NOVBMBBB 12, 1908. 



The Weekly Florists* Review. 



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THE NATIONAL 



FLOWER SHOW 



SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FLORISTS SCORES A 

 SUCCESS WITH ITS FIRST EXHIBITION 



THE GREATEST EXHIBITION EVER HELD IN AMERICA. 



In the nature, of things it was in- 

 evitable that the trade should be keenly 

 critical of the national flower show. In- 

 spired at the Washington convention 

 of the S. A. F., the years of prepara- 

 tion aroused the anticipations of the 

 craft -to the point where nothing short 

 of perfection was looked for, in exhibits, 

 in arrangement, in management, and in 

 the thousand and one details connected 

 with so large an undertaking. It is 

 natural that there should have been 

 some failures in the smaller matters, 

 but the large fact stands out that, to 

 the Chicago public, the national flower 

 show eclipses in interest anything here- 

 tofore held in that city. Chicago was 

 chosen as the city in which to try the 

 experiment of a national exhibition, be- 

 cause its shows have been the largest 

 in the country and have been responded 

 to by the public more generally than in 

 any other city. That the national flower 

 show, at an advanced admission price, 

 is drawing more people day after day 

 than ever before attended, and that the 

 public has nothing but words of highest 

 praise, is a better indication than any 

 trade judgment as to the success of 

 this first national exhibition. 



It is a nine days' show, from Novem- 

 ber 6 to 14, and favored by splendid 

 weather there was no sign of waning 

 public interest after six days. Sunday, 

 November 8, broke all records for at- 

 tendance. 



The Plan of Arrangement 



After having held a number of suc- 

 cessful shows in the Coliseum, the man- 

 agement was confronted with the ne- 

 cessity of providing an arrangement 

 which would at once impress the visitor 

 with being different from the arrange- 

 ment of the preceding shows. To this 

 end suggestions were asked from a num- 

 ber of sources, the final selection be- 

 ing a plan of arrangement supplied 

 by A. Z. Fraser, the designer whose deco- 

 rative effects have caused the store of 

 Marshall Field & Co. to have a world- 

 wide reputation in this line. The cen- 

 tral idea was a lawn effect, with per- 

 golas — four of them — each being sev- 

 enteen feet high, twelve feet wide and 

 seventy feet long. Their use in the cen- 

 ter of the Coliseum cut in badly upon 

 the floor space for exhibits, but added 

 immensely to the facility with which the 

 crowds could be handled, there being 

 a walk beneath each pergola. It is 

 said that the taste for pergolas resembles 



that for olives, in that it is an acquired 

 taste, and also in that, once acquired, 

 one's liking grows apace. Many of the 

 trade visitors had neglected to acquire I eastern exhibits were not as numerous 



much better than at first thought, and 

 in the end practically every florist gave 

 the scheme of arrangement his unquali- 

 fied approval. The only trouble was that 

 it shut off the view from the balconies, 

 in a measure. 



At the opening a great many of the 

 splendid specimen plants were badly 

 crowded, hiding their perfection; but as 

 the days progressed the management 

 spread them out, each day showing an 

 improvement in the general effect. The 

 public said the general effect of the 

 show was the best ever. The balcony 

 was obscured by a lavish use of wild 

 smilax, and this material also was used 

 around the lights in the roof, with ex- 

 cellent result. It also constituted the 

 vines on the pergolas. If there was 

 anything lacking in public estimation, 

 it was the row of retail exhibits, which 

 in recent years have occupied the spaces 

 under the balconies. 



Exhibits From East and 'West. 



As a start at a national exhibition 

 this show must be considered good. The 



Vm. F. Ka«tin£. 



(Chairman National Flower Show.) 



the pergola habit, and for them at least 

 a second look was necessary before they 

 liked the arrangement. It proved, how- 

 ever, on closer acquaintance, to be very 



as had been anticipated, but several ex- 

 hibitors came up with a large number of 

 entries, and enormous quantities of 

 stock, and to them a fuU measure of 



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