Ni,. 7. l^lDPAKTMi^NT UF AGKlCUL-TUKt: 315 



ADVANCEMENT OF FLORI CULTURE IN ALLEGHENY COUN- 

 TY THE PAST FORTY YEARS. 



By P. S. RANDOLPH, Pittsburg, Pa. 



Floriculture has advanced very rapidly and has become a very 

 important industry since I entered the business forty years ago. 

 The houses were usually built 30 to 75 feet long, each heated by flues 

 or separate boilers. Watering was done with the ordinary watering 

 can, and much valuable space was lost in order to make room for 

 the cumbersome step-ladder which was necessary, not only in the 

 watering, but in all the details of greenhouse work. Y^et there were 

 doubtless as fine plants grown then as now, though not without 

 greater expense. At that time there were but two florists in Alle- 

 gheny county, except several that were connected with nurseries 

 in operation here. 



Three or four years after I began business, Peter Henderson in- 

 troduced his system of heating with hot water. This effected quite 

 a saving in labor and fuel, as one fire would answer for five or six 

 houses. About this time began the demand for bedding plants and, 

 in consequence, the trade increased rapidly. The trade in cut flow- 

 ers then was rather crude. The Camelia Japonica was the leading 

 flower then, and a florist's wealth was estimated by the number of 

 camelias he had. Blooms that were extra fine brought |1.50 to 

 |5.00 each, and flowers usually averaged 50 cents each, that would 

 not now bring five cents apiece, as they are not desirable for cut 

 flowers, owing to their lack of fragrance and absence of stem. Cen- 

 tre pieces were made with wet sand. Bowordias were also popu- 

 lar then, and Carnations were rapidly coming into favor also. Roses 

 usually were not to be had until about March 1. Boston florists 

 grew fine tea roses, such as "Bon iSilene," and '"Safrano," varieties 

 that are seldom seen now. 



I want to say of Peter Henderson, that he was the best florist I 

 ever knew, and freely gave information for the benefit of others, 

 although in the same business. His book, entitled ''Gardening for 

 Profit," was a mine of information on that subject. During recent 

 years the Society of American Florists came into existence. A trade 

 paper has also been established, which is of great value to enterpris- 

 ing florists. The society meets annually in some leading city, and 

 our brightest men give their experience and are glad to tell what 



