May 24, 1919 



HORTICULTURE 



493 



A constitution and by-laws were 

 adopted and it was voted to liold the 

 meetings of the association on the first 

 Tuesday of eacli month in order that 

 tiny might not conflict with those of 

 the Gardeners' and Florists' Club. A 

 banquet is to be served at each meeting 

 for nine months of the year. The dues 

 were fixed al $20 a year with five 

 dollars as the initiation fee. It was 

 voted to co-operate with the Salvation 

 Army in raising money and arrange- 

 ments were made for a sale of flowers 

 at Liberty cottage on the common. 



The Boston Horticultural club held 

 a meeting and banquet at the Parker 

 House Thursday evening of last week. 

 Previously the members had enjoyed a 

 walk through the Arnold Arboretum 

 under the guidance of Earnest H. Wil- 

 son, particular attention being given to 

 the early azaleas, the crabapples and 

 the shrubs in the Chinese collection. 



The regular meeting of the Garden- 

 ers' and Florists' club of Boston was 

 held Tuesday evening, when a very 

 practical talk on accounting >vas given 

 by F. E. Palmer of Brookiiue. His re- 

 marks are given at length on another 

 page. It was voted to hold a ladies' 

 night on the date of the regular meet- 

 ing in June and to have a picnic at 

 Cunningham Park in Milton in July. 

 It was voted that a committee be ap- 

 pointed to consider a revision of the 

 by-laws and the possible raising of the 

 dues. 



OBITUARY. 



James Anthony Foster. 



James A. Foster, owner of one of 

 the largest greenhouse and horticul- 

 tural plants in Rhode Island, died 

 Thursday morning. May 15, of heart 

 trouble, at the age of 73, at Fostmere, 

 his handsome home on Warwick Xeck 

 in the town of Warwick. 



The Warwick Greenhouses, which 

 Mr. Foster established many years 

 ago were developed in accord with 

 the owner's great love of nature and 

 his estate was one of the show places 

 of Rhode Island, the landscape effects 

 being one of the most attractive in 

 this section of the country. 



A widow, Mrs. Harriet E. Foster, 

 who was Miss Harriet E. Hooker, of 

 Boston, a daughter and son survive. 



Julius David Nigh. 

 Julius David Nigh, scientist, botanist 

 and rose grower of Berkeley, Cal., 

 father of William Nigh, motion-picture 

 director of New York City, died in 

 Berkeley following an operation. 



Flower Market Reports 



Thu unexpected happened 

 BOSTON this week. On Monday 



the bottom began to drop 

 out of the market and by the middle 

 of the week prices had dropped 50 per 

 cent or more. Of course a certain lull 

 had been expected before the week of 

 Memorial Day, but so great a slump 

 was wholly unlooked for. The buying 

 naturally eased off but a surprisingly 

 large number of flowers came pouring 

 in, from just where it was hard to tell, 

 and the result of the combination was 

 soon seen. Two or three times the 

 past week surplus flowers have been 

 distributed among the hospitals. This 

 shows where the market stood. The 

 flowers given away were largely sweet 

 peas and calendulas. The latter were 

 especially abundant, with the selling 

 hard. It is expected, of course, that 

 there will be a big stiffening of prices 

 the coming week, as heavy buying for 

 Memorial Day is anticipated. There 

 will be some outside flowers. Lilacs 

 are being received in Boston from New- 

 York state but are being sold for about 

 whatever anybody will offer. 



The demand for near- 

 NEW YORK ly all varieties of 



flowers shows a 

 marked decline from last week. With 

 an increased supply prices have ac- 

 cordingly suffered. While clearances 

 of roses are difficult, the carnation 

 situation is the more difficult though 

 it is not usual that they go well just at 

 this season. Outdoor lily of the valley 

 is in good supply and of excellent 

 quality. It has been selling at the 

 best prices on record up to this time. 

 Longiflorum lilies are pretty much fin- 

 ished, very few being seen in the mar- 

 ket. Outdoor lilac seems to hang on 

 together with snowballs and such like 

 stock. Asparagus is alternately light 

 and heavy in supply. Callas have 

 been doing remarkably well this sea- 

 son. The market is plentifully sup- 

 plied with daisies, calendulas stocks 

 and other miscellaneous stock. 



As was to be expected 

 CHICAGO the week of the largest 



sales of the year and a 

 Memorial Day that has set a record 

 for the use of cut flowers that never 

 has been surpassed and that will be 

 difficult to excel in the future, has been 

 followed by one of little activity. This 

 accompanied by warm spring weather, 

 almost the first of the season, has 

 brought out the flowers till the whole- 

 sale stores are filled to overflowing 

 with all kinds of stock. The excess 

 supply of roses and sweet peas is es- 

 pecially heavy and roses are selling at 

 a fraction of what they brought two 



weeks ago. There seems no end to 

 the swjet peas now coming and unless 

 trade again resumes its normal propor- 

 tions they will net the growers almost 

 nothing. Peonies are also rapidly fill- 

 ing the counters and the cold storage 

 plants are taking care of thousands of 

 dozens Carnations are more plentiful 

 than at any previous time this season. 

 Southern iris and northern are both 

 here in abundance and some growers 

 are sending in novelties, such as 

 Cringed red poppies, so double as to 

 resemble round fluffy balls, ronunclus 

 of red, yellow and white, lavender 

 candy tuft, etc., while the usual spring 

 supply of tulips, gladioli, wall flowers, 

 daisies, pansies, stocks lilacs, bachelor 

 buttons and emeralds are large. A 

 glut is imminent unless something oc- 

 curs to use up the large supply now 

 on hand and coming daily. 



The market, again, 

 CINCINNATI is well supplied with 

 all seasonable stock. 

 Business is holding up fairly well, but 

 it is inclined to be quiet. The com- 

 mencement season is starting and is 

 taking up its share of the daily re- 

 ceipts in flowers. Roses are now in a 

 good supply that can take care of all 

 calls for them. As a whole, the stock 

 is of a high quality. Carnations meet 

 with a market that is fairly good. 

 Peonies are coming along nicely. The 

 local cut is not up to normal, so the 

 chances are we will not have a glut in 

 this flower this year. Easter lilies, 

 callas and rubrums prove good prop- 

 erty at times. Gladioli sell readily. 

 Snapdragon are in a heavy supply 

 that is too large for actual needs. 

 Other offerings are iris, calendula, 

 corn-flower and Marguerites. New 

 fern are selling well. 



Mothers' Day business 

 ST. LOUIS from all reports was 



good. Prices which 

 were high, of course were objected to; 

 but carnations were scarce. It was 

 but natural that the demand should 

 cause an advance. At time of writing 

 all stock is largely on the increase. 

 Outdoor will shortly take the place of 

 indoor stock. Carnations and roses 

 are getting more plentiful. 



COMING EVENTS. 



New York City. — The American Insti- 

 tute and the American Dahlia So- 

 ciety, exhibition of dahlias in the 

 Engineering Building, 25-33 West 

 39th St., Sept. 23 to 25. William A. 

 Eagleson, 322-324 West 23d St., Sec- 

 retary. 

 San Francisco, Cal. — Dahlia Society 



of California, Fall show at the Palace 



Hotel, oept. 4, 5 and 6. 

 Toronto, Can. — Canadian Hort. Assn. 



convention. Aug. 12, 13, 14 and 15. 



