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The Weekly Florists' Review. 



JANUARY 27, 1S9S. 



Violets have done better during tlio 

 past week except on Tliursday, wliich 

 was rainy. Tlie stormy weatlier affects 

 tlie sale of no other flower so much as 

 violets. The supply continues large. A 

 limited number were sold for $1, but 

 the bulk were disposed of at figures 

 ranging from $4 to $7.50 per thousand. 



Harrisii is moving better, though at 

 no advanced figure. A number of grow- 

 ers have lost thousands of these flowers 

 from disease. Cattleyas are in excess 

 of the demand and are accumulating. 

 Price is unsteady. Valley is very plen- 

 tiful and in large lots is sold low. Sup- 

 ply of tulips increasing rapidly with a 

 consequent lowering of price. They are 

 of good quality. White lilac is coming 

 in from a number of growers and is 

 quoted from $1 to ?1.50 per bunch. 



Among the Retailers. 

 There are many attractive windows 

 in New York City and those of Mr. 

 J. M. Hodgson are not an exception. 

 He has a wealth of window front and 

 they are always shown to advantage. 

 Those facing Fifth avenue usually di- 

 vide the honors, one being decorated 

 with plants, the other with seasonable 

 flowers. The former was tastefully ar- 

 ranged with small ferns. Dracaena ter- 

 minalis stricta, Ardisia crenulata, large 

 Nephrolepis Bostoniensis and pretty 

 pieces of the bird-nest fern, 

 Aspidium nidas avis. In the back- 

 ground were five kentias and a large 

 cork branch upon which were orchids 

 In flower and stag-horn ferns, Platy- 

 cerium alicorne. In the flower window 

 were handsome vases of fancy roses 

 and standards, from which were sus- 

 pended small glasses filled with cat- 

 tleyas, cypripediums. valley. Pancra- 

 tium fragrans, Imantophyllum minia- 

 tum, Amaryllis Johnsonii. etc. Besides 

 vases of fancy carnations, there were 

 large branches of Forsythia Fortunei 

 and the double-flowered almond. Mr. 

 Hodgson believes in carrying only the 

 finest stock in plant and flowers and at- 

 tributes a great deal of his success to 

 this one important point. 



Assorted weather, spring, summer, 

 autumn, and winter, has given variety 

 that should have pleased the most fas- 

 tidious. There has been a general im- 

 provement since my last letter and It 

 has come none too soon. We are mid- 

 way between the only really busy sea- 

 son of the year, and it must make a 

 good many leaps and bounds to catch 

 up, and make a good average for the 

 season. 



Really big jobs are few and far be- 

 tween, even the Old Guard ball, which 

 has usually caused a little flurry in the 

 flower market, now has no perceptible 

 effect, and if any one takes the work 

 now it is more for the advertising than 

 the money there is in it. Swell dinners 

 are the "good thing" these days, and 

 novelty in this direction is much 

 sought after. Orchids and Farleyense 

 are used very extensively and the fan- 

 cy roses, Bridesmaids and all high col- 

 ored roses have the call. 



Many flowering plants are to be seen 

 In the florists' windows, azaleas, heaths, 



cyclamen, primulas being specially no- 

 ticeable, and the quality excellent. 

 There used to be an idea that heaths 

 and cyclamen could not be grown to 

 perfection. A glance at the stock now 

 seen would soon dispel this miscon- 

 ception, and in future years I expect to 

 see much more variety. The field is 

 broad; here, growers, is your oppor- 

 tunity. 



Palms are still "de trop" and me- 

 dium and smaller sizes find a ready 

 sale. The large sizes of arecas and 

 kentias are exceptionally scarce, the 

 former not to be had at any price. 



The so-called naturally prepared 

 palms do not seem to have any mate- 

 rial effect on the sale of the "real ar- 

 ticle." In fact. I think like every dog, 

 they have had their day. 



Jardinieres are filled by the hundred, 

 and thisprettylittleknickknack has not 

 lost any of its popularity, and it is sur- 

 prising how many times they are filled 

 during the season. 



Seed and Bulb Trade. 



The following members of the Seed 

 Trade Association were present at their 

 meeting, held at the Park Avenue Ho- 

 tel. Friday last: President Jerome B. 

 Rice, Cambridge, N. Y.; Secretary S. F. 

