12 





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The Florists' Review 



August 8, 1912. 



AT THE SEASHOBE. 



M. H. Kruschka, the florist at As- 

 bury Park, N. J., knows no dull season 

 — he does a nice business all the year 

 around. The accompanying illustration 

 shows the kiosk on the board walk 



where he keeps things moving with the 

 summer throngs. This little stand is 

 only for the summer transients; he has 

 a store in town and greenhouses out on 

 Asbury avenue, where the bulk of the 

 business is done. -'■^' 



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 i ^ SUGGESTIONS \ 



35> 



Myosotis. 



From the beginning to the mid- 

 dle of August, according to the lo- 

 cation, is a suitable time to sow for- 

 get-me-nots. These are popular for 

 spring sales, both for cemetery lots 

 and the home garden. Myosotis al- 

 pestris Victoria, dwarf, compact and 

 with sky blue flowers, is the finest of 

 its type. Where a looser and more 

 spreading sort is preferred, try sylva- 

 tica. For indoor flowering in winter 

 and early spring nothing surpasses M. 

 dissitiflora. There are pink and white 

 forms of alpestris, and the variety Eliza 

 Fonrobert, of a taller habit, sky blue in 

 color, and Boyal Blue carry long stems, 

 which make them excellent indoor 

 varieties. 



Double Daisies. 



The daisies also are in favor for spring 

 sales and are fine for planting as a 

 groundwork for Dutch bulbs. There are 

 some fine, improved varieties of these. 

 Crimson King; Snowball, white, and 

 Longfellow, double rose, are a good trio 

 to grow. 



Cinerarias. 



If cineraria seeds have not been sown, 

 it is time to start a batch in a cold- 

 frame or greenhouse with a northern 

 exposure. Such seeds as cinerarias and 

 calceolarias germinate poorly during in- 

 tense heat, and even after growth is 

 started they damp off unless carefully 

 watched. They grow slowly till the 

 cool nights arrive. Use light soil, con- 

 taining plenty of sand. In order to 

 prevent drying out, it is a good plan 

 to plunge one pan inside a larger one. 

 Also use a sheet of glass, with paper 

 over this, until the seedlings appear. 

 Look out for cutworms, green cater- 

 pillars of the cabbage worm type and 

 allied pests, which are fond of cineraria 

 foliage. 



Cyclamens. 



Keep the cyclamen plants potted 

 aloqg before they can become potbound. 

 As a general rule, 5-inch and 6-inch 

 pots are the popular sizes for commer- 

 cial work, as these can be profitably 

 sold at a moderate price. Plants in 

 larger sizes than these are often sold, 

 of course, but to the average country 

 florist the smaller sizes will be the best. 

 Use a light but moderately rich compost 

 for the final shift. Three parts fibrous 

 loam and one part dried cow manure, 

 with sand and broken charcoal for por- 

 osity, will suit the plants. Avoid using 

 bone or chemicals; these are better ap- 

 plied after the pots are well filled with 

 roots. 



The plants should all be in cold- 

 frames now. Of course they can be 

 well grown in greenhouses, but for 



stockiness nothing beats coldframes. 

 Remove the sashes entirely on warm 

 nights. In fact, the sashes need not be 

 used at all during the hottest part of 

 the year except to shield the plants 

 from torrential rains, provided the 

 shadings, which should be of wood, are 

 used. If the pots can be partially 

 plunged in coal ashes, all the better, as 

 it will prevent their drying out so 

 quickly. On hot days spray the plants 

 freely, not once but several times daily. 

 In order to keep aphis and thrips in 

 check, pests abounding at this season, 

 spray once a week with a nicotine solu- 

 tion or one of the many soap sprays. 



Stevias. 



The tall growing stevias would better 

 be pinched now, after which no further 

 attention, beyond digging up and pot- 

 ting, will be needed. These are some- 

 times kept in pots all the time, and do 

 well treated thus. Still, where they 

 are planted out, carefully lifted and 

 watered and given a little shade and 

 overhead spraying for a day or two, 

 they soon lose all signs of wilt. The 

 dwarf-gTOwing stevias, which make the 

 nicest pot plants and are more in evi- 

 dence than the tall ones, will not re- 

 quire any pinching. 



Wallflowers. 



If seed has not yet been sown of 

 those popular early spring flowering 

 plants, the wallflowers, it should go in 

 right away. The blood red and golden 

 vellow colors sell the best, the latter 

 being the favorites. When the seed- 

 lings are large enough to handle, trans- 

 plant them into nursery rows, allowing 



twelve inches between the plants. If 

 the soil is rich they will make quite 

 heavy, bushy plants before cold weather, 

 and, no matter whether grown in pots, 

 boxes or benches, bunches of wall- 

 flowers will be found to appeal to many 

 customers in February, March and 

 April, the delicious odor pleasing every- 

 one. 



Antirrhinums. 



Stock plants of antirrhinums in the 

 field should have the flowering stems 

 well headed back. This will encourage 

 the production of plenty of nice, succu- 

 lent cuttings. If these are rubbed oflf 

 with a heel, they will be found less 

 likely to damp oflf during the hot 

 weather than those cut through with a 

 knife. Put them in clean, sharp sand, 

 with good drainage, give one good 

 watering daily, shade from all sunshine, 

 keep moderately close and the bulk of 

 the cuttings will root. Of course, later 

 in the season, when the nights are 

 cooler, the chances of rooting are con- 

 siderably improved. The call for young 

 snapdragon plants has shown a mar- 

 velous increase in the last two seasons, 

 and those who want a winter and early 

 spring crop, if they have no plants, 

 should either buy or propagate cuttings, 

 or sow seed without delay. Don't sow 

 a mixture of seed or a large variety of 

 colors. Pink is the leader, then white 

 and yellow. Some scarlets are salable, 

 but the call for these is only a fraction 

 of that for the nice, clear pink shades. 



Mignonette. 



During August is as early as it is 

 advisable to make a first sowing of 

 mignonette for winter flowering. Se- 

 cure seed of one of the really first-class 

 forcing strains offered, some of which 

 produce truly wonderful spikes under 

 the best cultural conditions. Mignon- 

 ette can be well grown in raised 

 benches, but better still in solid 

 beds. If in benches, use six to eight 

 inches of soil, such as will grow good 

 mums or roses. Never sow in benches 

 with heating pipes below them. If 

 there is one thing mignonette can- 

 not bear it is bottom heat, or anything 

 that will occasion dryness at the root. 

 It loves a cool, moist bottom, and to 

 get good spikes it is necessary to re- 

 member these requirements. It also 

 likes a house where the winter mini- 

 mum can be held at about 40 degrees 



M. H. Kruschka's Kiosk on the Board Walk, Atbury Park. 



