OOVOBBS 6, 1010. 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



13 



shown, all of them the latest and best. 

 All stems under twelve inches clear of 

 the flowers were barred, fourteen inches 

 being near the average. Few, if any, 

 were shown with less than four flowers. 

 I saw several with five flowers and was 

 told of one with six perfect blooms to 

 one stem, but I did not see it. There 

 was quite a collection of vases and 

 bowls, many of the bunches being two 

 to three feet in diameter, some of them 

 of the most delicate colors, but they 

 would have to be seen to be appre- 

 ciated. 



For fear this may be taken as an 

 exaggeration, I would say that Victoria 

 has by far the most perfect climatic 

 conditions for sweet pea growing I ever 

 saw. It is never extremely hot and the 

 nights are invariably quite cool. There 

 is no rain for three or four months 

 during the summer, but the proximity 

 of the Pacific ocean keeps the air moist 

 at all times. For sweet peas and Eng- 

 lish holly this city cannot be approached. 



I add a list of the most serviceable 

 colors and varieties from the collection 

 shown. Many of the most delicate col- 

 ors, such as Mrs. Chas. Breadmore, even 

 here have to be protected from the sun 

 by cheesecloth to keep from scalding: 



White— Etta Dyke. 



Pale pink — Mrs, Hardcastle Sykes, 

 Elsie Herbert. 



Pink — Audrey Crier. 



Rose-pink — Helen Lewis. 



Orange — Earl Spencer; this variety 

 meeds protection from the sun. 



Pale lavender — Asta Ohn. 



Lavender — Mrs. Chas. Foster. 



Red — Improved Geo. Stark, 



Maroon— Othello. F. B. 



STEM-EOT OF SWEET PEAS. 



Will you tell me what is the matter 

 with the enclosed sweet pea vine? They 

 started well and grew finely for a 

 while. Is it damping off or something 

 else? C. P. 



The sample shoot forwarded appears 

 to have succumbed to stem-rot. The 

 cause is difficult to determine without 

 knowing more about the growing condi- 

 tions. Earthing up the plants when 

 growing is one fertile cause of stem- 

 rot. Allowing the plants to remain too 

 thick in the rows will frequently cause 

 it. Let your plants be four to six inches 

 apart and not any closer. Keep the 

 surface soil well stirred. Keep the 

 house well aired and the average night 

 temperature as near 48 degrees as pos- 

 sible. Sourness or acidity of the soil 

 will cause wholesale dying off of the 

 plants. Liming would correct this in 

 some measure, but not as well now as 

 if applied some months ago. C. W. 



SWEET PEAS NOT BEANCHING. 



I want to ask why my greenhouse 

 sweet peas send up a stalk two or three 

 feet high, and do not stool out. The 

 stalks are spindly. The soil is all right. 

 I have never had them act this way 

 before. B. B. C. 



Provided your plants are not set too 

 thickly in the row — a reasonable dis- 

 tance would be four to six inches be- 

 tween each plant — there is no good rea- 

 son why they should not branch a little 

 later on. Frequently our plants are 

 much higher than two or three feet be- 

 fore they commence branching. If your 

 house is light, the rows not too close 



New Sweet Pea Jimmie Bland. 



together, and other conditions right, 

 your peas will probably stool out all 

 right before long. Do not let the night 

 temperature run over 46 to 48 degrees, 

 in order to keep the plants stocky, and 

 give plenty of fresh air. C. W. 



FIELD-GROWN HYDRANGEAS. 



I expect to receive some of the field- 

 grown Thomas Hogg hydrangeas a little 

 later and wish to know whctlier I should 

 keep them on the dry side, to allow the 

 leaves to drop off before starting them 

 for winter. L. A. G. 



You should secure and pot the hy- 

 drangeas as soon as possible. Soak 

 them well with water to settle the soil 

 about the roots. Stand them outdoors 

 as late as possible. Hydrangeas will 

 stand considerable frost when the wood 

 is well ripened and nutty brown in col- 

 or, but when green and soft, with leaves 



(pf a (lark green color, a few degrees of 

 frost will kill the buds and consider- 

 able of the shoots. It is a good plan 

 to run them a little dry, in order to 

 ripen the wood, and they should be al- 

 lowed to become moderately dry when 

 stored previous to being forced. I have 

 found that a temperature of 20 degrees 

 above zero will completely blacken all 

 the foliage and destroy much of the 

 growth while in a soft state, but 25 

 degrees above zero will not hurt them. 

 C. W. 



NAME OF PI.ANT. 



I am sending you under separate 

 cover a cutting of a plant of which I 

 should like to know the name. No one 

 here seems to know what it is. 



J. H. T. 



The name of the plant sent is Galium 

 Sylvostre. C. W. 



