APRIL 21, 1004. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



U59 



are selling very low and the quality gets 

 poorer. Violets are nearing the end. 

 Campbell is still plentiful but is out- 

 classed altogether by Princess of Wales. 



Various Notes. 



A few nice Iris Hispanica have been 

 coming in lately and bring good prices. 

 It is singular that this beautiful and 

 inexpensive bulbous plant, so highly 

 prized in Europe, is not more grown 

 here for Easter and Memorial day trade; 

 it is just what is needed. Wallflowers, 

 English primroses, cornilowers, anemones 

 and ranunculus are displayed in a num- 

 ber of the florists ' windows. Vases of 

 Crinum Moorei and Eucharis amazonica 

 in a Boylston street store the past week 

 attracted some attention. The last 

 named in particular is a useful florists' 

 plant and seems to be coming back into 

 favor. 



One of the leading retailers made a 

 very effective window display the past 

 week by using yellow marguerites and 

 English primroses exclusivelv. 



Patriots ', or Lexington day, held as a 

 state holiday on April 19, did not quicken 

 the pulses of the flower trade. A good 

 many take advantage of the day to do 

 their customary spring gardening. Peas, 

 potatoes and pansies are in demand. 



Weather conditions of late have been 

 remarkable for the last half of AprU. 

 On the morning of the loth the tempera- 

 ture fell to 18 degrees near Boston and 

 almost equally low readings were record- 

 ed on one or two other mornings. On 

 April 16 snow fell steadily for eight 

 hours and a maximum day temperature 

 of 37 degrees was more suggestive of 

 February than April. Vegetation is, for- 

 tunately, very backward and no injury 

 has been sustained. The blessings of an 

 early season are not to be desired in New 

 England and our nurserymen and seeds- 

 men find the chilly climatic conditions a 

 great help to them while they are con- 

 gested witli business. 



N. F. McCarthy & Co. opened the auc- 

 tion season on April 15, with a large 

 stock of hybrid perpetual roses, trees 

 and shrubs. Prices were well up to the 

 average. The second sale occurs on 

 April 22 and the third is scheduled for 

 ^\pril 26. The bulk of the nursery stock 

 is from Holland, but a considerable por- 

 tion is from American growers. Dur- 

 ing May and June this firm will hold 

 auction sales every Tuesday and Friday. 



Indications point to a lessened amount 

 of gi-eenhouse construction among flor- 

 ists during 1904. This is not surpris- 

 ing, considering heavy coal bills and 

 lower cut flower returns. A considerable 

 amount of building on private estates 

 will take place. Hitchings & Co. have 

 some half dozen contracts already in 

 hand. 



E. & J. Farquhar & Co. are stocking 

 up heavily with herbaceous perennials at 

 their nurseries in Eoslindale. At their 

 new nurseries in Sharon, trees and shrubs 

 are being largely planted. 



A good number of special prizes for 

 carnations will be offered at the coming 

 show of the Massachusetts Horticultural 

 Society, when the C. S. A. meets with it. 

 Important additional special prizes for 

 chrysanthemums are being arranged for 

 and all horticultural societies in New 

 England will be asked to offer special 

 premiums for competition among their 

 members. 



Philadelphia Eambler rose -was not 

 counted a success by those who tried it 

 for Easter. The color is good, but 

 trusses are verv small and rather of a 



drooping tendency. It also seems more 

 susceptible to mildew than Crimson Eam- 

 bler. Pink Eamblers lose their color too 

 soon to be accounted acquisitions as pot 

 plants. 



A lengthy report published in pam- 

 phlet form and finely illustrated, of the 

 committee on school gardens and her- 

 bariums of the Massachusetts Horticul- 

 tural Society, has just been issued, edit- 

 ed by the capable chairman, Henry Clapp, 

 one of the founders of the school garden 

 system. The report makes most in- 

 teresting reading and shows what a won- 

 derful work is being done in this sec- 

 tion on these lines to interest the young 

 in plants and flowers. 



The offer of Col. Charles Pfaff of a 

 fifty-dollar cup for roses at the meeting 

 of the American Eose Society here in 

 1905, will soon be supplemented by oth- 

 ers. An advance schedule containing all 

 special premiums, as well as the regular 

 prizes offered by the Massachusetts Hor- 

 ticultural Society, will be ready in Au- 

 gust. ' W. N. Craig. 



PHILADELPHIA. 



The Market. 



The fluctuation in prices has been a 

 feature of the past week's business. 

 Quotations in the market report, though 

 given with great care, are totally mis- 

 leading. American Beauties were so 

 plentiful at times that hardly any offer 

 was refused on several days last week, 

 but the supply shortened at the close of 

 last week and this week prices have ad- 

 vanced and hold firmly. Callas and 

 Easter lilies are very poor stock, there 

 being no demand for either. Single vio- 

 lets are about over. . Sweet peas are the 

 most popular flowers on the list to-day. 

 great quantities of fine stock being used 

 at the very moderate prices quoted. 

