22 



The Florists^ Review 



JUNB 23, 1921 



December, ten benches; January, six 

 benches; February, three, or a grand 

 total of seventy benches for one month. 

 The area of square feet on a bench, 625, 

 times seventy totals 43,750 square feet 

 for one month, at 13 cents per square 

 foot; total, $5,687.50. This makes a 

 grand total cost of $7,723.90. Figuring 

 so that we may check, we find the 

 equivalent of 57,370 square feet has 

 been used for a period of one month to 

 grow the cyclamen crop, at a cost of 

 approximately 13 cents per square ^oot. 

 So you see we are not far off in using 

 the average of 13 cents per square foot 

 of bench space per montli. 



Hydrangeas. 



, Xow let 's take another crop, 12,000 

 hydrangeas. Usually you must buy 

 young stock, and it seems as though this 

 is the cheapest, since, when your plants 

 all flower well enough so that there are 

 no cuttings, your crop will bring the 

 highest return. Figure the young stock 

 of y6ur own propagation. Twelve thou- 

 sand plants will consume for the active 

 time before being put into the field 

 approximately 4,500 square feet for one 

 month, and 4,500 times 13 cents, the 

 cost per square foot, totals $585, or a 

 cost of 4.8 cents each. I have gone over 

 our outdoor records carefully and find 

 that it takes approximately 800 hours' 

 labor to hoe, spray, sprinkle, cultivate, 

 pot and bring into the greenhouse a lot 

 of 12,000 plants, and at 65 cents per 

 hour the total cost will be $520. To 

 this cost should be added the fertilizer 

 that is necessary, water, the interest on 

 investment of land and any horse labor 

 that is required. This would add an- 

 other $200, making a total cost on all 

 until brought into the greenhouse in 

 the fall of $1,305 or an average 

 cost per plant of. approximately 11 

 cents. This, of course, does not allow 

 for the pot, since this item is accounted 

 for in the greenhouse under so much 

 per square foot bench space cost. 

 Neither does this assume that every 

 plant is a specimen, but takes into con- 

 sideration only the^^i^erage. It has 

 been our experience that the number 

 of plants has shrunk until they cost us 

 in 6-inch pots somewhere between 29 

 and 34 cents each. However, our aver- 

 age grade has been lower than it should 

 be because of soil conditions. After 

 these plants are brought into the green- 

 house and stored in the cold house and 

 chrysanthemum houses, then later put 

 into the forcing house, our records show 

 that these plants all told, good, bad and 

 indifferent, consumed 31,250 square 

 feet of bencli space collectively for one 

 month; at 13 cents this makes a total 

 cost of $4,062.50 for entire lot, plus cost 

 when ready to come into greenhouse of 

 $1,305, or a grand total cost of $5,367.50, 

 an average cost per plant of 44.7 cents. 

 You notice this seems low, but this is 

 for the average only, and the average 

 of salable plants is as a rule low. 

 In our case, as stated before, they 

 shrink as low as thirty-five per cent of 

 the original number, which would in- 

 crease the cost to almost three times, 

 or approximately $1.34 for each finished 

 plant in a 6-inch pot. The producer 

 makes it possible to lower his cost 

 to a basis where the plant suitable for 

 a 6-inch pot should not cost more than 

 35 cents in the field and 39 cents to 

 force it, making total cost of 74 cents, 

 but this means for every plant, so the 

 more that do not flower, the higher 

 goes up the price of those that- do 



flower. The 7-inch plants cost on this 

 average 95 cents each and the 8-inch 

 plants $1.52 each. It takes one square 

 foot of bench space to flower the 6-inch 

 plant, one and one-half square feet for 

 the 7-inch plant and three square feet 

 for the 8-inch plant. 



Figures on Ferns. 



Boston ferns, twenty thousand in 

 number, are figured on the basis of 

 6-inch plants. While we do not grow all 

 in 6-inch pots, yet the 6-inch size gives 

 a good basis to average. 



Young plants cost about $6 per hun- 

 dred. It takes 750 plants to a bench of 

 625 square feet. You can get three 

 crops in a year, or 2,250 plants per year 

 on 625 square feet. At $1.58 per square 

 foot cost per year, the total cost of 

 plants would be $987.50, and each plant 

 would cost approximately 44 cents. This 

 price seems low, but, as stated before, 

 it is on the basis that every plant be- 

 comes a perfect specimen. The great 

 factor in the cost of production in the 

 greenhouse business is the percentage 

 of perfect plants which come out of a 

 crop from the beginning to the end. I 

 am giving you the lowest cost for 100 

 per cent production basis and wherever 

 there are any plants lost or do not come 

 through perfectly, this, of course, adds 

 to the cost of the perfect plants. 



General Bules. 



