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JANUARY 3, 1907. 



The Weekly Rorists* Review. 



475 



hieher temperature, makes a larger 

 clump, holds its flowers better above the 

 foliage, retains them longer, and really 

 has only one objectionable point that I 

 know of, and that is its lighter color; it 

 is not very light if well grown. If you 

 have not tried them as pot plants be 

 sure and put that down, for one of the 

 things, that you are going to try for next 

 season, but do not rely on my say so 

 entirely; give all kinds a trial and find 

 out for yourself which variety you are 

 most successful with and find the best 

 sale for, although this latter is a thing 

 that depends greatly on the plants' ap- 

 pearance, for nearly any nice plant, full 

 of bloom, will sell readily if offered at 

 a reasonable price. 



Now, to go back, while you are consid- 

 ering what and how many violets you 

 will grow for next season, be getting 

 your soil ready for the flats for the cut- 

 tings, so that when you have come to 

 your decision you may begin to take cut- 

 tings at once, as this is the best time, 

 up to the middle of March. 



E. E. Shuphelt. 



APHIS ON VIOLETS. 



I have a house of single violets on 

 which the young leaves are curling up. 

 Can you tell me where the trouble is? 

 If I am to use hydrocyanic acid gas 

 please give me the amount for the size 

 of house. A. E. D. 



This inquiry is very indefinite, .but it 

 looks as if the black aphis were at work. 

 If A. E. D. will examine closely he vnll 

 have no trouble in ascertaining if this is 

 the case, as he will readily find them by 

 unrolling the leaves and also by inspect- 

 ing the crown. Of course hydrocyanic 

 acid gas is the best remedy, but the for- 

 mula has been so often given that it 

 hardly seems necessary to repeat it here. 

 Consult your Florists' Manual if you 

 have not the back numbers of the Review. 



R. E. Shuphelt. 



THE READERS' CORNER. 



White Poinsettias. 



Referring to your correspondents' 

 statement, December 13, that none of the 

 poinsettias is white, I wish to say that 

 there is a poinsettia, creamy white, oth- 

 erwise exactly like the red one. Mr. 

 Thomas, now established for himself in 

 New Orleans, had, some eighteen years 



A Basket of Lorraine and Farleyense, Arranged by Sam Murray. 



ago, a house full of them at a private 

 place on St. Charles avenue, New Or- 

 leans. There are also a few plants 

 grown here (Shorb, California), but they 

 are not half so desirable and effective as 

 the red, or the scarlet, double variety. 

 There is hardly a plant that surpasses 

 these in beauty, except perhaps. Euca- 

 lyptus ficifolia, which is with us, all the 

 year around, in bloom. 



"We have a tree thirty feet high which 

 is today, December 25, covered with red 

 flowers that can be seen for some dis- 

 tance. A. ROEDDEE. 



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THE RETAIL 



FLORIST, 



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CHRISTMAS PLANTS. 

 The Christmas trade has served to 

 bring out agsdn, and perhaps more clearly 

 than ever, that flowering plants have as- 

 sumed an impregnable position, even if 

 they have not taken the leading place in 

 holiday sales. From all parts of the 

 countiy the report is that more plants 

 were offered than ever before and that 

 the buyers in a large proportion of 

 cases chose them in preference to cut 

 flowers. One of the principal reasons 



for the popularity of plants no doubt is 

 their cheapness by comparison with the 

 Christmas prices of cut stock, and an- 

 other is the fact that the least enduring 

 of our blooming plants vrill outlast the 

 freshest of cut flowers, but another, and 

 probably the strongest reason for their 

 steady advance in popular favor, is the 

 splendid quality of the plants now of- 

 fered and the marked improvement in 

 the way in which they are shown in the 

 stores. The most unappreciative could 



not fail to approve the artistic taste now 

 quite commonly shown in the filling of 

 baskets and hampers, in the harmonious 

 blending or contrasting of colors of 

 flowers, foliage and embellishments. 

 Add to the foregoing the undoubted fact 

 that retailers who must look to whole- 

 sale markets for at least a part of the 

 Christmas cut flowers can make a 

 better percentage of profit on plants 

 than on cut flowers, and naturally push 

 them, and you have the whole secret of 

 the wonderful development of the holi- 

 day business in flowering plants. 



The character of the plants and plant 

 arrangements most salable at Christmas 

 varies with the character of the stores 

 in which they are offered for sale. In 

 the places where 50 cents a dozen is the 

 price above which carnations cease to 

 move freely it is useless to offer Lorraine 

 begonias, but still this was the most 

 popular plant in high-class stores, and 

 some magnificent stock was seen. More 

 and more growers are learning how to 

 handle this plant and the output of finely 

 shaped, profusely flowered plants in- 

 creases each year. Ardisias were more 

 than usually abundant this year, at mod- 

 erate wholesale prices, and sold well at 

 retail. It is notable that while many 

 stores had cut poinsettias for which there 

 was no call, few had enough of the pans 

 of low, wide-headed plants. These also 

 were in demand as table centerpieces all 

 through the holiday season and will be 

 still more largely grown next year. The 

 azalea is not so valuable a plant at 

 Christmas as at Easter; in buyers* minds 

 it seems to be associated with the lily as 

 an Easter flower. 



