648 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



MARCH 17, I89S. 



Our Special WhoUsale Report. 



The market last week was without a 

 redeeming feature. With an abundant 

 supply and receding prices, the pros- 

 pect is anything but encouraging for 

 some weeks to come. At the present 

 writing shipments ot roses are rapid- 

 ly increasing, a consequence of the 

 continued warm weather. 



Special grades of Brides and Maids 

 ■were sold last week from $S to $10, 

 and thev have not yet touched their 

 lowest point. All red roses are mov- 

 ing slowly. Long Beauties, the top 

 quotation of which is $-10. are selling 

 down to $25. Meteors are hard to 

 clear at respectable prices. Jacks are 

 going slowly at low figures. The few 

 Baroness coming into the market are 

 readily sold at $2.5 to $50. 



Carnations fare better than most 

 anything else, and hold a fair price. 

 Fine Scotts have the preference, and 

 bring $1.50 to $2 per hundred. The 

 fancv sorts do not bring a steady price, 

 as the demand for expensive stock is 

 limited. Sweet peas are coming in in 

 larger quantities and sell well. 



There is a very light demand for 

 bulbous stock. The price of valley has 

 weakened again, fine stock bringing 

 but $1 to $1.50 per hundred. Harrisii 

 are more than plentiful, with few 

 sales. But little can be added to 

 last week's report on violets, ex- 

 cept that the supply increases, 

 and the price is anywhere from $1 50 

 to $4 per thousand. 



For average prices, see New York 

 market. 



Various Items, 



Mr. W. H. Gunther has suffered a 

 severe loss in the death of his father, 

 and has the sincere sympathy of all 

 the trade. Mr. Gunther himself is on 

 the sick list with an attack of the 

 grippe. 



J. P. Cleary & Co. held a very suc- 

 cessful sale last Tuesday, and prices 

 realized were good. Mr. John's voice, 

 which has been hibernating all winter, 

 was as dulcet as the song ot birds in 

 spring. 



Mr. Robert Simpson, manager of 

 the greenhouses of Mr. Thomas 

 Young. Jr., of Jersey City, has a num- 

 ber of greenhouses (nearly 20,000 

 square feet) at Clifton, N. J., where he 

 will make a specialty of Beauties, car- 

 nations, etc. 



In my gyrations in the vicinity, I 

 have noticed quantities of the Palmer 

 hotbed mat. and have heard it spoken 

 of very highly as being practically in- 

 destructible and all that is claimed. It 

 will undoubtedly replace the old-fash- 

 ioned straw mat in the future. 



Visitors. 



Geo. Fancourt. Wilkesbarre. Pa. 

 George is on a tour of inspection, and 

 will visit several cities in the east, 

 also Atlantic City, where he will rest 

 for a few days. 



E. M. Wood. Boston, Mass.. on his 

 way to attend the meeting of the 

 executive committee of the S. A. F. A. 



0. H., Washington, was a recent visit- 

 or. Also Harry Ayres, Albany, N. Y.; 

 T. J. Totten. Saratoga, N. Y.; J. G. 

 Esler. Saddle River. N. J.; Peter Fish- 

 er. Ellis. Mass.; Oliver J. Poppy, Sing 

 Sing, N. Y. 



New Jersey Notes. 



Mr. A. Herrington, Madison, reports 

 sales for Frank Hardy as being very 

 large. He has shipped as far as to 

 California, and to several countries of 

 Europe. 



A visit to John N. May's, Summit, 

 N. J., found that place in excellent 

 shape for Easter. The rose Clara Wat- 

 son, as seen growing, shows a strong 

 and vigorous habit. The young growth 

 has almost the color of the sunset, the 

 flowers are elongated, and of a beauti- 

 ful pink color, shaded with salmon at 

 the base of the petals, the color in- 

 tensifying as the blooms age. It will 

 undoubtedly prove a valuable com- 

 mercial variety, as fiom reports it 

 keeps excellently. 



Lager & Hurrell have been cutting a 

 tremendous amount of cattleya flow- 

 ers, which they have marketed at 

 good prices. They are expecting some 

 heavy shipments of imported orchids, 

 chiefly cattleyas. They also contem- 

 plate building in the spring. 



