458 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



JA.NCABY 28, 1904. 



men. The foundation of our business is 

 the rose. A florist's store without a rosef 

 Think of it ! We all, every one of us, 

 ought to be most interested in the Eose 

 Society. Every florist ought to be a 

 member and support it in every way pos- 

 sible. S. M. 



VIOLETS. 



The Situation at Rbinebeck. 



The very many violet growers in the 

 vicinity of Rhinebeck, N. Y., as well as 

 other sections, have experienced one of 

 the worst years financially that have been 

 linown since the development to large 

 proportions of the cultivation of the 

 fragrant, modest little flower. There is 

 no better bloom grown, either in color, 

 size or perfume, than is found in Rhine- 

 beck. The flowers of the best growers 

 have been fully up to the average in 

 quality this year; yet the cut in price 

 has been really appalling. There are 

 many causes alleged, among them, and 

 perhaps foremost, the great financial 

 straits in New York and other large 

 cities. 



The violet is truly a rich man's flow- 

 er. Its freshness is its perfection and 

 so it must be replaced very often, thus 

 giving an outlet to the grower, who in 

 turn must study to pick just at the right 

 time and before any of the fragrance or 

 color is lost. The overproduction of 

 poor violets, and there are many, has 

 certainly had its bearing on the study, 

 carefulness and order of the first-class 

 growers, while retailers, in order to dis- 

 pose of the poor stock at all, have been 

 obliged, no doubt, for their own percent- 

 age, to cut on the price of the good stock 

 in order to appease the cry of the "any- 

 thing that has a bloom" grower. The 

 winter has also been an unusually severe 

 one and the street venders, who are able 

 to thus dispose of the left-over or sec- 

 ond grade, have been obliged to go out 

 of business. 



As to the future of the vidlet much is 

 to be said in encouragement to the pains- 

 taking grower and the careful shipper. 

 The poor article should, and no doubt 

 will, in the near future be given an hon- 

 est cut price, thus encouraging or giv- 

 ing impetus to do better or go out of 

 business. 



There are very few new plants going 

 up in Rhinebeck this spring. Many of 

 the new growers are discouraged and 

 willing to sell out, truly finding that 

 money does not grow on bushes. 



A Rhinebeck Grower. 



SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FLORISTS. 



Department of Plant Registration. 



Peter Eeinberg, Chicago, 111., submits 

 for registration Rose Uncle John, a 

 sport from Golden Gate. Flower opens 

 nicely, like Bridesmaid, and is of a much 

 deeper shade of pink than Golden Gate, 

 which it resembles in all other respects. 



H. Weber & Sons, Oakland, Md., sub- 

 mit foi registration seedling carnation 

 New Daybreak. The result of a cross 

 between seedlings of Scott extraction on 

 one side and Daybreak extraction on the 

 other, the vigorous characteristics of both 

 these progenitors having been well per- 

 petuated. Color, the true Daybreak shade, 

 which is maintained without fading at 

 any time of the year. Blooms three 

 inches and over in diameter; stems eigh- 

 teen to thirty inches, and always strong 

 enough to hold flower erect. 



Wm. J. Stewart, Sec'y. 



Vegetable Forcing. 



Carthage, Mo.— Perry Finn has just 

 completed a greenhouse 30x200 for forc- 

 ing vegetables. 



LETTUCE. 



All space should be kept filled up as 

 soon as it is vacant. It will soon be too 

 late for planting in raised benches. In 

 these the crop will do all right through 

 the month of March, but when April ar- 

 rives the sun becomes rather strong and 

 has a flagging influence on the crop, and 

 even with all the moisture, atmospheric 

 and otherwise, that can be given they 

 lose that desired crispness that gives 

 quality to the product. When solid 

 benches are used, or where the crop is 

 grown on the ground level, the natural 

 moisture of the soil will be of material 

 assistance in eliminating this flagging 

 influence and in maintaining quality. 

 Under those conditions, the indoor season 

 can be considerably extended, and with 

 judicious shading even kept on to meet 

 the outdoor crop. But with the raised 

 benches it is different, and I find it bet- 

 ter to bring in a crop in cold frames be- 

 tween the indoor and outdoor crops, as 

 the plants are easier managed in frames 

 through the spring months than in the 

 greenhouse, and it gives the space in the 

 latter for other things. 



A stock of young plants for this pur- 

 pose should be kept coming along now. 

