20 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



Decdmbbb 23, 1909. 



.V.;* 



DON'T NISS SALES 



at New Year's and in January — because your Supplies have run out. 



GO OVER YOUR STOCK AT ONCE 



See what you have sold down too close on during the Christmas rush — and send 

 US an order« so you will have everything you need for the good trade that is coming 



these next weeks. yy^ 1,^^^ ^ complete line of all Staple and Fancy Articles 



and can ship at once. How about the Violet Boxes, the Ribbons and a dozen other items you need every 



day ? Replenish today. 



A. L. Randall Co. 



Wholesale Florists 



£. D. Phone Central 1406 



PrlTftte ExehuiKe aU 



Departments 



19-21 Randolph St, Chicago 



Mention The Review when you write. 



done with it? Everybody buying local- 

 ly was looking forward to Giristmas, 

 looking for bargains in stock that would 

 last till Sunday. Long distance ship- 

 ping began Monday and was quite heavy 

 Tuesday, but the stock that was not good 

 enough to ship could not command much 

 money the first of this week. The grow- 

 ers who expected it to realize Christmas 

 prices will be much disappointed. 



This issue of the Review goes to press 

 right in the rush of the Christmas busi- 

 ness, too late to speak of the prospects 

 and too early to tell anything of the out- 

 come. It appears certain, however, that 

 the demand will at least equal the sup- 

 ply of good stock. There may be white 

 carnations, sleepy carnations and blue 

 Beauties that do not find a satisfactory 

 sale, but the way the orders poured in at 

 the beginning of the week gives the im- 

 pression that the wholesalers all ar^ 

 pretty well booked up and may be com- 

 pelled to cut early orders and refuse 

 late ones altogether. Indeed, as early 

 as Monday some houses were rejecting 

 good orders tendered them. The long 

 continued dark, cold weather has reduced 

 the supply, but a greater factor than the 

 reduction of the local crop is that it has 

 cut down production all over the middle 

 west. The result is that buyers through 

 the country, who had counted on having 

 a pretty good supply of their own, sud- 

 denly awakened to the fact that their 

 cut would not be anywhere near so large 

 as they had expected. Consequently they 

 began pouring orders in on this market, 

 large orders, and many of them, calling 

 for roses in thousand lots. 



Early in the week the wholesalers 

 were almost unanimous in the belief that 

 every rose was sold. Some said they 

 would have enough of the extra special 

 grade so that they could take further 

 orders, but others said they had more 

 orders in proportion for the long stock 

 than for the lower grades. Christmas is 

 a season which naturally calls for the 

 best. Stock which might do at Memorial 

 day simply cannot be used at Christmas. 



The prospect for a stiff market on 

 roses, with a fairly large supply of 

 carnations, has turned many buyers to 

 the latter. Some large orders have been 

 booked at a shade below the best prices, 

 but for the present prices are firm. The 



probable supply of violets also is 

 booked up. 



The consensus of opinion in the market 

 early this week was that the week will 

 close with prices on the up grade, in- 

 stead of on the down grade as usually 

 is the case at a holiday. But you never 

 can tell. Often it is the reverse of what 

 everybody expects, and the bright sun 

 of the last few days has brought in a 

 lot of flowers. 



Valley is again on the short side and 

 Easter lilies hard to find. Poinsettias 

 are abundant. Single daffodils are in. 

 Boxwood, recently received in large 

 quantity, has turned out to be of poor 

 quality, so poor in some cases that no 

 buyer will touch it. Good boxwood is 

 scarce. As first-class holly is hard to 

 find and high in price, boxwood and red 

 berries are being used for Christmas 

 wreaths in greater quantity than ever 

 before, so good boxwood is firm in price. 



VariotM Notes. 



Considerable stock was frozen during 

 the zero weather last week ; not only cut 

 stock on the way to the wholesalers, but 

 Christmas plants on the way to the re- 

 tailers. The growers seem to be the 

 careless ones, for none of the stock 

 shipped out by the wholesalers was re- 

 ported lost and the retailers took good 

 care to see that wagons were warmed 

 and deliveries sufficiently protected. 



Holly took an advance the latter part 

 of last week, $6 being asked for any- 

 thing good enough for first-class store 

 trade, and $7 for extra good cases. 

 Bouquet green continues scarce, but the 

 market has quieted down. As soon as 

 the average buyer comes to understand 

 that green will cost $10 to $12 per case 

 he loses interest — uses something else or 

 goes without. 



George Wienhoeber says that the 

 Fleischman Floral Co. has ordered 75,000 

 violets for delivery in two days this 

 week and that he does not think even 

 this quantity will suffice for the Christ- 

 mas demand. Hardly any of their orders 

 for violets call for less than 100 and 

 many are for 300 or 400 to a box. 

 " George W. Sykes, Chicago representa- 

 tive of Lord & Burnham Co., says that 

 while things are quiet just now in the 

 greenhouse building line, he looks for 



Aphine 



The new insecticide discov- 

 ery that kills plant lice of 

 every species. 



Effective Indoors 



and 



Outdoors 



Send for Descriptive Circular 

 GEORGE E. TALMADGE, Inc. 



Madison, N. J. 



Mention The Review when you write. 



1910 to be an excellent year. He has 

 booked some good contracts since es- 

 tablishing the Chicago branch. His son 

 is in the office with him. 



John Degnan has turned decorator, his 

 specialty being the embellishment of the 

 baby Christmas trees Winterson 's Seed 

 Store is selling in such numbers. Mr. 

 Degnan puts these in the bird 's-nest twig 

 baskets and other appropriate receptacles 

 and decorates them with many little 

 bows of holly-red baby ribbon, pine 

 cones, tiny candles, etc. So dressed up. 

 the trees are ready sellers at fine prices. 



E. Wienhoeber says the severe cold 

 has been a great handicap on business — 

 it has reduced supply, rendered delivery 

 difficult and shut off Christmas shoppers. 

 Most of Mr. Wienhoeber 's customers 

 shop in their carriages or autos, so if 

 the cold keeps them indoors one can 

 imagine what it does to the florists who 

 have less wealthy patrons. At the same 

 time, the Wienhoeber staff has been ex- 

 ceedingly busy with decorations, de- 

 butante affairs, etc. 



Clarence W. Marks, shoemaker, racing 

 man and patron of floriculture, who was 

 known to a large number of florists, died 



