12 



The Florists^ Review 



Mat 29, 1019. 



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BUCKEYE BULL'S-EYES 



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BUSINESS STABILITY. 



The war supplied sufficient proof of 

 the deep-rooted stability of the business 

 of the florist. It not only weathered the 

 stormy period well, but enierged upon a 

 sounder basis than ever before experi- 

 enced. Demand for his product was un- 

 precedented, the multitude was enjoy- 

 ing flowers, instead of the favored few 

 a^ formerly, and his wares were being 

 marketed at a margin of profit sufficient 

 to make the present secure and to 

 prompt greater effort for the future. 

 The businestt of the florist did not re- 

 quire reconstruction; it was moving rap- 

 idly and has been going at full blast 

 ever since. 



Flowers are indeed a necessity and 

 the once common fallacy that the wel- 

 fare of the commercial florist depended 

 entirely upon the whims of the rich is 

 forever dispelled by the undisputed fact 

 that the greater portion of his enlarged 

 income is being derived fi'om the mid- 

 dle classes. Better goods, improved 

 Itnethods of merchandising them and the 

 educating influence of an unexampled 

 publicity are the talismans which 

 wrought the great advancement. And 

 the splendid degree of cooperation ex- 

 isting at present among the various 

 branches of the trade betokens even 

 better times ahead. 



The marked activity in vegetable 

 growing under glass is accounted for 

 in no other way than that money in- 

 vested in this particular business yields 

 a satisfactory return. There was a 

 lengthy time when capital put into 

 greenhouses for the production of flow- 

 ers gained little profit, the result being 

 that it soon became wary of the enter- 

 prises of the florist. But times have 

 changed, experience showing that it is 

 possible for efficient management to 

 earn from ten to fifteen per cent on an 

 investment under the new conditions. 

 This is encouraging and is sure to result 

 in more intensive culture and increased 

 areas of glass. There has not been a 

 time within a generation when condi- 

 tions were more auspicious for a ven- 

 ture into commercial floriculture than at 

 present, A wholesome demand for flow- 

 ers exists. The object is to keep it sup- 

 plied with a type of goods which, by im- 

 parting pleasure, increases the desire 

 for more. 



Commenting upon the extreme scar- 

 city of flowers last winter, a member of 

 the trade from southern Ohio remarked 

 that it would continue until the peonies 

 came. In a few days the peonies will 

 be with us in abundance and the great 

 dearth of stock which prevented the 

 realization of many thousands of dollars 

 by florists is now a part of history. Pui- 

 haps the like of it will never be experi- 

 enced again. It served a great purpose, 

 that of teaching the florist as well as 

 the public the real value of flowers. 

 Twas a sorely needed lesson and it ac- 

 complished more in a few brief months 

 in the direction of stabilizing the pro- 

 fession than the previous five years of 

 concerted trade effort Don't be the one 

 to undo it. Mac. 



IMPEOVINO QUAUTY. 



It has been aptly said that, while an 

 increased production is necessary to 

 keep pace with the greatly augmented 

 demand, improvement in the quality of 

 stock grown is the vast desideratum. 

 And now that the benching season is at 

 hand, it is the proper time to give heed 

 to this particular requirement. The first 

 step in the desired direction is the 

 choosing of varieties of proven commer- 

 cial n^erit to take the place of isorts 

 producing only mediocre quality. And 

 unprofitable strains of stock should not 

 only be tabooed, but plants low in vital- 

 ity and diseased should be promptly dis- 

 carded. 



This applies more directly to the flo- 

 rists with small ranges, many of whom 

 continue to grow varieties which have 

 long since been supplanted by ones of 

 superior merit. Nor is it entirely a 

 question of variety; for in many places 

 extremely low-grade stock of carnations, 

 chrysanthemums and even roses is 

 benched for no other apparent reason 

 than that it is on hand. As stock de- 

 clines from year to year, particularly if 

 selection is not done with exacting care, 

 this practice most effectually prevents 

 improvement. It is true that the pur- 

 chase of new and^etter strains of stock 



occasions an outlay of money, when for 

 the time being it could be avoided, but 

 after all it represents an investment 

 offering the greatest possible return. 



