1394 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



May la, 1004. 



Seed Trade News. 



AMERICAN SEED TRADE ASSOCIATION. 



Prea., S. F. WlUanJ, Wethersfleld. Conn.; First 

 Vlce-Pres.. J. Chas. McCuUough. Cincinnati, O.; 

 Sec'y and Treas., C. E. Kendel. Cleveland, O. 

 The 22d annual meeting will be held at St. LoulB, 

 Uo., June. 19(M. 



Mail addressed to the American Mush- 

 room Co., St. Louis, has been forwarded 

 to Texarkana, where the postmaster re- 

 turned it to sender marked ' ' Fraudu- 

 lent." 



The sweet corn and cucumber situa- 

 tion is unchanged. A considerable acre- 

 age of each has been planted, but no 

 sign of sprouting so far. It is likely that 

 when re-seeding time comes a boom wil' 

 be on and what little seed is left will 

 bring high figures. 



The past week at Chicago has been 

 such as to prolong the seeding for onion 

 sets. It was hoped that the end of last 

 week would see all the seeding done, but 

 on low ground, where it was expectcil 

 that a few warm days would permit 

 seeding, work had to be stopped and it 

 may take a week yet to finish up. 



Trade generally is quite unsatisfac- 

 tory; nothing has been normal durins; 

 the whole season so far. The growing 

 crops are much retarded by unseasonable 

 weather and at all points, owing to thi-, 

 the usual second and third plantings 

 have not been made. The season is so 

 far advanced now that a clear loss of 

 considerable business may be charged up 

 against the weather. 



THE KENTUCKY SEED TRADE. 



The following review of the season is 

 from Wood. Stubbs & Co., Louisville, 

 Ky., dated May 7 : 



The season's trade on grass and field 

 seeds in this market on the whole has 

 been very large, though prices have been 

 in many instances cut very close and 

 comparative little profits have been made 

 by the regular dealer. Anticipated ad- 

 vances in Orchard, Eed Top, Blue grass 

 and Timothy did not materialize and 

 dealers who purchased stocks of Orchard 

 grass in the fall with anticipation of 

 getting higher prices in the spring were 

 disappointed. 



This is due in a large measure to a con- 

 siderable quantity of grass seed being left 

 in farmers' hands. Many who were offered 

 as much as $1.45 and $1.50 per bushel 

 in the fall, just after threshing time, 

 stored their seed, paid charges and after- 

 wards in the spring sold their seed for 

 a great deal less money. 



Blue grass has remained about sta- 

 tionary with little profit to anybody, 

 where straight Kentucky has been sold. 

 Red Top also has remained about sta- 

 tionary throughout the entire season, 

 and cleaners of this seed, owing to the 

 small export demand, found prices did 

 not advance as they anticipated. 



The fact of the wet spring generally 

 prevailing in all parts of the country no 

 doubt kept down the prices of grass 

 seeds and reduced the quantity which 

 would have been sold, so all the dealers 

 here have had increased volume of busi- 

 ness. This is, however, the natural re- 

 sult, because Louisville is fast becoming 

 one of the most important centers for 

 grass seed trade and can offer to better 

 advantage than nearly any other point 

 on general lines. 









igllliMililil 



RALPH M. WARD & CO. 



17 Battery Place, New York 



HORTICULTURAL IMPORTERS 



We are DIRECT IMPORTERS of High Grade Japan Lilies, Lily [of the Valley, 

 Dutch Bulbs, etc. Cold Storage Valley pips on hand. Our prices are interesting. 



WRITE US 



Mention The Review when you writp. 



The onion set situation was more or 

 less of a surprise to everybody and few 

 dealers reaped any special profit on ac- 

 count of the market advancing in price. 

 We, ourselves, felt a month before the 

 advance came that there was bound to 

 be a heavy demand and knew there were 

 light stocks. We were somewhat pre- 

 pared for a good advance, but did not 

 anticipate it would be anything like as 

 great as actually occurred. 



This year the acreage will be slightly 

 enlarged, though the season has not 

 been particularly favorable for getting 

 a good stand, and there has been a good 

 deal of complaint from this cause. We 

 expect, however a good fair crop, and 

 growers will naturally expect better 

 prices in the fall than they have been 

 getting for the last two or three years. 



Indications for the new crop Kentucky 

 Blue and Orchard grass are not particu- 

 larly favorable, though it is early yet to 

 determine about the latter. 



The! garden seed trade has been very 

 satisfactory, on the whole, with us. 



WITH THE CANNERS. 



The season is still backward in all the 

 canning districts and there is danger that 

 it may have an effect on peas. The crop 

 • is ten days to two weeks behind hand. 

 This means, of course, a shorter period 



for germination and development before 

 the blistering heat of summer causes the 

 crop to ripen almost at once, hardening 

 the peas in the pods before they can be 

 gotten into the cans. In Indiana the 

 iTop is all in, but the acreage is less than 

 for 1903. In Wisconsin planting is pro- 

 gressing, about ten days late. The acre- 

 age is larger than last year, and in 1903 

 the yield was light. In New York seed- 

 ing is late, one grower reporting six 

 weeks behind 1903. The output will not 

 be increased. In Delaware pea seed was 

 all in a month or so ago, although at 

 tliat the season was a week or ten days 

 late. The acreage is considerably small- 

 er than in 1903. California will have 

 a good-sized pack this year. 



The situation as to corn acreage and 

 the; germinating power of the seed isn't 

 to the liking of canners as a rule. Seed 

 corn varies considerably in vitality, and 

 acreage is in many sections harder to con- 

 tract than ever before. Letters received 

 from packers show that on the whole 

 there has been a great deal of poor seed 

 on the market. In New York state es- 

 pecially the canners find it difficult to 

 induce farmers to grow sweet corn. Two 

 successive bad seasons have discouraged 

 the farmers in that section to such an ex- 

 tent that they are very reluctant to 

 plant any more corn for canning pur- 



