W. C. McCOLLOM 
January a Busy Time in the Greenhouse. 
EVERYTHING STARTS REAL GROWTH WITH THE INCREASING SUNLIGHT— VEGETABLES THAT ARE TABLE 
LUXURIES — FORCING SHRUBS AND ANNUALS — PROPAGATING ROSES — GETTING READY FOR SPRING OUTDOORS 
As spring comes plants begin to grow again, so the potting 
may be begun as the roots will take hold of the new sou 
I F YOUR Stock of Carnations is old 
and showing signs of “running out” 
buy some new strains — don’t run 
the risk of an unsatisfactory crop of 
flowers. But if the plants’ are healthy you 
can start propagating, selecting cuttings from 
healthy plants that have given good returns. 
The cuttings should be rooted in sharp sand, 
and if taken with a “heel” they should root 
in about ten days, when they can be potted 
up or dibbled off into flats, and kept grow- 
ing along slowly until it is time to plant them 
in the field or bench them — whichever method 
is preferred. 
Care should be taken to keep the Carna- 
tions in the benches disbudded; they should 
be growing rapidly now and will require 
frequent attention. Mulch the bench at 
once, and spray the plants on favorable days 
to keep red spider and aphis in check. 
I have found January an excellent time to 
overhaul the plant houses, looking over 
Palms, Crotons, Ferns, Dracenas, and other 
decorative plants and repotting those that 
require it, giving a somewhat larger pot to 
encourage growth but this class of plants 
should never be “overpotted” as their chief 
beauty lies in a fine well developed plant in 
as small a pot as possible. Plenty of feeding 
and top dressing during the growing season 
will reduce the necessity of frequent potting, 
and will give the maximum sized plant in the 
minimum pot. But they must be repotted 
occasionally, and this is the proper season 
of the year to attend to this. 
Plants like Dracenas, Dieffenbachias, Rub- 
ber, etc. that have lost their lower leaves can 
be saved by cutting the stem above the 
damaged part and wrapping the cut with moss 
until the cut emits roots, they can then be 
totally severed and potted up. 
.Ml the side runners of Ferns that develop 
in that way may now be potted up; or, if 
a large quantity be required, a small bed 
can be prepared and they can be planted 
out in the bench; you also might make use 
of the space under the bench by planting a 
row of the more hardy type along the edge 
of the walk in the greenhouse; you will 
get lots of cutting from these Ferns and they 
look attractive, too. 
Propagate Roses now. Where plants are 
wanted on their own roots, they can be 
“struck” in sand. Use good wood from 
plants that are free from disease and that 
have flowered freely, keep the cuttings 
covered with a case until rooted, and can 
then be potted up. Where grafting is to 
be done, the stocks are brought in and placed 
in frames, and when they show they are ready 
to commence growth the scion can be applied, 
and the whole waxed and wrapped and placed 
in a frame until the graft “makes up.” 
Pot plants such as Primula, Cyclamen, 
Calla Lily, etc., which have been flowering 
for some time or are about to commence 
flowering can now be fed freely, starting 
gradually with a mild application of liquid 
manure and increasing in both frequency 
and in strength. 
Many bedding plants if wanted from 
seed should be started now — Lobelia, Agera- 
tum, tuberous Begonias, English Daisy, 
Forget-me-not, Pansies, etc. can be brought 
along slowly. 
Many of our annuals are not good forcing 
plants, but if sown now they will do very well. 
If planted m benches in the greenhouse they 
will produce plenty of cut flowers during the 
early spring months and will be particularU’ 
acceptable adding variety at just the time we 
will be tiring of the regular greenhouse flowers. 
Nearly all the favorite annuals can be used 
especially Salpiglossis, Calendula, Calliopsis, 
.Asters, Stocks, Scabiosa, Balsams, etc. 
.Antirrhinums are rank growers so do not 
be afraid to give them plenty of liquid manure 
and top dress the bed occasionally with bone 
meal, guano or other concentrated foods. 
Keep the plants tied up, and disbudded, and 
spra}' frequently. 
All kinds of hard-wooded forcing plants 
such as Lilac, Clematis, Deutzia, Cytissus, 
Flowering Almond, Cydonia, Hardy Azaleas, 
.Andromeda, Forsythia, Rhododendron, and 
Laurel can now be forced. 1 hese plants 
should be placed in the cool house for a few 
days and sprayed very often, until the buds 
begin to swell; then removed to a warmer 
compartment. Most of these plants are pot 
grown and they should be fed freely to make 
up for the deficiency in soil. 
Look over stock plants of various bedders. 
The general habit is to place these in some 
out of the way corner until they are wanted 
in early spring for propagating purposes 
with the result that there is always a short- 
age of healthy stock. 
Continue forcing all kinds of early flowering 
shrubs by cutting the shoots and plunging in 
water in the greenhouse; these need not 
occupy valuable bench space if you have a 
high bench where the vases will fit under- 
neath. Spray well and keep the vase filled 
with water at all times. Any early flowering 
shrub that flowers before June will force 
very easily. 
Start potted fruits now. Generally speaking 
these are considered a summer crop, being 
^> 1 !) 
When “ knocking out ” a plant, support the ball by the open 
hand, the plant itself passing between the fingers 
forced at a season of the year when the green- 
houses are comparatively empty, but if you 
want early fruit the trees can now be brought 
into active growth. 
Early started fruit houses coming in flower 
require very close attention. In order to 
insure a good “.set” a comparatively drv 
atmosphere must be maintained, and the 
flowers gone over frequently with a soft 
brush such as a rabbit’s tail to help the 
pollenizing. 1 he canes should of course not 
be sprayed during the setting period and 
as little “damping down” done as is absolutely 
necessary. 
“Damping off” is a condition more or less 
abundant in the greenhouse at this season 
of the year, it is a fungous disease developed by 
an excess of moisture and scarcity of sunshine. 
Be careful in watering all plants, particularly 
small ones that haven’t a well established 
root system, and where possible the earth 
between the plants should be kept “scratched 
up” to give the air a chance to sweeten the 
soil; between small plants a label can be used to 
loosen the soil; with plants that are benched a 
claw cultivator should be used frequently. 
From this time on all kinds of vegetables 
force very easily in the greenhouse, in fact 
if you have the room and wish to devote it to 
the forcing of vegetables you can force any 
vegetable you like from radishes to corn. 
Any type of cucumber will force well, 
but the English Frame type is preferable 
because of superior quality. The plants 
require a high temperature, plenty of bottom 
heat, a light, porous, yet rich earth and 
should be trained to a trellis of some kind; 
to help fertilization go over the flowers with 
a camel’s hair brush. Tomatoes are handled 
in almost the same way, giving a night tem- 
perature of 65° and fertilizing with a brush 
to secure good, plump, well formed fruit. 
