756 



horticulture: 



June 6, 1908 



another line of business to show them 

 how. 



An Unwise Policy. 

 Ninety per cent of the public are 

 lovers of (lowers, and sixty per cent 

 of them do not buy them because their 

 means will not allow it. Why not, dur- 

 ing a glut when flowers are cheap and 

 plentiful, cater to the great masses, 

 and give them all an opportunity to 

 enjoy the beauties of nature? That 

 would cultivate a public taste tor flow- 

 ers. Many prospective buyers hesi- 

 tate to enter y.our store because they 

 have only a small sum to spend. It 

 is indeed a fact that by some retailers 

 the tventy-3ve cent customer is con- 

 sidered a nuisance. That is a vei-j- sad 

 mistake. Many retailers hesitate to 

 reduce the prices of flowers for fear 

 that they could not get a better price 

 when the glut is over. They claim 

 that their customers cannot under- 

 stand why the prices of flowers should 

 vary. I am sure we all know why the 

 price of strawberries varies, and we 

 know it simply because the public man 

 has betn educated along those lines. 

 Not many of us can afford them in 

 January, but there is a time in the 

 year when we can buy them, no mat- 

 ter how humble our circumstances may 

 be. The same can be said about flow- 

 ers; during a glut sell them at a price 

 so that they may flnd their way in 

 eveo' home. But don't let the street 

 fakir do it for you. 



Special Sales. 



Another feature which is good for 

 the business is to run special sales. 

 There is hardly a time in the year 

 when some stock is not more plentiful 

 than others, which can be bought 

 cheap. Advertise. How many florists 

 do it? Some of the small local papers 

 would be a good advertising medium in 

 certain sections. A. "special sale" will 

 bring the crowd, the people will get 

 into the habit of frequenting your 

 store, you are advertising your busi- 

 ness. In my estimation the flower 

 business today has reached such large 

 proportions that the advancement of 

 the trade can only be accompanied by 

 catering to the great masses, and not 

 so much to the tew. 



True Co-operation. 



Co-operation properly applied is in- 

 deed a flne thing; in fact, it is only 

 practical when both or all parties 

 concerned derive a benefit from their 

 combined efforts. The definition of the 

 word "co-operation," according to 

 Webster, is "to operate jointly to the 

 same end." The end in this case is 

 mutual benefit, and without that there 

 is no co-oporation. Through co-opera- 

 tion ia brought about a combined 

 effort, which is much greater than the 

 individual effort. Everyone concerned 

 derives from such a combination, not 

 a share of its strength and benefits, but 

 all its force and good. If, in striving 

 to advance our own position, we aim 

 to advance that of the trade as well, 

 we have true co-operation. 



A man who toils solely for his own 

 personal gain, who must make every 

 transaction pay, regardless of the 

 means to arrive at the point, is a 

 menace to the trade in general. If each 

 one of us would do a little something 

 to better existing conditions, and do it 

 with the feeling that the advancement 

 of our profession is depending on our 

 own individual effort, prompted by an 



unselfish interest, we would soon ar- 

 rive at a better understanding, which 

 would reap its own reward. 



There is only one way that a man 

 can help his trade, and that is by 

 having faith in it and confidence in 

 those engaged in the same line of busi- 

 ness. It is a terrible thing when we 

 get so that we find fault with every- 

 thing and everybody. We all know 

 of some men who do this. "There is 

 not an honest man anywhere." That 

 is all wrong. Ours is a good profes- 

 sion to the man who is trying to bet- 

 ter it. If we all had our shoulders to 

 the wheel, lifting with all otir might, 

 there would be no time to see who 

 else is lifting. It is all dei>ending on 

 individual effort to produce one great 

 force. I would advocate co-operation, 

 not only duiing the time for an over- 

 production, but for every day in the 

 year. 



OBITUARY. 



George F. Chandler. 

 George Frederick Chandler of South 

 Lancaster, Mass., died on Memorial 



George F. Chandler. 



Day, May 30, 1908, at the advanced age 

 of eighty-six years. Mr. Chandler was 

 engaged in the florist business at the 

 same location ever since the year 1S43. 

