July  25,  1895. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
89 
placing  them  on  sale  in  the  beat  condition.  For  the  purpose  in  question 
I  recommend  to  be  grown  Chrysanthemums,  Carnations,  Arum  Lilies, 
Roses,  Spiraea  japonica,  Violets,  Daffodils,  Mushrooms,  Seakale,  Mint, 
and  Strawberries. 
Now  as  regards  what  flowers  pay  best,  I  certainly  place  the 
Chrysanthemum  first.  I  should  not,  however,  think  of  growing  a  few 
plants  of  many  varieties,  but,  on  the  contrary,  many  plants  of  a  few 
good  late  kinds.  I  have  never  experienced  any  difficulty  in  disposing  of 
first-class  samples  from  the  end  of  November  till  the  new  year  at  a 
good  price.  Second-class  blooms  are  of  little  use,  and  third-class  produce 
useless.  When  we  hear  so  much  about  the  Chrysanthemum  not  paying, 
it  is  generally  about  the  latter  part  of  October  and  beginning  of 
November,  when  the  markets  are  glutted  with  outdoor  grown  flowers 
cut  from  plants  that  have  not  had  much  care  taken  of  them  as  regards 
disbudding  and  watering,  and  housed  early  in  October.  Consequently 
the  flowers  are  small  and  have  to  be  sold  at  so  much  per  dozen  bunches, 
instead  of  so  much  per  dozen  blooms. 
My  advice  is.  Leave  the  early  and  midseason  varieties  alone.  But 
I  fancy  I  can  hear  someone  asking,  “  What  am  I  to  supply  my  customers 
with  till  the  late  blooms  are  ready  ?”  Of  course,  if  the  grower  is  his 
own  salesman,  and  has  a  good  connection  with  the  shops,  and  has  been  in 
the  habit  of  selling  to  them  all  the  summer,  they  would  naturally  look 
to  him  for  the  early  Chrysanthemums,  and  he  would  be  a  very  unwise 
man  who  did  not  study  his  customers,  even  if  he  did  not  make  much  by 
them  at  a  particular  time. 
Early  Chrysanthemums  and  their  Culture  for  Market. 
To  growers  who  must  have  early  blooms,  I  recommend  the  following 
varieties  : — Miss  Watson  (a  splendid  decorative  yellow  and  very  free,  in 
the  style  of  Elaine),  Lady  Selborne,  William  Holmes,  Source  d’Or, 
Madame  Lacroix,  Viviand  Morel,  and  Charles  Davis.  The  best  way 
I  have  found  to  treat  these  is  to  insert  the  cuttings  close  together  in 
boxes  in  January,  and  stand  them  on  a  shelf  in  one  of  the  houses,  as 
soon  as  rooted  placing  the  plants  singly  in  4-inch  pots.  When  growing 
freely  and  about  4  inches  high,  pinch  out  their  points.  On  growth  com¬ 
mencing  after  the  pinching  place  the  plants  in  a  cold  frame,  and  with 
air  admitted  to  them  on  all  favourable  occasions  they  will  be  hardy 
enough  to  plant  out  of  doors  by  the  first  week  in  April,  3  feet  apart. 
Continue  to  top  the  shoots  till  the  first  week  in  June,  when  all  topping 
must  cease,  place  a  stake  to  each  plant,  and  keep  the  shoots  loosely  tied 
to  it.  About  the  middle  of  September  cut  round  the  plants  with  a  spade, 
and  at  the  end  of  the  month  dig  them  up  with  a  good  ball  of  soil  and 
plant  them  thickly  in  a  house  that  has  had  Tomatoes  growing  in  it 
during  the  summer.  The  soil  that  the  Tomatoes  have  been  growing  in 
will  suit  the  Chrysanthemums.  After  planting  give  a  good  soaking  of 
water,  and  syringe  the  plants  morning  and  afternoon,  till  all  signs  of 
flagging  ceases,  disbud  to  one  flower  on  a  shoot,  and  afford  abundance 
of  ventilation  in  fin  weather.  By  being  treated  as  advised  labour  is 
reduced  to  a  minimum.  The  blooms  average  3s.  per  dozen  bunches, 
and  considering  the  mall  cultural  outlay,  they  pay  to  grow,  but  nothing 
like  the  late  varieties  that  I  will  next  mention,  and  describe  my 
treatment . 
