May 17, lOOG. 



ThcWcekly Florists' Review. 



1873 



Seed Trade News. 



AMERICAN SEED TRADE ASSOaATION. 



Pres., W. H. Grenell, Sag^lnaw W. S., Mlch.i 

 Wrst Vlce-Pres., L. L. May, St. Paul; Sec'y and 

 Treas., C. B. Kendel, Cleveland. The 21th annua 

 meeting win beheld at Toledo, O., June 26-28, 1906 



Visited Chicago: C. Dallwig, Mil- 

 waukee, Wis. 



All reports from California point to 

 a short onion seed crop in that locality. 



Chicago: — It is reported that the Chi- 

 cago Market Gardeners' and Truck 

 Farmers' Association is about to form a 

 trust. 



On the night of Thursday, May 10, 

 frost cut' down the tomato plants over a 

 large part of the acreage for canners ' 

 use in Maryland, Delaware and Virginia. 

 Replanting has made a heavy call for 

 seeds. 



Knud Gundestrup, Chicago, has 

 bought property 80x196 in the onion-set 

 district, with a sidetrack from the C. & 

 N.-W. R. R. He will at once erect a 

 warehouse equipped with all the latest 

 devices for handling sets. 



They are still planting onion seed in 

 the marsh districts of Indiana and Ohio. 

 The acreage is about equal to last year's 

 and the stand better. The late planting 

 last year brought good results; hence 

 planting may continue for another week, 

 as there is some of the ground not yet 

 prepared. 



Repokts from the pea growing sec- 

 tions are that the stand from early seed- 

 ing is good. A cold spring kept planting 

 back, but favorable weather for the past 

 two weeks has more than made up for it. 

 There still are some pieces to be planted, 

 but it is thought that by the end of the 

 week all seeding will have been done. 

 The outlook is good. 



The usual seasonable drop in trade is 

 being experienced by most of the seed 

 houses. Mail orders are not any easier 

 to fill, but there are fewer of them. The 

 jobbers are drawing breath and getting 

 ready for the turnip seed season. Coun- 

 ter trade continues brisk but not up to 

 the volume of a week ago. Everybody 

 seems to be satisfied and expects to find 

 good profitable margins when the season 

 is summed up. 



Vegetation generally never looked 

 better in the California seed-growing 

 section. The March rains came at an 

 opportune time. There may have been 

 some small damage to some fields through 

 cracks opening during the April quake, 

 and mud being emitted, but nothing of 

 any importance has been reported. In 

 San Jose rebuilding of wrecked struc- 

 tures is being rapidly pushed and the 

 people have adopted the slogan ' ' Forget 

 it! Get busy." 



Reports generally from the onion set 

 districts are that the stand is good, acre- 

 age about equal to last year. The growth 

 in the fields at present is equal to what 

 it was at June 1 last year, giving a two 

 weeks' start in favor of this year. This 

 will be an advantage, as the earlier a 

 set crop can be matured, the better it is 

 for the quality of the product. Rain is 

 needed on the clay ground and the wire 

 worm is working some damage on sandy 

 land. The maggot is also getting in 

 some work. 



C E. Kendel. 



A BIT OF CLEVELAND HISTORY. 



In xS39, John Stair, recently arrived 

 from England, started a grocery store 

 with a side line of seeds, locating in 

 Superior street, Cleveland, O., near where 

 the postoflSce is temporarily situated. 

 He took in his son, Benjamin H. Stair, 

 and called the firm J. Stair & Son. In 

 1852 he moved into a new store at 115 

 Ontario street, where the business has 

 been conducted uninterruptedly for fifty- 

 four years. 



In 1857 A. C. Kendel began work for 

 John Stair as boy, to sweep and clean 

 and incidentally learn the seed business. 

 Upon the death of Jolin Stair, his son, 

 B. H., took Mr. Kendel into partnership, 

 calling the firm B. H. Stair & Co. In 

 1875, Mr. Stair died and A. C. Kendel 

 continued the business for himself and 

 the widow of John Stair, changing the 

 firm name to Stair & Kendel. Four 

 years later, upon the deatli of Mrs. 

 Stair, Mr. Kendel bought the Stair in- 

 terests and called the firm A. C. KendeL 



In 1887 A. C. Kendel died and until 

 his two sons, C. E. and W. F. A., who 

 left school to enter the business, attained 

 their majority, the business was con- 

 ducted by Benjamin Wood, the book- 

 keeper since 1866, who was appointed 

 executor by the will of A. C. Kendel. 

 The younger of the two sons became of 

 age in 1893, when the business was 

 turned over to them, a partnership being 

 formed and the firm name, A. C. Ken- 

 del, continued. 



Not long after the firm removed to 

 Ontario street the grocery part of the 

 business was dropped and the fruit com- 

 mission business taken on, this branch 

 following the spring seed business and 

 continuing well into winter. The fruit 

 commission business was continued until 

 about five years ago and played an im- 



portant part in the business lite of 

 Cleveland. The first (California fruit ever 

 shipped to Cleveland was handled by 

 this firm, Bartlett ])ears at that time re- 

 tailing at l-'5 cents eadi. Bananas wore 

 shipped by rail from As])inwall and were 

 sold at 15 cents each. Lemons brtmght 

 $15 per box. 



In 1885 a cold storage warehouse for 

 the storage of apples, pears and grapes, 

 with a capacity of 600 tons of ici'. was 

 added to the business and this still con- 

 tinues, enabling the firm to korp l)usy 

 almost the year around. 



Contrary to the usual custom witii seed 

 stores, this firm has felt that it could 

 I)etter serve the immediate neighl)()rhood 

 rather than extend its sphere and it lias 

 come now to be known as a head(|uarters 

 for seeds, bulbs and bedding ])lants for 

 Cleveland and nearby towns, ami is con- 

 sidered by many to be the best located 

 seed store for the retail business in the 

 United States. It has a notable trade 

 on lawn grass seed, selling by tar the 

 greater part of the seed that has made 

 ( 'leveland 's famous lawns. In 1 S97 it 

 was fortunate in securing a new sweet 

 corn from a retired gardener who liad 

 grown it for many years, whidi was 

 named Kendel 's Early Giant and has 

 introduced the name of the firm wher- 

 ever swec t corn is grown. 



In 1908 C. E. Kendel was elected sec- 

 retary of The American Seed Trade 

 Association, is a member of the Cleve- 

 land Chamlaer of Commerce and repre- 

 sents his firm in the Retail Merchants' 

 Board of the Chamber. Mr. Kendel is 

 now devoting his brief leisure to jterfect- 

 ing arrangements for the twenty-fourth 

 annual meeting of the Seed Trade Asso- 

 ciation at Toledo, June 26 to 28, which 

 jiromises to be a most successful gather- 

 ing. 



