The Weekly Florists' Review. 



185 



The Christmas crop of Queen Louise carnations at the establishment of J. L. Dillon, Bloomsburg, Pa. 



such vast quantities of foreign material 

 and outside skilled labor that it is little 

 wonder our retailers do not care to com- 

 pete with our great decorator. 



For Graham this must be a very 

 profitable field under existing conditions 

 for our ball givers are certainly able to 

 pay for what they want. Phil. 



BALTIMORE- 



Various Items. 



The Christmas season and 

 L'he weather was 



jerb, the 



air, clear, crisp and sparkling, just cool 

 enough to give zest to shopping, and 

 not too cold for the delivery of plants 

 and flowers without danger of freezing. 

 Both the storekeepers and the market 

 people did well, and there has rarely 

 been a season where stock was more 

 completely exhausted or more general 

 satisfaction e.xpressed with the results 

 secured. 



A year ago popular taste seemed to 

 incline to plants rather than cut flowers 

 for presents and decorations. This year 

 the pendulum swung back and cut flow- 

 ers were most in favor. Of plants, the 

 azalea had the call. Baskets of plants 

 were not much in vogue, and the millin- 

 ery displays of lace and ribbon were not 

 so much in evidence as in former years. 



The supply of flowers was about the 

 average. Most varieties were abundant 

 enough for all purposes. If there was 

 any scarcity it was in Beauties and vio- 

 lets. The local production of the for- 

 mer was not sufficient for the lequire- 

 nients and retailers had to semne ship- 



ments from Philadelphia and New York, 

 paying well for them, too! The retail 

 price of violets, which ranged about $.3, 

 was prohibitive to many intending cus- 

 tomers, and more than one would-be 

 purchaser compromised on a $3 box of 

 confectionery as making more show and 

 giving more palpable sweetness than the 

 flower. 



No extraordinary efforts at window 

 decoration were noticed, though all the 

 stores were neatly and appropriately 

 dressed. Holly was the predominating 

 material. On Charles street John Cook's 

 window was festooned in holly, with 

 sprays of Asparagus Sprengeri in fruit, 

 with pandanus and dracaenas, palms and 

 ferns, orchids and primroses. 



Next door, William J. Halliday's win- 

 dows were brilliant, banked with fln'e 

 poinsettias, graceful ferns and vines, the 

 ever present holly, erica.s, and many cyp- 

 ripediums. Mr. H. had a fine stock of 

 Queen of Edgely. 



Down the street, the lower stoi'e of S. 

 Feast & Sons was adorned with great 

 basket- i^ |i.iiii~i'tt l.i-. ferns, palms and 

 many li;iii-nrj \.i-.'- with drooping 

 '^prayi cjI \~|,.i i :i^ii~ S|)rengeri in abund- 

 ant fruit. Ai tlifii new store the hand- 

 some show window was full of seasona- 

 ble plants and flowers, with festoons and 

 wreathing of holly and a great vase of 

 ericas, 



Halliday Bros, on Charles street had 

 one window filled with eypripediums and 

 tlip nther with notably fine dracaenas and 

 ]i;niil:iii\i-. Ii..lly and white hyacinths be- 

 iiiu u-ril ;i. iiiiossories. In their Balti- 

 iih 1. -II. ri -tiire the window was grace- 

 fiillv ,1 .inlci with Boston ferns. Pan- 



if sort?, etc., 



James Pentland's window was given 

 up to ferns, palms, etc. On Lexington 

 street E. A. Seidewitz made an effective 

 display of ferns, cyclamens, American 

 Beauties, holly, etc. 



We had on Dec. 31 a copious rain, com- 

 ing down gently but continuously for 

 several hours. It was much ne'edcd, as 

 the springs and water courses were very 

 low, so low, indeed, that some growers 

 found it difficult to secure enough water 

 for daily use. 



Trade continues brisk. There are many 

 festivities and gatherings tonight to 

 usher in the new year and the new cen- 

 tury and all day flowers have been in fair 

 request. Good roses are scarce; of low- 

 er grades and of carnations there appears 

 an ample supply. 



The rultivntinn of the violet, commer- 

 cially, in ilii- I.HMlity, does not seem to 

 he :i- -ii,rr--nil .!< in former years. A 

 slim I iiiiir .fj,. iiiir great triumvirate of 

 gru»,.|>. uas .lohn G. Rider. Peter C. Erd- 

 nian and Enoch Merritt. The first named, 

 who was on the top round of the ladder 

 in quantity and quality of his products, 

 and wliu 1:1-1 Mar added several hundred 

 ^•'^1' I" III- .M'liliiiifnt, sends to market, 

 iiovnil,,!,-. ,n;,M,v less flo^vers than 

 fonnrily: ili,. Kidman Bros, have given 

 up the culture absolutely, and Mr. Mer- 

 ritt says of his 350 sash many do not 

 produce any flowers at all. and" on New 

 \ear's eve he brought in 1,700. when, we 

 suppose, he should have had something 

 like 17.000. This culture, indeed, as most 

 branches of commercial floriculture, Is 



ike the Christii 



ilk- 



a perpet- 