Growing  Late  Chrysanthemums. 
The  varieties  are  W.  H.  Lincoln,  Lady  Lawrence,  and  Leon  Frache. 
The  last-named  is  described  in  some  catalogues  as  tinged  with  pink, 
with  but  me  it  comes  a  pure  white,  and  being  a  free  grower  and 
bloomer  is  decidedly  a  good  market  variety.  The  above  trio  I  can 
strongly  recommend,  but  there  is  no  doubt  that  Mdlle.  Th^r^se  Rey  will 
become  the  leading  market  white  when  it  is  better  known. 
For  late  blooming  I  insert  the  cuttings  from  the  end  of  February  till 
the  end  of  March,  in  boxes,  in  a  cold  brick  pit  kept  closed.  They  are 
slightly  sprinkled  on  bright  days,  and  the  glass  covered  with  mats  at 
night  in  case  of  frost.  As  roots  are  emitted  the  plants  are  placed  singly 
in  3-inch  pots  and  stood  in  a  cold  frame,  air  being  gradually  and 
increasingly  afforded  ;  they  will  endure  full  exposure  without  flagging. 
When  about  4  inches  high  they  are  topped,  and  when  growing  freely 
again  shifted  into  5-inch  pots,  and  as  soon  as  they  have  taken  hold  of 
the  new  soil  they  are  stood  out  of  doors  in  an  open  position.  By  the 
second  week  in  June  they  are  placed  in  their  flowering  pots  (9-inch),  in 
compost  of  three  parts  loam,  one  part  each  of  manure  and  sand,  with 
half  a  part  of  leaf  mould.  They  receive  their  last  topping  about  the 
10th  of  July.  I  never  plant  my  late  varieties  out  in  the  open  ground, 
as  I  am  of  opinion  that  the  disturbing  of  the  roots  just  when  the 
buds  are  forming  is  the  cause  of  so  many  shoots  going  blind,  or 
having  deformed  buds.  I  do  not  feed  the  plants  much  after  they  are 
housed,  excessive  feeding  being  at  least  one  cause  of  the  damping  that 
we  hear  so  much  about. 
I  usually  house  the  plants  during  the  first  week  in  October.  They  are 
arranged  in  two  span-roof  houses,  each  60  feet  long,  20  feet  wide,  10  feet 
high  at  the  ridge,  and  2  feet  from  the  ground  to  the  eaves ;  heated  with 
four  rows  of  pipes,  the  first  row  being  fixed  2  feet  from  the  outside 
wall,  and  the  other  two  rows  8  feet  apart,  well  ventilated  at  the  top  and 
sides,  and  having  a  good  water  tank  in  the  centre.  Air  is  freely  admitted 
by  top  and  side  ventilators  on  all  favourable  occasions,  but  the  houses 
are  never  entirely  closed.  The  pipes  are  heated  to  keep  the  temperature 
from  50°  to  55°.  By  treating  the  plants  as  described,  and  disbudding  to 
one  bud  on  a  shoot,  we  have  from  twelve  to  eighteen  good  blooms  on 
each  plant,  and  I  have  never  had  any  diflSculty  in  disposing  of  them 
from  the  end  of  November  till  Christmas  at  an  average  of  3s.  per  dozen 
blooms.  Some  have  fetched  Ss.  per  dozen  blooms  in  Christmas  week. 
And  here  let  me  advise  the  grower  of  blooms  for  market  to  cut  them 
with  as  long  stems  as  possible,  as  good  flowers  are  often  spoilt  for  decora¬ 
tive  purposes  on  account  of  having  scarcely  any  stems. 
Small  Decorative  Plants. 
