March 14, 1012. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



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Frank Oechslia's Large Group at the Chicago Spring Show. 



BOILINO CTFBESS IN OIL. 



Does it benefit cypress greenhouse 

 material to boil it in linseed oilf Is 

 this better than applying the first coat 

 with a brush? If so, how is it donef 



M. B. 



While it is a good plan to boil sash- 

 bars in linseed oil, if one has conven- 

 iences for doing so, it is not necessary, 

 as a priming coat of oil containing a 

 small amount of white lead will answer 

 the purpose. It will be well to apply 

 a second coat of lead and- oil paint and 

 then, after glazing the houses, give 

 them a third coat. 



EXAMINATION FOR HEAD FLOEIST 



The examination for head florist of 

 the West Park system, Chicago, was 

 held Februa^ 27, 1912. 



The fact, that the civil service law 

 requires examinations to be competitive 

 and public required that this examina- 

 tion be held in Chicago on a fixed date. 

 The civil service board received in- 

 quiries and applications from some 

 forty or fifty prospective candidates, 

 residing in twelve different states of 

 the Union. Of these candidates, only 

 ten found it possible to appear in Chi- 

 cago on the date set for the examina- 

 tion. The test was completed in one 

 day and consisted of — ' 



Kl) A paper giving the candidate's 

 age\ education, and a description of his 

 practical experience. 



(2) A paper on the organization of 

 the work in conservatories, the arrange- 

 ment and time of the various floral dis- 



plays, and the general maintenance and 

 care of the greenhouses and conserva- 

 tories and their equipment. 



(3) A paper on propagation, plant 

 nomenclature and general horticultural 

 work. 



(4) A paper on English, arithmetic, 

 and other educational features. 



(5) An oral examination, including 

 the recognition of about thirty green- 

 house plants. 



The questions were designed by Ed- 

 win A. Kanst, of Chicago, and W. N. 

 Rudd, president of Mt. Greenwood 

 Cemetery Association, and these gentle- 

 men also conducted the oi'al examina- 

 tion and graded all the papers on floral 

 work. 



The successful candidate was August 

 Koch, at present in charge of a depart- 

 ment of the Missouri Botanical Garden, 

 at St. Louis. 



SEASONABLE SUQOESTIONS. 



The March Crop. 



The indoor plants which are now 

 just starting to flower should, under 

 favorable conditions, produce the finest 

 flowers of the year during the next 

 few weeks. The earlier crops are now 

 running out and wiU soon be over. 

 The houses they occupy can be utilized 

 for an indoor summer crop, provided, 

 however, they are large and well ven- 

 tilated. It would be a pure waste of 



energy to attempt their summer cul- 

 ture in any but the largest and most 

 up-to-date houses, but Memorial day 

 crops of ten weeks' stocks, gladioli, 

 feverfew, candytuft or snapdragon can 

 be planted, provided the plants are 

 now ready in pots. Many growers, for 

 a change, run tomatoes or cucumbers 

 through the summer and find they pay 

 well, particularly the tomatoes, which 

 are less sensitive to cold than cucum- 

 bers. 



Plants which are commencing to 

 flower, or will soon do so, should be 



