594 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



MAY 11, 1S99. 



that means and if you do I'm afraid 

 you tell lots of stories. Well, there is 

 no need for that because there are lots 

 of tea roses obtainable and better 

 prices can be got for them. Cloth- 

 ilde Soupert makes a fine pot rose 

 and is selling well at present. 



Pelargoniums, or as the people here 

 call them, "Lady Washingtons," are 

 very popular this year, and we think 

 the demand would yearly increase if 

 the growers grew them better. It's 

 very remarkable how the American 

 people differ in taste from the Euro- 

 peans. There is always a great run 

 on heliotrope, musk, fuchsias, double 

 geraniums, selaginellas. etc., in Paris 

 and London. In New York, roses, 

 semi-double and single geraniums, 

 pansies, cannas, verbenas and petu- 

 nias are the greatest favorites. 



We are behind Europe in the matter 

 of plants. In the first place the big 

 majority are poorly grown and badly 

 presented in the market; they are put 

 up with little of that artistic touch so 

 very prominent in Paris and London, 

 but there are extenuating circum- 

 stances connected with our side of the 

 ease. It is harder for amateurs to 

 grow pot plants here, with our scorch- 

 ing climate; then again our growers 

 are mostly men who have but recent- 

 ly wrested a fair living from a strange 

 country and who have but inconven- 

 ient and poorly arranged markets to 

 sell their goods in; a few years more 

 and this will be changed. 



Cut Flowers. 



Let us drop plants now and talk cut 

 flowers in which our country leads the 

 world. The fashion in cut flowers 

 changes very often in many cases here 

 because we have such an immense and 

 varied stock to select from ail the 

 year around, and the wide awake flor- 

 ist is always on the lookout for the 

 first appearance of any particular 

 flower. Double violets are over for 

 this season but wild violets are on 

 hand by the million and they are a 

 lovely little flower; there is nothing 

 in them for the retail florist, however, 

 for the peddlers sell them in all our 

 northern cities for a few cents a 

 bunch, still we should have a good 

 big dish of them in every store, they 

 are good for funeral work, they make 

 a splendid cluster (if arranged tightly) 

 on an ivy wreath, or for that matter 

 in any design, but don't scatter them 

 or place them loosely, they droop too 

 quickly. They are just the thing for 

 children's parties and you can put nar- 

 row dark green ribbon on them, it's 

 better than sickly violet or deep pur- 

 ple. They are also much worn as cor- 

 sage bouquets and boutonnieres in an 

 informal way; good big bunches and 

 no fixings of any kind. 



Outdoor lilac is coming in very 

 plentifully and it is fine material for 

 many kinds of work. Some of you 

 will say there is lots of work and very 

 little money in outdoor flowers, yet 

 the best of your customers demand 

 them, and besides we must have some- 

 thing in the shop. The majority of 



the lilac we have seen this spring was 

 cut too short, doubtless the shippers 

 considered package and expressage. 

 Have your lilac cut good and long 

 with some foliage with it and if you 

 bunch it have it loosely done. If you 

 decorate with it try to fill your vases 

 high and loose and be careful what 

 colors you put near it. If you fill a 

 tall vase with lilac and let a spray of 

 white dogwood hang down or lay in 

 front it will give a pleasing effect; be 

 caieful though about the color of your 

 vase. Although we may have a little 

 more latitude with spring fiowers, still 

 discordant colored vases will spoil the 

 effect of any arrangement and the 

 more we use outdoor flowers the less 

 we should use of ribbons. 



This makes a pretty mirror: Cover 

 the wood with green, but have it neat 

 and trim, dark green for ground work, 

 lighter tips or sprays on top to finish 

 with; then get nice flowering branches 

 of dogwood (Cornus florida), begin at 

 the top of. the mirror and arrange the 

 branches so they will partly cover the 

 green and show prominently through 

 the glass; let a few sprays of bougain- 

 villea hang from the top center or put 

 a vase or cluster of lilac in the lower 

 center. 



