The Florida agriculturist., 1907-12-11
Pansies and Carnations.


it is not yet too late. Neither is it TOO
late to plant them i'll Florida, and ii
you have not done SO, it should be at
tended to as soon as possible.
1t would also be a good plan to try
some Carnations, they do we'll out
doors in this state, all winter. If you
cannot get such soil as is recommend
ed, do not give up on that account.
Our light sandy soil does very we'll ii
made quite rich. Use as much well
rotted stable manure as you can get.
Other fertilizers are good, but not
equal to the stable manure. The ar
t1cle is as folloWs:
1t is not too late to plant pansy
seed and have them blooming through
out the spring and early summer.
Many Of the florists grow pansy plantS
for sale, and where they can be pur-
chased and set out at once you will get
flowers sooner than by sowing the
seed now, but they will cease to bloom
sooner than plants obtained from seed
SOWn at this date.
Many failures occur in efforts to
grow pans1es and other flowers from
much more difficult to get suitable SOIL
in all arid climate than III a humid one.
Soil for tender seedlings wants to be
full Of humus, SO that it is light ana
will not bake" or pack down almost
like cement when Watered. The anna
teur, if experienced, will follow the
practice Of the professional florist in
California III the matter OF securing
suitable soil for such work, by looking
months and even years ahead. The
soil in which | now have pansies grow
ing, | prepared some two years ago,
when | got manure from the dairy cor
raj and run it through a wire screen
and added about One-fOurth common
garden soil This was thoroughly mix
ed and occasionally turned over until it
was rOtted sufficiently for use. in
'variably SOW pansy seed III boxes in
rows across the box about two inches
apart. These boxes or flats are us
ually three or four inches deep and
about I5x2O inches III size.
At this season the boxes can be put
in the full light, but should be placed
where they will not be exposed to
sweeping draughts Of air, as such a
situation would cause the soil to dry
out quickly Be careful that the soil
does not dry out and, on the other
hand, do not keep it constantly soaked.
After the seedlings are up and show the
third leaf, transplant into other similar
boxes Of good soil, putting them about
two inches apart each way. When they
have grown so that the foliage about
covers the soil, transplant them into
the bed where they are to blOom-set-
ting them about twelve inches apart
each way. In preparing this bed, work
into it some old we'll rotted manure,
ii it is possible to get it.
After the plants have grown so that
they are say, four inches across, mulch
the entire surface between the plants
with manure from the dairy corral.
This manure should be screened so that
all Jumps and coarse material can be
rejected 1t can be put on at least two
inches deep without injury. This
mulching serves a double purpose
shades the soil and provides food for
the plants.
Do not fail to give the pansy bed
sufficient water to keep it growing
freely. When the plants grow so that
they cover the entire surface, the evap-
Grafton is very great from such abun-
dant foliage and no mere sprinkllng