18 



The Florists^ Review 



Fbbbuabt 19. 1020 



CXm U^Xm^J^ READEaS> 



for free seeds. Here's the secret of 

 much legislation. Politics pure and sim- 

 ple. The farmer's vote is necessary to 

 the politician. Maybe the only way of 

 injecting reasonable common sense into 

 the "powers that be" is by bringing 

 them to an appreciation of the value of 

 the votes held by those who love flowers 

 and gardens and cater to their needs. 



E. H. Wilson. 



SNOW ON GREENHOUSES. 



There are times when "scientific 

 facts" and practical application refuse 

 to work together. Instances of this are 

 the recent greenhouse accidents at 

 North Wales, Pa., and elsewhere. The 

 office man tells one that certain glass 

 will stand a pressure of thirty pounds 

 to the square foot when the pressure is 

 evenly applied. Any practical florist 

 knows that this is impossible in the 

 case of snow on a greenhouse. 



When snow falls on a greenhouse, 

 that which falls on the glass begins to 

 melt, while that on the bars does not. 

 As the snow continues to fall, sooner 

 or later — depending on the inside tem- 

 perature — an arch or bridge is formed 

 between the bars. In the case of bars 

 set sixteen inches apart, this bridge is 

 sufficient to withstand almost any 

 amount of snow. I have seen it hold up 

 three feet of drifts, endangering the 

 bars themselves, as they had the whole 

 weight to support, hardly an ounce of 

 weight being on the glass. 



But where bars are set twenty-four 

 inches apart, under a snow arch of that 

 length glass will not stand up and, of 

 course, gives way in the middle, since 

 the pressure there is farthest from the 

 supporting rods. 



It is a safe bet that, if the glass had 

 been set the 16-inch way, not a pane 

 would have been broken. Certainly 

 the little additional light obtained 

 with 24-inch glass would not justify the 

 ordinary florist in thus playing vdth 

 fate, since the odds against him would 

 be too large. S. C, Templin. 



QUABANTININa THE OBIENT. 



A recent mail brought a copy of a 

 "notice of public hearing to consider 

 the advisability of quarantining Asia, 

 Japan, Philippine islands and Oceania 

 on account of dangerous plant diseases 

 and insect pests." 



Here is a cool announcement of a pro- 

 posal to quarantine half the world, the 

 half of the world to which our gardens 

 and greenhouses are most indebted for 

 their most valuable plants and, more- 

 over, the half of the world to which we 

 may look for a continued increase of our 

 collections. In view of Quarantine No. 

 37, now in operation, one may ask: 

 Will raising the fence a little higher 

 make any difference t 



The object supposed to be obtained 

 by these quarantine acts is the exclu- 

 sion of pests dangerous to vegetable 

 growth of all kinds. This object is im- 

 possible of accomplishment in its en- 

 tirety, since such pests as are of a bac- 

 terial nature and others of fungoid or- 

 igin may be disseminated by air cur- 

 rents, as was the germ of the recent in- 

 fluenza epidemic. Those of insect char- 

 acter can travel on material other than 

 living plants. Witness the corn borer, 

 now alarming New England farmers, 

 and the wood borer, found in American 

 packing cases and about which Austra- 

 lia is just now agitated. The logical 

 end of all such legislation is to cut off 



all international trade and intercourse. 



These quarantine acts will not effec- 

 tively keep out disease. They will ac- 

 complish no more in that direction than 

 proper inspection at ports of import 

 would do and have done in the past. 



Panics are everywhere contagious. 

 The effect of the actions of the Federal 

 Horticultural Board is seen in recent 

 hysterical legislation in Illinois. In 

 view of this and what is threatened in 

 New Jersey, it behooves all those inter- 

 ested in horticulture, both trade and 

 amateur alike, to pause a moment and 

 consider the logical outcome. Follow- 

 ing the lead of the F. H. B., state will 

 quarantine against state, then county 

 against county, until finally it will be 

 impossible to move a plant from one's 

 garden to that of a neighbor. The trade 

 has the choice of two things, either to 

 resist this pernicious legislation with all 

 its might, or vdnd up business while the 

 winding up is possible. The cry of quar- 

 antine measures assisting nurserymen 

 and florists is mere camouflage. The 

 bankruptcy court is where it leads 

 to and, worse than this, it means not 

 only the bankruptcy of the horticultural 

 trade but the bankruptcy of the garden 

 art in America. 



