648 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



Febkuakv 25, 1904. 



time, or that the dozen carnations or- 

 dered for the morning ai'O to be used 

 Jfor a six o 'crloc.-k dinner. 



The Matter of Discounts. 



One of the odd propositions is that 

 of the customer who, in view of the fact 

 that she (it is always she) buys all her 

 flowers from you, possibly $3 or $4 a 

 year, should have a deduction from your 

 price. Never do it. Let her know tact- 

 fully but firmly that you have one price 

 for everyone and that it is as low as 

 good business will justify. A firm yet 

 respectful stancl will not injure you, as 

 the individual unquestionably is one who 

 has the habit of depreciating pricts and 

 will have more respect for you when 

 she learns you are the same to all. More- 

 over, if you should yield it will leave 

 her with the haunting fear that ycm 

 still got the best of her. 



To the same category belongs the 

 request to cut prices on work for some 

 lodge or church, I say most emphati- 

 ■cally, don't do it. First, flowers are 

 not a necessity and most assuredly an 

 ■organization can better afford to pay 

 for luxuries than the individual. If you 

 ■do it once the next time they expect 

 more and there will be no end to the 

 ■demands, and a suspicion will remain 

 that, as you have made deductions in 

 •one sale, your general prices are exor- 

 bitant. Give first class work invariably 

 and have a fixed charge, and don 't let 

 the idea get out from your very charities 

 that you are a robber in general as it is 

 past human nature to expect the belief 

 that you lose money even at the cut 

 price. 



If a customer asks you to express him 

 C. O, D. always do it. He will not 

 be offended and your failure to do so 

 to save him return and collection charges 

 may leave you with an uneollectable ac- 

 count. Several unpleasant experiences 

 have impressed this uppn my mind. 



Getting the Cash. 



How to treat the bereaved stranger or 

 the party with known shady financial 

 reputation is often a delicate question. 

 Usually we have found that such people 

 have the honor to pay for funeral flow- 

 ers although their grocer may suffer. 

 My own habit is to ask if they desire 

 to pay cash, so that they may be properly 

 credited on the order sheet, as I am care- 

 ful to explain. vVe never intrude the 

 bill with the flowers at the home, yet 

 have the delivery man prepared with 

 proper receipt if asked for at the house. 

 In case the request has been made that 

 the bill come with the designs we have 

 the purchaser unobtrusively called to 

 one side and an opportunity furnished 

 him to pay. We believe that the bill 

 should be presented in all cases if so 

 requested. A failure, from oversight or 

 delicacy, to do so, has long delayed and 

 even lost us some accounts. 



Short accounts make long friends. 

 When flowers are sent to the purchaser 

 it is a good policy to mark the price on 

 the package and give the delivery man 

 change. We keep a purse of $5 always 

 ready. Let the purchaser have a chance 

 to pay cash and thus save booking and 

 a running account. A monthly collec- 

 tion should be made of all accounts, 

 when possible, and I need not say great 

 discretion must be used in collections. I 

 have found the husband often angry if 

 he gets the family statement. In other 

 cases it is the wife wlio is indignant. 

 Tliese little idiosyncrasies have to be re- 

 lur-mbered. In otlier cases the patron 



tliinks lie paid when giving his order. 

 Tliis may have been given by telephone 

 and a memorandum to that effect, such 

 as we use, is of benefit. If the customer 

 is an honoi-able man and honestly believes 

 the bill settled, it is better to pocket the 

 loss, although you know it has not been 

 settled. 



The Unreasonable Customer. 



Do not be overly worried by an un- 

 reasonable customer when you know you 

 are in the right; treat his statements 

 with cool temper and respect and nine 

 times out of ten you will have a re- 

 newal of his trade. Be quick to acknowl- 

 edge and amend your mistakes, for you 

 will make them. An honest confession 

 will benefit and raise you in your pa- 

 tron's estimation. But manly dignity 

 and self-respect should not permit you to 

 cringe to the blusterings of anyone, pro- 

 vided you are in the right. 



Many other points might be produced, 

 showing how best to maintain friendly 

 and profitable relations with the buying 

 public, but the ones mentioned seem to 

 me to be of great importance and, while 

 the views here expressed may not be 

 that of all those present, yet I believe 

 in the main you will agree with me in 

 tliis presentation. 



TRADE OUTLOOK GOOD. 



R. G. Dun & Co., in its wcekiy review 

 of trade, says that inclement weather 

 alone prevents a definite revival of busi- 

 ness. With wheat commanding present 

 prices and other produce sharing in the 

 advance, the gratifying measure of add- 

 ed prosperity means much to the agri- 

 cultural classes and provides a healthful 

 stimulus to general business. The move- 

 ment of merchandise increased during 

 the week, buying became more active in 

 the jobbing lines, and retail trade has 

 shown increased activity. 



