Wonderland 
Forcing Chrysanthemums Into Early Bloom 
ALEX LAURIE 
To be successful the following points should be observed: 
1. The plants should be benched by June 1 since a stretch of 18-20 inches in stem is necessary 
in case of the standard varieties and about 12 inches for the pompons, before the cloth is used. 
2. The cloth used should be not less than a 64x104 thread count to the square inch. The Wind¬ 
sor Co. of Windsor, Conn, is one firm which has been manufacturing it for the florist. The Landers 
Corp. of Toledo, Ohio, manufactures a rubberized material of closely woven cloth which eliminates 
practically all light, and for that reason is very acceptable, except that it has a tendency to pin-hole 
quickly. Flimsy cloths which admit light to any degree are not satisfactory. The tobacco cloth 
which is used for cloth houses is manufactured by the Windsor Co. of Windsor, Conn, and the 
Kendall Mills of Walpole, Mass. 
3. A frame should be erected five to six feet above the bench and the cloth stretched so as 
to cover the sides and the top completely. 
4. About five to six weeks after benching the cloth should be used daily from 5 p. m. until 
7 a. m. of the next day for a period of 30 to 40 days for the standards and somewhat longer for the 
pompons. The time will vary with the season; the discontinuance of treatment may be determined 
in the standards when buds have developed and in the pompons when they show color. 
5. The last pinching of the pompons should be made a week or so before applying the cloth. 
6. Succession of flowering may be secured by applying the cloth at weekly intervals from July 
1 and until September 1. 
7. Occasional omittance of the cloth application will not affect the ultimate result. 
8. It is possible to use the same cloth on two different benches by covering one bench from 
3 p. m. and until dark and then transferring the cloth to another bench where it should remain until 
10 a. m. of the next day. With such a treatment earliness will not be quite as pronounced. 
9. No difference in culture is necessary except that of benching earlier. 
10. If the treatment is to be used under tobacco cloth out-of-doors care should be taken to 
prevent bulging of the cloth downward over the plants, due to heavy rainfall. When so used, either 
.the cloth should fce stretched on a slant or not applied at all when rain threatens. 
11. Some pink and bronze varieties will fade, due to the high heat at time of maturity. 
Chrysanthemums 
(Page Two) 
