The Weekly Florists^ Review. 



91 



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THE RETAIL =^^«^ 

 FLORIST.... 



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Vast 



.lid hi-l \v.,, iIh' laiill Hill most likely 

 bo viMu cuvii. sillily I 111' roquirpnienls 

 of ymir paiinuLir .ln-^ nf trade and 

 oivij tlie iie.iple what tlioy want. It is 

 useless to get up e.xpensive niolropnlitan 

 fancies for rural local trade, and we 

 might say vice-versa, and yet often the 

 most obiciirr flriri=t is railed vipun to 

 ei|iial it lint r\, , rd III,' .ii-ations of the 

 lii'^t rii\ llnii-i-. I Mini mat inn is always 

 valiial.ln .Mil if M'ld.iiii lis,.,!. We have 

 mi.ssed 50 many weekly chats with you 

 that we can only no-\v try to catch np 

 and will take the Christmas liade in 

 sections. 



Cut Flowers. 



The prices of good quality llnwiis will 

 not vary very much frnm dm-,' ,,1 i .iiiu'i 

 years; lower grade st", I. will l,, ' 'n ,i [i, i - 

 The increasing plant iinl, i- i , -["P-ilil. 

 for this; people want llir 1" -i tiny lan 

 get all the time but more espcciallj' at 

 Christmas. The best American Beauties 

 will bring $2-4: per doz., the next grade 

 $15 to $18 per doz., and so on down to 

 .$6. Highest grade Brides, Bridesmaids, 

 Meteors, Golden Gates, will fetch from 

 $3 to $5 per doz. Lii/jrties will be made 

 .a specialty of and as high as $10 will 

 be asked for top grade. There will be 

 more roses sold at $1.50 to $2.50 per 

 doz. than at the prices quoted above; 

 they -will be the lon^' pickled, washed out 

 Bridesmaids, tlie ]niijilc Meteors, the 

 flabby Brides, Perlcs, ( nsins, in fact the 

 common stock of the market. 



New Eo.ses will be made a specialty 

 of; the supply will of course be scarce. 

 "Sarah Nesbit," a sport of Mme. Cusin, 

 originated by Benjamin Dorrance, is a 

 pretty rose of Mme. de Watteville color; 

 it is very popular in New York. Robert 

 Scott, the new pink rose, seems also to 

 liave a bright future before it. Its 

 color and shape is after the Mme. 

 Gabriel Luizet type, and when it is 

 grown properly it will be in demand for 

 its size. Queen of Edgeley promises to 

 be a winner, but new roses are seldom 

 of much account to the retail cut flower 

 trade for the flrst year. 



As ju former years, color in roses will 

 be an important factor in their popular- 

 ity. Thus we expect Meteor and Liberty 

 ;ind Papa Gontier to be favorites. Pink 

 roses will sell well if they are pink. 

 Carnations will inidoubtedly be popular, 



ise to go quickly. The prettiest carna- 

 tion on the New York market at present 

 is one named "Goethe"; it is a delicate 

 pink color and is sure to be popular 

 I'M-iywhcre. Scotts seemed to have de- 

 ^I'liiralcd terriblv. Joost is a prime 

 finniitr on account of its stiff stem and 



a few un hand, but money is lost on 

 them more often than gained. Ordinary 

 grades of carnations will sell at 75c to 

 $1 per doz. 



Orchids will be few. Cattleya Per- 

 (. iana is too small for the American 

 t;*:.Je; the jicoplc are accustomed to sce- 



$7.r)U In >(■',> per do/,. (Jvpripedium insigne 

 will retail at $2.50 to $3. Lily of the 

 valley was remarkably scarce the past 

 iiiniilli ;iii,I l.rnii'_;lil tremendous prices, 

 -,, lii'jii III 1,1,1 ihai many refused to 

 , -,,11-111, I 11. All liiilli >tock promises to 

 Ih' plriiiirul tnr ( 'III istinas, and you can 

 sell valley at $1,50 to $2 per bunch of 

 25; Roman hyacinths, $1 a bunch; 75c 

 for paper white narcissus; jonquils, $1 

 and $1.50. Violets are the most trouble- 

 some flower in the whole business, and if 

 you cannot get them good and sweet 

 handle as few as possible; they will 

 bring from $3 to $5 per 100. Poinsettias 

 from 50c to 75c each. 



