26 



The Florists^ Review 



Fbbbuaby 6, 1918. 



Live and Let Live. 



This season has taught many in our 

 trade that there is a limit to which de- 

 mand for flowers will consume them at 

 high prices. We market the bulk of our 

 stock to the middle classes. The mil- 

 lionaire clientele does not constitute the 

 volume of our trade. 



The supply of flowers is limited, but 

 so is the demand, and when retailers or- 

 der flowers for shipment at market 

 prices and the supply is only half equal 

 to the demand, the wholesaler is not 

 serving himself best if he doubles the 

 price, putting it where the customer will 

 not consume from the retailer then or 

 later, killing the hen that lays the gold- 

 en eggs. 



Substitutes for flowers are not lim- 

 ited to artificial flowers, but candy, 

 gloves, etc., may be used. Growers will 

 live by letting the consumers' patron- 

 age live, so do not let us have a repeti- 

 tion of the conditions of last Christmas, 

 when wholesale prices were not quoted 

 and strangling prices were charged the 

 shipping trade, which had no redress. 

 The Stiles Floral Co. 



SAY IT WITH NATUBAL FLOWERS. 



We enjoyed Mr. Furrow's opening 

 shot in the campaign against rag and 

 paper flowers in The Review of January 

 23, under the caption, "Perplexed Ques- 

 tions." We believe it is the florist's 

 duty, unless he is interested in the 

 manufacture of artificial flowers, to dis- 

 courage the use of this artificial trash 

 in every possible way. We give our 

 customers to understand that it is wrong 

 to use artificial doorpieces. The under- 

 taker might as well use old rags for a 

 doorpiece as artificial flowers over and 

 over again, for all the message they 

 carry. The florists should instruct their 

 customers against this practice before it 

 gains greater vogue. 



We should bear in mind that cut 

 flowers will never be so scarce again, in 

 all probability, as they have been this 

 winter. The retail florist who is in 

 favor of the use of artificial flowers 

 might as well open a second-hand clothes 

 shop. Raymond J. Preisach. 



OMAHA, NEB. 



The Market. 



Weather conditions remain the same 

 as for the last six weeks. It is just 

 76 degrees warmer than a year ago. 



All cut stock is scarce and prices high. 

 Business in all lines is good and the only 

 complaints are heard when some re- 

 tailer receives a large funeral order and 

 then tries to get enough stock to fill it. 



Coal is plentiful and the florists who 

 shut down their greenhouses on account 

 of the shortage of fuel last fall are now 

 wishing they had continued to operate 

 them. Screenings and, in fact, any coal 

 can be bought practically at the buy- 

 er's price. 



Various Notes. 



Parker the Florist has enjoyed good 

 business during the week, many brides' 

 bouquets and accessories having been 

 made up for the weddings of returning 

 soldiers. 



As his is one of the best located stores 

 in Omaha, L. Rogers is enjoying good 

 transient trade. ^_^ 



Included in the many robberies of the 

 last two weeks were the stores of John 



Bath, of Nineteenth and Farnham 

 streets, and Lee Larmon, of the Fon- 

 tenelle hotel. At the Bath store, $11 

 was taken from the cash register. The 

 robbers did little damage there, but Mr. 

 Larmon suffered more. He was relieved 

 of $50 and considerable damage was 

 done to his store. 



Mr. and Mrs. B. C. Wilcox and Mr. 

 and Mrs. G. M. Wilcox, of Council 

 Bluffs, have just returned from the car- 

 nation show at Cleveland. They feel 

 they were well repaid for the trip. Mr. 

 and Mrs. F. L. Lainson have also just 

 returned from the carnation show and 

 visits to eastern points. 



J. F. Wilcox & Sons are going to plant 

 many Columbia roses this season." Fine 

 young plants already are started. 



Mr. Hiltner, of Hiltner Bros., of Lin- 

 coln, made a visit to Omaha and Council 

 Bluffs recently and reports this to have 

 been one of the busiest seasons they 

 ever had. William Bomberger, of Har- 

 lan, la., was in the city February 1 

 and 2 on business and he also reports 

 heavy business throughout the year. 



F. E. S. 



NEW YORK. 



The Market. 



While the general supply of flowers 

 has perceptibly increased, the demand 

 easily absorbs the increase. Carnations 

 are coming in heavier supply and sweet 

 peas show signs of cropping conditions. 

 With bulbous flowers in better supply 

 as well, an easier feeling is apparent 

 in the market. There are few tulips to 

 be had, however, and even Paper White 

 narcissus is scant in supply, in com- 

 parison with the avalanches of previous 

 years. 



"Tloses are still on the short side; con- 

 sequently prices remain firm. Yellow 

 varieties are particularly scarce. The 

 quality of arrivals continues good, with 

 a preponderance of high grade flowers. 



