April 9, 1914. 



The Floi^ists^ Review 



17 



THE CENSUS OF FLOBIOULTUBB. 



The United States Census Bureau has 

 just issued a bulletin containing the 

 census of agriculture for 1910, includ- 

 ing the census of ' ' flowers and plants. ' ' 

 The figures showing the area under 

 glass in 1909 were published in The Re- 

 view for May 1, 1913, the first time 

 that this data had appeared in print. 

 The number of establishments report- 

 ing and the value of products for 1909 

 was made public in July of 1912. The 

 complete figures now available show 

 comparisons with ten years before, also 

 acreage, which means nothing in this 

 business, and the average value of 

 products per establishment, which 

 means even less, although it may ber of 

 interest to note that the government 

 has figured out that the average value 

 of the products of the greenhouse 

 establishments in the United States in 

 1899 was $2,132, and in 1909, $3,286, 

 the total value of the greenhouse prod- 

 ucts having increased in the ten years 

 from $18,758,864 to $34,872,329, or 85.9 

 per cent. 



The principal point of interest in the 

 tables, however, lies in the fact that it 

 is shown that of the 10,614 establish- 

 ments from which reports were ob- 

 tained to make the total, 3,170 had an- 

 nual sales of less than $250; to be 

 exact, average sales of $127.73. Estab- 

 lishments reporting products for the 

 year 1909 valued at $250 or more num- 

 bered 7,444, the total value of their 

 products being $34,467,440, or an aver- 

 age per establishment of $4,630. 



These figures go to show what many 

 have long believed, that the census of 

 floriculture does not in any way truly 

 represent the industry; that large num- 

 bers not actually engaged in the busi- 

 ness are counted in the totals, while 

 by no means all the actual commercial 

 establishments are enumerated. The 

 figures are, of course, five years old, 

 but the most unsatisfactory feature of 

 them is the statement that the tables 

 include 3,170 establishments reporting 

 an average value of products for the 

 year of only $127.73. These people may 

 be farmers; they certainly are not flo- 

 rists. 



The Hardy Garden. 



Outdoor operations of all kinds will 

 crowd now. The winter has btfftn a 

 dragging one and carried well into the 

 lap of spring. This makes it necessary 

 to crowd work unduly. It leaves a 

 short shipping season for the nurseries, 

 and delays in the receipt of stock are 

 unavoidable. Each year I have advised 

 more fall planting. The nurseries 

 would appreciate fall orders; it insures 

 the customers getting fresh stock and 

 more promptly than in the spring rush. 

 Furthermore, fall stock will, in nine 

 cases out of ten, beat spring planted 

 stock. Nevertheless the old idea that 

 it is necessary to wait until spring be- 

 fore doing any planting dies hard, and 

 probably florists' customers, in the ma- 

 jority of cases, prefer spring planting. 

 But that it is a big mistake to let 

 everything slide until spring, and then 

 only half do it, will hardly admit of 

 any argument. Anyone who has tried 

 fall planting of hybrid perpetual roses, 

 herbaceous plants, fruit trees and de- 

 ciduous shrubs and compared them 

 with spring results, must admit that, 

 with a few exceptions, fall is the best 

 planting season. Some day people will 

 better appreciate this fact. 



Pruning Hardy Climbers. 



All deciduous hardy climbers, such 

 as wistarias, begonias, aristolochias, 

 vitis, actinidias and clematis, should 

 be pruned now. The Kudzu vine, Puer- 

 aria Thunbergiana, makes a rapid 

 growth. It should be cut back hard, 

 as should Clematis paniculata. Be- 

 gonias and wistarias also should be cut 

 back hard once they have covered their 

 required space. Loniceras, such as 

 brachypoda, Halleana, Belgica and sem- 

 pervirens, should have dead wood re- 

 moved, but cutting back live wood 

 will destroy the flowers. Hydrangea 



petiolaris and Schizophragma hydran- 

 geoides, the climbing hydrangea, should 

 not be cut back at all. Their beauty 

 lies in their natural growth, and they 

 are specially good for covering large 

 cedar posts, dead trees which have been 

 headed back, or living trees which do 

 not cast too heavy a shade. 



Hardy Perennials. 



