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H B T I C U L T TJ E E 



December 14, 1912 



FLORISTS^ CLUBS: THEIR FIELD AND THEIR DUTY 



(Extr.c.. from . p.p.r r.ad by J. OUo Thllo», b..or= .ta G.rd.n.r.' .... n»,.W Clab .f B...bb.) 



Our Resourceful Profession. 



No other profession is so resource- 

 ful as ours; none so varied and inter- 

 esting; nor has there been in any 

 other sphere of man's occupation the 

 same possibility of developing and ele- 

 vating the condition of the people of 

 our land. It is true that commerce 

 backed by healthy monetary condi- 

 tions, with facilities to meet the up- 

 ward trend demanded in modern civili- 

 zation, has set the land and its people 

 wild with enthusiasm to reach a stand- 

 ard above other countries. Our cities 

 have grown far beyond their environ- 

 ment in much shorter time than had 

 been provided for. The congestion 

 has become uncomfortable and the fa- 

 cilities for transporting the masses are 

 taxed beyond their capabilities, and 

 all because the home dwellers and 

 those who are mindful of their fami- 

 lies' urgent needs are seeking the 

 open air, the sunlight, the trees and 

 verdure and outdoor lite as much as 

 the seasons will permit. 



Floriculture's Influence. 

 What has this to do with the florist 

 and gardener? Are we not the projec 

 tors of the civic condition in the lo 

 calities where we are located? It is 

 in your power to change Sodom into 

 Eden and bring order out of chaos. 

 Lanes have been made into parkways, 

 bare hillsides planted with trees and 

 shrubs, polluted streams are changed 

 to babbling brooks, the former weed 

 plots to flower gardens and parks— 

 everything is done to beautify our 

 surroundings, our homes, cities, and in 

 fact our whole country. A flower has 

 passed into the hands of some child, 

 which suddenly awakened into admira- 

 tion for this token of nature — within 

 a few years the admiration grew into 

 intense love for flowers— no social 

 function could pass without lavish pro- 

 vision of flowers and plants — and at 

 no time in the year is that home 

 without floral decoration, nor the gar- 

 den without its maze of color and 

 variety in plants and trees. There is 

 no doubt but what at some time this 

 fondness for flowers would have de- 

 veloped of its own volition — such 

 cases are the exception, but the rule 

 should be general and would be if we 

 were alert and used the opportunities 

 which come our way. At Eugenie, 

 Ore., near Oregon City, if you are 

 passing through with the other pas- 

 sengers you will be presented ' with 

 a bouquet of roses, showing what can 

 be produced there and in quantity. 

 Should a real estate agent pass 

 through the train with offers of homes 

 or even small farms, one would doubt 

 the genuineness of his offer, but roses 

 appeal to everyone and make an af- 

 fectionate and lasting impression, and 

 as used in this case are a strong ad- 

 vertising medium. 



Co-operative Benefits. 

 That there has been advancement 

 through affiliation there is no doubt, 

 as we have seen the progress of our 

 business within the past decade. The 

 ripe knowledge of the vigilant and 

 hard-working florist with the up-to- 

 date methods now practiced, particu- 



larly that of specializing, the Inter- 

 change of ideas at the club and con- 

 vention where we tell all we know and 

 have learned through hard knocks and 

 even losses, the publicity given to 

 every club in the country and its do- 

 ings through the horticultural trade 

 press acquaint us with one another's 

 ability in specific and skilled lines. 

 If our club and society afliliation does 

 no more than to broaden our minds, 

 widen our principle and exert our in- 

 terest one for another, it does much 

 toward the uplift of our florist brother 

 in the remote parts of this great land 

 and even abroad. It was said to me 

 by one of the American visitors to 

 the London Flower Show, that he was 

 in company with an English grower 

 going to visit another grower who 

 lived a short distance from the gentle- 

 man walking beside him, who said; 

