NOVBMBER 28, 1912. 



The Florists^ Review 



13 



I 



' . Note the Great Improvement Produced by Enlarging: the Openiog. 



<ould be offered to have flowers ar- 

 ranged with them, I think the public 

 would show their appreciation much 

 more by their presence in larger num- 

 bers. Flowers and fruit should comple- 

 ment each other. I feel sure I shall be 

 oxcused if I thought they did not. 

 Brampton, Ont. A. A. Elliott, 



PBIlfULA OBCONICA. 



Can yon give me any light on the 

 following through the columns of The 

 -Review? _ Last February I planted 

 some Primula obconica seeds. The 

 plants are rather backward, but are 

 showing a good, sturdy growth at the 

 jiresent time. A number of them are 

 in 4-inch and 4%-inch pots, but none 

 of them are showing any signs of buds. 

 Does obconica ever come blind? Is 

 there anything I can do to improve 

 matters? W. B. 



Plants in the size of pots mentioned 

 should certainly now be throwing some 

 Howers. I have not had any experience 

 with obconicas coming blind, and be- 

 lieve that while occasional plants might 

 <lo so, it would be most unlikely in an 

 ontire batch. There is a small, dark 

 worm, closely resembling a cutworm, 

 which for several years has attacked 

 and eaten the hearts out of large quan- 

 tities of these plants. This worm works 

 little on the foliage, and its damage 

 might go unnoticed unless the hearts 

 <>t the plants are examined. I have an 

 uiea this may be responsible for the 

 condition of your plants. The worm 

 in question gets in its work mostly in 

 •'"Jy and August, and frequent hand 

 picking, as well as dusting air-slaked 



lime about the crowns of the plants and 

 between the pots, is necessary to keep 

 the damage to a minimum. I have 

 also found that spraying the plants 

 with nicotine once a week works well. 

 Your plants will no doubt flower, but 



will be a little late. Give them a tem- 

 perature of 45 to 50 degrees at night 

 and, if the pots are well filled with 

 roots, use liquid manure once in four 

 or five days. C. W. 



DIQITAUS. 



Do you know of any place where digi- 

 talis, the foxglove, is grown for its 

 leaves for drug purposes? What of 

 their value in that way? Does the 

 trade expect to buy the plants in sep- 

 arate colors? Does it come true to 

 color from seed? V. K. F. 



I do not know of any special place 

 where digitalis leaves are grown for 

 medicinal purposes. Large quantities 

 of second-year leaves are, however, 

 used for narcotic and other purposes. 

 While the trade would no doubt prefer 

 to have the colored and white digitalis 

 offered separately, the colors harmonize 

 so well that a good mixture of gloxinise- 

 flora or Ivory's spotted is just as satis- 

 factory in nearly every way as the sep- 

 arate varieties would be. C. W. 



OBNAMENTAI. GRASSES. 



A friend in Mississippi will send me 

 all the ornamental grasses I want, free, 

 excepting freight charges. Would the 

 kinds hardy in Mississippi transplant 

 to northern Indiana and grow? If so, 

 at what time would it be best to trans- 

 plant, considering the difference in our 

 seasons? Is the grass propagated by 

 divisions? If it is best to transplant it 

 at this season, could it be shipped by 

 freight if well packed? V. R, F. 



Some of the ornamental grasses, such 

 as eulalias, would probably be hardy 

 in your state. Not knowing the varie- 

 ties, I could not give a decided opinion. 

 Spring would be the best time to plant 

 these outdoors, carrying them over win- 

 ter in boxes in a cold house, cellar or 

 frame. They should come along safely 

 by freight, if . carefully packed. 



C. W. 



Beauties on Small Luncheon or Dinner Tables. 



