18 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



Decbmbbk 9, 1909. 



aiders it one of the best commercial 

 varieties which have originated on his 

 place. 



PYFER'S PURCHASE. 



Henry Eichholz, of Waynesboro, Pa., 

 sends the following item under date of 

 December 4: 



"A. T. Pyf er, manager of the Chi- 

 cago Carnation Co., has purchased the 

 entire stock of the Lawson colored sport, 

 Washington. The price to be paid is said 

 to be $20,000." 



Referring to the same subject, Mr. 

 Pyf er wrote December 7 : 



' * We suppose you have already learned 

 of the fact that we purchased the stock 

 of the dark pink sport of Enchantress 

 from Mr. Eichholz, Waynesboro, Pa., 

 which he has registered as Washington. 

 The color is nearer the shade of Lawson 

 than any variety we know of. He has 

 3,000 plants of the variety growing at 

 his place, and quite a number of cut- 

 tings already propagated. The stock is 

 all extremely robust and healthy, and 

 every indication is we have a carnation 

 that has been looked forward to for a 

 great many years. As we stated before, 

 the color is as near Lawson as any va- 

 riety we know of, although when the 

 flower gets old it does not show any blue. 

 Otherwise it is identical with Enchant- 

 ress. He has tested the keeping qual- 

 ities along with Enchantress and other 

 varieties growing on his place, and finds 

 it to be even better than Enchantress. 

 Mr. Burki, at Pittsburg, is also growing 

 a few plants of it, and it is showing up 

 remarkably well with him, and he thinks 

 a great deal of it. ' ' 



AMERICAN CARNATION SOCIETY. 



Backer & Co., Billerica, Mass., register 

 carnation Red Prince, J. H. Manley x 

 Queen; scarlet; size three to three and 

 one-half inches; continuous bloomer, and 

 free; does not burst calyx; holds color 

 in hot weather; stems twenty-four to 

 thirty inches from start. 



A. F. J. Baur, Sec'y. 



FERNS AND FERN DISHES. 



Every florist who is dealing with the 

 public is frequently called upon to fill 

 and supply fern dishes, and much in- 

 genuity is being shown by up-to-date 

 florists in the artistic arrangement and 

 design of these popular articles. An at- 

 tractive fern dish is often a better adver- 

 tisement for the florist than almost any- 

 thing else he sends out, because it is one 

 of the staple articles that sells day after 

 day and is always in use. In connection 



with the filling of fern dishes, most 

 florists find it profitable to keep a good 

 assortment of the dishes themselves, as 

 many customers, seeing a neat dish with 

 a proper filling of ferns, would buy; 

 whereas, if they had to buy the dish 

 separately, they would not bother with 

 It. Among the newer dishes on the mar- 

 ket are some exceedingly . pretty ones 

 called Dellwood ware, an illustration of 

 which is given. They are manufactured 

 by the Gold Furniture Co., of Chicago. 

 The line is a large one and includes a 



variety of shapes and sizes. Among their 

 special features is a double pan, one to 

 contain the soil and the other a drip 

 pan, just below. They are both easily 

 removed from the main dish by little ring 

 handles on each side. The vase is a 

 composition molded in decorative form 

 on wood and is light and strong. A stock 

 of dishes is of double value to the florist 

 handling them; first, from the profit de- 

 rived from the dish itself, and second, 

 from the aid it gives in boosting the sale 

 of ferns. 



ORCHID JOTTINGS. 



Cattleyas. 



The orchid houses during the months 

 of autumn are always attractive. The 

 scarcity of bloom, which always exists 

 just prior to the flowering of Cattleya 

 labiata, has passed and there will be 

 cattleyas and other orchids in abundance 

 for some time to come. What a wonder 

 ful blank we would have in the autumn 

 without C. labiata! Harking back but 

 a few years, it was practically unknown. 

 Its rediscovery in quantity was the 

 greatest orchid fiiid in a decade. It 

 could be wished that all cattleyas would 

 grow and flower as freely as C. labiata. 

 When we see sheaths carrying four to 

 seven flowers each, standing up boldly, 

 we can hardly suppress a sigh of regret 

 that the later Trianajs will not prove so 

 prolific. 



While in flower the labiatas should 

 have the cool end of the house, where 

 they are well shaded, and the atmos- 

 phere should be kept drier. Watering of 

 these and all other cattleyas must then 

 be done with greater care, always choos- 

 ing early morning on a bright day for 

 the work. October this year was bright 

 and warm and more moisture at the roots 

 is necessary under such conditions. 



It is a mistake to remove all shading 

 from cattleyas and Iselias too early, but it 

 is well to considerably reduce it. The 

 dark green plants produced under heavy 



shade are beautiful to look upon, but do 

 not flower as satisfactorily as those 

 which are exposed to more sun, even 

 though their foliage may look much 

 paler by comparison. Cattleyas want 

 plenty of fresh air and the house should 

 never be closed tight at this season of 

 the year. Even in winter some bottom 

 ventilation can be afforded on all but 

 the coldest days. 



Just as soon as the labiatas pass out 

 of flower, is the time to repot. Good 

 osmunda fern fiber, with the fine parti- 

 cles shaken out, is an excellent potting 

 medium, one which is porous and re- 

 mains sweet. All orchids should be 

 firmly potted. Such as shake in the bas- 

 kets and pots will never thrive. Pots 

 and pans, on the whole, are preferable 

 to baskets for cattleyas, provided they 

 have ample drainage, but many growers 

 produce marvelously fine plants in bas- 

 kets. 



Odontoslossums. 



The baby orchid, Odontoglossum 

 grande, is attractive and interesting in 

 its season. It grows well in shallow 

 pans hung well up to the light in a cool 

 house. A winter temperature of 50 to 

 52 degrees is about right. Strong bulbs 

 will carry a dozen or more flowers each 

 and these last in good condition for 

 three weeks. 



The last summer was rather trying for 

 Odontoglossum crispum. It is doubtful 

 if we will ever make much of a success 



Some of the Dellwood Ware Fern Dishes. 



