The Columbus journal., 1900-02-21
lessened or DESTROYED BY it in the fruit

Ieo0ened or destroyed by 1t IN the no1t-
ing Aeld.
Another advantage OF propagatinS
plants in . special bed 10 that they can
- kept dornant BY mulching lightly
- soon % the ground Il frozen slightly
and then In mid-winter when the
ground u frozen deepest, cover several
inches thick with fne cha6. You can
thus keep the frost In the ground and
prevent them from starting until your
beds are plowed and fitted. No matter
how hot the sun may be, a dormant
plant set in the ground will grow Wig
orously, where one loaded with mass
Of green foliage would surely perish.
Another feature Of the propasating bed
b the blossom buds should be removed
before they are open SO as to prevent
the Great strain of pollen secretions at
a time when they have no roots to sus-
tain them. Potency Of pollen Is OF the
utmost importance in the development
Of fruit and a plant once exhausted
does not soon recover. The cost OF re-
moving the buds is NO more than when
done at a later time and you Will md
results very satisfactory.-R. NJ. kel-
loZG.
The Toilet Of . Chrysanthemuus.
Probably few Of the people who
attend the Chicago Flower snow
realize that it takes three hours some
times to make the toilet OF single
rare specimen Of the chrysanthemum'
One would hardly believe 1t. but mere
is the process OF dressing single now
er, and imagine the care. patience and
gentleness Of touch required. One loos
at an ordinary chrysanthemum. or
6ne one in deshabille will show tna'
there Is a hole at the center OF tne
blossom and that the petals straggle
in all directions, up and down. riSn'
and left. 1t looks like lazy boy VINO
has forgotten" to comb his hair. Inc
flower-hairdresser has his combs AND
brushes. but the combs are 2incers OF
various sizes and the brushes OF the
softest camel's hair.
Suppose that the florist has sue
ceeded in growing some fine specimens
of that huge variety. my Lady" some
blossoms of which have measured four
teen inches in diameter. He cuts the
blossom with q long stem. 50 that ht
can handle it well. Then he places
it in q high glass vase with broad
base, but over the top Of the vase II
what looks like the socket Of a candle
stick with a hole in it. The stem
passes through this hole and down into
the vase until the lower petals of thu
blossom rest on the zinc support, bu,
not too firmly. Before putting thu
flower into the vase to keep 1t from
willing under the long operation, hi
has performed tho toughest part OF tht
work. This consists in pulling out
with the pincers enough petals around
the center of the blossom to permit thu
others to close over that part. He !.
careful to remove any worms. or de-
fective, discolored petals and then h'
begins the "combing process" the mos
tedious part of all. With the less rar'
varieties, which do not take so long
this is all done rapidly, but gently
while the stem is held in the hand. bu
with MY Lady," who is too aristo
cratic to have her temper SO tried fol
three long hours. this part of the worl
is done while she drinks refreshing
moisture in the vase.
One by one each petal is put in place
SO that the contour of the blossom vii
be either a perfect circle or a star o
many rays. II any petal prove too OBJ
durate to stay in place it Is pulled ou