 For the past twenty years his son, F. 

 L. Chandler, has been associated with 

 him and will continue the business. 

 Mr. Chandler was an upright and ami- 

 able gentleman, companionable, unas- 

 suming and well liked by all with 

 whom he came in contact. 



NEWS NOTES. 



Henry L. Di-unimer, Bath, X. Y., 

 filed a petition in bankruptcy on May 

 25; liabilities, .$1,110.32; assets, $500. " 



The Fricker greenhouse, Poughkeep- 

 sie. i\. Y.. was sold at foreclosure sale 

 May 23 and bought in by Conrad 

 Gindra, the mortgagee. 



Reports from Indianapolis are to the 

 effect that this will undoubtedly prove 

 to be the greatest spring season on 

 record. The plantsmen have been doing 

 a thriving business the past two weeks 

 ^vith prices about the same as previous 

 seasons. 



During Recess 



NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY 

 ASSOCIATION OF PLANT 

 GROWERS. 

 The N. Y. & N. J. Association of 

 Plant Growers held a well attended 

 niee.ting at the Hotel St. Denis, New 

 York city, on June 2. The committee 

 appointed at the last meeting to ar- 

 range for an outing and which con- 

 sisted of A. L. Miller, Herman C. 

 Steinhoff, Herman Schoelzel and John 

 Scott, made its report. The associa- 

 tion will .give its outing on June 25 at 

 Teira Marine Inn, Huguenot Park, 

 Staten Island, and the members will 

 meet at the Staten Island Ferry, foot 

 of Whitehall street, New York city, 

 at 10.30 A. M. on that day and then 

 proceed by boat, train and automo- 

 bile to the place of the outing. The 

 committee has made full arrange- 

 ments for plenty to eat and drink, 

 music, dsucing, games, races, bowling 

 and other spots and pastime. In order 

 to evade the personal tax upon its capi- 

 tal, which has rapidly increased since 

 its incorporation, the association has 

 decided to furnish each of its mem- 

 bers with tickets to the outing gratis. 

 It IS e:;pocted that all members with 

 their families and friends will attend 

 and thoroughly enjoy themselves. 



FLORISTS' CLUB OF PHILADEL- 

 PHIA. 



After Arthur Niessen's pai>er on the 

 relations that should exist between the 

 wholesaler and retailer had been dis- 

 cussed by W. K. Harris. Jno. Westcott 

 and other experts, business was rashe<l 

 and an early adjournment called for 

 the smoker. Many of us thought 

 "smokers" were not germane to June; 

 nevertheless there was a good turn- 

 out of members, and they seemed to 

 heartily en.^oy the varied program of 

 story and dance provided by Messrs. 

 William Graham, John Dunn, Jr., C. 

 H. Grakelow and Frank Adelberger. 

 The only club talent called on was 

 Captain Lynch, who rendered "Ora pro 

 Nobis" in masterly style and then 

 spoiled everything by making a po- 

 litical speech. However, the crowd 

 seemed to enjoy that, too. Bowling 

 for convention team is now in order. 

 Anyone who rolls fifteen games in 

 June, and has an average 150 or over, 

 is eligible to compete. 



APPRAISERS' DECISIONS. 

 No 19U1S. — E\ergreen Seedlings — ^Nur- 



sery Stock.— Protests 272S35, etc., of 



Pi. Ouwerkerk et al. (New York). 



Opinion by Waite, G. A. 



The Board held that Abies excelsa, 

 or Norway spruce, produced from seed, 

 and acubas and rhododendrons were 

 dutiable as evergreen seedlings under 

 paragraph 252, tariff act of 1S97, as 

 claimed by the importers; also that 

 azaleas were dutiable as nursery stock 

 under the same paragraph. United 

 States V. Ouwerkerk (T. D. 2S953) fol- 

 lowed. 



I appreciate the good work your 

 paper is doing and I would not be 

 without it. Enclosed is my subscrip- 

 tion. I am, Vei-v trulv vours, 



JAMES j". SULLIVAN. 



Newport, R. I., May 26. 1908. 