 Daisies, valley, short Beauties and, to a 

 certain extent, fine single daffodils are 

 also in demand. The general tone of the 

 market is unsteady. 



Death of George Huster. 



George Huster, gardener in charge of 

 the extensive grounds and greenhouses 

 of Girard College, who died last week, 

 was buried at Holy Cross cemetery last 

 JMonday. The funeral services were held 

 at the home of his nephew, Leonard 

 Euber, florist, 2003 Fairmount avenue. 

 Mr. Huster had done excellent work at 

 Girard College. He always had a fine 

 collection of stove and flowering plants, 

 while his bedding, especially in front of 

 the main hall, was unusually handsome. 

 He was a member of the Florists' Club 

 and went with that .body to many of the 

 S. A. F. conventions. His death will 

 leave a gap hard to fill among the 

 horticulturists of our city. 



An Afternoon's Rest. 



Jacob Becker says that a friend can 

 be rebuked severely while an acquaint- 

 ance cannot. Possibly he meant, with 

 safety to the speaker. My friends ex- 

 ercise this privilege. They say, ' ' why, 

 that article about so and so 's place was 

 miserable; you should do much better 

 than that." Possibly, but conditions 

 count for a great deal. The best plants 

 will not thrive without care, nor can the 

 best account of them be written with- 

 out a cordial reception. Suppose after 

 traveling fifteen miles, more or less, you 

 are received bv a horticulturist who 



won't talk about his pets, but wishes 

 you in Jericho, and shows it. Can you 

 do justice to that man's place? It is 

 certainly very ditficult. 



But when on the other hand you are 

 •narmly received and shown all that is 

 of interest, it is quite a different thing. 

 This is always the case at the Eiverton 

 Nurseries, where I had the pleasure of 

 spending a couple of hours one day this 

 week with Vice-president Eisele and 

 George A. Strohlein. The aquatics and 

 perennials are features of especial in- 

 terest now. One large water lily pond is 

 In course of construction, while several 

 divisions in the older ponds are being 

 removed for the sake of convenience. 

 One pond is fiUed with roots of varieties 

 ready for shipping, all carefully pro- 

 tected from the unusual cold of the 

 present month, which has caused them 

 to be later starting this year than usual. 

 The tender varieties in the tanks in- 

 doors are in a particularly thrifty condi- 

 tion. This whole department is now 

 under the charge of James T. Clark, 

 who has mastered many of the prob- 

 lems which beset the grower of aqua- 

 tits. NymphiBa odorata rosea is doing 

 splendidly. A very large stock of this 

 sterling variety has rewarded his ef- 

 forts. Steady progress marks this ven- 

 ture, a few years ago considered by many 

 as an uncertain field for commercial en- 

 terprise. 



The hardy perennials now demand 

 close attention, the planting out season 

 being well under way. Mr. Eisele has 

 this field xmder his personal supervision 

 and promises a most extensive and inter- 

 esting display in August. The hybrid 

 roses occupy long rows of frames, as 

 well as several of the houses. They 

 have carried well throughout the severe 

 winter and are now breaking finely. 

 Magna Charta and Mme. Gabriel Luizet, 

 Ulricli Brunner, Baroness EothschUd 

 and a long list of well-known favorites 

 arc found regularly arranged in blocks, 

 showing order and system. A block of 

 10,000 or more Ampelopsis Veitchii were 

 just coming into leaf. A couple of 

 frames were filled with the pretty but- 

 terfy violet, Viola cornuta papiUo, 

 said to bloom throughout the summer, 

 either in shade or moderately sunny 

 places. It is useful for planting with 

 rhododendrons or in shrubbery, where 

 a carjiet of blue is desired. A curious 

 plant is one which first makes flowers 

 and then tall leaf stalks, facetiously de- 

 scribed as umbrella substitutes. Golden 

 hops are grown as ornamental plants, 

 not for golden beer. Mr. Eisele spoke 

 with great pleasure of the letter just 

 leceived from a leading retailer, thank- 

 ing him for delivering his azalea order 

 exactly in the condition desired, an en- 

 couragement for future effort. 



Ferns in small pots have proved ex- 

 ceptionally good stock this season. 

 Great numbers are coming up from 

 seeds sown. Asparagus plumosus com- 

 paeta has been much used in the same 

 way; that is, for fern dishes. A. myrio- 

 cladus, when given plenty of root room, 

 produces beautiful, long-stemmed sprays. 

 A couple of small houses are filled with 

 Cocos Weddelliana. Dracjena goldeana, 

 beautifully marked, is highly prized and 

 it is believed will become more popular 

 when better known. Quite a lot of palms 

 are being shipped, giving room for 

 others to be shifted and spread. J. M. 

 Keller, when at Eiverton recently, said 

 that a florist when ordering palms always 

 meant kentias. now a temporary cutting 

 down of varieties much to be regretted. 



