22 



The Florists' Review 



Ski'tembeu 11, 1919. 



NEW YORK. 



The Market. 



The market continues dull, the sup 

 ply vastly in excess of the light do 

 maud. An improvement, however, is 

 looked for shortly, due to the fact that 

 people are returning from the country 

 resorts in crowds. While New York 

 is always heralded as a fine summer re- 

 sort in itself, it is notable that nearly 

 every one of its residents who can pos- 

 sibly get away leaves the city during 

 July and August. Labor day brought 

 no extra business to the florists, and 

 the commission houses all closed at 

 noon. Pershing day, "Wednesday, Sep- 

 tember 10, .was a partial holiday, but 

 it did little to accelerate the demand for 

 flowers. 



American Beauty roses are plentiful 

 and arrivals move slowly, clearances at 

 times proving difficult, even with liberal 

 concessions in prices. There is a heavy 

 supply of hybrid teas, and prices in 

 consequence are weaker and hard to 

 quote. Hot, muggy weather is causing 

 considerable waste, but in general the 

 quality is good. Columbia is rather 

 prominent, the variety being in abun 

 dant crop. Premier continues to make 

 an excellent showing under adverse con- 

 ditions. 



Cattleya orchids are in good supply, 

 the labiata variety arriving in liberal 

 quantity. Prices are easier, and me- 

 dium grades are sellings well, although 

 the general demand is not) great. A few- 

 spray orchids are arrivWg, but the do 

 mand for them is small. 



Lily of the valley is scarce and the 

 price for the best is around $15 per 

 hundred. Easter lilies are entirely out 

 of the market, but rubrums are in largo 

 supply and hard to move, with the bcHt( 

 grades bringing about $2 per hundred, 

 bud and flower. Inferior grades move 

 only at sacrificial prices. The album 

 variety is also coming and sells well 

 for funeral work. 



The supply of miscellaneous flowers 

 is large, and much stock is going to 

 waste. Late asters are in enormous sup- 

 ply, and gladioli and cosmos come in 

 avalanches. Delphinium pyramidale, 

 gaillardias, tritomas, chrysanthemums, 

 gypsophila and Hydrangea paniculata 

 are conspicuous among the offerings, as 

 are also dahlias, only the best of whidi 

 find customers. 



Carnations are likely to be lato in 

 arriving this season. Many growers aro 

 experiencing difficulty in completing 

 their benchings, owing to difficultv in 

 obtaining stock. Surplus plants' aro 

 bringing from $70 to $120 per thousand. 



Vaxious Notes. 



C. H. Totty, Madison, N. .T., with his 

 family, returned from the Detroit con- 

 vention by way of the Thousand Islands 

 and had a delightful trip. Mr. Totty 

 was in town September .1, looking up 

 shipping possibilities for sovoral thou- 

 sand rose plants to go to China, since ho 

 has an order for immcdiato shipment 

 to that far-off country. 



Readers of the New York World last 

 Sunday were surprised to notice a splen 

 did portrait of A. L. Miller, as ])re.si- 

 dent-elect of the S. A. F., featured in 

 the pictorial section of the i)aper. 



The r.ardon Club of Hashrouck 

 Heights, N. .1., recently organized, will 

 hold an initial oxhibition of dahlias, 

 asters, rosos, annuals and jioronnials 



September 19 and 20, on the Cathcart 

 estate. 



Major P. F. O 'Kcef o, of Boston, was 

 in town September 5 on business con- 

 nected with the publicity campaign. 



In view of the many valuable sites 

 on public highways and along railroad 

 tracks controlled by florists in the en- 

 virons of New York, there should bo 

 inany applications forthcoming for the 

 billboard slogan signs which the pro- 

 motion bureau of the publicity compaigu 

 will shortly put out. 



The annual meeting and exhibition of 

 the American Dahlia Society will open 

 in the Engineering building. West Thir- 

 ty-ninth street, near Sixth avenue, Sep- 

 tember 23. Among the special prizes of- 

 fered are some for the best packed 

 boxes of dahlias for shipment. Such 

 exhibits ought to be educational in 

 character, as many shipments of dahlias 

 coming to the New York market arc 

 spoiled on account of poor packing. 



August Jahn, an old-time retail florist 

 of Brooklyn, died at his home, 508 Ma- 

 con street, Brooklyn, September 6. Fur 

 ther notice appears in this week's obitu- 

 ary column. J. H. Pepper. 



HABDY BLUE HYDRANGEA. 



I am asked by customers for hardy 

 blue hydrangeas, but cannot find any 

 advertised. Are they treated in a spe- 

 cial manner to produce the blue color? 

 Which of the French hydrangeas will 

 be best for the state of Delaware! 

 Many fine plants here have but few 

 blooms. Do they require protection, or 

 is there some other cause? Please give 

 me the names of purple iris and golden 

 yellow iris that are of the same height 

 and will bloom at the same time. 



