22 



The Florists^ Review 



■■■•■■ T' ■ . ,.,..• • 



July 1, 1924 



now ready for potting. One hundred 

 were selected for potting in 7-inch pots, 

 bringing $1 each, as lifted. Two acres 

 planted with hydrangeas and Cleveland 

 cherries and irrigated with the Skinner 

 system, look fine. "It is the only way 

 to try to grow stock during the sum- 

 mer," observed Mr. Hagenburger. 



• • • • 



Discussing the all-important sub- 

 ject of publicity, J. V. Laver, Erie, 

 Pa., observed that, while the land up- 

 on which the greenhouses . are built is 

 ttoo valuable for growing purposes 

 alone, owing to the improvements sur- 

 rounding his property, he believes that 

 keeping the grounds up to date is the 

 most profitable method of publicity. 

 Business right along keeps far ahead 

 of anything previously recorded. 



• • • • 



The Schluraff Floral Co., Erie, Pa., 

 is busy with wedding orders. "No let- 

 up so far this season," remarked Mrs. 



Sehluraflf. 



• • • • 



"We do not for one moment doubt 

 the sincerity of the writers who are 

 contributing to the current discussion 

 of high prices, but we question whether, 

 if they were placed in a position simi- 

 lar to that of those persons whose meth- 

 ods are under discussion, they would 

 act any differently," said George Haas, 

 of Geo. W. Haas & Son, Meadville, Pa., 

 adding that a return of the *old-time 

 mutual confidence between grower and 

 retailer, together^ with the study and 

 practice of the golden rule, is the sole 

 solution of the problem. He hails the 

 dawn of the happy day when unity will 

 lighten the burden resting upon all. 



• • • • 



William Honeysett, manager of the 

 Massassauga Garden, Erie, Pa., has 

 what is possibly one of the oldest 

 graperies in the country under his 

 charge. The prospect of fine crops of 

 Black Hamburg, Muscat of Alexandria 

 and Madresfield Court is seen in the 

 large bunches, which take much time 

 -to thin out, but bring top prices when 

 ready for market. Mr. Honeysett 's 

 son is assisting him in the management 

 of this range. A considerable number 

 of plants are grown for the local mar- 

 ket, with good sales. 



• • • • 



Paul A. Timm, Toledo, O., is one of 

 the many who are going to attend the 

 S, A. F. convention in August. "One 

 forgets troubles, or if not entirely, they 

 fade into insignificance," he said, 

 "when one meets another who may be 

 less fortunate from a business view- 

 point. You may count on me for sure, 

 and depend upon it, there will be a 

 larger budget to discuss and a larger 

 pile of questions to be answered than 

 ever before at this gathering." 



• • • • 



By the passing of Mrs. E. Suder, To- 

 ledo, O., the trade .loses one of its 

 brightest and fairest members. A pio- 

 neer in a lucrative business, by her love 

 for flowers she imparted that gift to all 

 with whom she came in contact. Her 

 admirable manner gained for her the 

 esteem of the traveling salesmen, to 

 many of whom she appeared as a moth- 

 er. Armin Suder, son and successor to 

 the business, mentioned that the grand 

 old lady breathed her last moments vir- 

 tually in a garden of flowers. 



• • • • 



Schramm Bros., Toledo, O.,. report fu- 

 neral work beyond the average. Taken 

 all in all, business is good. W. M. 



OBITUARY 



v4>4«aLi 



Cliaxles Willis Ward. 



Charles Willis Ward, for years a con- 

 spicuous figure in the florists' trade, 

 died at the age of 63 at his home, in 

 Eureka, Cal., Thursday, June 24, as the 

 result of the culmination of heart 

 trouble of many years' standing. He 

 was thought dying two months ago, but 

 recovered sufficiently to leave the house 

 Saturday, June 19, to visit the nursery. 

 After walking three-quarters of a mile 

 he collapsed and gradually sank. He 

 was unconscious Wednesday, June 23, 

 and died the following day. Mr. Ward 

 is survived by his wife, his son, David 

 Ward, who is head of the Cottage Gar- 

 dens, at Queens, N. Y., and two daugh- 



Charles Willis Ward, at Eurtka. 



lers. Just before his death he closed 

 a deal for the sale of his Klamath river 

 timber projjerly for over a half million 

 ilollars. 



