| Whether you are using the greenhouse or | | | | areas of your house and turn them into |
| are growing plants in a special room or | | | | plant-growing spaces. Basements, attics, |
| area in the home, regular attention is | | | | closets, windowless walls, utility |
| essential to success with artificially | | | | rooms-all become propagation areas when |
| lighted plants just as with sun-lighted | | | | supplied with fluorescent lighting. |
| plants. | | | | These lights work on ordinary household |
| Try to keep daytime temperatures between | | | | current. However, before installing more |
| 70 and 75 degrees with the usual 10 | | | | than a pair or two of them it would be |
| degree drop during the night. Increase | | | | wise to check with your electrical |
| humidity by setting the pots on | | | | company to find out if your present |
| moistened pea rock. Grow the plants in | | | | electrical wiring can stand the |
| sterilized soil. Water them regularly, | | | | additional load. |
| according to the needs of each plant. | | | | If you need only a small additional |
| Spray plants with insecticide every | | | | propagation area, you may find it |
| second week, as a preventive. As plants | | | | advantageous to buy one of the |
| grow, shift them to the next larger | | | | commercial fluorescent light stands with |
| sized pot. Leave the lights on flowering | | | | two to four shelves. A model with three |
| plants 12 to 16 hours each day; 4 to 8 | | | | shelves holds two hundred 3-inch pots. |
| hours per day for foliage plants. | | | | There are models available with or |
| If the plants produce long willowy | | | | without wheels. |
| foliage, they are too far from the | | | | PROPAGATION UNDER MIST |
| lights. Set them on boxes or inverted | | | | Plant physiologists have discovered that |
| flower pots to boost them closer. If | | | | a mist like fog of water keeps tender |
| leaves turn yellow and hug the pot, | | | | softwood cuttings (cuttings from new |
| plants are probably getting too much | | | | growth) in such excellent shape they |
| light. Move them farther from the | | | | "just have to root!" Under these |
| lights. | | | | conditions of either constant or |
| With stationary fixtures, aim for 18 | | | | intermittent mist the cuttings don't |
| inches between light tube and plant | | | | wilt and there is a minimum of trouble |
| table to allow head room for plants in | | | | from fungus and rot. |
| 4-inch pots. If you grow larger plants, | | | | There is a mist unit on the market that |
| fasten the lights a greater distance | | | | has been adapted from a larger |
| from the table or, better still, operate | | | | commercial mist-maker system. It's |
| them on a pulley so you can regulate | | | | called the Mistic Bubble and is an |
| distances to suit plants. | | | | excellent greenhouse space stretcher. |
| As you experiment, you will find the | | | | This is a system for rooting soft |
| proper distances. Here ' is a rather | | | | cuttings outdoors, in sand under plastic |
| general rule to guide you. Light-loving | | | | with the use of electronically |
| plants, such as gloxinias and many other | | | | controlled mist. Harvey M. Templeton, |
| tuberous gesneriads, cacti, coleus, and | | | | Jr., Winchester, Tennessee, is the |
| wax begonias grow best with about 8 | | | | inventor of the system and the control |
| inches between light fixture and pot | | | | known as the Electronic Leaf. With this |
| rim. African violets, rex begonias, and | | | | portable system the plants get water |
| episcias, among others, thrive when | | | | automatically, as they need it, until |
| space is about 11 inches. Foliage | | | | rooting takes place. Then the temporary |
| plants, philodendron, ivy, and cissus | | | | greenhouse cover is gradually removed |
| can be set 18 to 24 inches from the | | | | and the plants are thus hardened to |
| source of light. | | | | growing outside in the full sunlight. |
| PROPAGATION UNDER LIGHTS | | | | The hemispherical shape of the Mistic |
| The most popular plants for propagating | | | | Bubble is designed to let in light |
| under lights are the gesneriads. Leaf | | | | evenly all around as long as the sun |
| cuttings or plant divisions can be | | | | hits the cover. The plastic covering has |
| rooted by inserting them in your | | | | a pigment cast into it to protect the |
| favorite rooting media-vermiculite, | | | | cuttings from excessive summer heat. The |
| peatmoss, sand, sphagnum moss, or a | | | | low capacity mist nozzle, using |
| mixture of these. You can speed rooting | | | | 1½ gallons of water per hour, |
| by putting a transparent plastic "tent" | | | | keeps the leaves of the cuttings wet at |
| over the pots or flats and placing them | | | | all times, promoting very rapid rooting. |
| about 6 to 8 inches from the lights. | | | | The Mistic Bubble is 4 feet in diameter |
| Transplant the small plants as they | | | | and has 12½ square feet of |
| appear, which sometimes is but a matter | | | | planting space-it will hold 1000 |
| of 3 or 4 weeks. | | | | cuttings at a time. After they root the |
| Tubers and rhizomes can be rooted by | | | | cuttings can be sold or planted out to |
| placing them on peatmoss, sphagnum moss, | | | | grow to maturity. In the South, the |
| or vermiculite. Keep the medium moist | | | | Bubble can be used throughout the year. |
| and place the planting about 4 to 6 | | | | We are installing one of these units to |
| inches from the lights. As soon as | | | | use for propagation of herbaceous plants |
| sprouts show, transplant the tubers to | | | | and conifer cuttings, which we will |
| individual pots. | | | | plant out as a basis of a profit-making |
| Start any of the gesneriads from seed by | | | | nursery. We'll start by lining out |
| sprinkling the seed over sterilized, | | | | several hundred daylilies and iris plus |
| milled sphagnum moss, sand, or | | | | a few rows of evergreens. Later we may |
| vermiculite. Cover the planting with a | | | | include chrysanthemums (these too can be |
| pane of glass or slip it into a | | | | rooted in the Mistic Bubble), and a few |
| transparent plastic bag. Seeds will | | | | Azalea mollis, the hardy species, which |
| sprout in a dark, warm area (70 to 75 | | | | several dealers now carry and which can |
| degrees). As soon as you see the green | | | | stand our hard Minnesota winters. |
| flecks of new plants, place the planting | | | | I have described this system not only |
| as close as 3 inches from the light | | | | because I've had experience with it but |
| tubes. Here the seedlings will grow with | | | | also because its basic principles apply |
| amazing rapidity. By careful timing as | | | | generally to mist propagation in the |
| to fertilizing and transplanting, you | | | | greenhouse as well as in a purchased or |
| can have flowering gloxinias in 3 to 5 | | | | homemade propagating case. Fog nozzles |
| months and African violets in 4 to 6 | | | | for water lines are available for those |
| months. | | | | who wish to make their own setups. |
| ADDITIONAL GROWING SPACE | | | | Complete mist propagation kits are on |
| If you want still more room, add | | | | the market too. |
| fluorescent light setups to the dark | | | | |