 Willard, Wethersfield, Conn.; ex-Pres- 

 ident T. W. Wood, Richmond, Va.; 

 Vice-President Everett B. Clark, Mil- 

 ford, Conn.; W. Atlee Burpee, Philadel- 

 phia. Pa.; A. L. Don, New York; Albert 

 McCullough, Cincinnati. O.; W. H. Dur- 

 yea, representing Henry Nungesser, 

 New York; J. Vick, Rochester, N. Y.; 

 William Meggart. Wethersfield, Conn.; 

 C. L. Allen, Floral Park, L. I.; A. N. 

 Clark, Milford. Conn.; W. P. Lang- 

 bridge, representing Jerome B. Rice, 

 Cambridge, N. Y. 



The proceedings were held "in cam- 

 era." The next general meeting of the 

 association will be held at Old Point 

 Comfort, Va., Tuesday, June 14, 189S. 



The Club Dinner. 



The date, time and place for the an- 

 nual dinner of the New York Florists' 

 Club has been decided and is "The 

 Arena" (Machenheims). Saturday. Feb. 

 19, 7 o'clock. The following commit- 

 tee has the matter in hand: Chas. 

 Weathered, Ernst Asmus, John Taylor. 

 Tickets will be $5, and intending diners 

 are requested to notify the committee 

 or the secretary. Mr. John Young, so 

 that matters can be facilitated and suc- 

 cess assured. 



Contributions of flowers, plants and 

 "fixins" should be sent to Mr. Lawrence 

 Hafner, who will have charge of the 

 decorations, and they should be ad- 

 dressed care of Mr. John Young. 



Various Notes. 



The National Florists' Board of 

 Trade, born in the fertile brain of Mr. 

 Cornelius S. Loder, for the protection 

 of florists and allied interests, is "pro- 

 tection that does protect." As secre- 

 tary, he Is at present sending circulars 

 to all the trade, which contain many 

 testimonials from leading houses that 



bear the "ear marks" of gratitude, from 

 being saved from losses they might 

 otherwise have sustained. The New 

 Year has brought increased member- 

 ship. Let's hope it will bring increased 

 prosperity, too. 



Mr. F. Lehnig, of Hackensack, and 

 Mr. David R. Rose, Jersey City, re- 

 spectively president and secretary of 

 the New York Market Florists' Asso- 

 ciation, have been seriously ill with 

 "la grippe," which seems very preva- 

 lent at this time. They are, however, 

 well on the road to recovery, I am glad 

 to report. 



Mr. Jas. A. Eraser, traveler tor the 

 Lovett Company, Little Silver, N. J., 

 has severed his connection and has now 

 joined forces with the firm of Morri- 

 son & Halstead, Troy, N. Y. 



President Clausen, of the Park Board, 

 has abolished the office of superintend- 

 ent of parks, which position was held 

 by Mr. Samuel Parsons, Jr. Mr. Clau- 

 sen's excuse is that he wishes to sep- 

 arate the artistic from the practical 

 features. For the former he has ap- 

 pointed Mr. Nils. J. Rose, and the lat- 

 ter, Patrick St. John. Mr. Rose is well 

 known to the horticultural world, grad- 

 uating from the Horticultural College 

 of Almard, Sweden, in 18S1, and has 

 made a study of landscape work in all 

 its branches. He is the author of sev- 

 eral text-books on gardening subjects, 

 and was conuected with the horticult- 

 ural department of the World's Fair. 

 He afterward came to New York and 

 held a position under Mr. Parsons from 

 which he is now promoted. 



When the members of the S. A. F. A. 

 O. H. (I am going to buy a rubber 

 stamp for these initials if I have to 

 write them very often in the future) go 

 to Omaha next year, they should en- 

 gage the new limited train of Pullman 

 cars recently "put on" by the Pennsyl- 

 vania railroad. Each car is named aft- 

 er a popular flower, and I noted "Gla- 

 diolus," "Justicia," "Camelia," "Aza- 

 lea," etc. Perhaps we could make up 

 a car of specialists for each, and the 

 scribes could ride in the car"Papyrus." 

 P. S.— This is not a reading "ad." for 

 the P. R. R. 



Mr. W. A. Hanft, for 25 years in the 

 retail business, and lately with the 

 well known Sixth avenue florist, Wm. 

 P. Sears, has taken a position with Mr. 

 Thomas Young, Jr. 



W. F. Jagger, Westhampton, L. I., 

 who recently started in the florist busi- 

 ness with three carnation houses, and 

 who has been very successful with the 

 fancy varieties, will erect two houses 

 during the coming spring, 18x100, and 

 the contract has already been let to 

 Lord & Burnham, who will build, heat 

 and finish them in every detail. 



Mr. Joseph Kift, of Philadelphia, was 

 a recent visitor. We are always pleased 

 to see our friends from the City of 

 Brotherly Love. What do you think 

 of us now, Brother Kift, since we have 

 grown out of our knickerbockers and 

 are now Greater New York? 



