12 



The Florists' Review 



NOTEMBEB 7, 1912. 



REFRIGERATION 



FOR GROWERS 



MODERN COOUNa FACILITIES. 



Cold an Essential for Beat Results. 



The ultimate consumer, in referring 

 to the establishment of a grower of 

 cut flowers, almost always refers to the 

 glass structures as " hothouses, ' ' and 

 the idea of heat is so associated in the 

 mind of the outsider with the produc- 

 tion of plants and flowers that the need 

 for refrigeration never is thought of 

 in connection with the business. In- 

 deed, it is only in the last few years 

 that those whose occupation it is have 

 come to realize the importance of ade- 

 quate cooling facilities in the prepara- 

 tion of flowers for market. Attention 

 has been concentrated on the building 

 and heating of greenhouses, the propa- 

 gation and growing of stock, its cut- 

 ting in quantity — but there, in many 

 instances, the scientific handling has 

 ceased. When the flowers were cut the 

 grower's duty was done. But experi- 

 ence has demonstrated that such is not 

 the case. 



The Earliest Cooling Facilities. 



While there still are large and im- 

 portant cut flower establishments, the 

 owners of which are content to cut the 

 stock, put it in boxes and send it off 

 to be sold for what it will bring, the 

 development of the industry many 

 years ago made it apparent that there 

 is a stage between cutting and ship- 

 ping that is as important as any in 

 the turning of space into cash. Fresh- 

 cut flowers need grading — and harden- 

 ing. 



Just as the dairyman cools his milk 

 before shipping and the fruit grower 

 cools his pick before packing, so should 

 cut flowers be cooled as soon as they 

 come from the "hothouse." It adds 

 materially to the life of flowers to 

 "give them a drink" and cool them 

 down before handling. 



In the beginning all cut flower grow- 

 ers used the only cooling facilities at 



hand, the cellar. But a cellar is inade- 

 quate for a big plant, and other means 

 had to be found. Many large growers 

 who are where they can harvest their 

 own ice built ice-houses in which were 

 storage rooms and cooled sorting 

 rooms. A number are in use today. 



The Iceless Age. 



When the automobile was just 

 breaking in, it was the fashion to refer 

 to it as the dawn of the horseless age. 

 The iceless age dawned at about the 

 same time. One of the more progres- 



Ncw Residence of W. J. Keimcl. 



sive florists, in fact, had a refrigerat- 

 ing machine in the greenhouses several 

 years before any money was spent for 

 motor cars. Now the new greenhouse 

 service buildings contain artificial re- 

 frigeration apparatus just as certainly 

 as any other item of up-to-date equip- 

 ment. 



Thus far the makers of refrigerating 

 machines have been so busy with big 

 jobs that florists have had to hunt 

 suitable equipment. But that time is 



passing. There already are a number 

 of suitable systems on the market. 

 Soon the ice machine man will be cul- 

 tivating the florists, just as the motor 

 truck salesmen are doing. Doubtless 

 the first in the field will get the cream 

 of the business. 



Along this line attention recently 

 was called to the installation of a mod- 

 ern refrigerating plant by the firm of 

 Wendland & Keimel, whose range at 

 Elmhurst, 111., cannot but excite the 

 admiration of all who visit it. 



The firm of Wendland & Keimel is 

 comparatively young, starting some 

 five years ago with a range of ten 

 houses devoted exclusively to the 

 growing of roses. With last season's 

 addition they now have twenty-one 

 houses, covering an area of 130,000 

 square feet and containing 70,000 

 plants. The output, which is sold in 

 the Chicago market, averages about 

 6,000 blooms per day. 



The Refrigerating Apparatus. 



Up to the last few months Wendland 

 & Keimel had cooled their stock in an 

 ordinary ice-box such as is used in 

 wholesale cut flower stores or for stor- 

 age in retail establishments. Finding 

 that increased facilities were neces- 

 sary, they abandoned the old box and 

 put in a new double box cooled arti- 

 ficially. The expense was in the neigh- 

 borhood of only $1,5130 and the equip- 

 ment appears to be ideal. The doors 

 of the boxes face the sorting tables, 

 where the roses are graded. No steps 

 are wasted. The brine tanks are in 

 the top of the box, where the ice ordi- 

 narily goes. Either or both halves of 

 the box can be cooled and used as 

 needed. The motor and compressor are 

 in a space behind the box, where the 

 closing of a door shuts out all dust 

 and the apparatus is out of sight and 

 out of the way. 



The electric motor drives the com- 

 pressor, which vaporizes the ammonia. 



Roce Growing Ettablishmeat of Wendland & Keimel, at Elmhurst, III. 



