no4 



The WeeHy Florists' Review. 



Apbil 14, 1904. 



than good Osmunda fern fibre; sphag- 

 num moss we are using less each year. 

 Plants with growing moss on the 8ur- 

 I'acc of the pots or baskets look well, 

 but what swarms of snails they bring 

 and what havoc they raise with flower 

 spikes an\l tender roots! Much has 

 been written during the past few years 

 on the culture of orchids in leaf mold, 

 in preference to fern root. We tried it 

 quite extensively and liked it for a time, 

 but it eventually proved a failure and 

 wt have permanently abandoned it. 

 Odontoglossums, miltonias, eattleyas and 

 (loiidrobiums all deteriorated in it under 

 the most careful treatment, and we do 

 not believe it will ever be of any servie:' 

 in America. 



' ' Cattleyas are easily the most popu- 

 lar of orchids in America. With the 

 exception of chrysotoxa, which likes a 

 higher temperature, all the varieties 

 named do well in a night temperature of 

 55 to 60 degrees in winter, or even a few 

 degrees lower. They like an abundance 

 of ventilation on all possible occasions, 

 and succeed well in baskets, pans or 

 pots either suspended from the roof or 

 on staging within three feet of the 

 glass. Closely allied to the eattleyas are 

 the laelias. There are now numerous 

 Lfelio-cattleyas, but as a rule they are 

 too high-priced to be of general use. 



" Cypripediums are very useful or- 

 chids. Their wonderful lasting proper- 

 ties and diversity of form will always 

 make them necessary where any number 

 of orchids are grown. Dendrobiums are 

 among the most lovely of orchids. They 

 like plenty of heat and moisture during 

 the growing season, a thorough ripening 

 of the bulbs in a light, sunny house, 

 and the withholding of water until the 

 flower nodes are well advanced. Coelo- 

 gynes,' especially the cristata, are beauti- 

 ful and easily-grown orchids for deco- 

 rative purposes. Calanthes. especially C. 

 Veitehii, with its long spikes of rosy 

 pink flowers, are indispensable winter- 

 blooming orchids. They need a brisk, 

 moist heat during the growing season 

 and should not be placed in a lower tem- 

 perature than 55 degrees even when in 

 bloom. Pot culture in fibrous loam and 

 dried cow manure and applications of 

 liquid manure during growing season are 

 necessary. 



' ' Oncidiums are less cultivated than 

 a generation ago. Other East Indian 

 irchids, including the vandas, ivrides, 

 phalsenopsis and saccolabiums, while con- 

 taining many beautiful and graceful 

 species, are not at present as popular 

 as they were twenty-five years ago. Mil- 

 tonias are very beautiful, especially the 

 summer-blooming M. vexillaria. Odon- 

 toglossums are the most beautiful of all 

 orchids and the most difficult to grow 

 in our eastern states. A few other use- 

 ful orchids to grow are Phaius grandi- 

 florus, Sophronitis grandiflora, Platyclinis 

 glumaeea, eymbidiums in variety, Zygo- 

 petalum Maekayi and Epidendrum vitel- 

 linum ma.ius. 



"We do not believe that private es- 

 tates in America, except in special eases, 

 will form extensive orchid collections aa 

 in Great Britain, and the tendency wiil 

 be more to grow batches of a limited 

 number of species for cut flower pur- 

 poses or for other decorative effects. 

 Their culture, from a commercial stand- 

 point, will not progress as will that in 

 private establishments, but their popu- 

 larity will increase in the years to come 

 and within ten years the number of 



groweis will be quadrupled. They will 

 no\er be the flower of the masses, like 

 the rose, carnation and violet, but will 

 always be curious, interesting, beautiful 

 and bewitching to the ever increasing 

 army of flower lovers." 



RESOLUTIONS OF SYMPATHY. 



At the meeting of the Florists ' Club of 

 I'liiladelphia on the evening of April 5 

 the following resolutions were adopted: 



\Vheee.\s, The Florists' Club of Phil- 

 adelpliia, having heard with deep regret 

 of the untimely passing away of their 

 fellow member, George E. Fancourt, be 

 it 



Resolved, That the F'lorists' Club of 

 Philadelphia hereby expresses its sincere 

 sorrow at the loss of one who was so 

 endeared to every member by his many 

 good qualities of mind and heart. Hi? 

 was regarded by us all as one of the 

 most intelligent and progressive of the 

 craft, .and was held in the warmest affec- 

 tion and esteem by all who knew him. 

 We shall miss his genial, kindly presence 

 at our meetings, and 



Eesolved, That we hereby extend our 

 sympathy to his bereaved family. 

 EOBT. Craig, 

 David Rust, 

 Geo. C. Watson, 



Committee. 



BORDEAUX HAS NEW USE. 



Prof. B. T. Galloway, of the V. S. 

 bureau of plant industry, recently made 

 a statement to the effect that the depart- 

 ment experts have come to the conclu- 

 sion that Bordeaux mixture will exter- 

 minate the germs of typhoid and mala 

 ria in water, purify and clarify the wa- 

 ter itself, and dissolve the slimy green 

 substance, or ' ' algae, ' ' frequently found 

 on the surface of stagnant pools 'if 

 shallow water. 



