1642 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



Apbil 26, 1906. 



brought here at wholesale from the local 

 company, and shipped west to be grown 

 for the retail business. California, in 

 the vicinity of San Francisco, took a 

 large percentage of the output of the 

 local concern, and there will now be a 

 noticeable decrease in the western busi- 

 ness. 



Mr. Hill said last night that in order 

 to help the western people, accounts 

 which are owed the local concern will 

 be discontinued, so that the western firms 

 may start over again free from debt. 



BUFFALO. 



Easter Aftermath. 



Further knowledge of the Easter busi- 

 ness confirms the figures reported last 

 week, that the aggregate of business 

 was at least ten per cent ahead of any 

 previous year. A few said : ' ' Oh, my 

 business nearly doubled. ' ' Another 

 said : "I did at least twenty per cent 

 more than last year." These are ex- 

 ceptions. People who only started their 

 houses or opened their store a year or 

 two ago are where a substantial increase 

 would naturally be expected. Firms of 

 long standing, who had years ago appar- 

 ently reached the zenith, could not look 

 for such a relative increase. The result 

 is most gratifying and we can congratu- 

 late ourselves that we are in such a 

 healthy, prosperous business and con- 

 servative with all. It comes pretty near 

 being like Portia's immortal plea for 

 mercy. Our products are twice blessed. 

 It blesses him who giveth and her that 

 receiveth. It becomes the dude better 

 than his cane, ' ' It f alleth on the gentle 

 maid and maketh her heart melt toward 

 you. ' ' 



It will be noticed by the most illiter- 

 ate that I have not stuck closely to the 

 text of Shakespeare, but what matters; 

 it's unpopular to be conventional. 



I must again repeat that the demand 

 for violets was the phenomenal feature 

 of Easter. 



In plants there is always room for 

 novelties and you should endeavor to in- 

 troduce something others do not grow. 

 One florist said he could not sell daisies. 

 If we could get Queen Alexandra in as 

 good shape as we can three weeks later, 

 it would be one of the best sellers, and 

 we think it would not be much trouble 

 to do that. We used to grow spiraeas, 

 the old Japonica, and 50 cents and 75 

 cents was all we could realize for them. 

 We believe it was unprofitable at those 

 figures. This year we put two clumps 

 of the Gladstone variety into a 7-inch 

 pot and sold many at $2.50 each. They 

 looked worth it. 



The Crimson Bambler, great as it was 

 for several years, has had its day and 

 you should at once produce Lady Gay 

 rambler. Get dormant plants at once, 

 pot them after cutting them back to 

 within a few eyes and you will have a 

 fuller, larger and much more free flower- 

 ing plant next spring than any Crim- 

 son Bambler, either grown in the field 

 or in pots. 



Of all the varieties of azaleas we 

 handled there was none which sold as 

 well as John Llewelyn, a soft, beauti- 

 ful Enchantress pink. It flowers in pro- 

 fusion the first spring after importing. 

 I know nothing about its adaptability 

 for Christmas flowering, but don't for- 

 get it when you give your order to the 

 wholesale firm or the perpetually smil- 

 ing drummer. 



We have just enjoyed a visit from 



W. T. Bell, of Franklin, Pa. Mr. Bell 

 is a very successful florist in a city and 

 locality where great deeds are not easy 

 of achievement. Mr. Bell will only have 

 contempt for fulsome praise of his char- 

 acter, but he is not an ordinary florist. 

 He is a proficient botanist, entomologist, 

 geologist, and several other ologists, and 

 with all a philosopher. You may think 

 he is reserved and cynical. He is the 

 reverse when he meets the genial spirit. 

 It is no flattery to Mr. Bell when I 

 say that he is one of the few men I 

 know familiarly who make me very 

 careful of remarks made in their pres- 

 ence. Pity it is that such men do not 

 take more interest in the councils of our 

 National Society. W. S. 



TWIN CITIES. 



The Market* 



Business the past week has been fair. 

 Some stores have made a large number 

 of designs, but the most of them have 

 had only a steady trade which is prefer- 

 able to an Easter rush. The general 

 opinion seems to be that Easter does not 

 always bring the profits anticipated, 

 when the extra expense, trouble, etc., is 

 taken into consideration. The green- 

 house man, of course, reaps the benefit 

 if he is able to dispose of all he grows, 

 but, on the other hand, if he is com- 

 pelled to carry much stock over it eats 

 into the profits materially. What we all 

 want is a steady trade and a steady 

 profit. 



Stock is now back to a normal state 

 and the growers are getting ready for 

 their planting trade. Considerable 

 stock is being grown. 



St.PauL 



Otto Hiersekorn reports a good busi- 

 ness and believes that he would be just 

 as well off without any Easter rush. 

 He is making ready for his plant trade. 

 His greenhouse, which is attached to his 

 store, will no doubt come in handy in 

 the way of handling flowering stock. 



Aug. S; Swanson has a fine display 

 of his new rose, Minnetonka. He has a 

 large number of them in pots, which ap- 

 pear to sell well. He reports a favor- 

 able Easter trade. 



Vogt Bros, report a much better busi- 

 ness in their new location. 



L. L. May & Co. have had a good 

 trade, having turned out considerable 

 funeral work the past week. Their 

 counter trade also has been good. Stock 

 with them has been plentiful. Their 

 Easter shipping trade was unusually 

 heavy. : 



Holm & Olson disposed of c(^nsider- 

 able stock, but all dealers carried over a 

 number of lilies. 



We sympathize with S. D. D^singer, 

 whose wife died last Sunday at their 

 home in Chicago. 



Minneapolis. 



Eice Bros, report a large wholesale 

 business, their stock going mostly into 

 the small towns, from which the demand 

 seemed to be very heavy. 



James Souden says Easter trade was 

 fine and in their two stores they un- 

 doubtedly unloaded considerable stock. 

 Business the past week was fair and 

 stock plentiful. 



The Rosary says that business has 

 been very fair and that they have had 

 no difficulty in getting plenty of stock. 



Ralph Latham has been doing very 

 nicely. Being out of the high rent dis- 

 trict is imdoubtedly profitable, as his 

 trade seems to have followed him. 



Felix. 



A FLOWER BOOTH. 



The accompanying illustration shows 

 Mrs. M. E. Hollcraft's booth at the mid- 

 winter fair held at Topeka, Kan. This 

 was one of the handsomest booths at the 

 fair and was always the center of an 

 admiring group. Mrs. HoUcraft con- 

 ducts one of the leading flower stores in 

 Topeka, and is one of the most pro- 

 gressive members of the craft. 



L. D. L. 



Mid-winter Fair Display of a Topeka Florist. 



(There's nothing the matter with Kansas.) 