I could go into the analysis of each 

 individual plant, but I do not believe 

 that this is necessary. If you will 

 apply this general law, you will not 



make a mistake. A finished 4-inch plant 

 takes approximately three plants to the 

 square foot a 6-inch plant one to the 

 square foot, a 7-inch plant one and one- 

 half square feet to the plant and an 

 8-inch plant three square feet to the 

 plant. Every florist knows approxi- 

 mately how long it takes to finish a 

 plant. If you will take the cost of the 

 young stock — market quotations will 

 always govern fairly safe in that regara 

 —and then find out the length of time 

 this plant is in the various stages from 

 the small pot to the finished stage and 

 multiply this space occupied by 13 cents 

 for every square foot, you can easily 

 obtain the actual cost per plant. With 

 the items which I have quoted above, 

 the prices which I have given you will 

 answer your purpose so far as getting 

 down to a fixed basis is concerned. 



Through the same line of reasoning, I 



find that it costs approximately 13 cents ^ 

 to grow a 4-inch geranium. Get these 

 facts fixed clear in your mind: That 

 $1.58 is the cost of a square foot of 

 bench space for a year; 13 cents for a 

 month — that means propagation, house 

 and all complete — that whenever a 

 square foot of bench space is idle it is 

 costing you 13 cents a month to leave it 

 idle, and the sooner that it is made to 

 work that much quicker it will help to 

 reduce the price per square foot on the 

 average over the entire place. I am 

 satisfied that 13 cents is an unusually 

 high cost, that with proper cultural 

 methods and efficient and constant fill- 

 ing in of stock in your benches the price 

 should be not to exceed about 10 cents 

 per square foot per month. 



Siiill^liSill^l^liSilliWI^l^lilWMAJt^t^l^^^ 



OHIO GROWERS 



^ri«\irrsxirirsvirrs\irrs^ri«virrsvirrsvit7Svir7Svir)rstirrs\itr^ 



COLUMBUS CONVENTION, 



The Ohio district of the National 

 Flower' Growers' Association made its 

 initial bow in Columljus, O., when the 

 state convention was called to order 

 Tuesday morning, June 21, at the Hotel 

 Deshler. The organization is only two 

 months old, but the membership has in- 

 creased so rapidly that a large number, 

 representing over 2,000,000 feet of glass, 

 were present from all over the state, 

 and an enthusiastic group they proved 

 , to be. 



The two main subjects brought up for 

 discussion were "Cost of Growing" and 

 "Cost of Retailing." The officers 

 elected were: President, Carl Ilagen 

 burger; vice-president, Mr. Murphy, of 

 Cincinnati, and treasurer, George Bate. 

 The directors elected were R. Witter- 

 staetter, of Cincinnati; Horace Frank, 

 of Dayton; William Meinc, of Youngs 

 town; Albert Ealson, of Sebring; Wil- 

 liam Krueger, of Toledo, and Frank 

 McFarland, of Akron. 



Herman Knoblc gave an address on 

 "The Cost System of Greenhouses." He 

 dwelt on the great loss thjt results to 

 florists and growers from poor book- 

 keeping. George Asmus, of Chicago, 

 well known for his fine lectures, made 

 an interesting address and disjilayed 

 lantern slides on a special screen in the 

 Deshler ballroom, showing the. recent 

 advertising campaign of Chicago flo- 

 rists. About sixty men and some ladies 

 were present from all parts of the state. 



most of them at both meetings. The 

 afternoon meeting was of particular in- 

 terest to growers, while the evening 

 meeting was devoted to retailers. 



Cooperation was given a first seat in 

 the various speeches. Statistics show 

 tliat it has paid in every way. 



J. W. T. 



MAY FLOWER STORE SOLD. 



The store, operated for manv vears 

 ])y the L. L. May Co., at 90 East Sixth 

 street, St. Paul, Minn., has been pur- 

 chased by Fulbruge's Flowers, Inc. 

 Charles K. Fulbruge, for the last ten 

 years witli Holm & Olson, has the man- 

 agement of the new firm. The sale was 

 made March 19, but, owing to a general 

 remodeling and redecorating of the 

 entire store and the installing of 

 new fixtures, the forniiil opening was 

 made June 20. The firm is incor- 

 porated to conduct a general flo- 

 rists' l)UHiness, embracing all tributary 

 brandies. Gertrude M. Distel, also for 

 many years with Holm & Olson, recent- 

 ly severed her connection with that firm 

 and will be associated with Fulbruge's 

 Plowers. Robert Messmer and Kathryn 

 Dieterich, formerly with Mazey's, 

 Minneapolis, have been added to the 

 store staff. 



The officers of the new firm are: 

 President and treasurer, C. R. Fulbruge; 

 vice-president, Gertrude Fulbruge, ands. 

 secretary, H. D. Frankel. 



The L. L. May Co. will devote its 

 efforts entirely to the nursery business. 