Department experts have been extreme- 

 ly careful not to announce the discovery 

 officially, because it is yet a subject for 

 daily investigation. Experiments are 

 now in progress in New York, Boston, 

 and elsewhere looking toward the appli- 

 cation of the Bordeaux mixture as a 

 means of removing typhoid germs from 

 reservoirs which supply drinking water 

 to those cities. 



Department ofiicials are not yet pre- 

 pared to recommend that the general 

 public should experiment on drinking 

 water with this germicide, because they 

 have found that one part of the solu- 

 tion to 10,000,000 parts of water seems 

 to be sufficient to kill off germs, and mis- 

 cellaneous experiments might result in 

 exterminating an unpleasant number of 

 human beings. 



The Bordeaux mixture, according to 

 the department formula, is made up as 

 follows: Pour into a fifty gallon barrel 

 twenty-five gallons of water; then weigh 

 out six pounds of crushed blue stone or 

 copper sulphate, and, after tying it in 

 a piece of coarse sacking, suspend the 

 package just beneath the surface of the 

 water by means of a string tied to a 

 stick laid across the top of the barrel. 



In another suitable vessel such as a 

 tub or half-barrel, slack four pounds of 

 fresh lime. Slack the lime carefully, 

 pouring on small quantities of water ai 

 a time, the object being to obtain a 

 smooth and creamy liquid free from grit. 

 When the lime is slacked add sufficient 

 water to make twenty-five gallons. As 

 soon as the blue stone is dissolved, which 



will require an hour or more, pour the 

 lime, mUk, and blue stone solution to- 

 gether, using a separate barrel for the 

 purpose, and stir constantly to effect 

 a thorough mixing. To be certain the 

 mixture is safe, hold a steel knife blade 

 in it for two or three minutes and if the 

 poUshed surface of the blade shows a 

 copper-colored tinge, add more Ume, but 

 if it stays bright, the mixture is ready 

 for use. — Chicago Tribune, 



DATES OF EASTER. 



Following are the dates of Easter for 

 the nest twenty years: 



1905 AprU as 1915 April 4 



1906 April 15 191G April 23 



1907 March 31 1917 April 8 



190S April 19 191S March ?A 



1909 April J.1 1910 AprU 20 



1910 March 27 1920 April 4 



1911 April l(i 1921 March 27 



1012 April 7 1922 April 18 



191.S ..Maich 23 1923 April t 



1914 April 12 1924 April 20 



BRITISH FAIR EXHIBITS. 



The Gardeners ' Chronicle mentions that 

 the material for planting the garden 

 about the British pavilion at the St. 

 Louis World's Fair, beyond the trees and 

 hedges, has been contributed by the 

 various firms in England, the chief ex- 

 hibitors being the following: Cannell & 

 Sons, Swanley, hardy herbaceous plants 

 and seeds; J. Cartel- & Sons, High Hol- 

 born, bulbs and seeds ; J. Cheal & Sons, 

 Crawley, dahlias; Cutbush & Sons, High- 

 gate, specimens of topiary work, clipped 

 yews, box, &e. ; J. Forbes, Hawick, 

 phloxes; Hobbies Ltd., dahlias; Kelway 

 & Sons, Langport, gladioli, delphiniums, 

 and other plants and seeds; Amos Per- 

 ry, Winchmore Hill, hardy herbaceous 

 plants; Messrs, Sutton & Sons, Reading, 

 gladioli, lilies, narcissi and other bulbs. 



ST. PAUL. 



The Easter Market. 



Trade was not ideal, although business 

 was fully equal to or a little ahead of 

 previous years. There was a good sup- 

 ply of everj-thing, although more lilies 

 and violets would have found a market. 

 In cut flowers retail prices were advancer I 

 about twenty-five per cent. Plants sold 

 at usual prices, although extra fine, well 

 trimmed stock reached fancy figures. All 

 the leading stores had extra displays, 

 prominent among these being the win- 

 dows of L. L. May & Co., the excellent 

 stock of plants of the Swanson Floral 

 Co. and the magnificent display made bv 

 Holm & Olson. Fancy baskets of plants 

 and violet hampers figured more promi- 

 nently than ever before. Lilies were not 

 as good as usual and a great many were 

 late. One of the surprises of the trad ■ 

 was the demand for palms and Boston 

 ferns. 



Trade since Easter has been very sjr-- 

 tifying and all surplus stock has been 

 closed out dailv. X. Y. Z. 



New Cumberland, Pa. — .1. A. Kep- 

 ner, the Elkwood florist, is ill with pneu- 

 monia. 



Dunbar, Pa. — Easter went off very 

 good as people took a pretty fair in- 

 terest in flowers and everything sold 

 well. 



Charleston, W. Va. — Wm. Wal- 

 ters, agent, has moved his greenhouse 

 to the old Avis property and is just now 

 doing a big business in vegetable plants. 



