the meeting and send- 

 ing letters to the florists of the state 

 to urge their strong participation in 

 this banner meeting of the organiza- 

 tion. The Indiana florists are showing 

 their appreciation of the event and will 

 be present in large numbers. The ex- 

 hibits are expected to be of better than 

 usual quality. Exhibitors may either 

 bring their displays or ship them to 

 W. J. Anker, at Danville, who will take 

 care of their staging. The life member- 

 ship buttons are ready and Secretary 

 Ammann is expecting and hoping for 

 a run on them at the meeting. 



The opening session will begin at 2 

 p. m. Tuesday, March 10, and the busi- 

 ness will be concluded at that meeting. 

 At 8 p. m. Tuesday will be the annual 

 banquet, at the Plaza hotel; tickets for 

 this should be secured at the secretary 's 

 desk upon arrival. Wednesday at 10 

 a. m. the visitors will board special cars 

 for the experimental station at Urbana, 

 and an enjoyable trip is assured as a 

 result of the efforts of the Danville Flo- 

 rists ' Club. The official badge of the 

 meeting is the Beacon carnation. The 

 Armory hall containing the exhibition 

 of cut flowers and plants will be thrown 

 open to the public Tuesday evening and 

 Wednesday afternoon and evening. 



Th6 program for the opening session 

 of the convention is as follows: 



Introductory remarks, by H. E. Smith, president 

 Danville Florists' Club. 



Address of welcome, by Mayor Lewman. 



Response and welcome to the Indiana State 

 Florists' Association, by A. C. Koblbrand, Chl- 

 canto. 



Response by W. W. Coles, Kokomo, Ind. 



President's address, by Charles Loverldge, 

 Peoria, lU. 



Report of secretary, by J. F. Ammann, Ed- 

 wardsville. 111. 



Beport of treasurer, by F. L. Washburn, Bloom- 

 ington. III. 



I'nfinlshed business. 



New business. 



Public exhibition. 



Remarks by visiting Indiana florists. 



General discussion. 



Nomination and election of officers. 



.Vdjournment. 



COOPERATIVE MEETING. 



At last our hopes are being realized. 

 We have read and talked a great deal 

 about cooperation and fellowship in flo- 

 riculture. Is it possible? Yes! Also, 

 it will be proved in the near future. 

 March 10 and 11 the state associations 

 of Indiana and Illinois will hold a joint 

 meeting at Danville. After many years 

 of insistence and persistence the goal of 

 cooperation is in sight. 



You say we have had cooperation 

 through our national body for many 

 years. That is true, but it does not 

 come close enough to us. We could not 

 get along without the cooperative help 

 we derive through the national society, 

 but at the same time it does not touch 

 us vitaUy, because this body's actions 

 are nation-wide, and for its usefulness 

 cannot be otherwise. 



Our hopes for the future must de- 

 pend, if I may use my own phrase, on 

 localized cooperation. The man or men 

 in your locality are the ones with whom 

 you want a complete understanding. The 

 man a thousand miles away may be 

 working in cooperation with you, but 



