18 



The Florists' Review 



NOTSMBEB 28, 1912. 



rating the hood with a big box of 

 flowers tied on, with other boxes on 

 the running boards and the tonneau 

 filled with the product of the green- 

 houses. 



They call them "hothouses" in 

 southern California, and the green- 

 house-grown stock is referred to as 

 hothouse carnations to distinguish 

 them from the field-grown article. In 

 speaking of the output of his nursery, 

 Mr, Lowe says it consists of a large 

 assortment of flowering bulbs, hothouse 

 carnations, outdoor roses and carna- 

 tions, sweet peas, centaureas, dahlias. 

 Golden Glow, asters, Shasta daisies and 

 chrysanthemums. A large lath house 

 is filled with Asparagus Sprengeri, As- 



paragus plumosus and smilax. In an- 

 other house Boston and Elegantissima 

 ferns, maidenhair, kentias, azaleas and 

 spirsBas are grown under glass. 



SPECIALIZING ON SUCCESS. 



E. J. Southe'-ton, at Highland Park, 

 111., has what he modestly describes as 

 "better success than the average flo- 

 rist" with cyclamens, so he is grad- 

 ually coming to specialize on cycla- 

 mens, having previously made a spe- 

 cialty of bedding plants and landscape 

 gardening. The accompanying illustra- 

 tion shows one of Mr. Southerton's 

 houses of cyclamens during the grow- 

 ing season. The plants are now coming 

 into fine flower. 



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31 



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^ SEASONABLE ^ 1| 

 i ^ SUGGESTIONS j 



Freesias. 



The earliest batch of freesias, which 

 are wanted in flower for Christmas or 

 New Year's, must now be kept in a 

 ni^ht temperature of 55 degrees. Any- 

 thing higher than this may force them 

 into flower a day or two earlier, but the 

 flowers will be much lacking in sub- 

 stance. A shelf is the ideal place for 

 them. If this is not available, a light, 

 sunny bench will do. It is a good plan 

 to elevate a pan here and there on an 

 inverted pot. This assures nice, stocky 

 plants. See that the plants are prop- 

 erly supported and for tying use green 

 twine or raffia, as it is inconspicuous. 

 Liquid manure once in five days, with 

 a good supply of water at all times, is 

 necessary. Also avoid giving any 

 heavy fumigations in the house where 

 they are growing, or the ends of the 

 flowers will turn brown. 



Bomau Hyacinths. 



The earliest planting of Koman hya- 

 cinths should now be well sprouted and 

 should be placed in a warm house, 

 where within two or three weeks the 

 spikes will be fully expanded. If 

 grown in flats, move into a cooler 

 house when expanded, in order to give 

 the flowers more substance. For a 

 Christmas supply it is not necessary to 

 house any of the plants until the be- 

 ginning of December, but the average 

 retailing florist should start a batch 

 once a week, as it is a useful flower to 

 have in making up designs. 



Spiraeas, 



The spirasas, or astilbes, are now at 

 hand. After unpacking them, soak the 

 roots well in a tub of water and pack 

 in a coldframe where they will be 

 exposed to some frost. It will not pay 

 to: start forcing these until after Christ- 

 mas, as they will break erratically. 

 Like lily of the valley, they need some 

 rest before they are forced. The plants 

 seen in flower occasionally at Christmas 

 are not grown from the new season's 

 roots, but from such as have been car- 

 ried over in cold storage. The varie- 

 ties Gladstone and astilboides flori- 

 bunda are fine whites, well adapted for 

 early forcing. These are much superior 

 to the old Japonica. The beautiful 



peach-pink variety. Queen Alexandra, 

 is in habit similar to compacta multi- 

 flora and Gladstone, but cannot be 

 forced into flower as early. For Me- 

 morial day trade it is excellent, how- 

 ever. 



Mignonette. 



The earliest sowing of mignonette is 

 now giving some nice spikes, not equal 

 in quality to what we will have from 

 January to March, but still welcome on 

 the market at this early season. As 

 the roots have now permeated the bed 

 pretty well, a mulch of well decayed 

 manure, well pulverized, should be ap- 

 plied and, in addition, some cow or 

 sheep liquid manure should be given 

 at alternate waterings. Be sure the 

 plants are carefully supported, as bent 

 mignonette stalks are not wanted by 

 anyone. Also keep the weak stems 

 rubbed out, as well as laterals from the 

 flowering stems. Keep the night tem- 

 perature at from 40 to 42 degrees. Let 

 45 degrees be the absolute maximum, 

 and be sure never to use tobacco stems 



when fumigating, as these will badly 

 scorch the leaves. 



Storing Dahlias. 



There are frequent complaints each 

 year of dahlia tubers failing to keep 

 satisfactorily. These come usually from 

 small growers who do not have the 

 specialist's conveniences for storing 

 roots. A cellar or cool shed, dry, with- 

 out artificial heat and just clear of 

 freezing, is what dahlias require. 

 Sometimes when laid on shelves they 

 are found to shrivel or decay, but I 

 have found that if each tuber is 

 wrapped in a piece of newspaper and 

 then packed in barrels, every root will 

 come out fresh and plump in spring. I 

 would suggest that growers who have 

 had difficulty in wintering dahlia roots 

 try this plan. 



Irises and Gladioli. 



Where irises and gladioli are not 

 planted in benches, as quite a few 

 florists prefer to grow them, this is a 

 good time to bring a few flats of each 

 into a cool house for an early crop. 

 These bulbs require quite a long season 

 as compared with tulips, narcissi or 

 hyacinths, for even when placed in 

 heat now they will not flower before 

 the end of March. They resent hard 

 forcing, and a night temperature of 45 

 to 50 degrees should not be exceeded. 

 Any of the varieties of Spanish iris 

 can be housed, and among the early 

 small-flowered gladioli, Colvillei The 

 Bride, Peach Blossom and Blushing 

 Bride are suitable to start at this 

 time. 



Chrysanthemum Stock. 



Now, when the flowering season is 

 nearly over, the chrysanthemum stock 

 plants, instead of being tucked under 

 the benches or in any out-of-the-way 

 place, should be planted in a bench 

 close to the light in a cold house. A 

 house suitable for violets, or even a 

 few degrees cooler, is just what they 

 need. Planted in rows in good loam, 

 carefully labeled and right under ob- 

 servation all the time, it is an easy mat- 

 ter to know what sorts are likely to 

 be a little short, and in such cases to 

 start propagation early, so as to be 

 able to work up an ample supply of the 



Cyclamen House of R. J. Sotithcrtoa, Highland Park« IlL 



r,. ■' 



