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The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



March 1, 1906. 



PHILADELPHIA. 



The Market 



All the pretty girls have put on sack- 

 cloth and ashes, the large balls are over 

 and society has given up the business 

 of entertaining. The result is a grad- 

 ually declining market, with probabil- 

 ity of a further drop next week. So 

 far carnations and bulbous flowers have 

 most felt the lessening demand. Eoses 

 are still so far from plentiful that 

 values have been fairly maintained. 

 Orchids are abundant and of fine quality. 

 Sweet peas are becoming an important 

 factor. They have never been finer at 

 this season and are exceptionally good 

 value for the money. One commission 

 merchant, S. S. Pennock, offers four dif- 

 ferent colors in twice that many shades. 

 The lower prices of violets have in- 

 creased the demand and business in these 

 dainty flowers is better than for some 

 weeks past. , "While rosfes are still scarce, 

 American lEleauties are becoming a little 

 more plentiful. Edw. Eeid filled orders 

 for 800 specials in Baltimore and "Wash- 

 ington last week. 



It is interesting to note that figures 

 based on 1^ year's business show that 

 the returns' from the sale of cut flowers 

 during Lent fully equal those of the six 

 weeks previous. More stock is sold at 

 lower priceg. It is • also interesting to 

 note that the street men paid higher 

 prices last Saturday than ever before 

 known in this city. These fakirs paid 

 in many instances $3 a hundred for se- 

 lect carnations, took them in large quan- 

 tities and returned for more. Under 

 these conditions the street industry is 

 an important factor in the cut flower 

 business during times of overproduction 

 in certain lines. 



The Assembly BalL 



There is a vast difference in the style 

 of decorating. The old idea of decorat- 

 ing was to conceal ugly corners, or im- 

 perfect places on the wall. This was 

 often done with plants that were imper- 

 fect themselves, the name of "decora- 

 tive" stock being given to plants that 

 were not good enough to be classed as 

 perfect specimens. The result of this 

 style of decorating frequently led to 

 overcrowding, plants necessarily being 

 massed closely in order to give the effect 

 and to conceal their imperfections. The 

 higher style of decorating consists in 

 using perfect plants in such a way as 

 to show their symmetry, the beautiful 

 proportions of a plant properly placed 

 heightening the effect of a beautiful 

 ballroom, parlor, or stairway. 



This idea, which may be fairly con- 

 sidered as the advanced form of decorat- 

 ing, found expression in the decorations 

 arranged by John P. and Edward 

 Habermehl for the last Assembly ball, 

 held on February 23 in the Bellevue- 

 Stratford. The beautiful ballroom, mas- 

 sive stairway and handsome anterooms 

 were never seen to better advantage than 

 on this occasion. The features of the 

 decoration were a magnificent specimen 

 of Cibotium Schiedei and the pyramid 

 azaleas, beautifully flowered. Pink was 

 the predominating color in flowers. 

 Green was used to great advantage in 

 forming the stage-setting for the orches- 

 / tra of ninety pieces. The arrangement 

 of flowers on the supper tables differed 

 from former years. The low vases were 

 abandoned. Fully 100 tall vases were 

 used. Each vase was filled with a hand- 

 some bouquet of fancy flowers, one' va- j 



riety, American Beauties, Bridesmaids, 

 white lilac, snapdragon, Easter lilies and 

 fancy carnations, the high vase idea be- 

 ing intended to allow the guests to see 

 each other clearly, while the effect on 

 entering the room was much enhanced. 



Sharon Hill. 



Alex. B. Scott, managing partner of 

 the firm of Eobt. Scott & Son, rose 

 grower, forcer of Easter plants, grafter 

 (in the pure, not the wicked sense), 

 gardenia specialist, American agent 

 for the firm of Alex. Dickson & Sons, 

 Belfast, Ireland, and producer of miscel- 

 laneous plants for the mailing business 

 of W. Atlee Burpee & Co., is unques- 

 tionably one of the coming men. 



Mr. Scott's ambition has steadily in- 

 creased his place at Sharon Hill until 

 to-day it is one of the largest and most 

 interesting places near Philadelphia. An 

 immense range of glass was added last 



Here is my dollar for another year of 



m 





Please send the ntimb^s I have missed 

 by not being prompt; I simply was 

 very busy and neglected it, for I cer- 

 tainly enjoy and profit by every num- 

 ber. I shall in future be more prompt 

 and have no hard feelings because you 

 stopped the paper; I well know you 

 must have some system. 



