AUGUST 23. 1900. 



The Weekly Florists' Review, 



345 



Wedding Breakfast Table. Tree Decorated with American Beauties. Kift & Son, Phila. 



I could describe a number of beautiful 

 effects made by combinations of flowers 

 and foliage, but think you will be able to 

 get a better idea from the pictures about 

 to be thrown on the screen, nearly all of 

 which have one or more features to com- 

 mend them. 



I will only say try and let your indi- 

 viduality show in the worlc. Do not rest 

 satisfied with something that anyone who 

 had the materials at hand could do. The 

 mere setting a few plants about in the 

 corners, crowding some ferns together on 

 the mantles and hanging strings of smi- 

 lax in which a few carnations have been 

 wired will not build up a reputation. Cus- 

 tomers rarely know what is required. 

 TK^y expect the florist to have ideas; 

 they look to him to tell them what they 

 should have. The rest is merely a ques- 

 tion of price. 



In conclusion. I believe that one of the 

 most important elements in a decoration 

 is to be on time. Many an otherwise 

 faultless job is spoiled from lack of time 

 in which to carry out all that was prom- 

 ised. What should have been a brilliant 

 victory was, so to speak, turned into de- 

 feat, the florists retreating in confusion 

 through the rear door while the guests 

 were entering the front. There should 

 be time, indeed, for a flnal inspection 

 and, if necessary, a touch here and there 

 that, while not in the contract, adds 

 much to the work and leaves nothing to 

 be desired. And then what a siitisfaction 

 there is in going about with the host and 

 hostess and hearing from them that they 

 are well pleased and that everything is 

 exceedingly satisfactory. You may be 

 very tired, but you go away from their 



presence with a light heart and feeling 

 of gratification that amply repays for all 

 your efforts. 



THE 



IMPROVEMENT OF THE 

 CARNATION. 



Bv WiLLi.^M Weber. 



When we contrast the carnation of to- 

 day with the carnation of 15 years ago, 

 we behold a difference so vast that, had 

 it been foretold at that time, the would- 

 be prophet would have been made light 

 of. 



Very naturally we all expect to ad- 

 vance continuously, but at that time we 

 scarcely thought we would accomplish 

 more in 15 years than had been done in 

 the preceding 50 years. Yet when we 

 look at the world In general, we are 

 after all, forced to admit that we have 

 merely done what could naturally be ex- 

 pected: had we not made such strides, 

 we would not deserve to be called pro- 

 gressive, or equal in animation with the 

 spirit which pervades all other branches 

 of trade and industry. 



I am charged with the mission of tell- 

 ing you the story of "The Improvement 

 of the Carnation." The whole story, 

 while very simple, would be of such 

 length as to prove irksome did I attempt 

 to tell it to you in detail as it occurs to 

 me; I will therefore be as brief as possi- 

 ble, leaving the hundred and one little 

 things which always form a part of the 

 whole to your imagination. Improved 

 methods of culture stand out in bold re- 

 lief as being the most important item of 



our subject. How different are the 

 methods we use now when compared to 

 those of a decade or more back. We 

 house our plants now from six to eight 

 weeks earlier than we used to do. Then 

 we merely tried to get them all in before 

 damaging frosts would arrive. The re- 

 sult was usually very large plants with 

 an abundance of shoots. Leaving out ths 

 winter culture in the greenhouse, and 

 presuming thev were to be grown in 

 their natural way, these large p'.ants 

 were good subjects to winter over, and 

 produce an abundance of flowers the 

 following year; in other words, they 

 were ready for their winter's sleep. 



What happens when large plants are 

 planted late in the season is this: The 

 time left for them to become estab i.shed 

 on the benches is decidedly too short. 

 It will take two weeks in Septemb?r or 

 October to a,ccomplish what one week 

 in Jidy or August would do in the way 

 of filling the soil up with roots. When 

 this is accomplished the plants are ready 

 for work, and not before. The product 

 of a poorly, or partially established plant 

 cannot approach perfection. When we 

 plant late there is no time left for thor- 

 ough establishment to take place, and 

 the result will in nearly every case be. 

 a large crop of medium grade flowers 

 at best. And where the culture is in- 

 different, quality as well as quantity will 

 be inferior. 



The merits of early planting are not 

 as fully recognized as they should be. 

 Early planting is one of the bulwarks of 

 the present high standard the car- 

 nation of today enjoys. The reason 

 is very simple. When we plant in 

 July and August we are giving the 

 plants ample time to become thor- 

 oughly established before the days are 

 so short, and consequently le.?s light to 

 help them along. Then we have our 

 plants in good working condition and the 

 carnationist with advanced ideas can 

 commence feeding his plants judicous'y 

 and with the exactitude and nicety of 

 one who thoroughly understands his sub- 

 ject. Early planting may mean a few 

 less flowers, but this will be more than 

 made up in the better quality flowers, 

 and greater length of stem than could ba 

 expected from late planted stock. A 

 careful study of our soil, what it con- 

 tains, and what it lacks; what consti- 

 tutes plant food, and how plants feed, 

 are matters which demand the fullest 

 consideration. We cannot hope to ac- 

 complish anything of real value unless 

 we work along these lines. 



The grower who will stop trying to do 

 as well this year as he did last year, 

 and instead make a systematic effort 

 to each year eclipse last year's record, 

 will soon be in line with the liest grow- 

 ers in the land. What we need is to 

 stop guessing, and become so infused 

 with our task, that we will soon have 

 all the ideas of our own we can manage 

 and put to the test. In this manner 

 each one working along his particular 

 line of thought will evolve some points 

 perhaps which his neighbors in the field 

 may not; and in this way help to con- 

 Iriliute to the store of knowledge which 

 is being steadily collected, and which 

 will doubtless be preserved in history. 



As soon as we learn to depend on our- 

 selves, we begin forthwith to improve. 

 \^'hat matters if we do make a few mis- 

 takes? Is there any one here who hasn't 

 made them? I believe not. They simply 

 serve to guide us in our work, and teach 

 us the value of proceeding with our eyes 

 open, to never experiment on a scale so 

 large that failure of the experiment 

 would swamp us. If we manage it care- 

 fully the results will inspire us with a 

 contidence known only to those who 

 thoroughly understand their calling, be 

 he florist, engineer, merchant, soldier or 

 what not; it is all the same. 



Great as has been the improvement of 

 the carnation in recent years, all In- 

 dications point to a still greater im- 

 provement in the near future. No small 

 factor is the modern houses which are 

 being built. One would think that we 



