8 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



AlMMl. 14, 1910. 



F 



SEASONABLE 



SUGGESTIONS 



Nephrolepis. 



Al'ttT ivi^tcr the jiriocs ot' ciini.-it inn's 

 rulo (•oiii|i:ii;iti\oly low and tlu'ic aic 

 usuall\' c'ortaiii biMu'lics wliicli it will 

 jiay to iiui! t)ut to inaivc I'ooin lor sonic 

 ell)]) for Moniorial day. At this busy 

 iscasoii, when woilv ot' i'\ory kind crowds 

 us, it is dillieult to care propoily for 

 ovcry crop, as \vi' would wish. Aiuoug 

 thoso which aro liable to bo for^otttMi 

 aro tho lu'iiliroloins. Wo will want a 

 lot of tht'ui in tho fall and must not 

 fori^ot to t:(>r ]iiants under way now. 

 .\ side bond) is an ideal place for thoni. 

 Mix siuiH' well ndtod nianuie in tho old 

 carnation soil, if you decide to use it 

 for tho ferns. Now eoni|iost would bo 

 bettor, but many prefer to utilize the 

 old soil. Younjj; plants from pots and 

 runners can alike bo planted hero. 



Use a hanj.;in<j curtain ot' choi'sotdoth 

 alonjj; tlif path side of the bench to fur- 

 nish shade and exclude air. Soak well 

 after plantinjx; after that ii'wc frequent 

 gentle sjirayinixs. .\s the plants boeonie 

 established and j^row ajiaco, a mulch of 

 old and wellrfttted manure will keep the 

 <oil cooler and nu)ister. The <j;lass should, 

 of course, be shaded, but not heavily. 

 The old Boston fern. \. exaltata Bos- 

 toniensis. retains its lead o\ cr all the 

 newer introductions and is still as ]iopu- 

 lar as over as a house jilant. X. \Vhit- 

 niani seems to come niori> true than any 

 of tho sports. Amerpohlii is coniinj^ to 

 the front, while eloj^antissima has many 

 friends. 1 Barrowsii and Scottii will soon 

 lu^ included anumLT the "'has beiii-;. "' 



Shading. 



Shadiiiij is a neco<s;irv evil. \\'e can- 

 not well do without it during the sum- 

 mer months, if we wish to have pre- 

 sentable pl.-ints. Palm Innises ha\e 

 received shade before this titne. as also 

 ha\e ferns in variety. Xaplith;i and 

 white lead makes an easily-fippliod and 

 inexpi>nsive shading. For largo luuises 

 it pays ti> co\ cr the gias-; with one of 

 the sprayers used i<<r I'.m'di'aux mixture 

 or for general spraying imrposes. On 

 smaller houses a long-handled l>rush an- 

 swers well. Aboil! ;ill il.iwcriii^ plants, 

 iiududing caiiiat iiin~. an' ii^w briidiicd 

 by :i little shade. l>o u>>\. however. ]iiit 

 a dense shade on any house, merely 

 because we diaib-e to got a few early 

 hot days. We may get spells of dark. 

 damp weather, when all |.o-^sible light 

 through the gla-^s will be needed. 



Show Pelargoniums. 



Till' earlier show jielargoni-uins are 

 now tlow c'riiiLT. 'I'lioy aro easily dam- 

 aged by an o\erplus of heat or sunshine. 

 (,;i\o the glass o\er them some sliad<> ;ind 

 .jo not I'lay the hose among the tlowors. 

 as it will speedilv cause damping of 

 both t'oliage and llowers. Show jiolar- 

 goniums ie\i'l in a rool hon<e: |."i de 

 grees lit riight is high enough. aii<l at 

 40 degrees tli(\\- would be more at homo 

 tli;in at (in d<'grees. Look out for green 

 aj'hi-^. llea\y sniokii;g< f roiu ,t idiacco 



stems Avill cause all expanded tlowors to 

 clro[) to j)iecos. ^lild fumigations once 

 a week will keep tho plant lice in 

 (heck, i'l'od the plants lilierally when- 

 ever the pots are well matted with 

 rtn)ts. Do not attempt any propagation 

 of show pelargoniums. Wait until early 

 duly, or until the blooming season is 

 practically ended, and then take some 

 cuttings; or wait until the plants are 

 dried otV, and when pruning back. ]ire- 

 paratoi-y to ri'stiag them, plenty of suit- 

 t.aide wood can bo had. 



