JUNE 



The Weekly Florists' Review^ 



59 



Prices: Beauties, 75 cents to $3 pe.- 

 dozen: Brides, Maids, Kaiserins, Me- 

 teors, $3 to ?6 per 100: Perles, $2 to 

 $5: Golden Gates, |3 to $6: carnations, 

 ordina:-.v $1 to $1.50, fancy $2, Crocker 

 $2 to $2.50 per 100: callas, $S: daisies, 

 50 cents to $1: valley, $2 to $4: sweet 

 peas, 35 to 50 cents; cuneatum, 75 

 cents to $1: asparagus. 50 cents: smi- 

 lax, 15 to z5 cents: cornflowers, 25 to 

 50 cents per 100. R. 



BALTIMORE. 



Three Private Places. 



The three show places on the west 

 side of this city are those of Mrs. Rob- 

 ert Garrett on Edmonson avenue, Mr, 

 Bernard N. Baker and Mr. Theodore 

 Lurmau, near Catonsville. The Lur- 

 man place was long one of the few ex- 

 :iniples of the formal style of garden- 

 ing, with topiary work, flower gar- 

 dens enclosed with high hedges, and 

 vegetable gardens and frame yards 

 surrounded by stone walls, and the 

 glass houses of a style going back to 

 the earlier part of the century. There 

 are many noble specimens of ever- 

 greens and deciduous trees, notably , 

 some Norway spruces of majestic 

 stature and reach of limb, gigantic 

 copper and cut leaved beeches and 

 plantations of rhododendrons of great 

 size, unimpaired vigor and brilliant 

 flowers, their great age notwithstand- 

 ing. For many years these gorgeous 

 flowers, the geometrical flower beds, 

 the trees and hedges trimmed into 

 fanciful shapes, and the graveled 

 walks, all charmingly kept, gave an 

 unique character to this place, and it 

 is to be regretted that the taste of the 

 present owner does not incline to a 

 perpetuation of its unmatched spe- 

 cialties. There is a prospect from the 

 house unexcelled in scope and beauty, 

 taking in broad views of the river 

 and bay and parts of three counties, 

 forest trees of unusual height, with 

 some neat bedding around the dwell- 

 ing, but the old-time and distinctive 

 features are being allowed to lapse into 

 desuetude. Mr. Charles Bassett is the 

 gardener here, showing taste and skill. 

 His predecessor for, we believe, quite 

 fifty years, was Frederick Fauth — a 

 length of service in one garden rarely 

 paralleled in this country. 



Uplands, the country seat of Mrs. 

 Garrett, is probably not only the most 

 finished place artistically, but it is 

 adorned by a greater variety and move 

 mature specimens of rare and well- 

 giown trees than any other in Mary- 

 land. At the base of the landscape 

 work, as should be, is a system of per- 

 fect roads, admirably laid out and 

 thoroughly constructed. Architectural 

 features are furnished by a hand- 

 somely designed entrance way, bridges 

 and terraces, not pretentious work 

 overtopping the gardening, but serv- 

 ing as opportunities for the exercise 

 of the gardener's art, which by taste 

 and knowledge produces beautiful ef- 

 fects, softening and adorning the con- 



structions of brick, stone and iron. 

 The resultant beauty of this fine es- 

 tate is largely due to the palpable 

 unity of design in the work, the ample 

 and dignified sweep of the roadway, 

 the planting so done as to make 

 broad, deep bays, and vista succeed 

 vista, so that every beautiful view, re- 

 mote or near, is secured, when' the 

 plantations on the border of harmon- 

 izing trees and shrubbery are so man- 

 aged as to shut out the public thor- 

 oughfares and give security and pri- 

 vacy to the grounds and drives. In 

 short, that skill most lacking in all 

 planting has been well displayed, that 

 it is done not for to-day, but for the 

 future, not for present effect, but for 

 results when the trees have grown and 

 spread. 



