68 Slower (Brower 
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I WAYSIDE RAMBLINGS 
TIME FROM PLANTING TO BLOOMING 
OF GLADIOLI. 
It is quite interesting to read the dif- 
ferent tables that appear from time to 
time in The Flower Grower as to 
the number of days from planting to 
blooming, or the cutting of the first 
spike. Different varieties, no doubt, 
require a longer or shorter time to 
bloom, take for instance, Pink Beauty 
which is the first in the market, fol- 
lowed close by Halley or some other 
(as there are others) variety. Then 
comes Mrs. Francis King, America, etc., 
coming in later even if planted at the 
same time. Weather conditions, loca- 
tion and soil also make a difference, 
and the size and vitality of the corm 
has much to do with the growth of the 
bloom. To get at the point of earli- 
ness a good suggestion would be for 
all growers who wish to try it out in a 
certain locality or zone, plant at the 
same time. Take for instance the 
west, in a certain district in Ohio 
growers should plant one or more va- 
rieties of the earlier sorts on a certain 
day, plant a hundred or five hundred 
bulbs of a certain size, note the time 
of planting also the date of cutting the 
first spike when the bloom opens. Then 
jump to Massachusetts, New York or 
Jersey, each section planting the same 
way. This could easily be done by a 
notice in The Flower Grower calling 
attention to the fact, reminding all 
growers interested in the matter to 
plant and make a report to The 
Flower Grower in a certain month, 
giving their respective location where 
grown, with weather conditions, etc., 
and by these means I think a true table 
of earliness could be arranged for each 
locality. I think when a grower sends 
in his table his locality should be given, 
then all growers in that locality would 
have a guide to go by. Below I give 
a table I made up of the following va- 
rieties, the location being Southern 
New Jersey : 
Early Pink— Planted May 18, cut July 22—65 days. 
Jessie — Planted May 18 cut July 17-62 days. 
Mrs. Frank Pendleton— Planted May 15, cut July 22— 
68 days. 
Panama— Planted May 2, cut July 27—88 days. 
Myrtle— Planted May 16, cut July 23—69 days. 
Chicago White— Planted May 20, cut July 26—68 days. 
Titanic— Planted May 17, cut July 25—70 days. 
Hohenstaufen — Planted May 17, cut Aug. 14 — 90 days. 
Mrs. Francis King— Planted May 1, cut July 20—80 “ 
Halley— Planted May 1, cut July 8,- 69 days. 
Lucille— Planted May 17, cut July 30—75 days. 
Early Amethyst— Planted May 17, cut July 30- 75 days. 
Ida Van- Planted May 15. cut July 27— 74 days. 
Carmen Sylvia— Planted May 17, cut Aug. 2—78 days. 
In the Sept, issue of The Flower 
Grower, Mr. Miller states that a good 
plan would be to average the bloom 
from the time a certain number of 
corms planted. I think as soon as the 
first spike is ready to cut from the 
time of planting, should give the time 
it took for that certain variety to bloom. 
I think if corms are all of a size, and 
of good vitality and the same variety 
they will all bloom at the same time. 
As the subject is a very interesting 
one, comments from experienced grow- 
ers giving location, weather conditions, 
size of corms, etc., would be of interest 
to all growers of Gladioli. Then we 
would know which are the earliest, 
medium, or late blooming varieties. 
This last year I started to plant about 
the 18th of April and about every ten 
days or two weeks until the 18th of 
June when I put in my last lot of mix- 
tures of different size corms which 
gave me flowers up to Nov. 3rd when 
I cut the last. 
Herman Kirscht. 
PRICES OF GLADIOLI. 
There is such a wide variation in the 
prices at which the same varieties of 
Gladioli are offered by different grow- 
ers that it may well be asked how are 
these prices arrived at ? Is it reason- 
able that one variety should be offered 
at 80c. per dozen in one price list and 
at $1.50 in another? 
Of course it is possible that these two 
prices may represent a difference in 
quality, or a difference in size, but even 
where the size is definitely stated there 
is frequently the same difference in 
price. Quality is safely left out of ac- 
count, for surely no grower who cares 
anything for his reputation— and his 
trade— will advertise inferior stock. 
