PROCEEDINGS OF THE ANNUAL MEETING. 247 



acclimated to conditions that they can, in many cases, be all grown in 

 the same field without one being detrimental to the other. 



The florist has to imitate a climate that varies with its vegetations, 

 extending from the tops of the Himalayas and the Andes to the surface 

 of the sea; and with a flora whoso home varies from the cold, rugged 

 coasts of Labrador to the reeking swamps of the dark continent; and 

 v/hen all care and attention has been given them, a few days of adverse 

 weather at a critical time may render his roses deficient in color, lacking 

 in length of stem; may cause his carnations to burst their calyxes; his 

 chrysanthemums to lose their sj'mmetry or lessen their vitality; it may 

 even rob the violet of its fragrance, or the lily of its purity, and all this 

 beyond human control. 



I can not believe there have been more flowers grown than are needed, 

 but that there have been enough and to spare can not be denied. How 

 best to control the possibilities of occasional gluts without injury to the 

 growing plants; how to get the (juality and the quantity on the least 

 possible space and in the shortest time, with the smallest amount of 

 labor, is what every grower is asking himself. 



In order to meet the gradual decline in prices it is plain that the florist 

 must seek to reduce the probability of a glut, either by growing a better 

 article or lessening the cost of production. 



The rose is by all odds the most expensive flower to grow, and the 

 season at which it can be grown the cheapest is just the one wherein the 

 chrj'santhemum reigns supreme. The season for this is likely to be 

 extended, and as soon as it is over the public seek a cheaper flower with 

 better keeping qualities than the rose. The price, however, of all other 

 flowers is graded upon that of roses, and the price at which the variety 

 linown as American Beauty can be had regulates that of all the rest. The 

 -size of its flower, its enormous length of stem, draw so severely on the 

 plants that few are jjroduced for the space it requires. The average 

 floi'ist has made less money trying to grow it for his limited demand, 

 •even at fabulous prices, than that of any other variety. Every effort is 

 being constantly made to find some variety that will satisfy the taste 

 that American Beauty has created; something that will produce more 

 flowers, and yet possess some qualities that this queen has so far been 

 able to call her own. It is no small item of the florist's expense, this 

 seeking for something ncAV, as the many varieties that have been tried 

 and found wanting abundantly prove. The varieties Mrs. Pierpont Mor- 

 gan, Meteor, Kaiserin, Bridesmaid, Testout, and Belle Siebrecht are 

 promising kinds in that they possess a wider range of color and have a 

 tendency to^produce more flowers. Belle Siebrecht, however, has not been 

 in cultivation long enough to tell whether it has come to stay or not; and 

 "v\hile Meteor has established a reputation for its color and constitution, 

 it is still a very expensive variety to grow. It requires a higher temper- 

 ature thaii auA' other, and this of itself is a serious objection. 



Now, whether it is better to grow roses in solid beds for one, two, three, 

 or even four years, than to grow them on benches for one year, is still a 

 question. While the latter UK^thod is the one generally adopted, good 

 growers have long felt that, owing to their being propagated by cuttings 



