SEPTEMBER 22, 1S9S. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



439 



poor place will still do for them, and 

 in June shift into a 5-inch and plunge 

 out of doors and daily water. These 

 hy the following September make stur- 

 dy fine plants and contrary to the 

 starvation theory are easier to flower 

 than the old bulbs. 



Shadirg. 



In the rush of work at this time, and 

 to the plant man it is a busy sea;Son, 

 you should not neglect to get off all 

 the shading that you had to have on 

 for midsummer. We are often far too 

 negligent in this and greatly impair 



the growth of the plants by having a 

 dark house when every ray of light is 

 needed. There is nothing that now 

 needs shading. 



Violets. 



Last year I put the glass on violets 

 that had been planted in solid beds all 

 summer about October 1st. I have no 

 reason to alter the date, except where 

 it has been rainy, when the glass 

 might have been on sooner to prevent 

 too much moisture, producing spot. 

 WM. SCOTT. 



Ribbons. 



According to fashionable New York 

 milliners, ribbons will be very much 

 used this winter; all the leading dry 

 goods stores have put extra help at 

 their ribbon counters in anticipation 

 of the increased demand, and it is safe 

 to say that ribbons will also be all 

 the style with up-to-date florists this 

 season. 



I made the rounds of the ribbon 

 counters this week and found several 

 new things which will be much used 

 hy New York florists; one is the "Ot- 

 toman ribbon." This is a beautiful 

 heavy ribbed silk ribbon of the finest 

 quality, far superior to the ordinary 

 gros-grained, having a satin finish and 

 a very rich appearance. It can be got 

 in any color and is just the thing for 

 bouquets. The 5%-inch width costs 

 about 88 cents per yard. Then there 

 is the "Beaver ribbon," which is ex- 

 tremely heavy and very rich, a splen- 

 did thing for the rough moss baskets 

 such as are imported from Germany. 

 It is called Beaver because it has a 

 very rough finish either on one or both 

 sides. One lovely old-rose shade looks 

 elegant on a bunch of cattleyas, and 

 there is a true violet color that will 

 be what is wanted for bunches or 

 baskets of violets or for funeral rib- 

 bon; 4%-inch widths cost 80 cents a 

 yard. French taffetas will be used a 

 great deal for trimming baskets and 

 for plant bows; "ii'i-inch widths cost 

 65 cents by the yard. 



The new flag ribbon, which has 

 been mentioned in previous notes, is 



a fine white silk ribbon with the Amer- 

 ican flag embroidered on it in colors: 

 it is very handsome; the 2-inch widths 

 cost 65 cents a yard. Of course there 

 are many old-fashioned ribbons which 

 are far more useful and very much 

 cheaper than many of the new things, 

 but the florist with high-class or soci- 

 ety trade must be up to the times in 

 ribbons as well as in flowers, for his 

 lady customers often want to examine 

 the ribbon before it is used and they 

 know the value of it. What is most 

 particular in ribbon is the right col- 

 ors; always take a flower with you 

 when you want to match it with rib- 

 bon. Gauze ribbon will be extensively 

 used again this year for violets; it is 

 also a fine thing for dressing grapes. 

 Watered silk is not suitable for florists' 

 work and should never be used. 



For bridal bouquets use broad, dou- 

 ble-faced satin with gros-grained 

 edges; for ordinary work there is 

 nothing to excel gros-grained silk. 

 Don't use violet or purple ribbons on 

 cattleyas; cattleya ribbon can be had 

 with the warm hues always seen in 

 the lip of that flower; if this is not ob- 

 tainable use white. Don't use sickly 

 lavenders on violets; if you cannot get 

 the exact shade, it is best to use a 

 darker one. Never put pink or red 

 ribbons on funeral work, for it is 

 enough to wake the dead. Always 

 attach the card to your designs by a 

 piece of narrow ribbon and put it 

 where it can be seen. At many prom- 

 inent funerals lately the cards were 

 pinned on the ribbon and gave much 

 unnecessary annoyance. 



There are many new bows out this 

 year, illustrations of which will be 

 given in this department later. We 

 have devoted much space this week 

 to ribbons, not that we are in favor 

 of turning your store into a ribbon 

 bazaar, but to keep you posted. We 

 have never been in favor of the 

 abundant use of ribbon, we believe 

 many of the thousands of dollars 

 spent for this material could be better 

 used. It is disgusting to see beautiful 

 plants choked with ribbon, and yet a 

 pretty bow on many plants will often 

 sell them more quickly. Ribbon is all 

 right if its use is not abused, and if 

 harmony and good taste are consid- 

 ered. IVERA. 



OUR PRIZE COMPETITION. 



Following is another batch of en- 

 tries in our prize competition in labor 

 saving devices or methods useful to 

 florists: 



No. 14. We have found that a few 

 rows of corn planted very thinly 

 among the violets outdoors gives a 

 useful shade in summer. For plant- 

 ing inside use lots of leaf mould. 

 Water in winter with liquid sheep ma- 

 nure. Some of the grandest violets 

 ever grown were watered with ice 

 cold water. E. 



No. 15. Before you use new pots, 

 always play the hose on them several 

 times. Plants do not like the extreme 

 dryness of a new pot. E. 



No. 10. Roses affected by gnibs of 

 any kind at the root may be saved by 

 persistent application of lime water. 

 E. 



No. 17. I don't know whether this is 

 in use anywhere or not. but I think a 

 large box with four grooved wheels 

 to run along the edge boards of two 

 benches of even height would be a 

 good thing to use in filling or empty- 

 ing houses. E. 



No. 18. I have been experimenting 

 with substitutes for glass for florists' 

 use. I flnd oiled paper better than 

 anything else I have tried. Light and 

 heat pass through the oiled paper, 

 when new and clean, good enough for 

 any plants. 



The way to secure the paper is my 

 invention and is not patented. I want 

 all my florist friends to have the bene- 

 fit as well as myself. To use the paper 

 erect any frame you want and then 

 put on an even tight covering of poul- 

 try wire netting (2-inch mesh. No. 20 

 wire is good.) Put the paper on top 

 of the wire and then cover with an- 

 other neitting. Nail a lath on top of 

 each rafter. The paper between the 

 netting cannot get away or break and 

 it makes the best summer roof I have 

 tried. I use strong paper 30 inches 

 wide and lap over about 2 inches. I 

 place a roll of paper on a long table 

 and rub in raw linseed oil with a rag 

 (a brush is no good) and roll up on an- 

 other roller as I oil it until I have 



