30 



The Florists' Review 





AcotiST 17, 1916. 



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THE CONVENTION GARDEN 



r^ ONSIDERING Jhe distancp from 

 ^-^ the recognize^^ade centers and 

 the lack of local exhibitors, the Hous- 

 ton Convention Garden makes an ex- 

 cellent showing. There are thirteen 

 trade exhibitors from outside, in addi- 

 tion to which the Houston park depart- 

 ment has filled a number of beds for 

 the purpose of adding to the pictorial 

 effect. 



That the garden has been handled by 

 men who know how is apparent at a 

 glance. Clarence L. Brock, the local 

 superintendent of parks, has had charge. 

 He is thoroughly^iconversant with soil 

 and climatic conditions and to his skill 

 is due a large part of the beauty of the 

 city, his practices having been adopted 

 by gardeners not connected with him 

 except by the ties of friendship. To 

 the northern eye the Convention Garden 

 is of special interest, this year as reveal- 

 ing marked differences of behavior on 

 the part of familiar subjects when 

 grown in a warmer" climate. 



The garden is~inSam Houston park 

 and was planned by George E. Kessler, 

 of St. (Louis, than whom there are few 

 more skillful landscape architects. He 

 is acting in an advisory capacity in 

 the development of the Houston park 

 system, which made his services avail- 

 able in this instance. The location is 

 only a few blocks from Convention hall 

 and the headquarters hotel. The words, 

 "Welcome Society of American Florists 

 and Ornamental Horticulturists," well 

 executed with bedding plants, face 

 Dallas avenue, across which is the lawn 

 occupied by cannas, etc. At the rear 

 is the space for winter gardens and the 

 encircling beds. > 



The general character and appear- 

 ance of the garden will be apparent 

 from the accompanying illustrations. 

 In the left foreground of the one on 

 this page is shown the display of Fire- 

 bird-canna by Vaughan 's Seed Store and 



in the center is a circular bed of King 

 Humbert canna, in the center of which 

 is a giant Ricinus Zanzibarensis, shown 

 by the St. Louis Seed Co., the bed mak- 

 ing a decided contrast to it$ surround- 

 ings. Just over the left of the King 

 Humbert bed can be seen paft of the 

 canna display of Conard & Jfl^s Co. In 

 the right foreground can b^i6en the 

 end of the rose bed of the ^Sijifornia 

 Rose Co., while back of and at the right 

 of the circular canna bed is seen part of 

 the rose bed of the Texas Rose Co., 

 Rockdale, Tex. 



In the foreground of the illustration 

 on page 31 are specimen Fieus elas- 

 tica and Cycas revoluta, which at 

 Houston grow outside practically all 

 the year around. In the center back 

 of sago palnv is seen a bed of 

 orotons bordered by fancy-leaved cala- 

 diums to whi"^ no photograph can do 

 justice; the bright colors make the bed 

 one of the best in the garden^ Back of 

 the croton bed is seen a large double 

 bed of cannas from Henry A. Dreer, Inc. 



The larger illustration on page ?.\\ 

 shows the luxuriant growth of Cypress 

 alternifolius around the pool contain- 

 ing the nymphsea display of Wm. 

 Tncker Estate, Arlington, N. J. 



Tlie Cannas. 



The trade exhibits in the garden run 

 largely to cannas; indeed, cannas, water 

 lilies and roses constitute nearly all the 

 displays sent for business purposes, al- 

 though there is one of tuberoses, one of 

 begonias, one of xanthosoma, one of 

 geraniums and one of leptospermum. 



Conard & Jones Co., West Grove, Pa., 

 is perhaps the largest exhibitor in the 

 convention garden. It has ten beds of 

 cannas, each bed containing a different 

 variety. Some of these are the stand- 

 ard sorts, but most of them are the 

 improved varieties raised by Antoine 

 Wintzer, for which he and his house 



have become famous. Principal of 

 these in the convention display are 

 Loveliness, City of Portland, Juanita, 

 Panama, Jane Addams, New York, 

 Golden Gate and Wintzer 's Colossal. 



Henry A. Dreer, Inc., Philadelphia, 

 has a large showing of cannas, includ- 

 ing six of the newer varieties of Euro- 

 pean origin. 



The St. Louis Seed Co., St. Louis, Mo., 

 has a large, round bed of Canna King 

 Humbert that shows for itself as well 

 under the southern conditions as it does 

 in the north, where it generally is con- 

 sidered the best standard variety. 



Arthur T. Boddington Co., New York 

 city, is represented by several standard 

 varieties of cannas. 



Vaughan 's Seed Store, Chicago, has a 

 diamond-shaped bed of Canna Firebird 

 that is a blaze of color. 



The Aquatics. 



Perhaps it is no more than natural 

 that the aquatics should seem a special- 

 ly interesting part of the garden, but 

 it is noticeable that ^e visitors gravi- 

 tate that way and it i# said the Hous- 

 ton public has watched the develop- 

 ment of the garden with special solici- 

 tude for the water lilies. 



.Henry A. Dreer has a circular pool 

 about twenty feet in diameter, similar 

 to the one that occupied the center 

 of the famous Minneapolis garden, 

 in which there are fifteen varieties 

 of nymphseas. Of these the two that 

 attract the most attention are N; 

 dentata superba and N. dentata mag- 

 nifica, possibly the largest-flowered of 

 water, lilies. The collection contains 

 several of the blue and pink varieties, 

 but the big whites cause more comment. 

 In the center of the pool is a fountain 

 surrounded by aquatic plants. 



A more elaborate arrangement is that 

 surrounding the exhibit of the Wm. 

 Tricker Estate, Arlington, N. J. Here 



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General View of the Houston Convention Garden, With Display of St. Louis Seed Co. in Center. 



