230 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



JULY 26, 1900. 



Hydrangeas and Begonias. 



J. J. L. asks: "Why do the leaves 

 of hydrangeas turn white under ordi- 

 nary treatment? Why do the blooms 

 of tuberous-rooted begonias pucker 

 and rust? They are grown in medium 

 cool houses partly shaded." 



Mr. Wm. Scott replies as follows: 

 "I have frequently seen the leaves of 

 hydrangeas turn a very pale green, 

 almost yellow, while being forced. I 

 am not certain of tlie cause but have 

 attributed it to excessive forcing and 

 a want of the proper stimulant and 

 soil. They need a great deal of water 

 when being forced any and if the 

 soil is light and poor it is likely to 

 produce this result. I have never no- 

 ticed the trouble so much on those 

 that are brought along to bloom the 

 end of May. Hydrangeas want a heavy 

 soil and well enriched and firmly pot- 

 ted. 



"I have never noticed the blooms of 

 tuberous begonias pucker or troubled 

 with rust, but have often noted it on 

 the leaves and have accounted for that 

 by their being too shaded and perhaps 

 too wet. If supplied with sufficient 

 water at the roots these begonias do 

 splendidly with us as bedding plants 

 in the broad sun. Not but what they 

 do a little better shaded from the hot 

 afternoon sun. The ideal way to grow 

 these for pot plants would be to have 

 them in a very airy house ventilated 

 on all sides and then shaded by a 

 movable shade that need not be put 

 on before 10 o'clock and can be taken 

 off at 3. In the absence of this they 

 want very little shade. I am pretty 

 sure the cause of the trouble de- 

 scribed is too close and too much 

 shade and dampness. When I say that 

 they do well out of doors it will give 

 you an idea of what they most want 

 and that is, air and light." 



Business Troubles. 



The great bulk of our business trou- 

 bles seem to be due to little over- 

 sights and omissions, or doing the 

 right thing at the wrong time or the 

 wrong thing when the right one is 

 just as easy. In the complaints that 

 reach us we can read between the 

 lines a story of great friction devel- 

 oped by sticking at trifles. 



We recall the case of the dealer who 

 lost forever the trade of a good cus- 

 tomer by sticking out to the last for 

 exchange charges of 15 cents on a 

 draft he had made on the customer 

 and which the latter declined to pay. 

 He was correct in his position that 

 the customer should pay the exchange 



for the bill was net. but he lost th^ 

 amount a thousand times over by at- 

 tempting to collect it. It is not wise 

 to adhere to rules too rigidly when 

 the amount is inconsequential and in- 

 jurious friction is bound to result. 



A florist in Kansas sent an eastern 

 grower an order for plants remitting 

 the required amount by postal money 

 order. The order couldn't be filled 

 in full and ?3.00 was returned by 

 check. The check was returned with 

 the statement that it would cost 2.5 

 cents to collect it and that return re- 

 mittance should be made in the same 

 form in which it was sent. The check 

 was again started west with sarcastic 

 remarks as to the absence of banks 

 in that section, etc. As a result a 

 first class row developed and the Kan- 

 sas man will never send another order 

 to the party, while the latter is of 

 the opinion that the Kansas man is a 

 cranky individual. 



Now it seems to us that the seller 

 would have found it a good deal bet- 

 ter for his own interests . to have 

 bought a money order and returned 

 the $3.00 in that form even if he did 

 feel irritated at having his check re- 

 turned. 



Another florist orders a few plants 

 sent by mail. They are forwarded by 

 express probably because the quota- 

 tions were on the basis that the buyer 

 was to pay carrying charges, or that 

 the plants were too heavy to go by 

 mail. The package fails to reach the 

 one ordering. He complains and the 

 shipper replies that his responsibility 

 ceased with the delivery of the pack- 

 age to the express company. Doesn't 

 even inform the consignee when ship- 

 ped and by what company. A month 

 having elapsed and the plants having 

 no doubt perished in the mean time 

 the buyer demands his money back 

 and the shipper treats this demand 

 with silent contempt. 



In this case, if the package was cor- 

 rectly addressed the express company 

 could be held responsible, and if not 

 then the shipper should refill the or- 

 der. Certainly he cannot afford to es- 

 tablish a reputation as one who ig- 

 nores complaints. 



It is noticeable that these complaints 

 are rarely made regarding firms doing 

 a large and growing business, and the 

 natural inference is that such firms at 

 once take steps to adjust any reason- 

 able complaints. Probably that is one 

 reason why their business is large and 

 growing. It costs money to secure a 

 customer and it's worth something to 

 keep him, and certainly less costly 



than securing a new set every once in 

 a while. 



Business Letters. 



Certain business letters that have 

 recently been brought to our attention 

 remind us of a suggestion once made 

 by a nurseryman at one of the con- 

 ventions. He said: "When you get a 

 nasty, unreasonable letter from some 

 business correspondent, sit down at 

 once and write a reply that is just 

 as nasty as you know tow to make 

 it. Be bitterly sarcastic, say all the 

 wicked things you can think of, ex- 

 press your thoughts freely in every 

 way. Then put it in a drawer of your 

 desk over night. You will feel tre- 

 mendously relieved when you have 

 exhausted all this energy and the next 

 day you will be in a frame of mind 

 that will enable you to write a fair 

 and even tempered reply that will 

 make the other fellow feel ashamed 

 of his hastiness." 



We commend this plan. We even 

 confess that we have tried it ourselves 

 with very beneficial results. 



Good Nature. 



Good nature can be cultivated, and 

 it frequently brings a higher price 

 than fine flowers. Certainly a busi- 

 ness cannot to-day be made a success 

 by an ill-natured man. We recall an 

 old-time florist who was very gruff 

 and independent. A lady called and 

 inquired the price of roses. He told 

 her $3.00 a dozen. She thought she 

 would try elsewhere, but. being unable 

 to find what she wanted at any better 

 price, returned to Mr. Gruff and said 

 she would take what he had offered 

 her. He replied: "No, madam; you 

 had your opportunity before. Now 

 you haven't money enough to buy 

 them." This man did a fair business 

 in early days when competition was 

 light, but though his stock was al- 

 ways good, he was finally pushed to 

 the wall through the advent of good 

 natured men, and died very poor. 



Another old-timer was said to be 

 possessed of a frightful temper, but 

 the husband of one of his customers 

 taught him ability to control him- 

 self. She wanted a bouquet made in 

 some particular way and was rather 

 fussy about it. The florist finally be- 

 came enraged and threw the half-fin- 

 ished bouquet the length of the store, 

 exclaiming, "Madam, you don't know 

 what you want! There's the door." 

 The lady happened to be in delicate 

 health and the shock proved serious. 

 A few days later a muscular man 

 called upon the florist and extracted 

 from him an abject apology under 

 threat of breaking every bone in his 

 body, and then went away determined 

 to injure his trade to the limit of his 

 power. That florist eventually lost 

 all his trade and was obliged to work 

 for others for half what he had once 

 paid for house rent. 



The day for such men has passed, 

 if it ever existed. They made their 

 own troubles. 



