Joi.¥ 21, 1921 



The Florists^ Review 



31 



BOSTON. 



The Market. 



After suffering for nearly three weeks 

 from hot, moist and uncomfortable 

 weather, it seems a blessed relief to 

 breathe a pure air, not reeking with 

 humidity. The climatic conditions of 

 late have been all against both flower 

 production and flower selling and not 

 much can be said about conditions, ex- 

 cept that business is down at the usual 

 low mid-July ebb, with occasional 

 funeral orders coming in to break the 

 monotony. 



Eoses are generally of quite inferior 

 quality and, while arrivals are not 

 heavy, they are more than ample for 

 the light demands. In addition to some 

 nice American Beauties, there are good 

 flowers of Russell, Columbia, Premier, 

 Francis Scott Key and Kaiserin com- 

 ing. About all others are of indifferent 

 quality. Carnations hate to make their 

 final bow and are still to be seen on 

 several stands. Sweet peas are gener- 

 ally poor. Gladioli are rather more 

 plentiful with the arrival of the first 

 outdoor flowers, and prices are lower. 



There is little call for Lilium longi- 

 florum and auratum also drags, while 

 speciosum moves rather better. There 

 is still a good supply of double gypso- 

 phila, but the single form is over for 

 the season. A variety of outdoor flow- 

 ers, such as phlox, bachelor's buttons, 

 Stokesia cyanea, sweet sultans, silenes, 

 gaillardias, candytuft, etc., meet with a 

 generally slow sale. 



There are still a few cattleyas, such 

 as Miss Williams and Gaskelliana, and 

 small lots of Oncidium flexuosum and 

 odontoglossums. For valley there is 

 little demand and asparagus is a slow 

 sale. 



Great Fern Show in June, 1922. 



In addition to the large exhibition of 

 tropical ferns, orchids, etc., to be held 

 in September of the present year, the 

 Massachusetts Horticultural Society has 

 preliminary schedules prepared for a 

 grand exhibition of native ferns to be 

 held in Horticultural hall, June 15 to 

 18, 1922. Several thousand dollars are 

 offered in prizes, in addition to numer- 

 ous gold and silver medals. In the first 

 class prizes of $1,000 and $500, with 

 gold and silver medals, are offered for a 

 rock garden covering 500 square feet, 

 planted with native ferns and other ap- 

 propriate material. There are many 

 other valuable cash prizes in the forty- 

 five classes scheduled. Valuable pre- 

 miums are also offered for borders of 

 seasonable flowering plants. 



It is hoped that many of the fanciers 

 will take time by the forelock and pre- 

 pare plants for some of the interesting 

 and unusual classes provided for what 

 should prove a unique and educational 

 exhibition, one which will emphasize the 

 value of our native plants. 



Various Notes. 



There was an attendance of sixty-five 

 ladies and gentlemen at the dinner of 

 the Boston Florists' Association, held 

 at Paragon park, Nantasket, July 12. 

 So much was the splendid dinner en- 

 joyed that a general desire was ex- 

 pressed for another one at an early date, 

 and one will probably be held in Au- 

 gust at Paragon park. The vaudeville 

 acts particularly thrilled some of the 

 male members of the company. 



William Penn is busv with salmon 



instead of flowers, at Ball's Camp, 

 Grand Lake Stream, Me. Five handsome 

 salmon were landed by him in quick 

 succession one afternoon last week, and 

 some fine specimens have been shipped 

 to Boston. 



The satin moth, a new foreign pest, 

 is causing much destruction among pop- 

 lar and willow trees over a large area 

 around Boston, and the government is 

 importing parasites from Europe in its 

 efforts to control it. While this pest 

 has been here for several years, it has 

 spread rapidly in the last two years and 

 is now found in an area of 642 square 

 miles in Massachusetts and New Hamp- 

 shire. Just as we feel we are winning 

 the fight against the gypsy moth and 

 have about cleaned out the brown-tail 

 moth, the corn borer and satin moth 

 come along to keep us from becoming 

 too inactive. 



Only fine weather is needed to make 

 the annual picnic of the Gardeners' 

 and Florists' Club, July 21, at Cunning- 

 ham park, East Milton, a grand sureess. 

 W. J. Kennedy will officiate; 33 ring- 

 master, P. M. Miller as starter. James 

 Methven as handicapper and W. N. 

 Craig as clerk. George W. Hanna and 

 A. K. Rogers will umpire the men's and 

 ladies' baseball games, and Peter 

 Pederzini the boys' baseball. Judges 

 are Arthur Brown, captain; H. H. 

 Bartsch, F. Cave, K. Finlavson, W. H. 

 Judd, D. McKenzie, T. W. Little, F. E. 

 Palmer, W. C. Rust, D. Sutherland, D. 

 Iliffe, G. Thommen and D. Whyte. The 

 general picnic committee consists of W. 

 H. Judd, Harold A. Evan, A. K. Rogers, 

 P. W. Burke, John L. Russell, W. H. 

 Golby and George W. Hamer. 



