MAT 11, 1899. 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



609 



B 



hurt 



EWARE OF SAP in Cypress lumber for greenhouse material. 



A little sap in lumber to be used for interior finish in dwellings won't 

 But in greenhouse material it is a FATAL defect. 



The moisture inside the greenhouse makes the difference. 



The sappy piece is the first to decay and is the weak link in the chain. 



We can't afford to have any weak spots in our material. 



We want permanent customers, which means satisfied customers. 



We can make you a 



permanent customer. 



Your first order is our 

 opportunity. 



May we have it? 



Write us about it. 



WRITE FOR C^taU^C U£ 



Every 

 Description 



John (£, - ^,^^^^^2iyc.»,.K.i^..u.. 



JflONINGERKQ. wfmmmikiQjimO. 



THE POSSIBILITIES OF THE CUT 

 FLOWER BUSINESS. 



[A paper by Mr. E. M. Wood of Natick, Mass., 

 read before the New York Florists' Club, May 8. 

 1899.] 



I have been asked to open the dis- 

 cussion at your club meeting tonight, 

 of the possibilities of the cut flower 

 business. 



The success of the cut flower busi- 

 ness is dependent upon many things 

 being accomplished, among which I 

 will mention a few. 



1st. Quality. To obtain the best 

 will require the painstaking observa- 

 tion and study of the specialist stu- 

 dent, who, not only for his love for 

 flowers, but by his undivided attention 

 and devotion to the work of improving 

 in quality and varieties. 



He will study the best environment 

 of the house for his favorite flower of 

 which he makes a specialty. Its con- 

 struction as best adapted for its wants. 

 For the rose, there must be no shade 

 to obstruct the north, as well as no 

 shade to obstruct the south light. It 

 is fatal to the best quality and largest 

 product. Everything else being equal, 

 then with unobstructed light, health, 

 vigor, constitution and product,, are 

 maintained to a standard possible to 

 attain. In one house of equal span 

 upon my grounds, having two central 

 beds 4 feet 8 inches to 4 feet 10 inches 

 wide, the front bed produces three cut 

 blooms of roses to one cut bloom in 

 the rear bed. Both beds are upon the 



same level, and both borders look 

 equally healthy one with the other; 

 the treatment in every way is identi- 

 cal. Still the crops from month to 

 month show three to one. This leads 

 me to consider whether or not with 

 one border in a narrow house with 

 unobstructed light (which the second 

 border does more or less obstruct) as 

 many roses can be produced as in both 

 borders, with half the labor and mate- 

 rial, and with improved quality. I 

 simply speak of this incident as one 

 of the many which the future is likely 

 to develop. 



Assuming that all the conditions, 

 namely, well and properly constructed 

 houses, correct environment, cleanli- 

 ness within and without, unobstructed 

 light, are obtained, tlien efforts should 

 be directed to treatment to produce 

 superior quality at the expense of 

 quantity. It is my belief this has not 

 been attained to its fullest extent. 



Observation, study and experiment 

 with light, composts and treatment 

 will, as time proceeds add largely to 

 the quantity of fine flowers at the ex- 

 pense of quantity of inferior flowers. 



Having obtained the best quality of 

 flowers and varieties, what are the pos- 

 sibilities of the cut flower business? 

 Will the demand in the future be as 

 great as in the past, and continue to 

 grow? To this question, I would say 

 yes. 



Some critics have spoken in dispar- 

 agement of the business of the cut 

 flower trade, on account of the grow- 



ing taste for pot plants in bloom, and 

 the injury to the cut flower trade by 

 the high prices charged Christmas. 



In my judgment it is cause for en- 

 couragement that there is being de- 

 veloped a taste for pot plants in bloom. 

 There will be no less sale for good cut 

 flowers. They are always and will al- 

 ways be in demand. It is the worth- 

 less stock held for days, and even 

 weeks by the growers, that has caused 

 very largely the complaint, both by 

 florists and consumer in the holiday 

 season. If the grower delivers his 

 stock to the florist day by day as he 

 ought to do, at prices fixed for the 

 season of winter, then all this cry of 

 high prices will disappear. I find they 

 charge quite high prices for apples to- 

 day — (anything from five to ten cents 

 apiece) — but if they do, I don't believe 

 the people of New York will get 

 vexed about it and live on leek and 

 turnips the balance 'of their lives. 

 There ought to be some method 

 brought about whereby the prices of 

 cut flowers should be fixed day by day, 

 just as the price of cotton, wheat, oats 

 and corn, pig lead, pig iron, linseed 

 oil, turpentine, and many other pro- 

 ducts. 



The leading growers of the different 

 cities ought to be able to come to- 

 gether to devise a plan upon which 

 this could be successfully done. To no 

 one would it be of so great a beneflt 

 as the small growers. New York City 

 will be a good place to begin it. 