Carnations continue to bring top 

 prices in the fancy grades. Benora and 

 Mrs. C. W. Ward are in the 12-cent 

 grade, with one or two other varieties 

 when of exceptional quality. Culls and 

 splits move well at 6 cents. 



Orchids are dragging. Cattleyas have 

 been arriving in quantity, and were hard 

 to move at prices lower than have been 

 customary of late. Many of the flowers 

 are small, and consequently bring less 

 than 20 cents. The best bring 50 cents, 

 but fine flowers are to be had for 30 to 

 40 cents. Spray orchids are not plenti- 

 ful, but the demand for them is not at 

 all heavy, so tliere are enough to go 

 around. 



Sweet peas are much heavier in sup- 

 ply than they have been for some time, 

 and prices have taken a tumble. Aver- 

 age quality flowers command only 2 

 cents, and the best not more than 3 

 cents. 



Lilies are plentiful, but there is no 

 abatement in prices, which are from 

 25 ce^ts up. Fine callas are arriving, 

 the best bringing $4 per dozen. 



There is a good deal of funeral work. 

 Often, in fact, without the demand 

 from this source, business in general 

 would be small indeed. 



Various Notes. 



W. N. Rudd, of Chicago, was a visitor 

 in the wholesale district January 31. 

 The prime object of his visit to New 

 York was to meet his daughter, who 



has been prominent in Red Cross work 

 at the front since the United States en- 

 tered the war. She was due to arrive 

 that date with her husband, an oficer 

 in the medical corps, and a month-old 

 baby, both to be introduced to grandpa 

 as additions to his family. 



Another Chicago visitor was Private 

 Clemenson, son of Christian Clemenson, 

 florist, tof 7801 South Shore avenue, of 

 that city. He is located at the base 

 hospital, in the old Greenhut building, 

 at Sixth avenue and Eighteenth street, 

 New York, in executive service. 



The many friends of John Donaldson, 

 Patchogue, L. I., were pleased to see 

 him in town last week after a long 

 absence. He has fully recovered from 

 his recent illness. 



Posters are distributed throughout 

 the wholesale district announcing the 

 twelfth annual entertainment of the 

 Greek- American Florists ' Association, 

 at the Palm Garden, Fifty-eighth street 

 and Lexington avenue, the evening of 

 February 27. 



Joseph H. Hill, of Richmond, Ind., 

 was in town January 28, and left the 

 same evening with the party going to 

 the Carnation Society's convention. 



The new Hotel Commodore, opened 

 last week at Lexington avenue and 

 Forty-second street, adjoining the Grand 

 Central Terminal, has established a 

 flower stand. The foyer of the hotel is 

 lavishly decorated with palms and 

 plants; indeed, in the opinion of all who 

 have seen it, it is the finest example of 

 hotel decoration ever seen in New 

 York. It is understood that the work 

 was carried out under the direction of 

 P. R. Heaton, the florist of the Hotel 

 Biltmore. 



J. Howard Thompson, the sweet pea 

 grower of Kennett Square, Pa., was a 

 recent visitor. 



Secretary John Young and Philip F. 

 Kessler returned February 2, from the 

 meeting of the executive board of the 

 S. A. F. held January 31 and Febru- 

 ary 1 in Detroit. 



W. L. Rock, of Kansas City, was a 

 visitor in New York following the Cleve- 

 land and Detroit meetings last week. 



Many expressions of sympathy have 

 reached Joseph H. Fenrich because of 

 the death of his mother February 2. 



Richard Wenham had the decoration 

 for Mrs. W. K. Vanderbilt's dinner for 

 the Belgian minister at her Fifth ave- 

 nue residence January 26. The color 

 scheme was gold, and Sunburst and Mrs. 

 Aaron Ward roses only were used, in 

 connection with the gold table service 

 of the hostess. Cornucopias were prom- 

 inent in the decoration. J. H. P. 



Jasper R. Lewis, for the last two and 

 one-half years with Ralph M. Ward & 

 Co., announces the severance of his con- 

 nection with that house this month. He 

 has not yet made definite plans for the 

 future. 



Columbus, O.— J. R. Hellenthal is pre- 

 paring another batch of calceolarias. 

 He says that he sold last season 1,500 

 plants, ranging in price from 50 cents 

 to $2 each. The colors are beautiful. 

 Some customers purchased several, in 

 order to have an assortment. This year, 

 however, he is not going in so strongly 

 on them, but the plants he has look well. 

 There is a layer of tobacco stems be- 

 tween the rows of pots to keep down 

 insects in the earlj- stages. Later on 

 they are dusted with an insecticide. 



