June 18, 1914. 



The Florists^ Review 



11 



The Skillful Haad of the I>ecorator is Supplemented by an Inventive Brain in the High-class Retail Store. 



way for improving what is now an un- 

 satisfactory situation; for it is only too 

 true that the gardeners themselves are 

 as much to blame as are the employers 

 for the poor remuneration that comes to 

 so many of them and which often is out 

 of all proportion to the responsibilities 

 they are expected to assume. 



To substantiate this contention* it is 

 only necessary to allude to the practice 

 of many gardeners, when seeking a posi- 

 tion, who, on learning of a vacancy, 

 file their applications specifying salary 

 expected, without considering as to 

 whether the position applied for war- 

 rants a better salary than asked, or 

 whether they -are even qualified to apply 

 for it. They have simply made up their 

 minds to secure the position if they can 

 and have just one object in mind — to 

 t,'et employment at so much a month. 

 Through this practice many good oppor- 

 tunities have been spoiled and as a con- 

 >*equence thereof estate owners engag- 

 ing unfit men have become disgusted 

 with their experience in attempting to 

 maintain country estates; and they fre- 

 '|uently blame the profession as a whole 

 lor their experience with a few individ- 

 uals in it. 



To educate the estate owner that a 

 gardener thoroughly efficient in his pro- 

 fession is entitled to more than the most 

 of them are disposed to pay will ^make 

 it necessary to strike at the root of the 

 evil. The fact must be made known to 

 these owners that the men whoproflFer 



their services for small pay almost in- 

 variably are small men in the profes- 

 sion; that a capable gardener is entitled 

 to, and expects, proper compensation for 

 his services, just as do the capable men 

 in other professions. 



It should not be amiss to suggest here 

 that salaries within the gardening pro- 

 fession can never be regulated, or fixed, 

 as some choose to call it, either through 

 cooperation or by means of any other 

 method. Professional gardening will al- 

 ways be looked upon as a luxury by 

 those who employ it, and not as a fixed 

 necessity. This will prohibit the en- 

 forcement of any regulations such as 

 govern trades and labor in general; and 

 those who are possessed of the knowl- 

 edge and skill required of the thorough 

 gardener must rejoice over the fact that 

 they are above the domination of such 

 regulations. What is necessary is to 

 establish a closer relationship between 

 employer and gardener; and to instill a 

 greater confidence in the gardener's 

 ability; and to arouse a greater inter- 

 est on the part of the owner in what 

 his gardener is producing for him. 



When this confidence and interest are 

 once properly created, the relationship 

 of employer and gardener will become 

 such that compensation will be a mat- 

 ter of individual adjustment and not to 

 be fixed as is from time to time advo- 

 cated that it should Ibe. 



That the profession has not gained the 

 recognition to which it is justly en- 



titled is due to the almost total ignor- 

 ance of people as a whole regarding the 

 essentials to properly fit a man for the 

 calling of gardener; for it is commonly 

 accepted that any man who can hoe, dig 

 or sow is qualified to pass as a gardener. 

 Only few people know of the years that 

 must be spent in hard work and study 

 before one can even gain a fair knowl- 

 edge of the fundamentals of this pro- 

 fession; and what learning a gardener 

 must acquire before he can declare, "I 

 am a master of my vocation!" It re- 

 mains with the gardener to disabuse the 

 minds of people that gardening is but 

 little more than ordinary labor and to 

 teach them that it is based on scientific 

 principles, obtained only through long 

 practical training. 



DO IT NOW. 



In case you have a surplus, don 't let 

 it become waste. Offer it at once in 

 The Eeview and you are almost certain 

 to find someone who needs just that 

 identical stock. But don't wait; do it 

 now. Use an advertisement in keeping 

 with the value of the stock you wish to 

 sell; a full page if it will be worth .$30 

 to you to clear the stock, or a classified 

 ad if the quantity is small. And make 

 your offer plain. Tell what the size of 

 your plants is, their condition and 

 value, also what you will take for them. 

 Remember that The Review is the great 

 buyers' guide for this trade. 



