Pink Pearl. Showy salmon-pink flowers in 
dense clusters. Plant is of open growth and very 
graceful and dignified when in bloom. This variety 
appeals to those of your customers with an artistic 
sense who prefer a naturalistic pastel shade rather 
than the bold red of Hinodigeri. 
Bridesmaid. Glowing deep-pink flowers. Extra 
good foliage. Compact plant. Will “hit the spot” 
with a certain percentage of your better class 
customers. 
Madame Pericat. As previously stated, the var¬ 
iety Madame Pericat is not a winter forcer. It will 
hold the stage for Mother’s Day. An open type 
of growth with clean light green foliage. The 
flowers are extra large and almost semi-double, 
averaging 2 to 2 l / 2 inches in diameter. The color 
is probably best described as a soft baby-pink of 
an unusual brilliancy and sheen. We have never 
had any Azalea blooming for Mother’s Day that 
maintained its flowers so long in such good condi¬ 
tion as Pericat. Due to the open nature of the 
growth each big flower stands out by itself and 
gives the plant a dignity and poise found in no other 
variety. The women react to it right—they buy it.* 
Notes on Forcing Azaleas 
Unpacking Shipment. When you receive the 
shipment unwrap the plants, slip each one into a 
pot and' firm them down. This operation takes only 
a few seconds as there is no tearing off of roots or 
shaking off dirt and other annoying operations which 
chew up time when you buy balled and burlapped, 
bed or field-grown stock. 
After potting give them a thorough watering 
including the tops. In mid-afternoon you can put 
them on the bench in a 50-55 degree house where 
they will force nicely. If you want to speed up the 
forcing transfer them to a house with higher night 
temperature after a week at 50-55 degrees. 
We cannot over-emphasize the necessity of 
frequent and sufficient watering. Our Azaleas 
are grown in oak leaf mold which holds all the 
water it needs and sheds the surplus like a tin 
roof. This oak leaf mold, however, being fibrous 
in nature does- not stay moist as long as ordi¬ 
nary potting soil, especially when standing un¬ 
plunged on a bench exposed to sun and air. 
Therefore water them more frequently than the 
other potted stock on your bench. 
Nothing can prevent these Azaleas from 
coming into bloom if you keep them moist. 
Do not apply any fertilizer or manure to our 
Azaleas while they are being forced, as each plant 
is fertilized by us before shipment. 
They like warm, sunny daytime conditions, and 
syringing the tops helps the buds to break. Keep 
water off the tops after buds break. 
Azaleas when half opened or even in bloom can 
be held in saleable condition for several weeks by 
placing in cool place out of sun and keeping water 
off the flowers. 
We have prepared a table showing in condensed 
form the time required to bring Azaleas into bloom 
for definite dates during the forcing season. 
*An Azalea plant in bloom is one-third larger than when in 
tight bud. 
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