28 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



JUNE S, 1S99. 



NEW YORK. 



Memorial Day. 



Of course there was a tremendous 

 business done here on Memorial day, 

 just the same in comparison as there 

 was in any other city or town in the 

 United States — yes, a great deal more 

 so. But there's the rub; New York is 

 always grumbling and growling be- 

 cause of dull business under all and 

 every circumstance. 



We are never satisfied here because 

 we once upon a time supplied the rest 

 of the United States with cut flowers, 

 and we are so much behind the times 

 as to think we should continue to do 

 so. That's the secret of our troubles 

 here. We hate to admit that Boston, 

 Philadelphia, Chicago and Havana are 

 not alone able to supply their own 

 demands, but are able to ship else- 

 where. Perhaps you will admit — in 

 fact, you must do so by statistics — 

 that New York is the greatest cut 

 flower market in the world; that we 

 have more cut flowers sent into our 

 markets here than the three largest 

 cities in Europe, or the five largest 

 cities in America, put together; that 

 we could at the present time supply 

 North America with cut flowers; that, 

 let people say what they will, there is 

 no city on earth today where more cut 

 flowers are used than in New York 

 city. This we assert for one reason 

 that we wish it to be understood that 

 we are up to, yes, even beyond, other 

 people in events like Memorial day. 

 That we are not able to dispose of all 

 the stock sent in is not our fault, and 

 the reason is very apparent. We hate 

 to be sending in bad reports of busi- 

 ness all the time; there are not too 

 many florists in New York, but there 

 is too much of the same kind of stock 

 grown. We again repeat that there 

 was a tremendous business done here 

 for Decoration day, but even so, its 

 effect was not felt; several times the 

 amount of business could be done be- 

 fore the market would be cleared. 



Plants sold very well; in fact, the 

 supply of good stock was very short, 

 not alone in the city itself, but in the 

 surrounding towns. Everyone wanted 

 gardens and cemetery lots fixed for 

 May 30, and the demand caught the 

 market short. 



Americanism displayed itself in ev- 

 ery part and corner of New York state 

 except in Buffalo — shame on Buffalo. 

 Ye could well afford to leave off your 

 kilts and red coats on May 30 and 

 march with the boys in your suit of 

 blue. Perhaps you're too near Canada 

 to be healthy. The monuments to 

 the heroes of the revolution and civil 

 war were decorated more elaborately 

 and with better judgment than they 

 have been for years. The design 

 adopted and placed on various monu- 

 ments by the Sons of the Revolution 

 was most effective. They were 36- 

 inch crescent wreaths of galax leaves 

 made well and compact, brown leaves 

 on the outside and green on the inner; 



the words "Sons of the Revolution" in 

 yellow chenille were arranged on the 

 bottom, broad ribbons of continental 

 colors, "buff and blue," were tied to- 

 gether at the top and narrow part of 

 the /wreaths; one of these wreaths 

 was placed on the Washington monu- 

 ment in Wall street, one on the Mar- 

 tyrs' monument in Old Trinity churcn 

 yard, another on the Montgomery slab 

 at St. Paul's, and on the statue of 

 Nathan Hale, in City Hall park. G. 

 A. R. posts took charge of the decora- 

 tion of other monuments, and these 

 were of varied degrees of excellence. 



Millions of small plants were put 

 out in the cemeteries surrounding the 

 city, and everywhere the event as- 

 sumed an air of significant remem- 

 brance. The Memorial day parade 

 was the greatest seen in years. The 

 young veterans of the Spanish war 

 escorted the grey-haired vets of '61- 

 '65, 75 per cent of whom wore small 

 bunches of flowers in their coats. The 

 floral designs carried in the proces- 

 sion, however, were insignificant as 

 compared to the importance of the 

 occasion; one of the posts wore small 

 silk flags in their coats, and carried 

 small Parisian white immortelle 

 wreaths, tied with narrow white rib- 

 bon, in each left hand. 



Coming Events. 



June 10 the New York Gardeners' 

 Society strawberry show and social 

 good time at Terrace Gardens, 59th 

 street and 3rd avenue, 7:30 p. m. 



