May 3, 1906. 



The Weekly Florists' Revie w^ 



J7J3 



House of Easter Lilies at the Establishment of Peirce Bros., Waltham, Mass. 



(Showing how much hardware can be put In a house and still turn out good stoch.) 



•facts and its fiction so that a reader 

 may easily mistake one for the other, we 

 find the following: 



There Is reason to expoct that before long 

 new and Improved kinds of lettuce will be on 

 the market. The Government Plant Bureau has 

 been engaged recently In crossing some of the 

 cultivated varieties — a thing hitherto supposed 

 to be Impossible — the most important object In 

 view being to secure types that are specially 

 adapted for growing under glass. 



What Is wanted Is lettuce that will ripen 

 quickly, head readily and be proof against dis- 

 eases. Already a number of new type* of 

 superior excellence have been obtained and 

 "field trials" have been made of some of them, 

 the best plants being picked out for the purpose 

 of propagation. Hitherto gardeners have been 

 obliged to depend altogetlier upnn snch selection 

 for the Improvement of their lettuces, but the 

 opportunity of breeding them will open up new 

 possibilities. 



It Is an interesting and rather curious fact 

 that lettuce Is the only electric crop, so to 

 speak, that Is commercially successful. For a 

 number of years past, lettuces have been grown 

 by the help of electric light, whhh Is made to 

 supplement the sunshine of short vinter days 

 so effectively as to render possible the raising 

 of three or four crops under glass during the 

 cold season. 



VEGETABLE MARKETS. 



Chicago, Mav 2. — Cncimbers, 75c to 

 $1.25 doz.; head lettuce, .$5 to $7 bbl.; 

 leaf lettuce, 35c to 40c case; spinach, 

 25e to 50c box; mushrooms, 20c to 50c lb. 

 box. 



New York, May 1. — rncumbers in 

 large supply; No. i Boston, 65c to 85c 

 doz.; No. 2 Bof^ton, $3 to .$4 box; cauli- 

 flower, $2 to .$6 doz.; lettuce, 40c to $1; 

 mushrooms, 20c to ()5c lb.; tomatoes, 10c 

 to 2.5c lb.; radishes. $1 to $2 100 

 bunches; rhubarb, .$1.50 to $2.50 100 

 bunches. 



BosTox, April 30.— Cucumbers, $3 to 

 $6 box; tomatoes, .30c lb.; lettuce, 50c 

 to 90c doz.; mushrooms, $2 to .$3 per 

 4-lb. basket ; rhubarb, 5c to 6c lb. ; bunch 

 beets, .$1.50 to $1.75 doz.; radishes, $2 

 to $2.25 box. 



TOMATOES. 



With the brighter days and more dry- 

 ing atmosphere a much more plentiful 

 supply of water will be needed to keep 

 the plants in a healthy, growing condi- 

 tion. Not only is more moisture at the 

 roots needed, but more atmospheric mois- 

 ture is also necessary. The amount of 

 atmospheric moisture must be judiciously 

 regulated. In this the weather condi- 

 tions must be taken into consideration. 

 On bright, warm days it would be hard 

 to overcharge the atmosphere, as it would 

 be necessary to have a good deal of 

 air on the houses to keep the tempera- 

 ture sufficiently low, but the moisture 

 should be so applied that it will be 

 pretty well dried out before the time 

 the house has to be shut down, so as 

 not to have too humid an atmosphere 

 over night. On dull, cloudy days little 

 sprinkling of the passageways or benches 

 will be needed. On such days there is 

 usually sufficient humidity in the air so 

 that it is unnecessary to create any arti- 

 ficially in the house. 



On the other hand, an atmosphere over- 

 charged with moisture is productive of 

 fungous diseases, which often prove quite 

 troublesome to the grower of tomatoes 

 indoors. A disease known as spot is the 

 most prevalent, more so in the late 

 spring and early summer months than 

 through the winter. This is undoubted- 

 ly a fungus, which breaks out in yellow 

 spots, usually on the older leaves, and 

 if not checked will soon spread and de- 

 stroy the whole leaf. The regulation of 

 atmospheric moisture, as I have stated 

 above, is one of the best preventive 

 measures, and a dusting with lime and 

 sulphur mixed in about equal portions 

 and applied when the foliage is dry is 

 good for preventing the spread of the 

 disease. We have tried Bordeaux mix- 

 ture with fair success, but it leaves the 



plants unsightly and we have not found 

 it any more efficacious in preventing the 

 spread of the disease than the lime and 

 sulphur. W. S. Croydon. 



With the 

 Advertising Man 



It is time to commence the spring 

 bedding business. What are you doing 

 to get your share? 



Yes, I know you are growing the stock, 

 but what about selling it? 



Get busy with your handbills, sending 

 them out every Friday. 



Now, follow up this advertising by 

 going to every house in town, or in your 

 neigliborhood if the town is too large a 

 field. Work evenings if you have to, but 

 get after the orders. 



I want to impress on you the neces- 

 sity of getting at it now — today — or the 

 other fellow will get ahead of you. 



Don't stop because someone turned 

 you down, or because Mrs. Smith only 

 wants six tomato plants. Take her order 

 and its "dollars to doughnuts" that be- 

 fore you are ready to deliver this small 

 order she will want something more. 



An<l remember, you can never tell who 

 is going to make a good customer, for 

 j)eople buy plants and flowers spasmodi- 

 cally and it pays to humor them. 



While you are at it, see if you can't 

 get three or four signboards about 6x8 

 feet, in prominent locations around*- 

 town. 



You can make them yourself, and have 

 a sign painter do the painting, 



I want to impress upon you the ad- 

 visability of systematic advertising, no 

 matter whether you spend much or little. 



Form a plan and then stick to it. 