W. L. KORB. 



Louisville, Ky., Feb. 13, 1906. 



season for Beauties, while later, in the 

 fall, another range was put up for Crim- 

 son Eambler and Dorothy Perkins roses 

 for Easter forcing. This will be supple- 

 mented, as before mentioned in the Ee- 

 viEW, by another range of short-span 

 houses to be erected for Beauties next 

 spring. Literally, this range is for 

 Eichmonds, as the increase will be in 

 that rose and not in Beauties, but noth- 

 ing is too good for the American Beauty, 

 so the new houses will be planted with 

 that rose, while some of the older Beauty 

 houses will be devoted to Eichmonds. 



Killarney will also be more largely 

 grown. Mr. Scott is much pleased with 

 this Irish favorite, the preference being 

 given to grafted plants ovejr those on 

 their own roots. Eegarding the older 

 varieties, grafted Bridesmaids looked ex- 

 ceptionally well and are in full crop at 

 present. Brides had been pruned and 

 were making good growth; two-year-old 

 plants. Beauties had been grown in beds, 

 as an experiment. Mr. Scott had always 

 favored benches in the past. I am under 

 the impression that the new houses will 

 be planted in benches with this rose. 



The gems of the whole collection were 

 200 Irish roses, imported last fall, now 

 on trial, part in Liberty and part in 

 Bridesmaid temperature. There are 

 twenty-seven varieties in all, and each 

 will be given a thorough test, to decide 

 whether the good qualities noted in 



Ireland remain after their journey over 

 the sea. Among these varieties is th» 

 far famed Betty, exquisite in iSbloring^ 

 almost unrivaled as an outdoor rose,|. 

 though not desirable as a cut flower. 



Dorothy Perkins will make her debut 

 here next Easter. The plants are grown- 

 somewhat in the style of Crimson Eam- 

 bler for forcing. They look well. 



I neglected to say that among the 

 Eichmonds was one plant that has showa 

 a tendency to climb. It is being watched 

 with interest. I might write a great 

 deal more of interest about this place,, 

 to me one of the most fascinating of the' 

 many I visited, but lack of space com- 

 pels me to close with merely a mention 

 of the great amount of grafting that is 

 being done. The young plants, both 

 grafted and own root, are full of vigor. 



Various Notes. 



C. C. Pqllworth and Mrs. Pollworth^ 

 of Milwaukee, spent a day in Philadel- 

 phia on their way home. The fact that 

 their wedding cards did not reach us 

 until after they departed interfered with 

 the time-honored custom of rice and old 

 shoes. 



The many visitors to M. Eice & Co. 

 these days find a large and complete 

 line of both supplies and ribbons. 



Albert Harvey & Sons, Brtindy wine 

 Summit, have decided to bu^d three 

 trussed houses 21x200. The cnrder has 

 been placed with the Burnham-Hitch- 

 ' in^-Pierson Co., through their represen- 

 tative, D. T. Connor. This is "'virtually 

 a new style of houft in the carnation; 

 district, there being no ridge or purlin 

 supports. The same representative has 

 placed an order for Benj. T. Allen, of 

 304 Wister street, Germantown, for a 

 house 20x100, with stone sides, to be 

 used as a conservatory. 



Wm. A. Walton, of Oxford, has been 

 very successful with Carnation Gov. Wol- 

 cott. He believes this variety to be 

 the greatest white. His stock seen at 

 the Flower Market is very fine. 



The Leo Niessen Co. has an excep- 

 tionally nice lot of cattleyas, also white 

 and pink orchids in quantity. 



Wm. Bidden, of West Philadelphia,, 

 continues to send fine shipments of 

 Helen Eeid carnation to Edw. Eeid. Mr. 

 Eeid believes this carnation to be in 

 the front rank of shipping varieties. By 

 some it is preferred to Mrs. Lawson,^ 

 which it resembles in color. 



Berger Bros, are handling some very 

 fine Princess of Wales violets. 



Eugene Bernheimer is handling excep- 

 tionally fine Princess violets, in quan- 

 tity; also single and double stocks, pink 

 and white. The best double pink this 

 week measured about thirty-six inches 

 and was the best ever seen in the mar- 

 ket. 



Sam'l S. Pennock 's new office is a 

 credit to our profession. 



Jos. Black & Son, Hightstown, N. J., 

 are sending a fine lot of Enchantress 

 and Lawson carnations to the Flower 

 Market. 



Wm. J. Moore has been handling fine 

 sweet peas in quantity. 



J. J. Habermehl 's Sons decorated the 

 Academy of Music for the Philopatrian 

 ball on Monday night. They also had 

 the decorations for the Maennerchor on 

 Tuesday. 



H. H. Battles has been making a hit 

 with his baskets of spring flowers. 



Wm. J. Baker is handling a very fine 

 grade of Emperor daffodils. They are 

 grown by Theo. Edwards, of Bridgeton^ 

 N. J. 