All winter mulch should be removed 

 from hardy perennials and the ground 

 stirred up. It is surprising how quickly 

 the plants grow, once the ground is 

 open. Fall is the best time for plant- 

 ing most of the perennials, but any 

 work not done then should be com- 

 pleted now, and varieties of doubtful 

 hardiness in the northern states, which 

 require storing over winter, should be 

 planted out now. These include incar- 

 villeas, early flowering chrysanthe- 

 mums, Japanese anemones, double heli- 

 anthus, tritomas and a few other sub- 

 jects, pansies. 



The winter covering can safely be 

 removed from pansies in the open. 

 Heavy snow coverings are a benefit to 

 these, and in many sections they have 

 wintered unusually well. Plants in 

 coldframes, if kept well watered and 

 the sashes kept over them, will give 

 flowers much earlier than the outdoor 

 ones, and early flowers of this popular 

 plant are always in demand.' The same 

 applies to such favorites as double 

 daisies and myosotis. Where it is de- 

 sired to get pansies and forget-me-nots 

 along in good season, they can be 

 planted in boxes or baskets and kept 

 in a greenhouse. Use a dozen in a bas- 

 ket, which is a salable number for 

 retail customers. 



Bulb Beds. 



Care must be taken in removing the 

 covering from the tulip, narcissus and 



hyacinth beds, or many shoots will be 

 broken. It is also wise not to remove 

 all the mulch at once, as frequently 

 cold, frosty winds come late in April 

 and these pale yellow sprouts are more 

 susceptible to injury than such as have 

 been exposed all the time. Such bulbs 

 as Hyacinthus candicans and mont- 

 bretias can be planted now; also any 

 lilies which may have been carried over 

 winter in pots. 



Deciduous Shrubs. 

 Few deciduous shrubs require prun- 

 ing when in a dormant state, but such 

 hydrangeas as paniculata grandiflora 

 and arborescens are exceptions. Prac- 

 tically all other flowering shrubs should 

 be pruned after they have flowered. If 

 cut back now the flowering wood will 

 be removed. Planting should be pushed 

 ahead with vigor as soon as the ground 

 has dried out sufficiently. Dig out ample 

 h»lea, do not use manure about the 

 roots, be sure all roots are well damped 

 before filling in, and firm the soil 

 thoroughly. Any manure is best ap- 

 plied as a top-dressing after planting. 

 It is well to remember that roots as 

 well as shoots are better cut back to 

 some extent. This is particularly true 

 of shrubs of large size; the larger the 

 shrubs the more necessary it is to head 

 them back well. AH • broken or muti- 

 lated roots should be cut clean away. 

 Left-Over Easter Stock. 



Inquiries are frequent as to what to 

 do with left-over Easter plants. Spi- 

 raeas can be planted out in any good 

 soil, and in two years they will have 

 made big clumps which will probably 

 need dividing into two or three, but 

 which will beat any imported clumps 

 in quality. Lilacs should be cut back 

 well, removing foliage entirely. Planted 

 out in an open, sunny spot, in rich 

 soil, in two years they will have made 

 splendid growths and will force well. 

 Genistas are better thrown away un- 

 less it is desired to grow some on into 

 large specimens. Azaleas should have 

 flowers and seeds removed, should be 

 pruned into a symmetrical shape and 

 planted out where they can be watered 

 in dry weather. These, if treated thus, 

 will flower much more heavily than 

 any imported ones. Acacias will re- 

 quire pruning back and must be kept 

 in a cold pit for a few weeks longer; 

 the same applies to ericas and boronias. 

 Left-over bulbs are really not worth 

 saving unless a flower bed requires 

 some, in which case plant them out at 

 any time. Rambler roses can be cut 

 back close to the ground, when they 

 will soon send up a fine crop of young 

 shoots. Hybrid perpetuals can be 

 planted without any pruning and will 

 force well another season. 



ALVIN, TEX. 



The cool, late spring has held vege- 

 tation back several weeks later than 

 usual. The weather bureau at Houston, 

 twenty miles from here, reports that 

 the average mean temperature for the 

 month of March for this locality was 

 lower only in 1892 and 1912 than it 

 was for last month. As a result of 

 this the cape jasmine crop is reported to 

 be unusually late. We expect the largest 

 crop we ever have had, but the supply 

 for Decoration day will be limited, 

 owing to the late season. Unless the 

 weather during April and May is most 

 favorable for their development, the 

 crop will be too late for the day of 

 best demand. 