That some are unscrupulous, or care- 
less, is evident. I have bought stock 
that was so diseased that I wouldn’t 
plant it, but the dealer who sold it to 
me will never have the opportunity of 
selling me anything more at any price, 
unless he admits his error and makes 
it good. At any rate quality alone will 
not account for the big difference in 
price cited above, which is taken from 
two retail price lists of this year. 
Suppose one variety is listed very 
low, and another very high— both in 
the same catalogue. How account for 
it ? Mrs. Frank Pendleton at 80 cents 
is low and Red Emperor at $5.00 per 
dozen is high. Isn’t it fair to assume 
that this grower has plenty, or even a 
large surplus, of Pendleton, and only a 
small stock of Red Emperor? And 
that he wants to sell a lot of his Pendle- 
ton stock, but isn’t particular about 
selling much of the other ? 
That is the way I have regulated my 
own prices. The figures quoted above, 
however, were from another list, which 
seems to me to indicate that others 
may use the same method. It has 
been suggested to me that this is not 
the proper way to decide prices : that 
if one has a surplus he should whole- 
sale it to other dealers, rather than re- 
duce the price so as to sell it as a 
bargain at retail. 
Which is the proper method ? Every- 
one who issues a price list must have 
some basis for determining how much 
he will charge for each variety. Shall 
he make a low price where he has a 
surplus, as when a variety moves 
slowly, or when he has grown more 
than he needs; or shall he in every 
case keep the price up to where other 
growers hold it ? 
July, 1919 
Nothing that has been said here 
should be taken as meaning that there 
has been, or could be, any concerted 
attempt at regulating prices to a uni- 
form level. There are bound to be dif- 
ferences of a few cents up or down. The 
question we are discussing is whether 
or not the quantity of stock in the 
hands of any grower should regulate 
his own prices, without reference to 
other growers. 
My own belief is that (the advertising 
cost being the same) it would be best 
to dispose of a large surplus to the 
wholesale trade ; but that the small 
surplus is best taken care of by reduc- 
ing prices per dozen, even to the "bar- 
gain” point. 
The large grower, with the large 
supply, may not have to meet this ques- 
tion, for he can sell to small growers. 
But the small grower with a surplus of 
a few hundred in any one variety cannot 
interest the large grower, and either 
has to reduce prices, or keep his stock 
when he doesn’t want it, or perhaps 
throw some of it out on the dump. 
It is the old question of supply and 
demand, and how best to bring the 
two together. 
We have not pretended to cover the 
whole question. We hope some one 
else will continue. And it will at least 
be interesting to find out whether the 
practice of regulating prices by the 
quantity of stock on hand, is general 
or not. 
P. M. T. 
POSIES AND PIGS. 
It’s a far cry from posies to pigs, but a 
seeming feasible combination of these 
two may be worked out that should 
add dollars to the bank account. Keep- 
ing up the fertility of the soil with 
barn-yard manure up in price to two dol- 
lars a load is a matter not to be lightly 
thought of. Then the strawy nature 
of fresh manures which soon become 
a moldy mass cannot help but invite 
disease troubles. Through observa- 
tion, feel this to be our own experience, 
and that for best results in Gladiolus 
growing, manure should be composted 
and thoroughly rotted before using. 
While possible to turn under cover 
crops such as rye and clovers and with 
the addition of commercial fertilizers 
and keep up the fertility of the soil 
fairly well, no doubt the lack of animal 
manures eventually would be sorely 
felt. 
Why the pig ? Suppose you divide 
your acreage into four fields and thus 
have a four year rotation — Glads and 
other flowering bulbs, corn, rye and 
clover. Properly fence these four 
fields, be they small or large, grow 
crops of corn, rye and clover then turn 
your porkers in to feast and grow fat. 
Willing to bet a dollar to a doughnut 
that the question of keeping up the 
fertility of the soil would be pretty! 
much solved. If this should work out 
satisfactorily just think of the time 
and labor that would be saved and the 
profits to be made out of pigs at the 
present time. Fats were never in such 
demand and the market price of pork 
never so high (Cleveland market 21c.! 
