MAKCH 17, 1910. 



The Weekly Florists^ Review. 



35 



accompanied by their wives and friends, 

 gathered at 7 o'clock and enjoyed a so- 

 cial hour, after which the large banquet 

 hall was made to ring with popular songs 

 and local hits. The postprandial program 

 was as follows: 



Toastmaster E. S. Osborne 



"My fairy lord, this must be done with haste, 

 For night's swift dragons cut the clouds full 

 fast." 



TOASTS. 



The S. of A. F F. R. Plerson 



*'A man of sovereign parts he Is esteemed." 



The Convention W. N. Rudd 



"This gentleman is happily arrived. 

 My mind presumes, for his own good and ours." 



The Flower City W. C. Barry 



"There's nothing 111 can dwell In such a temple." 

 "Thy virtues spoke of, and thy beauty sounded. 

 Yet not so deeply as to thee belongs." 



The Ladies Hon. W. J. Vesey 



"Most lovolie was she to beholde: 

 Her hair was like to sunn litt golde; 

 As blue as heaven her eye." 



The Flower Show Charles H. Vlck 



"We number nothing that we spend for you: 

 Our duty Is so rich, so infinite, 

 That we may do it still without account." 



The Man that Holds the Bag Wm. F. Kasting 



"Thy charge 



Exactly Is performed." 



The Retailer J. A. Valentine 



"Be merry and employ your chlefest thoughts." 



The Carnation H. B. Dorner 



"Who can paint like nature?" 



The Rose George Asmus 



'■ tlie dainty rose, 



The queen of every one." 



Mr. Osborne, of the Charlton Nursery 



Co., filled the position of toastmaster most 



acceptably. The Fifty-fourth Regiment 



Orchestra furnished music during the 



evening. The committee in charge of the 



banquet included George B. Hart, E. P. 



Wilson and E, S. Osborne. 



THE MARKET FOR GLASS. 



One of the largest dealers in window 

 glass in the United States says that job- 

 bers recently have advanced their prices 

 five per cent in anticipation of a like 

 increase to be made by the manufactur- 

 ers April 1 and that those well informed 

 in the business look for another advance 

 of a similar amount to be made about 

 April 15. The price of greenhouse glass 

 now is at least fifty per cent higher than 

 it was during the days of the depression 

 in the industry and predictions freely 

 are made that the price will advance 

 steadily as the time approaches for the 

 annual summer shut-down in the hand 

 factories. 



BIRCH FOR BENCH POSTS. 



On page 27 of the Review for March 

 3, I noticed an inquiry about the dura- 

 bility of white birch wood for bench posts 

 and I thought the following information 

 might be useful: 



Although birch is one of the handiest 

 and best of woods, it is, perhaps, the 

 quickest to decay in unfavorable condi- 

 tions, such as it would have to contend 

 with in greenhouse construction. A birch 

 tree cut down or blown down in the 

 woods will decay quicker than any other 

 wood. Spruce or hemlock would be much 

 more satisfactory and easier to work 

 with. Wm. Chisholm. 



A FINE VARIEGATED FERN. 



A correspondent in the Review of 

 March 3 incorrectly refers to Blechnum 

 speciosum as being one of the favorite 

 ferns in the collection of J. F. Huss, 

 gardener for J. J. Goodwin, at Hartford, 

 Conn. Mr. Huss is quoted as saying that 

 this species of fern becomes prettily 

 variegated with age and that he has a 

 large assortment of the plants. In point- 

 ing out this error, Mr. Huss writes: 



"The variety I did refer to was 

 Asplenium Goringianum Japonicum pic- 

 tum, which is one of the most beautiful 

 of the hardy, variegated ferns. Another 



One of the More Elaborate Plant Combinations. 



fine Japanese sort is Lastrea aristata 

 variegata, but it is not quite so hardy 

 as the asplenium. Still, this lastrea has 

 passed through the last two winters un- 

 harmed with me. I wish to state that 

 this particular asplenium, if raised from 

 spores, will not become variegated the 

 first year, but will do so the second year 

 and will present a fine appearance, the 

 beautiful rosy center blending charming- 

 ly with the silvery gray of the rest. The 

 lastrea shows its yellow variation in the 

 second and third leaflets. ' ' 



DELPHINIUM BELLADONNA 



J. D. Eisele, vice-president of the 

 Henry A. Dreer Co., of Philadelphia, is 

 justly proud of his success in the propa- 

 gation of Delphinium Belladonna. It 

 has been the habit of the growers in this 

 country to depend on Europe for their 

 stock of this beautiful variety of lark- 

 spur, with the result of much annoyance 

 and loss from winter -killed stock. Last 

 spring Mr. Eisele decided to propagate 

 his own Delphinium Belladonna. In the 

 early fall, Mr. Strohlein pointed out a 

 splendid patch of this delphinium at 

 Locust Farm. They have survived the 

 winter in splendid shape, promising bet- 

 ter stock than could be obtained from 

 the European product. 



Speaking of this delphinium, Mr. Eisele 

 said that when planted early it would 



bloom continuously throughout the sum- 

 mer, giving a turquoise blue flower on 

 long stems, invaluable to the florist for 

 cutting. 



Delphinium Belladonna has been prized 

 for its lawn decorative effect, but its 

 possibilities as a cut flower are not gen- 

 erally known. Phil. 



A READER'S COMMENTS. 



Replying to the question asked in a 

 recent Review, white birch lumber if 

 used in greenhouse construction will last 

 just one year; this wood must be kept 

 perfectly di:y, and you can 't do it in our 

 business. 



About growing Sprengeri from seed: 

 I picked the seeds and washed them free 

 from pulp, then sowed at once and had 

 a quick come-up; not one failed to 

 germinate; it was just as simple as pos- 

 sible. 



I have sprinkled crude oil on my 

 greenhouse benches for some fifteen 

 years, with no a?ter-effects on the stock; 

 the benches are still good, though the 

 headers are not. W. B. W. 



Columbus, Ind. — At Chas. Barnaby's 

 greenhouses business is good and there 

 is a fine prospect for spring trade. 



Champaign, III. — H. A. Bode, florist 

 for the Illinois Central railroad, has 

 broken ground for a new residence. 