F. E. Palmer is spending an enjoyable 

 vacation mountaineering, bathing, etc., 

 at Cold River Camp, N. H., with the 

 Appalachian Mountain Club, of which 

 he is an enthusiastic member. 



The W. W. Edgar Co., of Waverley, 

 has its houses filled to overflowing with 

 thousands of splendid cyclamens, be- 

 gonias — among which Melior leads in 

 popularity and quantity — and other 

 plants for fall and winter trade. In the 

 field are large batches of roses, hydran- 

 geas, solanums and other plants. 



At the Dedham nurseries of R. & J. 

 Farquhar Co. many thousands of neph- 

 rolepis are growing in benches or 

 pots. The old Boston leads in popu- 

 larity, but Macawii grows in favor and 

 Teddy, Jr., is also well liked. Houses 

 of cyclamens, begonias, stove plants, 

 etc., all look well. There are large 

 batches of such hothouse grapes as 

 Black Hambro, Muscat of Alexandria. 

 Gros Colman and other popular sorts 

 in pots, carrying strong canes. Many 

 thousands of pot strawberries are ready 

 to ship out, Marshall leading all in 

 popularity. The past season showed the 

 largest sales of hardy perennials, bed- 

 ding plants, trees and shrubs in the 

 firm's history. 



The local transportation committee 

 on the S. A. F. convention has another 

 suggestion regarding routes to Wash- 

 ington which will probably appeal to 

 many this warm weather. In a circular 

 mailed to all local members occurs this 

 paragraph: "How does this strike you 

 for a hot weather trip? Boston to 

 Baltimore by steamboat. Merchants 

 & Miners Transportation Co., Atlan- 

 tic avenue, Boston. Leave Boston 

 Tuesday or Saturday, 5 p. m., daylight 

 saving time. Leaving on Saturday, Au- 

 gust 13, you will arrive in Bnltiinore 



Tuesday morning, August 16, early. 

 Baltimore is not over one and one-half 

 hours' ride from Washington by trolley 

 or railroad. Boston to Baltimore, 

 $22.03. Stateroom, upper deck, $3.24. 

 Meals all included. Make your reserva- 

 tions early." 



The bursting of the town reservoir, 

 due to the tremendous rainfall of over 

 six and one-half inches July 9, flooded 

 the town of East BridgewatcS- and 

 caused heavy damage to houses and 

 crops. Among the sufferers was John 

 K. Alexander, better known as the 

 "American Dahlia King," whose large 

 acreage of dahlias, gladioli and other 

 crops was seriously damaged by the 

 floods. 



Samuel Truckman, salesman for H. 

 M. Robinson & Co., was married July 

 12 and was well remembered by his 

 many friends in the trade. His fellow 

 employees ])resented him with a hand- 

 some set of silver. 



Between June 30 and July 10 Boston 

 recorded twelve inches of rain, a rec- 

 ord fall since the weather bureau was 

 established. While many crops suffered 

 serious injury, it is noticeable that 

 fields of gladioli now starting to bloom 

 never looked so vigorous. Dahlias and 

 asters are also good. Carnations in the 

 field are better than ever and shade 

 trees have a density of foliage unknown 

 for years. ' W. N. C. 



CHICAGO. 



The Market. 



There has been a plainly apparent 

 improvement in the market since last 

 week's report was written. It has been 

 brought about by the same conditions 

 which forced the business down — heat 

 and drought. Not only in Chicago, but 

 throughout the middle west, the weather 

 of June and early July has been devas- 

 tating in its effect on flowers, outdoors 

 and under glass. Plants which sur- 

 vived the long-continued high tempera- 

 ture and lack of rain bloomed them- 

 selves out, with the result that the 

 early overabundance has been suc- 

 ceeded by a shortage of flowers. The 

 scarcity of flowers in tlieir gardens 

 sends the people to the florists and the 

 scarcity of flowers in the greenhouses 

 sends the florist to the wholesalers in 

 Chicago. Consequently, shipping or- 

 ders, if not large, are unusually numer- 

 ous for the time of year. 



This much may be said of the Chi- 

 cago market: The florist in need always 

 can get flowers here; production never 

 gets down to nothing. But at present 

 the supply is extremely light. It con- 

 sists principally of roses and gladioli, 

 but a few asters are arriving. The in- 

 creased demand has stabilized prices; 

 good flowers, the few received, bring 

 excellent figures and the low-grade 

 stock brings prices which are good in 

 comparison with the quality of the flow- 

 ers. The chief exception is short roses. 

 There are scarcely any long roses at 

 present. The medium stems carrying 

 clean, small flowers aro so few thov find 

 ready buyers. The short-stemmed' roses 

 are such a large part of the daily sup- 

 ply that quantities frequently are left 

 unsold even when it has been impos- 

 sible __to furnish longer stems in the 

 numbers called for. Roses have been 

 improved slightly by a local break in 

 the torridity and it is hoped that the 

 [Continued on pagre 36.] 