J. & R. Leach, Jersey City, are much 

 elated over the success they are hav- 

 ing with their new carnation, "Scarlet 

 Wave." When I called they had just 

 cut SOD blooms from a bench 8x94, and 

 the bed looked like a field of wheat. 

 They cut 1,500 at Christmas, and the 

 average cut is always good, and will 

 average 25 flowers to a plant. They 

 handle a large stock of pelargoniums, 

 Victor, dark red, being the variety, 

 grown. 



PHILADELPHIA. 



Review of the Market. 



Several unusually warm, springlike 

 days, unusual for the second week of 

 this windy month of March, have so 

 encouraged stock that w'e have expe- 

 rienced a "glut." Not quite a good old- 

 fashioned glut, but enough to give a 

 taste of what will come after a while. 

 Prices have fallen a little, yet the mar- 

 ket requires a good proportion of the 

 stock which reaches town in salable 

 condition. Roses must be cut with 

 judgment on these warm days to avoid 

 loss. The retailers will not touch 

 blooms that will fly open two or three 

 hours after they are put in water. 



Easter Outlook. 



The outlook for Easter is bright, ex- 

 cepting as regards lilies. So many of 

 these were carried off by the disease 

 and so many more are affected that 

 there will not be nearly enough to 

 supply the demand. One bright store- 

 keeper has shown his appreciation of 

 this state of things by buying his reg- 

 ular supply two weeks ago. Another 

 has presumably done even a little 

 more, taking one grower's entire stock 

 of 2.200 plants. It seems probable that 



the shortage in lilies will increase the 

 demand for other flowering plants, of 

 which there is a splendid collection In 

 fine shape. 



Building. 



Building operations are already 

 commencing, though frost is scarcely 

 out of the ground. Myers & Samtman 

 have contracted for another Beauty 

 house to be finished by May first, so 

 that their customers can have fine 

 Beauties all the year round without 

 peradventure. 



It is also rumored that Edward Tow- 

 ell, of Weldon, who has been sending 

 in some fine Bridesmaids to Smith & 

 Whiteley, has been seen in the neigh- 

 borhood of the wholesale glass houses 

 downtown. 



Notes. 



The stores have almost an Easter 

 blaze of color now. Azaleas, cinera- 

 rias, tulips and daffodils are seen in 

 profusion, making the interiors most 

 attractive. 



Pennock Bros, made a beautiful and 

 novel effect with a bunch of Mme. 

 Chatenay rose and Acacia pubescens in 

 their show window. 



Our bowling team has shown perse- 

 verance equalled only by G. C. Wat- 

 son's now famous effort to ascertain 

 whether Flora Hill is better than John 

 Burton's Alba Superba. They not only 

 went up to third place in the inter- 

 club tournament by successive victo- 

 ries over the Harmonic and Star 

 teams, but they now hold the record 

 for the best team and best individual 

 score of the tournament to date. All 

 honor to the popular Dr. Goebel. who 

 has identified himself with the Flor- 

 ists' Club for many years. It is sup- 

 posed he must have given each mem- 

 ber of the team what huntsmen call 

 "a leaping powder." sometimes erro- 

 neously thought to be brandy and 

 soda, but really a mild effervescent 

 fluid, taking a double dose himself. 



Here is the score ot the great game 

 wherein Harmonics were vanquished 

 on their own alleys by nearly 300 pins: 



A. L. Brown 16.8 IfiS 168— 499 



D. T. Connor 16.S 216 184— 568 



C'has. Longinette ....156 175 192— 523 



Tlieo. Palms 247 172 19S— 617 



George Goebel 241 209 199— 649 



J. D. Habermehl 173 212 214— 599 



Total 3.455 



Doctor, will these powders help us 

 to do a little better than our best 

 when we have serious work to do? 



J. W. Y. 



Easter Stock. 



The stores have quite a Lenten ap- 

 pearance, daffodils predominating. I 

 understand these are selling very well. 

 Dutch hyacinths are moving slowly, 

 and with the present warm spell will 

 crowd the market, which is quite 

 steady at time of writing. 



A visit to the growers shows unsur- 

 passed stocks of azaleas and hydran- 

 geas. Lilies are almost a failure so far 

 as fine stock goes. Messrs. Craig. Beck- 

 er and Harris are the largest growers 

 of flowering stock for the stores. 