Charles Willis Ward was born in a 

 lumber camp, at Mount I'leasant, Mich., 

 in 1857. He received his education in 

 the schools of Worcester, Mass., and 

 Detroit, Mich. From the age of 17 to 

 27 he engaged in the logging and lum- 

 ber business. In 1885 he went to 

 Europe to study forestry conditions in 

 Germany in connection with his voca- 

 tion. Warning from physicians of ill 

 health which might lead to a speedy 

 death compelled him to give up this 

 work. He subsequently took up the 

 florists' business, less as work than as 

 play. 



Mr, Ward often told the story of his 

 seeing a bunch of carnations in a Greek 

 jjcddler's hand oii the street in New 

 ^'ork city and of being inspired to try 

 to do for that flower what had al- 

 ready been done for the chrysanthe- 

 mum. The Cottage Gardens, at Queens, 

 X. Y., were established in 1890. Mr. 



Ward had been engaged in growing car- 

 nations in a small way for three years 

 previously at East Moriches, N. Y, Pur- 

 chasing the Nicholas Hallock farm, on 

 the Eocky Hill road, near the village of 

 Creedmore, in the fall of 1889, Mr. 

 Ward took possession of the property 

 June 1, 1890, and commenced the erec- 

 tion of a range of carnation houses 

 with the short span to the south. The 

 succeeding year the range of glass was 

 enlarged and for ten years thereafter 

 new glass was added each year. In 

 1900 the original houses, with the short 

 span to the south, were torn down and 

 replaced with wide steel-frame struc- 

 tures, among the first of their kind to 

 be built, and they were one of the rea- 

 sons for many visitors at the place. 



Carnations were the chief greenhouse 

 product from the beginning at this 

 establishment. In 1889 Mr, Ward 

 joined with the late Fred Dorner, of 

 La Fayette, Ind., in growing and intro- 

 ducing the Dorner seedling carnations. 

 He also began the raising of seedling 

 carnations himself. He later laid plans 

 to enter the nursery business and com- 

 menced collecting and accumulating a 

 stock of peonies. In 1901 the growing 

 of nursery stock had progressed to such 

 an extent that nursery sales were be- 

 gun in a moderate way. The nursery 

 business thereafter grew steadily. 



Mr. Ward was awarded many gold 

 and silver medals for seedling carna- 

 tions of his origination. He won the 

 American Carnation Society's gold and 

 silver medals several times. He was 

 the first winner of the Fred Dorner 

 memorial medal and he was also award- 

 ed the Lawson gold medal several 

 times. 



Among the numerous seedlings in- 

 troduced by him the most conspicuous 

 have been Mrs. C. W, Ward, Matchless, 

 Governor Eoosevelt, Alma Ward, Gen- 

 eral Maceo, General Gomez, Glacier, 

 Harry Fenn, Lieutenant Peary, The 

 President, Golden Beauty, Mrs, Theo- 

 dore Roosevelt, Mrs. Tom Harvey, 

 Howard Gould, Cottage Maid and 

 Crystal White. 



In May, 1913, Mr. Ward was called 

 to Eureka, Cal,, on legal business in 

 connection with his timber interests 

 there. He had to remain -there a year. 

 Taking a liking to climatic and soil 

 conditions, he commenced experiment- 

 ing just as he had commenced experi- 

 menting at East Moriches nearly thirty 

 years before. 



At -Eureka Mr, Ward organized the 

 Cottage Gardens Nurseries, a corpora- 

 tion of which he became president and 

 general manager. The property com- 

 prised a 220-acre stock farm at Car- 

 lotta, a nursery of sixty-six acres at 

 Eden, just outside of Eureka, a bulb 

 farm at McKinleyville and a sales of- 

 fice at San Jose. The other officers of 

 the corporation were: Vice-president, 

 William DeGraaff; secretary-treasurer, 

 K. L. Brown; operating manager, G. B. 

 Morris; sales manager, W. B. Clarke. 



Mr. Ward bought the entire stock of 

 the Holland Bulb Farm, at Victoria, 

 B. C, consisting of 1,500,000 bulbs, 

 from W. J. Van Aalst, who became 

 superintendent of the bulb farm. There 

 were grown tulips and narcissi, which, 

 it was expected, would compete with 

 the bulbs imported from Holland, At 

 the Eden nurseries the growing of 

 azaleas, rhododendroire, boxwood and 

 conifers was undertaken, in an effort 

 to provide native stock which would 