If the better prices of the last year 

 are to be maintained, it is absolutely 

 essential that the quality of the goods 

 be commensurately raised. It has been 

 abundantlv demonstrated that the pub- 

 lic is willing to pay good prices, the 

 memory of which is totally lost in genu- 

 ine apprecia'tion of a worthy article. 

 Superior quality in plants and flowers 

 will serve to create more satisfied cus- 

 tomers than the sum of all other fac- 

 tors combined. It therefore behooves 

 every grower to devote his best atten- 

 tion to increasing the merit of his prod- 

 uct, that he may conscientiously expect 

 for it the higher price necessary for its 

 profitable production. 



If the market is glutted, it is caused 

 by the superabundance of commonplace 

 stock. Little salesmanship is required 

 to move high-grade stock, as it seldom, 

 if ever, goes begging. Perhaps the dif- 

 ference in the cost of production of the 

 one above the other is measured by the 

 difference between the wages of the 

 diib and that of the competent grower. 

 Abd in this connection it might be said 

 that the grower who is not worth $25 

 per week isn't worth anything to the 

 florist. By planting the proper stock, 

 entrusting its care to expert hands and 

 preparing it with loving care for the 

 market, the quality of the output of the 

 florist will be materially raised and the 

 pleasure in handling it will approximate 

 the well-known conception of the lay- 

 man in this regard. Mac. 



MOTHERS' DAY ECHOES 



PEAS VS. CABNATIONS. 



Making Mothers' Day Pay. 



s 



Advertising, a small supply of white 

 carnations and a liberal supply of sweet 

 peas were important factors in the big 

 Mothers' day business done by L. M. 

 Smith & Co., of Laurel, Del. The first- 

 mentioned created a great demand and 

 the latter two, judiciou^y used, filled 

 this demand to the satisfiWsKon of both 

 florist and customers. 



"Perhaps we are a little late in giv- 

 ing our experience on Mothers' day," 

 writes a member of the company to The 

 Keview, "but hoping it may benefit a 

 few of the small florists, like ourselves, 

 we are sending you a clipping from a 

 local newspaper, showing the advertise- 

 ment we published, and handbills which 

 we distributed." 



Newspaper Advertisement. 



The newspaper advertisement con- 

 tained the following message: 



Mothers' day, May 11. Pon't forget her that 

 day of all days — let her know you think of her 

 and reg'Rrd her as t)eini; the best mother who 

 ever lived. "Say It with Flowers" — not one or 

 two. but a box or a basketful. White carna- 

 tions are recognized as the proper flowers for this 

 day, but there are not one-tenth enough white 

 carnations in this country to supply the demand 

 and they will be "sky-high," so why not send 

 a box of sweet peas, with one or two white 

 camntlons enclosed? That will carry out the 

 loving idea of remembrance and be Just as much 

 appreciated by her. 



Prices are quoted in the remainder of 

 the advertisement and the suggestion is 

 made that orders be filed early. It was 

 explained that the company probably 

 would not have half enough of any kind 

 of flowers to supply the demand, espe- 

 cially white carnations and peas. 



Handbills Used. 



The handbills pointed out the short- 

 age of white carnations and suggested 

 sweet peas, with one or two white car- 

 nations, as a substitute gift for Moth- 

 ers' day. Spring bedding plants also 

 were mentioned in the handbill adver- 

 tisement. 



This advertising produced extremely 

 good results. Just what happened and 

 how is explained in the letter from the 

 company to The Review, as follows: 



"We had only two benches of white 

 carnations and the wholesalers were 

 charging us $20 a hundred for them. 

 Then it required 40 to 50 cents for a 

 pasteboard box and, with parcel post, 

 etc., the cost of the flowers amounted 

 to about $21 a hundred. Besides this, 

 there were ferns to be bought, for every- 

 body wanted plumosus with their carna- 

 tions. With these conditions existing, 

 where would we come in, even by charg- 

 ing 25 cents each for carnations f 



T'^' The Eesults. 



"We had a whole house full of sweet 

 peas, in their prime, so we began our 