The same mail brought a notice that 

 the House had appropriated $239,000 



C. O. D.— CASH OB DIE. 



Between January 28 and February 

 13 there were in Fort Smith, Ark., 1,645 

 cases of flu and the death rate averaged 

 three per day. Financially speaking, 

 it has nearly been the death of me; I 

 mean that it has taken all the cash that 

 I can lay my hands on to pay for the 

 C. O. D. shipments that come in. For 

 example, Friday, February 13, I had 

 three funerals which aggregated over 

 $600; of that amount, I paid over $100 

 for flowers and took in only $26, as the 

 rest was charged. When one's daily 

 averages are $75 worth of C. O. D. ship- 

 ments arriving, $300 on the books and 

 $24 cash, it is clear that, if the flu keeps 

 up, I shall soon be on my way to the 

 county farm. 



I am not kicking about the business, 

 for it is the best ever, but it certainly 

 hurts a fellow's pocketbook, especially 

 when his bank account is none too large. 

 I write this simply to show the condi- 

 tions in this town; it is a big credit 

 town, most of the orders coming 

 in over the phone. Then, too, the prices 

 of flowers are the highest ever known, 

 both wholesale and retail, but still peo- 

 ple will buy. When you have to carry 

 them for from thirty to sixty days, it 

 is some hard job to keep your head 

 above water. George Rye. 



The Giles Flower Shop, of Beading, 

 Pa., has been rushed with funeral work, 

 owing to the increase in the number of 

 deaths from the flu. 



• • • • 



Albert M. Herr, of Lancaster, Pa., 

 who has for several years been regard- 

 ed as one of the largest growers of ge- 

 raniums, looks for one of the biggest 

 seasons in demand and the smallest in 

 supply, unless present conditions im- 

 prove. 



• • • • 



T. J. Opperman, of Camp Hill, Pa., 

 lost some glass as a result of the re- 

 cent heavy snowfall, but he feels con- 

 soled by the fact that his loss was 

 lighter than that of some of his neigh- 

 bors. The new houses and combined 

 office and workroom built recently put 

 a finishing touch to the plant. 



• • • • 



C. E. Rossiter, of Sunbury, Pa., has 

 turned over the active management of 

 a good business to his son Frank, who, 

 in addition to possessing a natural love 

 for flowers, argues that it is far easier 

 to carry on an established trade than 

 to sell it. Mr. Rosaiter, prior to enter- 

 inp the profession, was a naturalist and 

 taxidermist and possesses a valuable 

 collection of native animals and birds, 

 which he intends presenting to the high 

 school museum. 



John B. Rudy, of Elmira, N. Y., spe- 

 cializes in bedding stock, of which a 

 leading feature is Geranium S. A. Nutt. 

 This is only one item, but when grown 

 in quantity it is a strong line. 

 • • • • 



The Cowgill Floral Co., Salem, O., 

 was forced to refuse orders for funeral 

 work, owing to inability to get flowers. 

 "I never saw it like this before," ob- 

 served the head of the company, and 

 when he was informed that $5 was 

 paid to a florist in Dayton for two 

 dozen freesias, he shook his head 

 wearily at a fine lot almost ready to 



cut. 



« • • • 



Evenden Bros. Co., of Williamsport, 

 Pa., found no large increase in business 

 on St. Valentine's day, but could not 

 have handled it if there had been. The 

 wholesaler failed on a standing order 

 and it was useless to try any other place 

 at such a late hour. John P. Ring, 

 former grower at the Evenden range 

 for several years, returned from Mon- 

 tana on account of the poor health of 

 his wife, but he made the trip in vahi, 

 for she died soon after his arrival. The 

 funeral took place February 12. Some 

 beautiful floral pieces were sent by the 

 local craft. Mr. Ring will probably 

 remain with Ms former employers. 