Primulas. 



The e.irliosl pricke<l olV seoillings of 

 l)rimulas ;ii'o now t-rowini: nicelv in llats 

 and will 1h' all I'ight th(>re two or three 

 weeks longt>r. Never allow these seed- 

 lings to crowd one another unduly before 

 transplanting. A light bomh or shelf, 

 with a minimum of -IS to ."in degrees, is 

 all right for juimulas. It woiiM be far 

 bt'tter to have it cooler than warmoi'. It 

 is not yet too late to sow seeds of P. 

 Kewonsis, siellata and obconica. Those 

 late sown seedlings will not de\elo|i into 

 specinu'n sV.ed plants, but will make nice 

 little stock for o-imdi jiots. or for mak- 

 ing uji into pans. Within a month all 

 till' primulas will ilo \a>':tly better in a 

 cohltr.aiiie. in which :i few inches (it' warm 

 manure \\a< lirmly tram|ied ami a bed ot' 

 tine ciinleis placed o\t'i' it. Seed will 

 germinati' best in.;i \\;irm. iiioi-t house, 

 but the liats or pati^ should he nioveil to 

 ('Older ipiai'ters so(in after the s'edlings 

 ha\e germinated. 



Memorial Day Crops. 



Ten weeks' stocks come in usetul at 

 .Meniori;ii day. They are not ordinarily 

 good sellers, iml on .May .'lo almost any 

 ilowi'r can be dispo'^ed of. Tlio'^e which 

 were recently benched slnndd be along in 

 ^oo(| season if given a light house, with 

 a miiiiiiiuni teiiiperature of 4"^ to oO de- 



grees at night. Have the surface soil 

 scratched occasionally. A certain ])ropor- 

 tion are sure to come single, it is best 

 to pull these out as soon as they show 

 themselves, as they are of little value for 

 cutting. 



l)(ndilo feverfew is grown a good deal 

 for JMomorial ilay, anil when it conies in 

 season it proves invaluable for using in 

 mixed bouquets. It is a somewhat coarse 

 tlower and its odor is not specially invit- 

 ing, but ])urchasers can get a nice bunch 

 for a (juarter and it is generally in big 

 demand. As it is a strong rooting sub- 

 ject, benches in which it is getting well 

 established should have some liipiid 

 manure. A top-dressing of cow or sheep 

 imimire will also prove beneficial. A tem- 

 perature similar to that for ten weeks' 

 stocks suits it. 



Spira-a Japonica in jiots, boxes or 

 benches is another useful crop for the 

 coming holiday. Plants sluuild now be 

 nicely started. They will stand hard forj^ 

 iiig if necessary and can hardly be over- 

 watered. Do not overlook the new pink ■ 

 variety. Queen Aloxamlra. Tho color is 

 just what you will need. Its price is now 

 becoming iiuite reasonable ami it should 

 prove a popular tlorists' jilaiit. Be sure 

 to fumigate very lightly where spirioas 

 are (irowinti'. 



In the case of lilies intended for 

 .Memorial day, if tho buds show car^y in 

 .May they will bo all right. It is easy to 

 give them a little extra heat if they seem 

 rather late. I., longillorum giganteum is 

 the most useful tyj>e for late llowering. 



(iladioii, with their large, showy spikes 

 of tlowors, aro always a welcome Me- 

 morial day assort. As wo are likely to 

 lia\o some protty^hot weather in May, 

 which may send them along faster than 

 could die wished, it is best to cut them 

 as soiui as tho first llowers op(>ii and jilace 

 tluMu in a cold room. The tlowors will 

 open just as well as on the jdant and wilt 

 last better. 



Sowing Hardy Annuals. 



Slime oi the hardier annuals that art- 

 suitable for cutting should now bo sown 

 (Uitdoors. Wo like to got those in by the 

 middle of April, before the ground be- 

 comes too dry and warm, as they then do 

 much better. Among the more useful of 

 these annuals are: .Mignonette, lu])ines. 

 laikspurs in a variety of cidors, poppies 

 in variety, of which the Siiirloy is the 

 most desirable; Leptosyne maritima. 

 (iaillardia idi-ta L(U'eii/iana. Centaurea 



Auto Decorated by A. Wicgand & Sons, Indianapolis. 