Space would fail us, even were it 

 not beyond the purview of this cor- 

 respondence, to name the many exam- 

 ples of rare trees and notable speci- 

 mens of the commoner ones. A fer- 

 tile soil and intelligent care have pro- 

 duced results which only issue from 

 skillful initiative in planting and true 

 arboricultura! zeal. The happy con- 

 summation in this instance was 

 largely due to Mr. John Cook, who. 

 having long been gardener on this 

 place (then Mr. Frick's). knew its pos- 

 sibilities, knew every part of its sur- 

 face, and who, when called upon to 

 undertake its improvement on a broad 

 scale, gave his best thought to the 

 task, with the outcome now seen. His 

 was. indeed, the eye of the artist and 

 the hand of the master. Mr. Holden 

 is now the gardener in charge at Up- 

 lands, and has been for some fifteen 

 years. I'nder his efficient hands the 

 improvements do not flag, and every 

 department, the lawn and beds, the 

 plant and forcing houses, all show the 

 best outcome. 



It is evident that Mr. B. N. Baker 

 intends his fine estate shall be be- 

 hind none in any branch of decorative 

 gardening. A mansion of imposing 

 proportions is surrounded by well kept 

 lawns, brilliant flower beds and trees 

 of beautiful form and foliage. Build- 

 ing is still going on. roads being con- 

 structed and the plant houses remod- 

 eled. Mr. Henry Fauth is gardener 

 .here and has been since 1858. For en- 

 ergy, intelligence and zeal in his call- 

 ing he has no superior, as his work 

 and the neatly kept place abundantly 

 testify. 



Notes. 



Trade for the week ending at this 

 date, June 4th, has kept up with un- 

 usual vivacity. Of course there are 

 alternations of activity and depres- 

 sion: a great avalanche of flowers is 

 upon us and prices are necessarily 

 affected thereby, but good stock is in 

 demand, especially good roses, and 

 will bring fair figures all along. We 

 have now reached the era of June wed- 

 dings and June commencements, ant! 

 these, with the funeral work, make 

 a steady and generally distributed de- 

 mand. 



We met here to-day Mr. Benjamin 

 Durfee, of the American Rose Com- 

 pany of Washington. He was buying 

 paeonies and Bweet peas. He reports 

 trade at the nafonal capital as re- 

 markably brisk for the season. .Mr. 

 Durfee was in Baltimore also last 

 last week laying in a stock of cut 

 flowers for Decoration Day, which 

 makes heavy demands on the trade 

 in Washington. Here it scarcely cre- 

 ated a ripple in our market. Indetnl. 

 pretty much all that is done on that 

 day by the florists is in the line of 

 patriotism, and not for profit. 



RIX. 



KANSAS CITY, MO. 



Various Items. 



The past week was a record breaker 

 from a business standpoint for this 

 season of the year; never before were 

 so many flowers used for Memorial 

 Day and school commencements. 



A visit to one or two of our lead- 

 ing stores last Wednesday reminded 

 one of the Easter rush, and double 

 the amount of stock could have ICcn 

 sold. Paeonies were the only out-door 

 flower which could be used to any 

 great advantage. 



It is to be regretted that this cli- 

 mate is unfavorable for the production 

 of better herbaceous stock. Roses cut 

 from the garden are of no con;mercial 

 value this year; the cause is not from 

 drouth or heavy rains, but too much 

 Missouri "hot air." 



The summer bedding is about com- 

 pleted and an increase in the use of 

 lawn vases and veranda boxes is no- 

 ticeable. Humfeld Floral Co. report 

 doing douljle the business cf last year. 

 Paul Ducl-oit says: "Sold out clean: 

 regret I did not have a larger supply." 

 Albert Barbe, near Elmwood cemetery, 

 had to buy heavily for his increasing 

 plant trade. Mr. Barbe was unusually 

 successful in growing roses last winter 

 and is now adding 10,000 feet of glass 

 for roses exclusively. He realizes that 

 we have a great market here for cut 

 flowers and his thrift is commendable. 

 We have competition enough, but 

 more glass is needed. 



Probably the busiest men in town 

 are Robert Brown & Son. Prospect 

 avenue. This firm's specialty is young 

 rooted stock of all kinds; every inch 

 of their well arranged place is utilized 

 and their shipping trade is enormous. 

 HARRY JIM. 



INDEPENDENCE, MO. 



This pretty little town of ten thou- 

 sand inhabitants lies ten miles east 

 of Kansas City, and 'twas near here 

 that Alfred Broman four years ago 

 purchased a ten-acre farm and built 

 his first greenhouses. This venture 

 proved a big success from the start. 

 Last year he added 4.(100 feet of glass 

 and this summer is building an addi- 

 tional range of 5,000 feet, giving him 