TUBEROUS ROOTED BEGONIAS. 



Will you please tell me through the 

 Review how long it takes tuberous root- 

 ed begonias to flower after planted and 

 also if they should be kept in the dark 

 while growing. J. W, 



The time it will take to bring these 

 begonias into flower will depend on what 

 month they are started. If started in 

 .lauuary they might not flower before 

 May, If started as late as early April 

 they can be had in flower by June 1, 

 They by no means should be kept in the 

 dark. This begonia is not a bulb, like 

 a tulip or hyacinth, but is a corm and 

 will make a leaf growth almost directly 

 after it begins to make roots. 



If you want them to sell as pot plants 

 for house or conservatory you can start 

 them now. Either place the corms two 

 inches apart in flats containing three 

 inches of light soil (a mixture of light 

 loam and leaf mold) or put them singly 

 in 3-inch pots. Let the top of the corm 

 be even with or very slightly below the 

 surface of the soil. Water once and 

 keep the soil rather on the dry side 

 until leaf growth appears, after which 

 they should never be allowed to get dry. 

 Wlien well rooted in the 3-inch pots shift 

 into their flowering pot a .5, 6 or 7-inch, 

 according to size of the corm and vigor 

 of growth. Those in the flats, after they 

 have made a leaf or two, can be lifted 

 out and put into 4-inch and later shift- 

 ed on. 



Fen- people favor these begonias as 



summer bedding plants, but nevertheless 

 the writer has seen beds of them in our 

 parks that surpassed for brilliance and 

 richness the most glaring bed of zonale 

 geraniums. For bedding I would not 

 start them till April 1 and then in flats, 

 putting them about May 1 into 4-inch 

 ])ots and then plunging them in a mild 

 hotbed where for a week or two you can 

 expose them to the full sun and air be- 

 fore planting out, or protect them from 

 a late frost. For a bedding plant you 

 elon 't want a large greenhouse-grown 

 plant, W. S. 



CALANTHES. 



I consider myself under an obligation 

 to W. N. Craig for the very courteous 

 and at the same time emphatic way in 

 which he corrects me in my error anent 

 tlie cultivation of calanthes. I consider 

 it a compliment that such an eminent 

 orchitlist and all-round good gardener 

 as Mr. Craig reads my notes at all, but 

 to the fact that he does we are indebted 

 for his timely corrections of a careless 

 piece of writing. As he "read with spe- 

 cial interest" the notes on other orchids 

 and up to date has made no criticism, 

 let us fervently hope that on the cattleyas 

 and others I made no serious mistake. 

 Mr. Craig has got me cornered and I am 

 not going to squirm out of it by saying 

 that I was misquoted. I wrote just as 

 it was printed. I had been very careful 

 what I said about the cattleyas, cypri- 

 pediums, etc., and with a few moments to 

 go to mail I hurriedly wrote the few notes 

 on the calanthe. Some flfteen years ago 

 we had a few dozen of these pretty or- 

 chids, but do not think them very de- 

 sirable for the commercial florist. Since 

 Mr. Craig has called me down I have had 

 a chat with two men who are both well 

 posted on all familiar orchids, and this 

 is what they say and it substantially 

 agrees with Mr. Craig. 



"After the flower is cut or gone the 

 plant is at rest and should be kept per- 

 fectly dry till it starts to make new 

 growths, which may be in March or it 

 may be April. Then pot them and en- 

 courage growth during summer and fall, 

 say till October, when for a month or 

 so" they can be kept rather on the dry 

 side, or till the flower spike appears. 

 This "dry side" must by no means be 

 anything like the perfectly dormant state 

 that is proper for them after flowering, 

 but merely a little less moisture than 

 you gave them when they were growing 

 fast during the summer. Liquid manure 

 is of gieat benefit to them and the time 

 to apply it is, of course, during the sum- 

 mer months, when they are making the 

 most active growth." 



I am sorry to disappoint Mr. Craig, 

 but I have discovered no new method of 

 culture and vrill therefore have to creep 

 about on the surface of the earth and 

 forego the honor of being hoisted up 

 aloft on a pinnacle. WTien wireless tel- 

 egraphy is more perfected I shall call 

 up Mr. Craig whenever I feel any doubts 

 on a subject and, as above said, I am 

 really glad that he corrected me. We all 

 can stand it. It makes us careful and 

 wiser, and in conclusion will say again, 

 thanks. Under separate cover I have 

 forwarded to Mr. Craig one-quarter of 

 a pound of radium. Keep it in the odonto- 

 glossum house or some cool place. 



WiLLi.\M Scott. 



Des Moines, I.\. — I. W. Lozier, the 

 veteran florist, is dead. 



