Bite tia FoR MUMS 
summer and hot weather, he waters heavily. His water happens 
to be very hard—so great quantities of water salts, carbonates, 
etc., are deposited in the soil. (Excess soluble salt cases usually 
appear in hard water areas). Then, as the crop starts to harden 
from this excess of salts, the grower, suspecting lack of fertilizer 
salts, adds more fertilizer! 
“ Where water isn’t too hard, and on well drained benches, 
heavy and regular leaching will sometimes remove enough of the 
salts to permit the crop to grow off. Only other cure is to re- 
place the soil. By all means, don’t add fertilizer. 
There is a gadget available with which soils can be easily test- 
ed for excess soil salts.. Write: Industrial Instruments Inc., 17 
Pollock Ave., Jersey City 5, N. J. Price: $55.00 to $60.00. 
5. TEMPERATURES. In summer just keep vents wide open 
except during storms. They should be open at night, too, by the 
way! 
In firing season, 40° nights is standard, with 58° on cloudy 
and 65° on sunny days. To avoid blindness on later varieties, 
keep 60° minimum until color shows. Watch Garza, especially. 
For off season flowering of Mums 60° nights is necessary. See 
page 24. 
6. MULCHES somehow seem to do wonders for the Chrysan- 
themums. We mulch with a one inch layer of peat soon as plants 
are established. It reduces frequency of watering and feeding, and 
somehow they just grow better. 
PINCHING AND SELECTING BUD 
“Time” pinching is best. It simply means to pinch each variety 
on the date prescribed in this catalog. For example, Gold Lode, 
to be flowered at normal date is pinched. July 8 (see page 5). 
Too early pinching sets the center flower in the spray of Pomps 
too low; too late has the opposite effect. On standard Mums, cor- 
rect time pinching will usually eliminate formation of the crown 
ud. 
Sometimes, due to late benching, etc., you will get off this 
schedule. In general, if you are going to pinch, you should do so 
before the plant gets 10 to 12 inches tall. Don’t pinch before the 
tip has grown at least 3-4 inches. Don’t pinch into hard wood. 
Now, as to selecting the proper bud on the large “disbud” 
types. Mums send out two kinds of “buds” or growing tips: 
1. CROWN. A flowering bud surrounded by non-flowering 
vegetative shoots. 
2. TERMINAL. 
buds. 
Early Mums will usually throw a crown bud in August. This 
‘is usually removed and one of the vegetative side shoots “‘select- 
ed” or left to grown on. All other shoots are removed. Some 
plants may produce another crown which may again be discard- 
ed in favor of a non-flowering shoot. Sooner or later, all plants 
produce a terminal from which you must select the best bud— 
to produce the flower. 
On early varieties it’s safest to remove all crowns up to August 
20. Early crowns are OK on some shaded Mums. On mid-season 
sorts, terminals are safer. Final bud should have been selected by 
September 1-10; on late ones a month later. Your experience is 
the best guide. Keep notes. 
By the way, on all large standard Mums, you must remove all 
the lower side growths. All the effort of the stem must go into 
the one bud. Some growers even practice removal of side shoots 
from certain Pompon varieties. Little America, for example, flow- 
ers much better if side shoots are removed and the spray is allow- 
ed to flower only 8-10 florets. 
Don’t cut a Mum till it’s open. It will wilt in several hours if 
cut green. Spider Mums can be cut green and opened in water. 
BLACK CLOTH SHADING 
Mums, being short day plants, can be very nicely brought into 
bloom about a month ahead of normal date by covering them 
with black cloth from 5 P.M. to 7 A.M. in late summer. This 
actually simulates the shorter days of fall. Some pointers: 
A flowering bud surrounded by flowering 


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HOW TO SHADE. Simplest way is to just stretch wires over 
the bench—lengthwise, forming a support on which the black 
sateen can be draped. During the day it is simply bunched up. 
Be sure the wires are high enough so the flowers won't hit the 
cloth before youre thru shading. 6 feet or more may be needed. 
Some growers rig up side curtains like a shower curtain and 
cover the top with a strip of cloth rolled around a stick. 
On rainy nights or during very hot weather, it will help in 
disease prevention to remove the cloth after dark and replace it 
again before daylight. Watch this closely if you are having disease 
troubles, Black sateen, 64x104 mesh is best. For best results, 
shade every night; missing one or two nights over the season 
won't be serious, but much more will simply delay flowering. 
It’s a good idea to crawl in under the sateen cover after it’s 
down once a week or so. In this way you'll quickly detect any 
leaks where light is coming thru. 
Shading should be discontinued as follows: 
1. On crops to flower between June 15 and August 15, shade 
Mums till buds are 14 inch. Shade Pomps till they are cut. 
2. On crops to flower any other period, shade Mums only till 
bud is well set. Shade Pomps till center buds show color. 
Here’s our schedule on shaded Mums and Pomps for early fall: 
TO FLOWER AUGUST 20-25 
Plant rooted cuttings May 19 (6 x 6, no pinch). 
Start shading: June 18. 
Varieties: Gold Coast, Pinocchio, 
Shasta, Carolyn Yosick, Rubicon. 
TO FLOWER SEPTEMBER 15-20 
Plant rooted cuttings May 15 (8 x 8). 
Pinch: June 14. 
Start shading: July 10. 
Varieties: Gold Coast, Pinocchio, Shasta, Encore, Yellow 
Shasta, Carolyn Yosick, Rubicon, Seneca. Also following Mums 
if grown indoors or under sash: Good News, Detroit News, Jean 
Elizabeth, Silver Sheen. 
Shasta, Encore, Yellow 
OUTDOOR MUMS 
Each season finds more Pomps, especially, flowered outdoors 
in early fall—in both western and eastern producing areas. Big 
advantage is low cost compared to greenhouse growing. Also it’s 
cooler outdoors. Benching schedules under “Black Cloth Shad- 
ing”, above, apply. You must watch frost dates, but we find 
Pomps will stand several degrees of frost if the sateen is lowered 
on cold nights. 
Also to produce real quality it is essential that some protection 
against sun and wind be provided. Regular Aster cloth (21 threads 
per inch) is OK. The new plastic cloths about 20 threads per 
inch are excellent—cost more, but last at least several years. Use 
the transparent shade, not the dark brown or black. 
The deeper colored plastic meshes exclude so much light that 
they will seriously reduce production of bunches per foot. Also, 
our plant pathologists tell us that the plastic mesh, lacking the 
fuzzy quality of Aster cloth, is not nearly as effective in keeping 
out certain insect pests: But it does last many times longer. 
To flower big Mums outdoors in the East, some protection is 
needed, especially during the actual flowering season. We have 
had good success with our so-called ‘‘Flexo-glass” houses. We 
build up a framework same shape as a greenhouse, using 1 or 114 
inch pipe. Our houses are 24 ft. wide, 6 ft. gutters, and standard 
roof pitch. We like to provide cheesecloth over the plants during 
summer. Then, as color starts to show, we fit large sash of one 
of the many inexpensive glass substitutes over the house. By 
adding several lines of steam pipe, we are able to keep in pro- 
duction till well along in October. That permits use of some of 
the fine November flowering varieties. Quality generally is good. 
We did have some trouble this season with botrytis spotting on 
sash house big Mums. 
Such houses may be shaded right over the roof by means of a 
rope and pulley arrangement. 
Z3 