June 12, New York Florists' Club 

 bowling section meets at the alleys, 

 57th street and 6th avenue, at 3:30 

 p. m. It is requested that all inter- 

 ested in the bowling section will at- 

 tend, as this will be the last meeting 

 of the season, and the team for De- 

 troit will probably be selected at this 

 meeting. 



In the evening the last meeting of 

 the season will be held by the New 

 York Florists' Club, at 19 West 27th 

 street. Convention and other matters 

 will be discussed and all members are 

 requested to attend. 



June 14 and 15, the horticultural 

 section of the American Institute will 

 hold a flower, fruit and vegetable 

 show at Berkely Lyceum, 44th street 

 and 5th avenue. 



Various Items. 



It was reported that a meeting of 

 the plant growers of New York would 

 be held at 253 Centre street Monday 

 evening last for the purpose of devis- 

 ing means to get the legislature to 

 furnish a suitable market here for the 

 sale of plants. Owing to some mis- 

 take the meeting was not held. It 

 seems to be the general opinion here 

 that sooner or later both the plant 

 and cut flower markets will even- 

 tually be located in one building. If 

 so, it will cause a small revolution in 

 our business. 



There was only a small attendance 

 at the alleys last night, and as the 

 majority were newspaper men, we are 



naturally bashful in sending the 

 scores. Don't forget we enjoyed our- 

 selves, however, and we wish you 

 were all with us. IVERA. 



OMAHA, NEB. 



A Successful Season. 



The florists here report a wonder- 

 fully successful season. I have not 

 heard a complaint and all the signs 

 bespeak prosperity. 



Mr. Wilcox, at Council Bluffs, con- 

 trary to my advice last fall, is putting 

 up another large range of houses, 

 some of them 200 feet long. There 

 seems to be no end to the amount or 

 work and unvarying success of which 

 this "young giant of the west" is 

 capable. 



Mr. Stewart, the exhibition manager 

 at the last convention, has done a 

 larger business this spring than ever 

 before during his many years in Oma- 

 ha, especially in his seed business, 

 which has doubled. His store was so 

 full of customers Saturday he could 

 hardly see me. 



A. Donaghue, Jr., seems to be do- 

 ing his usual "bon ton" trade, and 

 Hess & Swoboda, at the old stand, ev- 

 idence no diminution in their large 

 cut flower business. Peterson Bros, 

 and Louie Henderson have both moved 

 into new quarters and have each 

 doubled their receipts by the change. 

 Miss Arnold, to whom so many east- 

 ern Beau Brummels lowered their col- 

 ors at the convention, is as young 

 and entertaining as ever and the 

 amount of her cut flower trade is lim- 

 ited only by her physical ability to 

 handle it. Delany and Paulson, Floth 

 and Faulkner and Hass were all placed 

 on "Easy street" by the last exposi- 

 tion, and the new one will feather 

 their nests so that their trip to Paris 

 in 1900 will be no dream but a well 

 and worthily won reality. 



The New Exposition. 



A pleasant interview with Land- 

 scape Gardener Ullrich and a walk 

 over the familiar grounds of the old 

 Trans-Miss. Exposition are among my 

 pleasant memories of this visit to 

 Omaha. The transformation from the 

 scene of wreck and ruin that fol- 

 lowed the close of the old exposition 

 to the fairyland of the new is entranc- 

 ing. Mr. Ullrich has again touched 

 the landscape with "fairy fingers" and 

 much to my surprise the coming show 

 promises to exceed its predecessor in 

 beauty and success. In addition to a 

 wealth of vegetation, great designs of 

 unique carpet bedding have been add- 

 ed to last year's horticultural displays, 

 while the immense horticultural build- 

 ing is to be transformed into a vast 

 summer garden with fountains play- 

 ing under the great dome. Fruits and 

 flowers will mingle in profusion and 

 great palms from California and Ha- 

 waii will lift their lofty heads and add 

 to the impressiveness of the decora- 

 tions. 