 "This is my flrst visit to my neighbor, 

 and we have been nearly side by side 

 for many years." The American 

 grower said: "Do you mean to tell 

 me that you are not more congenial 

 and neighborly than that? In America 

 we could not afford to do that; if we 

 did not learn from our neighbor, it is 

 a blessed thing that he can learn from 

 us." If the expedition of our Ameri- 

 can brethren to the other side has 

 helped infuse a neighborly spirit 

 among our foreign brethren, then we 

 were angels of mercy, indeed; and 

 we feel better for knowing we have 

 done some good. There is one thing 

 sure. The visit to London impressed 

 our delegation with the assurance that 

 there is yet much to be done to reach 

 the perfection in floriculture so lavish- 

 ly displayed by them. We have gained 

 much in these expeditions across the 

 ocean. We have added to our list of 

 geniuses enthusiastic exponents in 

 horticulture; they have mounted the 

 rostrum and thundered for the truths 

 and ideals which have given us great 

 inspiration. There are two great fac- 

 tors in our land today, the possibly 

 half hundred Florists' Clubs, and four 

 energetic publications devoted to the 

 trade, and about a halt score of maga- 

 zines and other publications to greet 

 the anxious amateur and enthusiast. 



Cultivating the Field. 

 This would seem to be as far as we 

 can get in publicity in making our 

 presence known, and yet there are 

 thousands who are blessed with an in- 

 born trait and love for plants and 

 flowers and get no encouragement 

 from anyone except such as are highly 

 enthusiastic and bubbling over with 

 even a faint knowledge of horticul- 

 ture. Are we so absorbed in our busy 

 life, that we do not find time to culti- 

 vate a fondness for flowers in others 

 whff are only waitiifg for some one to 

 lure them? In my engagements with 

 civic clubs I rarely flnd a florist inter- 

 ested, but many of the best ladies of 

 our land active in the betterment of 

 the surroundings of all classes, by the 

 suggestion of better horticultural con- 

 ditions. Surely this is a branch that 

 the florist should be concerned in. 

 These clubs and associations would 

 welcome the advice and co-operation 

 of the florist in the communities where 



better civic conditions are being advo- 

 cated. Let us in some modest way 

 demonstrate to the public that our 

 business, the cultivation of plants and 

 flowers, concerns everybody, and by 

 our earnest interest in our profes- 

 sion do what we can to awaken the 

 latent love for flowers in others. 

 Publicity Advantages. 

 Can we measure the good that will 

 result from the recent and initiative 

 move of the New York Florists' Club 

 in their publicity effort? It is one of 

 the most stimulating enterprises en- 

 tered upon in the past quarter cen- 

 tury; present results may not warrant 

 the assertion, but the indications are 

 far beyond a prophecy. Let every 

 Florists' Club in this country awake 

 to what might be done in their re- 

 spective localities, tall in line with the 

 New York Club, and let us be alto- 

 gether in one move, universal the 

 country over. Create the demand — 

 young men are continually stepping to 

 the front to learn the old profession 

 by the new methods. Lumber and 

 glass are available, and the ever-balmy 

 sunlight, an unpaid agent of un- 

 bounded scope. 



We as active members in the club, 

 reap benefits by our association with 

 each other, but what about the man 

 behind the gun? He who watches 

 the plant's peculiarities and its needs, 

 whose experimenting has given re- 

 sults; is it best to let him grind on 

 or to let him mingle with others of 

 the same profession, that there may 

 be a mutual profit through each 

 other's experience? Bring him out, 

 introduce him to the club; have him 

 become a member; shall he only learn 

 from such affiliation? Nay, he may 

 teach us that which his experience 

 has gained for him. We can increase 

 our own usefulness by such develop 

 ment. 



What the Club Can Do. 



The club could be made the centre 

 from which new methods for the gen- 

 eral business of handling flowers 

 should emanate — an exchange for busi- 

 ness and a resort for pleasure. A full 

 equipment for games. A reading room 

 provided with publications of the 

 latest issue; horticultural matter in 

 magazine and book form; conven- 

 iences for ladies who would be glad to 

 spend one evening a week at games, 

 to practice tor the events at the S. A. 

 F. Convention; a hearty co-operation 

 with the ladies means in turn encour- 

 agement in business. From our clubs 

 have sprung the social features of the 

 S. A. F. Conventions. 



Let me entreat you and all of the 

 clubs and associations of our profes- 

 sion, that publicity of the right kind 

 will bring about astounding results. 

 As a source of information, I have 

 written to the secretary of every club 

 and association in the country as far 

 as I could secure their names. I 

 wanted information as to what the 

 clubs were doing in publicity, and also 

 invited their suggestions as to what 

 might be conducive to the furtherance 

 of the florist business. Responses 

 have come from a small portion of the 

 fifty inquiries sent out, but the an- 



