The Weekly Florists' Review^ 



Mat 18. 1911. 



tie Memorial day offerings. "They out- 

 last cut flowers many times over and 

 are inexpensive, ' ' may be your argu- 

 ment to the customer. 



Some nice orders are usually landed 

 for decorative pieces for monuments. 

 The wreath, as usual, holds the place 

 of favor, and second in preference 

 comes the heavy garland. How does a 

 monument wreath differ from any other 

 wreath? It should show from both 

 sides. How shall I make one which 

 shall be easily handled and placed? 

 After ascertaining the size of the shaft, 

 make two wreaths of the same size and 

 fasten them together, back to back. 

 Secure to the shaft near the center, and 

 if there is nothing about the shape of 

 • the shaft which holds the double wreath 

 in place, fasten it with a wire loop 

 around the monument and fasten each 

 end to the inside wire of the wreath 

 frame. If the height of the monument 

 is too much for you, make a loose 

 wreath and secure the ends after en- 

 circling the shaft. 



Garland for a Monument. 



A heavy garland, made on a substan- 

 tial rope of green and decorated with 

 flowers, makes a handsome and dignified 

 decoration for a monument. Make a 

 loop at the top, of the proper size to 

 catch on a top corner of the shaft. It 

 may be necessary to strengthen its hold 

 by wiring also. Then proceed to drape 

 it around the body of the monument till 

 a convenient place is found on the 

 pedestal for a stop. Attach to a formal 

 emblem, which may be placed on the 

 ground or against the vase. To elab- 

 orate this, bank all around the base of 

 the monument with blooming plants, 

 ferns or tall spikes of cut flowers, sink- 

 ing the vases or pots in the ground or 

 covering them with moss or cut green. 

 Let the whole decoration be in keeping 

 with color restrictions. 



If it is desired to decorate the grave 

 or the lot further, cover it with panels, 

 in sections of convenient size, of low- 

 growing plants or cut flowers, after the 

 manner of a casket panel. The garland 

 for draping should be about one-half 

 as long again as the height of the 

 monument. 



As incidental to this subject, the mat- 

 ter of inscriptions comes in for consid 

 eration. The artistic value of an in- 

 scription on a piece is small. It is one 

 of the things whicji a designer of re- 

 fined taste seldom suggests, and most 

 pieces are the better for its absence. A 

 pillow, a scroll, the arms of a cross — 

 these are examples of a few places 

 where an inscription may be happily 

 placed. In addition to these, we find 

 ourselves compelled to admit it on lodge 

 and society emblems, but only such 

 lettering as belongs to the badge and 

 never for the purpose of suggesting the 

 donors. Call attention to the fact that 

 the significance of the emblem and the 

 message of the flowers themselves 

 should be sufficient, without the literal 

 inscription. Gertrude Blair. 



Cambridge, Mass. — The ground cov- 

 ered by Fred C. Becker's eleven green- 

 houses, on Cambridge street, is regarded 

 as some of the most valuable land in 

 the city. The business was founded in 

 1860 by the late Frank Becker, who was 

 succeeded in 1895 by his son, the pres- 

 ent proprietor. Karl F. Becker, son of 

 the present owner, has also been assist- 

 ing for some years in the management 

 of the business. 



CEMETEBY WREATHS. 



Loose Flowers Often Unsatisfactory. 



A good many florists, probably a 

 great majority of them, still are selling 

 50-cent bunches as the big item for 

 Memorial day. 



But a good many retailers have found 

 that the flower buying public always is 

 ready to take up with any suggestion 

 of better things — and this applies at 

 Memorial day just as thoroughly as it 

 does at Christmas or any other time. 



Of all the unsatisfactory things flo- 

 rists can sell at Miemorial day, loose 

 cut flowers are the worst. The person 

 who goes to the cemetery with loose cut 

 flowers and no provision for using them 

 there, invariably meets with disap- 

 pointment. If there is no vase on the 

 plot, all that can be done with loose 

 flowers is to "strew" them on the 

 grave — that amounts to throwing tliem 

 on the ground, and it utterly destroys 

 the sentiment on which the observance 



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SPECIAL 



For Decoratjdit Day. 



