52 PROFITS 



connection the reader is referred to the chapter chscussing 

 greenhouses. There it will be seen that the large, airy, 

 light, clean and roomy modern iron house is the best, and 

 the one most hkely to insure successful results. Nearness 

 to a supply of good fuel may make considerable difference 

 on the expenditure side of the account, yet, as we know, 

 florists in some of the Southern States, where the coal bill 

 is not a serious item, regularly ship in a large proportion 

 of their cut flowers from the Chicago growers, who, of 

 course, have to depend entirely on boiler heat. The 

 Southerners have still largely to wake up to their oppor- 

 tunities. 



While the overhead charges vary considerably, owing 

 to various economies practicable by the grower in a large 

 way of business in a good location, yet in the case of the 

 majority of smaller growers, especially those in the medium 

 sized and smaller cities, the general run of overhead charges 

 is pretty nearly alike. 



Then comes in the skill of the cultivator. It is well 

 known that growers almost contiguous to one another 

 often produce blooms of distinctly different quality, even 

 when they are the same varieties. Skill, experience, and 

 knowledge must, therefore, be put down as a very con- 

 siderable factor in this question of success and profit. 



One of the most telling factors in the whole situation 

 is the variety or varieties that are grown. If a plant is not 

 floriferous, healthy, and otherwise of merit, space is being 

 occupied unremuneratively or not as profitably as it could 

 be. 



In the first place, the grower has to consider the 

 proportion of plants in any given color, that are to be grown. 

 From an analysis of various letters sent to the leading 

 growers throughout the country it was found on a balance 



