Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1914-10-23
aaiseellaasuus Readias.
BEAUTIFUL cHRYsANTHEMUMs.
How to Help it to its Fullest Per-
fection.

scription. 1t is the most admired or
Ian our fall blossoms There is scarce
ly town of any pretention that does
not have during November, its chrys-
anthemum show.
Some readers may wonder why l
devote so much space in April to a
fall flower, but April and early May
are the months to start these bowers
in order to have them flower in No
vember.
| If you have no old plants from
which to procure cuttings, purchase
some young plants from your florist
ask for the smallest plants, which will
now be started in thumb pots and re-
tail for about or 10 cents. These
plants will be selected from choice
stock. and with proper care, should
develop into really fine specimens,
| More progress has been made in
the culture of the chrysanthemum In
late years than of any other plant
| Only a few years ago the largest
Ichrysanthemum in the market meas
ured perhaps four inches across, more
often three. These flowers were only
partially double. That is, the outer
layer of petals was double and the
centre of the flower thin and fiat. Now
the flowers are double to the centre
and measure at least ten and often
twelve inches in diameter.
Such large lowered varieties
while beautiful for Conservatives, are
quite hardy enough to stand our Sc
we're winters even, if well protected.
1t is very interesting to raise these.
There are two methods. The first and
easiest is to grow them in the flower
border; all that is necessary is to
start them in some sunny portion OF
the garden, keep them we'll watered
all summer, and at the earliest ap-
proach of frost to lift and pot them.
While this is an easy way, there Is
better one. Commence with small
cuttings which must be started In
tiny pots (thumb size) in April; when
the weather becomes settled, sink the
pot in the open ground, where it can
remain until lifting time in the fall.
To produce choice specimens in the
| fall you must commence with small
stock at this time. After the cuttings
are fairly well started. pinch the tops
off. this must be done to cause the
plant to branch. Keep them very
wet-never for even "a hours allow
them to suffer for want OF moisture
After they have been planted only
few days they will break" as the
florists say-that is. they will throw
out side shoots: then they require to
be placed in larger pots, for they VIII
then need more root room.
After these first shoots are about
six inches long, it is necessary 10
pinch the end out of each one, which
will again cause them to branch.
Keep up this process Of pinching as
the plants grow until the 10th of
August. After that date never touch
them, as they will need the remain
der of the season for setting their
buds and developing their flowers.
The object is to develop good
strong young roots first, then vigor-
Gus foliage and straight, firm stems,
and Just as many to each plant as
possible. Each stem, you know
means a flower.
| Through the summer season keep
them in the sun. The shade of trees
or even that of a fence or building or
any kind has a tendency TO draw
them up, which means that they Will
have long shoots; too often the result
is that only two or three shoots Will
produce any flowers and these but in
different specimens.
Chrysanthemums do best in a soil
composed of good garden loan, sand
and plenty Of well-rotten COW manure.
Never place them near enough to-
gether to crowd the plants. but al
ways plant them so they will have an
abundance Of air and sun all around
them.
They will stand almost any amount
of manure. After having pinched
them back for the last time, begin to
administer stimulation in the form of
manure water. Chicken manure is
preferred by the largest growers. To
make the proper solution use four
quarts of chicken manure to five GAL
Ions of water Apply this mixture
every other day. using clear water in
the intervening days. To keep them
growing, water them every day; con-
tinue administering the manure water
until they commence to unfold their
flowers
| As the plants grow be careful to tie
them out so as to give each shoot an
opportunity to develop.
| To secure extra large flowers you
vii have to resort to the process OF
disbudding, which is a simple matter.
Watch the growth of the plants and
when the buds first appear you will
notice quite cluster on the end OF
| each shoot. You must now carefully
snap off every bud but one on each
shoot: let the remaining bud be the
strongest looking one. A plant with
six shoots instead of having six clus-
ters of small flowers will, if this proc
ess is followed, develop six flowers,
each true in color and perfect in
shape.
After the flowers begin to show col
or use only plain water. Should you
continue with the manure water at
this time the flowers would be soft. :"
which means that they would have a
tendency to droop.
on the approach of frost they must
be lifted, the pots cleaned and the
plants taken into some sunny, airy
place in the house.
1t is quite difficult to describe the
varieties now grown. There are hun
dreds of kinds; every catalogue you
receive has a new list of seedlings
and all of them are prize lots. Many
of them are quite meritorious, but,