A great deal could be written on cut 

 flowers for Christmas. It is easy to throw 

 away j'our profits by reckless buying or 

 the careless way of putting them up. 

 The florist doin^ any kind of a prosper- 

 ous business should have a careful man 

 specially detailed to care for the cut 

 flowers," to keep them in good condition 

 and hand them out as wanted. The 

 salesman or "maker up" as a rule has 

 no time, often less inclination to fix 

 an upset vase of flowers; it is rush and 

 grab at what catches the eye; a good 

 man at your ice-box ivill earn ten times 

 his wage. 



A great deal of money is needlessly 

 thrown away in the reckless use of 

 greens; few people consider it right to 

 charge them for stevia, mignonette or 

 fern that is usually thrown in, but you 

 oaiiimt ,ji'l it |,.r nofhing. Use appropri- 

 ai,' L' 1,-11- I'll I nothing in the box that 

 will II. ,1 lianimnize in the arrangement 

 of llnwcrs. We particularly refer to the 

 custom pursued by many of slapping a 

 bunch of common ferns into a box con- 

 taining choice flowers. 



Cut Flower Boxes. 



under the heads ol (li.,-(' |.l,..,.l m the 

 opposite direction. Cariialiono and all 

 bulbous stock is better bunched; scat- 

 tered effects arc troublesome and in- 

 artistir. ^\■||I'IL |.i','|,lr i|,.'n a box of 

 How, IS till- 111 -1 111' N 'ii is of their 

 beaut \, till' -,,,,ii,l ,,ii II \ to arrange 

 them In ki'i'p; r,ih-i,|,r iln- when pack- 

 ing them. A spray of holly i)v mistletoe 

 can be put in every box of flowers you 

 send out from now until Christmas, and 

 in many eases a neat calendar or card 

 ainiouncing your specialties for Christ- 

 mas can be put with the holly at the 

 bottom or end of each hnx of flowers. 



red 



misthi",' ill ill,' li"i\ iii-i,ail of inside 

 the lin\; iil.linij II-,, I im tliis purpose 

 is cheap anil )uu can .lUurd it on any- 

 thing over $5. You need not tie the rib- 

 bon crossways as you do cord unless it 

 is narrow; across and a how is sufficient 

 with broad ribbon. Fii-I impi .--inus is 

 everyth'ing both as fn ,,iii-l,l, ,iiiil inside 

 a box, and the contnii- u, .i|ii In be 

 more appreciated if tin .\i.'ii,,i is at- 

 tractive. When putting up lily nf the 

 valley, whether in ordinary bunch or 

 corsage, cut the cord away and tie with 

 No. 2 white or pale blue ribbon. 



A New York florist has gotten up for 

 sale a rather pretty idea for covering the 

 handle of bouquets. These handle covers 

 are made in colors to match the flower : 

 they are shaped after the old kid finger, 

 but are made of silk with a running rib- 

 bon string at the top; they are the best 

 thing out for violets. We have always 

 advocated the discarding of tinfoil on 

 violets because it kills their fragrance ; 

 the best houses in New York use it no 

 more; a silk tasseled cord is tied in a 

 bow on the stems and the box is tied 

 with silk cord or violet ribbon; violet 

 colored tags to match. Gold braid is 

 very popular this year and one florist ties 

 his violets with it. 



Ribbons will be much used; we don't 

 mean in abundance, but more generally, 

 and the principal reason is because there 

 is an oversupply of white or dead colors 

 in plants and flowers. The American 

 flower buyer is not addicted to sensa- 

 tional glaring colors, but they have lit- 

 tle use for pale, washed-out, funeral 

 effects, hence in order to sell much of 

 the stock offered it is necessary to en- 

 liven it by a bit of color. 



Plants. 



All the presentable flowering and small 

 foliage plants in the neighborhood of 

 New York city were sold to the retailers 

 many weeks ago, and more plants will 

 be offered this Christmas than ever be- 

 fore. There is nothing specially new in 

 the stock, but in the arranging of it more 

 care will be used, and many novel 

 touches will be seen and appreciated. 

 The American plant grower has yet much 

 to learn. His supply of good stock is 

 not equal to the demand. The plants 

 this year are not as good as they might 

 be, and the variety and quantity are 

 both wanting. There is a future for 

 those who will specialize on Christmas 

 and Easter plants. 