Stephanotis floribunda is the latest 

 for bridal bouquets, and it makes up 

 beautifully. There are two ways of 

 doing it. For the round bouquet, the 

 foliage being too stiff, the clusters of 

 flowers are put on No. 21 wire and a 

 few buds are similarly wired. Aspara- 

 gus tenuissimus is used for supporting 

 greens and that is covered with fronds 

 of Adiantum gracillimum; arrange 

 your flowers loosely by fixing a cluster 

 of buds and flowers here and there a 

 little above the others, fringe off with 

 Adiantum Parleyense; cover your han- 

 dle first with tinfoil, then cream satin 

 ribbon and short loops of tulle or very 

 fine lace. This bouquet when finished 

 should not be more than 12 to 14 

 inches in diameter and be very light in 

 weight. 



For the cluster spray the Stephan- 

 otis is cut in branches about IS inches 

 long and the large leaves cut off. One 

 or two fine tips of asparagus are used 

 for a backgi-ound; the spray is ar- 

 ranged to taper to an irregular point, 

 the top or hand-piece of the cluster is 

 finished off well with flowers wired 

 and fringed with Adiantum, a cluster 

 of narrow white ribbon is tied on the 

 handle; avoid stiffness and be careful 

 the spray when finished is not longer 

 than 16 to 18 inches. 



There are some spikes of Odonto- 

 glossum crispum to be had yet. A few 

 of them and a cluster of orange blos- 

 soms make up finely. Valley, of course, 

 will always be the same old standby 

 but when we use much gree'n and wire 

 it makes up very heavy. Remember 

 the day of heavy clumsy bridal bou- 

 quets has passed; whatever material 

 you may make them of they should 

 be light and graceful. 



The shower of ribbons is no longer 

 in vogue among the better element; 



the present styles of wedding dresses 

 are more elaborate than ever, more 

 lace is used on them, and in conse- 

 quence smaller, choicer and more deli- 

 cately arranged bouquets are required, 

 and when you are tying i-ibbon on 

 please consider how cheap it will look 

 against lovely lace. 



Cattleya Mossiae blooms are on 

 hand, and what beautiful colors many 

 of them have! Their delicate rosy lilac 

 tints are just the thing wanted for 

 bridesmaids' bunches, and there is a 

 new ribbon that just matches them. 

 Don't kill them with any other colored 

 ribbon, be e'xact in the shades or use 

 none. Remember when ferns of any 

 kind are used for bouquets it should 

 be first soaked in water for some time, 

 and don't depend on it too much, keep 

 it within bounds. 



The long graceful racemes of Den- 

 drobium thyrsiflorum, with their white 

 and golden orange flowers, make a 

 charming effect in the window; they 

 are elegant for the basket handle or 

 white or blue vase. 



Cattleya citrina is the finest yellow 

 flower obtainable just now, and it is 

 oft'ered to the bridesmaid in a yellow 

 dress. 



Blue cornflowers are coming in and 

 are quickly snapped up; the color is 

 a scarce one, and the flower is very 

 popular for street wear. IVERA. 



SOLOMON'S SEAL FOR FORCING. 



It is strange how many are unac- 

 quainted with the fact that Solomon's 

 Seal can be easily forced into flower in 

 mid-winter, but such is the case, and 

 yet it is a subject that lends itself 

 most readily to this treatment, and its 

 flowers then come in for a greater 

 share of admiration than when al- 

 lowed to expand naturally outdoors, 

 while its delicate hawthorn-like frag- 

 rance is also very much more appre- 

 ciated. It is so easy to grow, and the 

 plant increases so rapidly, if a little 

 ordinary care and attention is be- 

 stowed on it, that it is really one of 

 the most inexpensive plants we have 

 for forcing; all that is necessary is to 

 set apart a piece of ground of sufl3- 

 cient size so that about one-third of 

 the roots can be lifted each year. Any 

 good garden soil will suffice, and if a 

 little manure can be spared to dig in 

 before planting, all the better. The 

 roots should be planted in rows one 

 foot apart, nine inches asunder, and 

 deep enough to allow the crowns be- 

 ing covered with two inches of soil. 

 Once planted, they give no further 

 trouble, and spread very quickly in- 

 deed, and soon take possession of the 

 whole plot. To keep up the stock, the 

 roots, after being forced, should be 

 taken care of and replanted, either 

 where lifted from, or in another spot 

 if preferred. It is a good plan to put 

 a little litter in the autumn over that 

 portion of the bed from which lifting 

 is to be done, when there will be no 

 diflSculty in digging up the roots 

 should severe weather set in, 



As regards the forcing, all that is 

 necessary after the roots are potted is 



