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Mat «. 1920 



The Horists' Review 



17 



I §g A MESS AGE TO GROWERS sg 





F IN an article setting 

 forth the reasons for and 

 the purpose of the Na- 

 tional Flower Growers ' 

 Association, I make com- 

 parisons by mentioning 

 other producers who have 

 met with great success in 

 organization, no doubt the 

 skeptic will at once say, 

 "Oh, you cannot compare their product 

 with ours; their problems are so differ- 

 ent from ours," etc. I want to say in 

 answer to such critics, before I go any 

 farther, that if our product has become 

 a regular commodity on the American 

 market, the marketing of that product 

 can be favorably compared with any 

 other. Whether it comes under the 

 class of perishable, luxury or non- 

 essential makes no difference. It is 

 nevertheless an American product and, 

 I am sure we shall all agree, a regiTTar 

 commodity; millions of dollars are in- 

 vested in the producing and marketing 

 of it. 



Uncle Sam tells us that ninety per 

 cent of all the money invested in the 

 flower business is in the producing end 

 of it. Now, what are you doing in an 

 intelligent, organized way to market 

 that product? You have built your 

 greenhouses and equipment, made the 

 ninety per cent investment, then trusted 

 to a disorganized market to dispose of 

 the product for you to a few naturally 

 sentimental, flower-loving people. That 

 went all right as long as our business 

 was in its infancy, 

 production limited 

 and a natural senti- 

 ment sufi&cient to 

 create a demand 

 equal to the supply. 

 We have, however, 

 passed the stage of 

 a sufficient natural 

 sentiment and it 

 now becomes neces- 

 sary to begin to 

 create sentiment by 

 education and that 

 means publicity or 

 advertising. We 

 already have ample 

 proof of the suc- 

 cess of this plan in 

 a small way. 



As Others Did. 



By J. FRED AMMANN. 



organization. There are in' the United 

 States today many other producers who, 

 not many years ago, had the same 

 troubles which the American flower 

 growers are facing today. Among them 

 are the orange growers, apple growers 

 and nut growers of the Pacific coast 

 and, to get nearer home, the milk pro- 

 ducers and some plant and lettuce 

 growers in the central states. Their 

 way of marketing their product was 

 slipshod and antiquated, as ours is to- 

 day, before they were properly organ- 

 ized, but things have changed with 

 them since they got together. I shall 

 not take the time to relate their prog- 

 ress here; anyone can learn the history 



- of the progress which these producers, 

 as well as many others who are 



.thoroughly organized, have made. 



As with Milk, So with Flowers. 



Take the milk producers, "just 

 farmers, of course," but today wise 

 and intelligent farmers. Only a few 

 years back their product was shipped 

 to the city market, some of it on com- 

 mission, some of it otherwise, as most 

 of ours is today, Mr. Grower, and at 

 the end of the month they would get 

 their returns and then find out, and 

 not until then, what their product 

 brought, as many growers do today. 



But now it is different with the milk 

 producers. They are organized and so 

 are the milk dealers in the cities, and 



:j This paper, how- 

 ever, is not a trea- 

 tise on publicity. 

 The National Flow- 

 er Growers * Asso- 

 elation has em- 

 bodied in its consti- 

 tution as one of its 

 objects the market- 

 ing of its product 

 by means of public- 

 ity; but that is 

 only one of the 

 many objects for 

 which this organi- 

 zation is founded. 



A few compari- 

 sons will help to 

 how the value of 



Father of the National Flower Growers' Association. 



at the close of every month the boards 

 of the two organizations meet and 

 make the price for their product for 

 the preceding month. "Some business 

 system, isn't it?" That is only one 

 instance and only one of the benefits in 

 that particular case obtained through or- 

 ganization. There are many others. They 

 know now what it costs to produce their 

 milk. They produce a better grade of 

 milk. It sells according to quality and is 

 strictly and uniformly graded. There is 

 no more watering of milk. Honesty most 

 prevail among both producers and deal- 

 ers and much more good is accomplished. 

 I have been asked many times to give 

 an outline of just what will be done or 

 what will be the work of this new 

 growers' organization. I can best sum 

 up the whole by saying that when the 

 growers once get thoroughly organized 

 they can do whatever work they will 

 undertake to do in a just and fair way. 

 To try to enumerate all 'the many 

 things that can and Ediould be done 

 would take a volume. First of all, we 

 should create a more staple market for 

 our product. Uniform prices and 

 wages, at least within the local terri- 

 tories, can and should be established. 

 Once a year, preferably in the fall, an 

 invoice of every greenhouse range 

 should be made, records of which 

 should be on file in both the local and 

 national offices to help in regulating the 

 planting of various crops. The matter 

 of insurance protection should be 

 handled for the 

 benefit of members 

 through the nation- 

 al body. Ours is a 

 most hazardous 

 business and with- 

 out fire or wind 

 storm protection. 

 The matter of 

 credits, grading 

 stock, fuel, labor 

 and numerous other 

 important itema of 

 interest and benefit 

 to all the trade can 

 be successfully car- 

 ried on through or- 

 ganization. Those 

 are just some of the 

 many reasons why 

 we should organize. 



The Locals. 



The next question 

 is how to organize. 

 I shall just touch 

 briefly here on the 

 plan as laid down 

 in our proposed na- 

 tional constitution 

 and by-laws; these 

 will in a few days 

 be ready for the 

 printer, and then 

 copies can be had 

 upon application. 



It is not intended 

 that the member- 

 ship of the national 

 body shall consist 

 of individual mem- 



/" 



