46 



The Florists' Review 



Decembbb 12, 1912. 



where they overcome, as far as possi- 

 ble, the effects of the hot days. The 

 sweet pea must be kept growing stead- 

 ily from the day the seed is sown. When 

 water is needed, do not apply near the 

 plants, but between the rows, where it 

 should be given liberally. This treat- 

 ment is especially important with the 

 early plantings. One reason why water 

 should not be applied too near the 

 plants is that they are especially sub- 

 ject to damping off. This trouble be- 

 comes more prevalent in October and 

 November, when there are more cloudy 

 days, cool nights, and like conditions. 

 Because of this, no soil should be heaped 

 around the stem. 



Time to Sow. 



When a good crop of sweet peas is 

 desired for Christmas, the seed should 

 be sown August 20. When sown Sep- 

 tember 1 the plants will flower in Jan- 

 uary; when sown September 15 the 

 main crop will be in February, and 

 when sown in October the crop will be 

 ready in March. November sowings 

 flower in the latter part of March; De- 

 cember sowings in April; .January sow-- 

 ings in April and May; February sow- 

 ings from May 1 on, and a March sow- 

 ing in May or June. This gives the 

 time when a reasonable crop can be 

 expected, although flowers will be cut, 

 especially with certain varieties, in a 

 shorter interval than that given. 



Some of the varieties in the tests 

 made here, at the Cornell Experiment 

 Station, sown October 20 and benched 

 December 20, gave flowers during the 

 last week in January, but not freely 

 until about March. Some sown Novem- 

 ber 20 and benched December 20 began 

 flowering in February and gave an 

 abundance in March. Seed sown in 

 beds September 24 this year gave flow- 

 ers on Thanksgiving day, although dur- 

 ing the whole month of November there 

 was not one clear day and there were 

 only two partly clear days. 



Supports. 



As soon as the peas are up, a support 

 must be furnished. This may consist 

 of string, wire and string, or wire net- 

 ting. When string is used it is stretched 

 lengthwise on each side of the row and 

 fastened to stakes on the purlin posts. 

 The wire-and-string support consists of 

 wires stretched over the row, one near 

 the ground and another eight to ten 

 feet above it; between these, string is 

 stretched lengthwise every ten inches, 

 and perpendicular strings connect the 

 top and bottom wires. 



Wire netting is condemned by com- 

 mercial growers. They maintain that 

 the vines do not cling to it, so that just 

 as much tying is needed; and, besides, 

 more crooked stems occur than when 

 the vines are trained on string. At this 

 station, however, all the methods have 

 been tried and the wire netting has 

 been found preferable. 



Temperature. 



Keep the temperature in the early 

 stage as low as possible, giving full 

 ventilation, day and night, as late as 

 possible without freezing. The cooler 



The Editor ia pleased 

 wben a Reader 

 presents Ills Ideas 

 on any subject treated In 



jVJi^ 



As experience Is the beet 

 teacber, so do 'we 

 learn fastest by an 

 excbanKe ot experiences. 

 Many valuable points 

 arebrouebt out 

 by discussion. 



Good penmanship, spelling and 

 srrammar, though desirable, are not 

 necessary. Write as you would talk 

 when doing your best. 



WK SHALL BK GLAD 

 TO HKAR FROM TOU 



the plants can be kept while growing, 

 the stronger and healthier they will be. 

 In this way the natural outdoor spring 

 conditions are approximated. 



When the flower buds can be felt in 

 the tips of the growing stems, the tem- 

 perature should be raised 1 degree a 

 night until 50 degrees is attained, which 

 is the proper temperature during De- 

 cember, January and February. From 

 about the end of February on, a night 

 temperature of 48 degrees is better. On 

 bri^t days a rise of 10 degrees or even 

 15 degrees may be given. On cloudy 

 days 55 degrees is high enough, for 

 higher temperatures promote soft, suc- 



culent growth that wilts when the sun 

 comes out. Plenty of ventilation should 

 be provided at every opportunity, as 

 this, with careful regulation of tem- 

 perature, causes a firm growth. 



Insects. 



Sweet peas are especially subject to 

 attack by the red spider, but unless the 

 plants are too near heated pipes such 

 attacks do not often occur except in the 

 fall months. The careful use of water 

 after the plants have attained a height 

 of a few inches will eradicate this pest. 



The common enemy of greenhouse 

 plants, the green fly, attacks sweet peas 

 from the time they appear above 

 ground. These insects can soon destroy 

 the young plants, as well as weaken the 

 plants at any stage. Fumigation should 

 be attended to carefully, the grower 

 choosing cool nights or performing the 

 work early in the morning, the chief 

 object being to clear the plants thor- 

 oughly by regular and persistent fumi- 

 gation so that they will not need fumi- 

 gating when in bloom, as the odor is 

 objectionable and injures the sale of 

 the flowers. Tobaoco also bleaches the 

 flowers of some varieties. In the spring, 

 when spraying plants with nicotine for 

 green fly or for thrips, use this insecti- 

 cide carefully, as sweet peas are sub- 

 ject to injury from it. A nicotine 

 preparation containing forty per cent 

 of the constituent nicotine, used at the 

 rate of two teaspoonfuls to each gallon 

 of water, will kill the thrips that are 

 hit by the spray. 



Climbing cutworms and snails, if 

 present in greenhouses, will destroy 

 sweet peas. The former insects, which 

 attack also carnations, violets and 

 chrysanthemums under glass, are com- 

 bated by using compost that has not 

 been covered by a rank growth of weeds 

 and grass. When their work is noticed 

 a search should be made for the worms 

 under any mulch or lumps of earth on 

 the bench, where they are coiled upi 

 during the day. They may also be 

 picked from the plants at night while 

 feeding. The use of poisoned baits is 

 also recommended; among the best of 

 these is the bran-arsenic mash, made by 

 mixing one part white arsenic, one part 

 sugar and six parts bran, with sufficient 

 .water to form a mash. This may be 

 placed among the plants. Snails can be 

 controlled by the application of lime 

 and soot to the surface of the beds or 

 benches. 



Diseases. 



The damping-off fungus has already 

 been mentioned as causing the loss of 



Transplanting a 60-foot Palm to the Entrance of the San Diego Exposition of 1915. 