 Any time after the middle of February 

 planting may begin. By that time the 

 sun 's rays are of sufficient strength to 

 thoroughly warm up the frames through 

 the day, and, with covering at night, 

 they can be kept warm enough. Harden- 

 ing off of the plants is a very important 

 matter. If taken right from the green- 

 house and planted in the frames at once, 

 the change in temperature and the check 

 in planting is apt to be too much for 

 them, and a set-back may result. It is 

 therefore better to set the flats containing 

 the plants in the frame for a week or 

 so, to let them become acclimated be- 

 fore proceeding to plant. 



If the soil in the frames is of ordinary 

 good quality, it will not be necessary to 

 change it, but it should be enriched Ijy a 

 liberal application of well-rotted barn- 

 yard manure, which should be thoroughly 

 worked into the soil to a depth of at 

 least a foot. This, too, should be done 

 a few days before planting, and the sash 

 bared to the sun through the day and 

 covered up at night to concentrate the 

 heat so that the soil will be warmed up 

 as well as possible to make it more genial 

 for the little plants. And unless the 

 frames are set well down in the ground 

 some rough material had better be 

 packed around the outside to prevent 

 frost from penetrating through the 

 boards. 



►Several varieties that are hard to do in 

 the greenhouse can he grown without 

 much trouble in the cold frame. With 

 ordinary care leaf rot and such diseases 

 seldom or never attaet them there. The 

 Boston Market and Big Boston varie- 

 ties are the ones we usually employ. Dea- 

 con also makes a splendid frame variety. 

 -Although a little slower than the others, 

 it is worth waiting for, as it makes a 

 firmer head and stands long before Tun- 

 ing to seed. W. S. Croydon. 



CHICAGO. 



The Market. 



Most of the wholesalers are in the 

 habit of making pretty close compari- 

 sons of their sales, day by day and 

 week by week, with the same period in 

 pervious years and to a good many of 

 them, after looking at last year 's rec- 

 ord, the business this week looks pretty 

 bad. The corresponding week a year 

 ago was one of the best of the sea- 

 son; this week will not approach it. 

 Not only is business dull by- comparison, 

 but the stock is not in sight to do 

 much. However, much of the difference 

 comes in the low prices now prevail- 

 ing. 



Good Brides and Maids are the only 

 items which sell well ; there are so few 

 of these that it is hard to satisfy cus- 

 tomers. Stiff prices prevail here but 

 the small soft stock hangs fire. Beau- 

 ties are scarce, except shorts, which are 

 generally of poor quality. Carnations 

 are again easing up, the lower grades 

 needing considerable assistance in the 

 quest for a buyer. 



Bulbous stock is in a worse position 

 than ever. Paper Whites are doing 

 little better than previously. They 

 have hardly brought the cost of the 

 bulbs in the past few weeks. Tulips, 

 too, are cheaper than ever before, 

 stock which a year ago readily 

 brought $5 per 100 now going slowly 

 at $3. Valley must be good to sell, 

 and other bulb flowers, including callas 

 and Harrisii, are in the same predica- 

 ment. 



The violets are having as tough a 

 time as the bulbs. There is only one 

 ray of light, and that not a bright one. 

 The fact that every day sees a'dditions 

 to the list of Hudson river growers who 

 are shipping here shows that this mar- 

 ket is fully as good as any in the coun- 

 try. But this is a mighty poor week for 

 a comparison of results, for Monday 

 was 20 degrees below zero. The 

 weather man had to go back sixteen 

 years to find as cold a day, and it has 

 not yet warmed up very much. Tlic 

 New York violets were delayed twelve 

 hours on Monday and several ship- 

 ments arrived badly frozen. Several 

 consignors shipped for the first time 

 Saturday night and as a consequence 

 are not likely to be pleased with re- 

 sults. However, as one party writes 

 that Rhinebeck alone is producing 150,- 

 000 a day, if these consignors do not 

 stick, the local dealers feel that doubt- 

 less others will be found to take their 

 places. Quality seems to be good with 

 all of them, at least the Campbells pro- 

 duced locally are having a hard time 

 of it. Singles do better. 



Various Notes. 



A. H. Schneider, of Oak Park, has 

 leased for ten years a piece of ground 

 inside Concordia cemetery on which 

 he will at once erect a couple of green- 

 houses to take care of the spring plant 

 trade in the cemetery. The place op- 

 posite the cemetery formerly run by 

 Mr. Schneider -will be in the hands of 

 Ernest Oechslin this season. 



Phil Hausvyirth is the youngest grand- 

 father so far reported. His son Ed has 

 a little daughter, born January 20. 



The Fleisehman Floral Company has 

 taken a long term lease on one of the 

 stores in the new Railway Exchange 

 building at the corner of Michigan ave- 

 nue and Jackson boulevard. Mr. Rubel 

 states that the lease is more a specu- 



