BaLaTATeER  M UMS 
requires that this one layer of wire-string be capable of being 
raised weekly as the crop grows. If the plant is anchored at 
the ground, and at it’s top, what can it do but stand up 
straight? 
The end supports on our beds are of inch pipe. The inter- 
mediate supports on down the bench are spaced every 17 ft.; 
uprights are 1x2 and cross members are 1x1. Wires are 
stapled down to the 1x1. The 1x1 is fastened to the up- 
right 1x2 by tying it with binder twine. To insure against 
it’s slipping down, we drive a 2” nail below the 1x1 and 
only part way in so it can be raised weekly. See photo on 
opposite page. 
In our early trials with this one layer support idea, we had 
one fine bench of Illini Snowdrift that tipped over on its 
side! Since then we have strengthened the supports, put them 
closer—and had no further trouble. By the way, we got the 
Snowdrift back up on its feet without any serious injury. 
Best Temperatures: During firing season, normal flowering 
fall Mums have always been considered a 50 degree (nights ) 
crop—58 cloudy day, 65 sunny day. For no-shade, no-light 
crops that flower up to December this 50 degrees will do, 
since bud setting takes place during the warmer days of 
August-early September. However, even normal flowering 
date crops that flower during December-early January had 
better be carried at least 55 until buds are in sight; otherwise 
some blindness may occur. Many a bed of Garza has turned 
out Y% blind—too cold. 
Growers on tight 3-crops-a-year-schedule carry 60 degrees 
minimum thruout the year to insure bud set, and to be sure 
buds will develop and open timely so as not to delay the 
next crop. See page 28 for details. 
THE CLOTH HOUSE PROGRAM 
It has been our experience that, with careful culture, Pomps 
flowered outdoors under cloth during August-September are 
clearly superior to those grown under glass at that time. 
We're talking about Midwest and Eastern areas now. 
Of course, our late summer markets are always generously 
supplied with what are tagged “outdoor” Pomps—hard stems, 
dried up foliage, and poor, dirty flowers. However, the much 
cooler temperatures, especially at night, and the ample fresh 
outdoor air, if combined with careful growing, are substan- 
tial advantages to outdoor growing over hot greenhouses. 
Certainly costs are lower. Fading of colors is much less of 
a problem outdoors. 
Cloth house Pomps can be flowered all the way from early 
July till well into October. The early July crop is produced 
by benching a 214 inch banded plant outdoors May 1, pro- 
tecting it from early frost with sateen cover and a steam 
pipe if necessary. Cuttings should be banded about 30 days 
before benching date. Single stemmed culture is followed. 
Pomps may be flowered to mid-October by the same combina- 
tion of sateen and heat. The regular “off-season” timing 
schedules (page 30) are used to plan cloth house crops. 
Since few quality cut flower varieties normally flower before 
frost date, most growers of cloth house crops use later varie- 
tres shaded with black sateen. 
Large flowering standards are occasionally grown under 
cloth, but due to petal rot are a definite gamble. Hard va- 
rieties are best—Good News, Detroit News, Blazing Gold. 
By careful selection of varieties, excellent pot Mums may be 
grown under cloth. 
Cloth house Pomps are grown over most of the United 
States—heaviest in the Midwest, East and California. In 
almost any location, Aster cloth (or Seran) protection 1s a 
“must” for quality. 
The Disease Problem coe ah 
Because rains keep foliage wet, and tend also to spread 
disease spores (through splashing), such problems as Vertt- 
Cipal 
ee 
Ine ETOeK F TOURS IAS lees 
WEST CHICAGO 
ILLINOIS 
cillium, Septoria, and Mildew are more serious outdoors than 
under glass. Insects tend to be more troublesome, too, be- 
cause there is no glass barrier to keep them from blowing 
into the beds. It all adds up to an even more thorough pre- 
ventive program. 
First, disease-free cuttings are a must—especially must 
they be cultured against Verticillium. Second, if at all pos- 
sible, soil should be steamed. As a second choice, don’t grow 
Pomps too many seasons on the same land. Third, if foliage 
diseases are giving trouble, carefully avoid wetting foliage 
while you water—trains will wet it enough! 
And lastly: A regular weekly spray program to include 
Parathion, Fermate, Sulfur, and a spreader. See page 25. 
Kept up weekly, this will go a long way to keep cloth house 
Pomps clean. 
Quite a few cloth house growers are turning to plastics 
such as Seran in place of Aster cloth. The 20 threads per 
inch grade of Seran clear, not green, will grow good Pomps. 
It is not as effective an insect barrier as the 20 thread per inch 
cotton—lacks the fuzziness. But in a Mum house where 
regular spraying is kept up, the insect problem shouldn’t be 
serious. Seran will last 3 to 5 years or more, so is an economy 
in the long run. 
Heated Cloth Houses 
Because we have “‘cool summers” every several years, and 
because low July-August temperatures delay and interfere 
with bud setting, several growers are running a few heat lines 
through their cloth houses. Every several seasons we hear 
of a lot of cloth house Pomps that set bud, then start in 
vegetative growth again, and in other ways produce defective 
sprays. Certainly the grower equipped to keep at least 55 
degrees and preferably 60 degrees in his cloth house is going 
to get a more uniform product over the years. 
When such heat is used under cloth, the black sateen is 
rolled down to keep the heat down on the plants. 
Schedules and Varieties for Cloth House 
The regular Off-Season Mum schedules that start on page 
30 may be used for timing cloth house crops. The schedules for 
late July, August, and September flowerings start on page 32. 
Not all varieties stand cloth house conditions. The follow- 
ing are recommended for late July, August and up to the 
September 28 flowering: 
White: Shasta 10W 
Shooting Star 9W 
Belray 12W 
White Popcorn 9W 
Keepsake 9W 
Pinocchio 9W 
* Encore 10OW 
Snowdrift 10W 
Yellow: Mary L. Hall 10W 
Yellow Shasta 10W 
Gold Coast 9W 
Golden Herald 9W 
Sunup 9W 
Schneeburg’s Daisy 9W 
Bronze: Beauregard 10W Pink: Reward 9W 
Chevron 10 Jessie 9W 
Paragon 10W Pink Dot 9W 
Pandora 10 W 
Linda Lou 10W 
Memorial 10W 
Buckskin 10W 
Butterscotch 10 W 
Thelma 11W 
For flowering Sept. 28 or later under cloth all the 10 week 
(10W ) varieties above may be used—plus the following: 
Yellow: Golden Chord 11W 
Lollipop 11W 
Klondike 11W 
Grand Slam 11W 
Pinky 11W 
Minuet 11W 
White: Belray 11W 
Highbrow 11W 
Crystal Beauty 11W 
Sculpture 11W 
Pink: 
Bronze: Thelma 11W 
Rusticon 11W 
Bronze Minuet 11W 
*For single stemmed culture, bench cuttings 1 to 2 weeks before shading. 
For pinched crop, shade 1-2 weeks after pinch (Encore, only). 
27 