C. S. M.— Del. 



this hydrangea should prove hardy if 

 given some winter protection. The 

 newer French hydrangeas are much 

 hardier than many people imagine; in 

 fact, plants have stood out all winter 

 as far north as southeastern Massachu- 

 setts in well drained soil. The variety 

 Mme. Chautard has with me always 

 given deep blue heads of flowera, much 

 deeper than I have ever seen Hydrangea 

 otaksa. I would suggest that you plant 

 this variety and g^ve it suitable winter 

 protection for a couple of years. These 

 are the hardiest blue hydrangeas I 

 know of. 



Of iris, the following forms of ger- 

 manica are recommended as good and 

 blooming at the same time. Elizabeth, 

 pale blue; macrantha, violet blue; Per- 

 fection, lavender; Golden Plume, golden 

 yellow; aurea, rich yellow; Sherwin 

 Wright, golden yellow. The finest blues 

 are in the pallida section. They, how- 

 ever, grow much taller than the other 

 varieties named. Of these, Iris pallida 

 dalmatica, soft lavender; Gertrude, vio- 

 let blue, and Mandraliscae, clear blue, 

 are specially fine. C. W. 



VALUE OF COLEUS. 



Can you tell me the name and com- 

 mercial value of the coleus of which I 

 am enclosing leaves? P. F, S. — Mich. 



[ydrangea otaksa will frequently 

 com^ blue. The use of iron filings or 

 sBialll pieces of rusty iron in the soil is 

 believed to have a tendency toward pro- 

 ducing blue flowers. In your latitude 



There are such a large number of 

 coleus which are sports or variations of 

 other varieties and have provisional 

 names that it is hard to give the correct 

 name. The small-leaved variety we 

 know as Joseph's Coat and the larger 

 one as Prince Edward. They do not 

 have any particular commercial value 

 above the general line of standard varie- 

 ties. M. P. 



Philadelphia, Pa.— Albert Walker will 

 erect a one-story brick addition to his 

 greenhouse, the cost of which will be 

 $1,500. 



IMPORTS OF PLANTS AND BULBS FOR THIRD QUARTER OF TEAR. 



THE following are the imports of plants, bulbs, trees, shrubs and vines, with the 

 rates of duty collected thereon, for the third quarter of the government's last 

 fiscal year, as reported by the U. S. Department of Commerce: 



Article-. 



PInnts, trees, shnibs nnd vires: 

 Bnlb«, bulb roots or corms, cultivated' for their flowers or 

 foliage — 

 Hyacinth bulbs, astilbe, dielytra and lily of the valley 



clumps 



T.ily bulbs and calla bulbs or corms 



I<ily of the valley pips, tulips, narcissus, begonia and 



gloxinia bulbs 



F'eony, herbaceous, Iris Kaempferi or germanica, canna, 



dahlia and amaryllis bulbs 



All other bulb8,root8,root stocks, corms and tubers which 



are cultivated for their flowers or foliage 



Hulbs, mature mother flowering, imported cxrhisively for 



propagating purposes 



Fruit plants, tropical and .'•emitropical, for the purpose of 



propagation or cultivation 



Hop roots for cultivation 



Orchids, palms and Azalea indica 



Plants, trees, shrubs, roots, seed care and seeds imported by 

 the Department of Agriculture or the United States 



Botanic Garden 



Rose plants, budded, grafted or grown on their own roots .... 

 .•stocks, cuttings and seedlings — 



Fruit and ornamental trees, deciduous and evergreen 

 shrubs, and vines, and all trees, shrubs, plants and vines 

 commonly known aa nursery or greenhouse stock, n. s. 



p. f 



Myrobalan plum, Mahaleb or Mazzard cherry, Manetti 



multiflora, and brinr rose, Rosa rugosa, .3 years old or less 



Pear, apple, quince and the St. Julicn plum, 3 years old 



or less 



Tea plants 



Total plants, trees, shrubs and vines 



Rate of 

 duty. 



$2.50 M. 

 »3M.... 



»1M.. 

 $10 M. 

 50c M. 

 Free . . 



Free. 

 Free. 



25%. 



Free . . . 

 4c each. 



15%. 

 $1 M, 



$1 M. 

 Free. 



Free 



Dutiable. 



.Ian. 1 to Mar :!l. 1919. 



Quantify. 



254,000 

 3.30,000 



2,700,000 

 252,000 

 .5,082,000 



7,827,000 

 19,000 



299 



101,616 



2,105,000 

 .1,308,000 

 2,719,000 



Value 



14„574 

 12,2.'>5 



34,2f)9 



11.6.50 



56,516 



28.463 



187 



337 



2,584 

 13,327 



276,056 

 60,228 

 26,055 



$ 31,231 

 .J05,267 