These beautiful Memorial Wreath*, artis- 

 tically arranged. *r* offered special by Black- 

 istone at the exceptionally low price of S2. Can 

 te sfalpped to any point. 



JVorlhwesf Corner 

 l4th.&.HSts. N.W. 



Phpne Main iTo). 

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Boosting Memorial Day Wreaths. 



of the day is based. A person who pays 

 a dollar for a dozen good carnations 

 to take to a cemetery May 30, lays 

 them reverently on a grave and con- 

 templates the effect, is pretty sure to 

 conclude it wasn 't worth doing. Such 

 a customer doesn't come back. If peo- 

 ple ask for loose cut flowers, inquire if 

 there is a vase at the cemetery. If 

 not, offer to supply one at such small 

 cost that the sale will be certain. That 

 way saves the customers for other 

 years. 



Low Priced Wreaths Best. 



The 50-cent bouquet is an improve- 

 ment over the loose cut flowers — if 

 there is no vase it will at least stay 

 together when it is laid down — but 

 there is a still better way at Memorial 

 day. 



The retailers who are looking up, not 



down, are selling wreaths and sprays to 

 go to the cemeteries. Memorial day is 

 not a time for high prices. The wreaths 

 and sprays must be inexpensive, but 

 they can be sold in enormous quantity. 

 The experience of dozens of enterprising 

 retailers proves it. 



Blackistone, at Washington, does an 

 enormous business in 2-dollar wreaths 

 for May 30. The accompanying illus- 

 tration shows Blackistone 's newspaper 

 advertisement. It is reduced to one- 

 fourth the size it occupies in the Wash- 

 ington papers. At the same time, Black- 

 istone backs up the newspaper adver- 

 tising by filling his window with these 

 Memorial wreaths. The sale is so great 

 that the wreaths must be manufactured 

 by hundreds in advance. 



The prepared magnolia leaves that 

 are now sold by all the supply houses, 

 and which practically every retail flo- 

 rist carries in stock, make it possible 

 to have stock wreaths on hand at all 

 times; all they need is trimming with 

 flowers. Also, wreaths for Memorial 

 day can be made of galax leaves, box- 

 wood, ivy or other materials. These 

 can be made up in advance and stored 

 where they will keep in perfect condi- 

 tion until the morning of May 30. Then 

 they can be trimmed with whatever 

 flowers have been ordered and made 

 ready in quick time for delivery. When 

 you come to think of it, a pretty nice 

 wreath, not too large, can be made for 

 $2. It takes only a few flowers to make 

 quite a showing. 



Sprays seem just a trifle less popular 

 than wreaths for Memorial day. But 

 you can make a mighty fine spray with 

 a dozen peonies and double your money 

 when you sell it at from $2 to $2.50. 

 For a little more money sprays of roses, 

 carnations or other flowers can be sup- 

 plied. 



The people who buy these wreaths or 

 sprays at one Memorial da\' are almost 

 certain to be customers as regularly as 

 May 30 rolls around for years to come. 

 When they take such flowers to the 

 cemetery, they get an effect that looks 

 to be worth the money. Work away 

 from loose flowers or cheap bunches. 

 Sell wreaths. 



TAGOINO WITH FLOWEBS. 



A new use for flowers has been dis- 

 covered by A. L. Randall, the Chicago 

 wholesaler. He says that the latest 

 wrinkle in tag days is to do the tag- 

 ging with a flower instead of a piece 

 of pasteboard on a string. It recently 

 has been tried in cities in the south 

 and worked to perfection. People 

 "loosened up" much more freely for 

 a flower than they ever did for a tag. 

 The charity profited, the local florist 

 who supplied the flowers made a com- 

 fortable sum, and a big lot of stock 

 was called out of a heavily loaded 

 market. 



The idea is capable of wide use; 

 there is no copyright on it. Any florist 

 can organize a tag day in his town; 

 there always are charities that are will- 

 ing to push along any new idea that 

 promises a profit. Every florist who is 

 in touch with the situation knows that 

 there are times when he can buy large 

 lots of cut flowers at a price that will 

 give him a chance to get a good return 

 for the effort necessary to work up the 

 order; it don't take much talk to im- 

 press people with the fact that a tag 

 day with flowers will make a hit. 