Another  profitable  way  of  growing  Chrysanthemums  is  to  insert 
cuttings  singly  in  3-inch  pots  about  the  20th  of  May,  and  when  rooted 
and  the  plants  growing  freely  top  them,  and  as  they  begin  to  break 
shift  into  6-inch  pots  for  flowering.  Plants  treated  thus  will  carry  five 
and  six  good-sized  flowers  and  make  splendid  decorative  plants.  They 
do  not  flower  before  December  is  well  advanced,  when  they  sell  readily 
on  an  average  of  8s.  per  dozen  plants.  W.  H.  Lincoln  is  especially 
adapted  for  this  kind  of  culture,  as  being  of  dwarf  habit  it  requires  no 
sticks  and  it  is  a  splendid  keeper.  Along  the  front  of  these  houses, 
between  the  walls  and  first  row  of  pipes,  is  a  capital  place  for  growing 
early  Mint.  If  the  roots  are  taken  up  from  the  open  ground  the  end  of 
November,  buried  about  2  inches  under  the  soil,  and  given  a  good 
FIG.  13.— MR.  G.  HART. 
watering,  a  plentiful  supply  of  fine  green  Mint  will  be  had  early  in  the 
months  of  January  and  February,  when  it  will  fetch  from  33.  to  43.  per 
dozen  bunches. 
From  the  roof,  shelves  are  fixed  for  growing  Strawberries,  and  if  the 
plants  have  been  well  prepared  during  the  summer  and  put  on  the 
shelves  towards  the  middle  of  December,  the  fruit  should  be  fit  for 
market  by  the  end  of  February  or  beginning  of  March,  according  to  the 
amount  of  sunshine  experienced,  when,  if  the  fruit  is  a  good  colour  and 
size,  it  will  sell  from  lOs.  to  12s.  per  lb.  The  varieties  I  grow  are 
La  Grosse  Sucr4e  and  Vicomtesse  Hericart  de  Thury. 
Along  the  front  of  these  houses  is  also  a  splendid  place  for  bringing 
on  Daffodils  for  flowering,  and  I  find  Spir®a  do  remarkably  well  there, 
as  standing  on  the  ground  they  keep  moist,  therefore  reducing  the 
labour  of  watering,  throwing  up  good  sprays  of  bloom  and  abundance  of 
dark  green  foliage,  which  is  most  essential  when  the  plants  have  to  be 
marketed. 
After  the  Chrysanthemums  have  been  cut  down  it  is  not  necessary 
to  keep  all  the  old  stools.  The  plan  that  I  adopt  is  to  shake  out  as 
many  as  I  think  I  shall  want  for  propagating,  and  pack  them  close 
together  in  boxes,  so  that  they  can  be  put  into  as  small  a  space  as 
possible.  By  doing  away  with  the  Chrysanthemums  room  is  afforded 
for  potting  on  the  Tomato  plants  previously  raised  from  seeds  in  another 
house,  so  as  to  have  them  ready  for  filling  the  houses  as  they  become 
empty,  as  well  as  for  thinning  out  the  Spir^as  as  they  require  it,  and 
affording  them  space  for  development.  We  must  neither  waste  space 
nor  spoil  plants  if  we  are  to  make  the  most  out  of  glass  structures  all 
the  year  round. 
The  Culture  and  Value  of  Arums. 
The  Arum  Lilies  I  find  very  remunerative,  and  consequently  grow  a 
large  number  of  them.  I  flower  my  plants  in  pots,  and  keep  them 
indoors  until  Easter,  be  it  early  or  late,  as  that  is  when  the  spathes 
command  the  highest  prices.  As  soon  as  Easter  is  over  I  stand  them 
outside,  and  give  very  little  water.  I  do  not  mind  the  leaves  being 
touched  with  a  late  frost,  as  I  never  found  that  it  hurt  the  crowns. 
After  they  have  been  standing  outside  for  about  six  weeks  all  the  old 
soil  is  shaken  from  their  roots,  and  the  smaller  crowns  separated  from 
the  flowering  ones,  they  are  then  planted  out  a  foot  apart  on  a  piece  of 
rich  ground.  If  the  summer  is  very  dry  they  receive  two  or  three  good 
soakings  of  water.  At  the  beginning  of  September  they  are  carefully 
