1 , • - ^- 



1348 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



Mabch 21, 1907. 



MOSCHOSMA RIPAEIUM. 



This plant, flowered last winter prob- 

 ably for the first time in America, is a 

 new introduction from South Africa and 

 should be destined to play an important 

 part in midwinter decorations in the 

 future. I have been informed that it was 

 a plant discovered by some of the Brit- 

 ish oflScers serving under Lord Eoberts 

 in the recent Boer wax, but this may all 

 be a drummer's yarn. In any case, the 

 plant is a beautiful thing in flower and 

 I see no reason why it should not be 

 largely grown as a Christmas pot plant, 

 or for conservatory decoration by pri- 

 vate growers. 



The growth of the plant is on the order 

 of the salvia family, free, kind, and not 

 affected by mildew or any insect pests 

 and, so far as I have seen it, I consider 

 it one of the most easily grown plants in 

 cultivation. The plant illustrated is flow- 

 ering in a 9-inch pot and stands six feet 

 high and is three feet across at the base. 



This plant was from a cutting rooted 



solid mass of color. The color of the 

 flower is white, with a faint shade of 

 lavender imparted by the stamens. Seen 

 at a little distance the plant looks like 

 nothing so much as a gigantic spiraea. 

 The flowers have a slightly pungent but 

 not unpleasant odor. 



Grown in a cool house with a night 

 temperature of 50 degrees and ample air 

 days (a carnation house, as a matter of 

 fact), the plants were in full flower by 

 the middle of December and kept in fine 

 condition till the middle of January, 

 after which time the flowers began to 

 drop off. If forced to any extent the 

 flowers might possibly drop sooner, which 

 would militate against it as a Christmas 

 pot plant; but properly handled and 

 grown in a normal temperature, it will 

 make a far better keeping plant, at 

 least, than the Lorraine begonia. If it 

 were only pink or red it would soon 

 sweep the decks as a Christmas plant, in 

 my opinion. But we do not wish to be 

 always measuring flowers by the yard- 

 stick of the mighty dollar and, as a 



Moschosma Riparium. 



in April and was one of a dozen raised 

 with no particular care or culture be- 

 yond such as was given to a batch of 

 chrysanthemums in pots, growing along- 

 side of it. Later stock, rooted even up 

 to August, flowered with equal freedom 

 in 3 -inch to 4-inch pots. 



The flowers individually ai-e tiny, but 

 they are produced in such extraordinary 

 profusion that the plant looks like a 



beautiful picture, I do not think I ever 

 saw anything that pleased me more than 

 this batch of moschosma when in full 

 flower. 



There are hundreds of small conserva- 

 tories where flowers in midwinter are 

 highly prized that would be greatly 

 beautified by the addition of one or two 

 plants of this easily grown subject. This 

 yfear I propose to plant a quantity out 



in the garden and lift them early in 

 September, as I would chrysanthemums, 

 and I have no doubt they will grow away 

 with hardly a check, for the plant makes 

 a mass of fibrous roots, ajid should lift 

 easily. 



In conclusion, I would say that there 

 are few plants that will make the show- 

 ing with a minimum of care that the 

 moschosma will, and I see no reason why 

 it should not give satisfaction and pleas- 

 ure to a large majority of flower and 

 plant lovers. Charles H. Totty. 



GETTING TOGETHER HELPS. 



Conference of Shippers and Guriers. 



The program committee of the Flo- 

 rists' Club of Springfield, 0., arranged 

 for a somewhat novel, interesting and 

 practical conference at the Maxch meet- 

 ing. 



The city is particularly fortunate in 

 that it enjoys the advantages and keen 

 competition of five leading express com- 

 panies, which maintain oflSces here, each 

 one of which is alert for business, and 

 the agents and employees are uniformly 

 accommodating and courteous, always 

 on the lookout for as large a share of 

 plant shipments as possible, the plant 

 trade standing first in importance vnth 

 them in volume of business. 



The companies were severally repre- 

 sented by their local agents as follows: 

 H. E. McOwen, Adams; Walter Warner, 

 American; E. C. Edmondson, Pacific; 

 M. E. Tyler, United States; L. H. 

 Whitehead, Wells Targo. Mr. White- 

 head, a veteran in the service to the ex- 

 tent of filling the d^cription implied by 

 his name, but just as active as any of 

 the younger agents, might be termed the 

 dean of the group, and was delegated to 

 act as spokesman and quite capably per- 

 formed this duty. 



A careful explanation was made as to 

 the application to plant shipments of 

 special discounts under "General Spe- 

 cial" and "Scale N" of the express 

 tariffs, varying from twenty to thirty 

 per cent off regular merchandise rates. 

 Under the provisions of the interstate 

 commerce law, the shipper is held 

 equally responsible with the carrier as to 

 correctness of weights, it being a mis- 

 demeanor to report a shipment at any- 

 thing less than actual correct weight. 



A pasted label for baskets and paste- 

 board boxes was recommended, rather 

 than a tag attached by means of a 

 string, which frequently gets torn off. 

 For wooden boxes a tag or card tacked 

 on the end and marked in full with 

 waterproof crayon on the top is consid- 

 ered the surest method. 



A slip inside each package showing 

 address of consignee is held to be a 

 splendid safeguard in case of the entire 

 loss or obliteration of all outside marks 

 through accident, exposure, wreck or fire, 

 as this inside mark may frequently be 

 the means of enabling the carrier to 

 make delivery to proper consignee, 

 whereas the time otherwise necessary for 

 tracing back to shipping point, even 

 though this might be possible from any 

 information at hand, would frequently 

 be suflBcient to allow the stock to perish. 



The retail catalogue florists present 

 were inclined to think that the special 

 discounts should apply to baskets as 

 well as boxes, but the agents explained 

 that the liability to damage in handling 

 is much greater when packed in baskets 

 than in boxes. 



The question ^of overcharges was 



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