36 



The Florists' Review 



Decbmbbb 12. 1012. 



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^ SEASONABLE ^ 



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^ ^ SUGGESTIONS I 





Winter Protection. 



We have reached a period of the 

 year when severe cold may be ex- 

 pected at almost any time, and winter 

 protection should be afforded wherever 

 it is really necessary. It is not a good 

 plan to rush this work ahead while the 

 weather is warm, as this is likely to 

 undo any good we hope to afford the 

 plants by giving them a winter cover- 

 ing. In nearly every case it is much 

 better to delay all protection until the 

 ground is well frozen. The mulch, of 

 whatever nature we may apply, will 

 then help to keep the ground frozen, 

 which is exactly what we want. 



Herbaceous Perennials. 



All hardy perennials should have a 

 winter mulch of coarse manure, straw 

 or some other material, not so much for 

 protection as to prevent the plants be- 

 ing heaved out of the soil by the al- 

 ternate freezing and thawing towards 

 spring. Any plants of somewhat 

 doubtful hardiness, such as tritomas. 

 Anemone Japonica, hardy chrysanthe- 

 mums and incarvilleas, should have a 

 good coating of leaves or straw. In 

 the colder states the tritomas and in- 

 carvilleas are better stored in sandy 

 loam in a cellar or coldframe. To hold 

 mulch of a light nature in position, use 

 the tops of the plants themselves, birch 

 boughs or pine boughs. 



Dutch Bulbs. 



Do not cover Dutch bulbs until the 

 ground is well frozen. If you cover 

 them, and give a liberal mulch of 

 leaves or straw, you will practically 

 exclude frost. The soil thus remaining 

 soft will give the bulbs a chance to 

 push ahead and, in the majority of 

 cases, when the time comes to remove 

 the mulch in spring you will find the 

 tulips and hyacinths with such long 

 and tender sprouts that, even with the 

 greatest care in uncovering, many are 

 broken. This cannot happen if cover- 

 ing is delayed until the ground is 

 frozen sufficiently hard to hold anyone 

 up. Try both plans and prove this for 

 yourself. 



Fansies. 



Where pansies are carried over in 

 coldframes it is an easy matter to win- 

 ter them successfully. Scatter a light 

 coating of dry leaves over them, but 

 be sure they are dry, ■»b damp leaves 

 will weigh down the plants and cause 

 decay. When steady cold winter weather 

 arrives, place sashes over them, but 

 be sure to air freely during mild 

 spells. When the pansies are out- 

 doors, to winter successfully they 

 should be on well drained ground. 

 Leaves are an excellent covering where 

 they can be held in position, but on 

 wind-swept locations this is difficult, 

 and in such cases meadow hay or salt 

 marsh hay and litter make the best 

 covering. 



Hardy Boses. 



In the case of hybrid perpetual 

 roses, drawing the soil up to the cen- 



ters of the plants is a sufficient protec- 

 tion, later applying a mulch of manure. 

 In severely cold locations it may be 

 necessary to wrap the stems in straw 

 or to cover well with leaves and loose 

 manure, in addition to soiling up. With 

 the hybrid teas, this same protection 

 is ample in many states, but it is in- 

 sufficient where minimum temperatures 

 as low as 15 degrci^s below zero are 

 common. It is much safer, then, to 

 lift and store the plants in coldframes 

 or n good cold cellar, in damp loam, or 

 bury outside in a trench, later mulch- 

 ing well with straw or leaves. Where 

 ramblers, such as Dorothy Perkins, 

 Tausendschon, Hiawatha, etc., are 

 likely to kill back, the best plan is to 

 loosen the canes and lay them down, 

 covering with a light mulch. 



Bhododendrons. 



Those beautiful evergreen shrubs, 

 the rhododendrons, are only hardy in 

 the colder states when well protected. 

 Be absolutely sure that they are moist 

 at the root before severe weather ar- 

 rives. If not, soak with water. More 

 deaths are due to dryness at the root 

 than to winter's cold. Then, again, 

 location has a great deal to do with 

 the way they come through. Those 

 well broken from the morning sun will 

 in all probability come through un- 

 scathed, when the same plants with a 

 southern exposure would be badly 

 scorched or killed outright. The late 

 winter sun and bitter winds do the 

 greatest damage, and from the middle 

 of February until early April is the 

 critical time with these plants. 



Provided they are moist at the root, 

 mulch heavily with leaves. Then erect 

 a framework and tie some evergreen 

 branches above and around the beds, 

 unless they are of the ironclad types, 

 and these are few. Often a good wind- 

 break of boughs is sufficient protection. 

 Where evergreen covering is hard to 

 et)||ijin, burlap can be used to advan- 

 tage, but care should be taken to allow 

 air to circulate about the plants; other- 

 wise it is likely to be injurious. 



Various Evergreens. 



There are many evergreens of a 

 rather doubtfully |(ardy nature which 

 may need some j^Otection similar to 

 that suggested for rhododendrons in 

 order to prevent scorching. If there 

 are any at all dry at the root, water 

 them abundantly and there will be far 

 less likelihood of their sustaining in- 

 jury. English ivy on walls even on a 

 northern exposure will often scorch 

 unless boarded over or covered with 

 some evergreen boughs. I recently saw 

 a quite unique way of protecting a 

 high wall of ivy. Coarse fish netting 

 was hung over it, securely fastened 

 here and there, and then pine boughs 

 fastened to it. This made an effective 

 and easily applied covering. :.^.^,_, 



SWEET ALYSSUM NOT BOOTING. 



We have thousands of cuttings of 

 double sweet alyssum, but cannot get 

 them to root in sand. Will you please 

 tell me how to root themt Some have 

 been in wet sand six weeks and still 

 show no signs of roots. 



L. M. S. & C. 



The alyssum cuttings should have a 

 little bottom heat; 65 degrees will suf- 

 fice, and the top heat can be 15 degrees 

 lower. In taking cuttings, do not take 

 the hardest wood, but ends of the shoots 

 which are softer. Any which can be 

 cut or rubbed off with a heel will root 

 more quickly than such as have a direct 

 cut through the stem. Any of these cut- 

 tings should easily root within six 



Small Basket of Mixed Plants for Quittmas. 



