28 



The Weekly Florists^ Review^ 



Mauch 28, 1912. 



scpaiiilo. Thou, if :niy diKspule arisfs us 

 to shortage or had money, it is more 

 easily traced. Tliis plan is carried out 

 successfully by the large department 

 stores. 



Start your wagons out early in the 

 morning. A driver can deliver much 

 more during daylight. 



There is no reason why i)ro(its on 

 such occasions as Easter or Christmas 

 should not bo in proportion to our 

 regular profits. Jt is natural for a 

 j»erson to get cartdess when business is 

 rushing and this carelessness costs 

 money. By keeping an eye on all that 

 is going on, you can stop many a small 

 leak and thereby earn many an extra 

 dollar during an Easter rush. 



Hugo Schroeter. 



SIMPLICITY IN EASTER BASKETS. 



For People of Good Taste. 



For a long time there has been a 

 predilection on the part of people of 

 taste in favor of simple methods of ar- 

 rangement, either of cut flowers or 

 plants, and in no instance has this been 

 more apparent than with reference to 

 plant baskets. The Easter lily is one 

 of the simplest of plants; its beauty 

 lies in this simplicity of outline and 

 purity, and to see it all "fussed up" 

 with half a dozen other and less telling 



that one customer likes the incongruous 

 mixture is no good reason why it should 

 be forced on all. 



Some Effective Combinations. 



An indiscriminate mixture of various 

 foliage plants, such as crotons, dra- 

 ca'nas and coleus, with lilies, is often 

 practiced, but it is rarely a success. 

 Yet last Easter some of the most suc- 

 cessful arrangements were of Easter 

 lilies and Croton Sunset. The dark 

 color and the somewhat set appearance 

 of the croton were decidedly good. An- 

 other simple yet effective basket was 

 made with lilies and Spira-a Japonica, 

 no other plant being used. In this 

 case the feathery foliage and flowers of 

 the spiraea seemed to act as a foil to 

 the heavier, more decided lines of the 

 lily. 



Although so frequently used, the aza- 

 lea can hardly be described as a suit- 

 able basket plant. Used alone, it is 

 flat looking and uninteresting, while no 

 other plant contrasts or associates well 

 with it. Erica melanthera and other 

 heaths, on the other hand, are beauti- 

 ful as basket plants and lend them- 

 selves readily to artistic grouping 

 with other jilants. 



The Smaller Gift Receptacles. 



As with baskets, so with the many 

 smaller contrivances used for Easter 



Willow Basket of Primulas and Adiantum. 



varieties is an offense to the artistic 

 eye. That there are many customers 

 who like this kind of mixture can not 

 be denied, and the retailer who has to 

 cater to this class of trade must, in 

 order to do business, give his patrons 

 what they want. Hut this should not 

 deter others from showing a more taste- 

 ful class of arrangement. The fact 



jiresents. Tho simjder the arrangement, 

 tlio more effective it is. Well grown 

 small daffodils, with fine flowers and 

 good foliage, are perfect for use in the 

 small gift baskets or boxes and, though 

 common in the usual acceptance of the 

 word, are always a success. In the 

 liirch bark receptacles pink flowers al- 

 wnvs look well against the gray of the 



bark, and here hydrangeas for the 

 larger and Primula obconica for the 

 smaller ones suggest themselves. When 

 specially shaped receptacles are in use, 

 lily of the valley is fine. It is not 

 heavy enough to hide the outline of 

 the slipper, tho cross or whatever else 

 is depicted, yet by its graceful, light 

 nature it prevents any suspicion of 

 tlatness or stiffness. 



A little care in scdecting suitable 

 jilants for the various decorative recep- 

 tacles is always well repaid in results 

 ami, other things being equal, the sim- 

 pler the methods einployed the better. 

 K. 



EASTER BASKETS. 



Both Old and New. 



The pleasures of the plant basket 

 are again upon us. Yes, we say pleas- 

 ures, in spite of tho irritations and 

 the loose dirt. In fact, the vacations 

 for the plant basket are becoming 

 shorter every year. He — the plant 

 basket — has virtues of his own and ac- 

 commodating waj's. Odds and ends and 

 bad shapes arc his favorites. Get the 

 left-over ribbons and chiffons over- 

 hauled. They'll be needed in this job. 

 Get the disabled baskets, as well as the 

 newest fads, in line. Retouch, trim, 

 cut out or recover, and the first thing 

 you know you'll have a nobby lot of 

 new baskets ready, with pans and col- 

 lections of pans. For where one will 

 not suffice, maybe two will, and where 

 none will fit, Avrap the balls of soil as 

 they come from tho pots in tin foil. It 

 holds the moisture. Baskets are but 

 temporary affairs, ;inyhow. 



Making the Old Ones New. 



The different lironze and silv(M' paints 

 are a good investment. Buy the mate 

 rials in bulk and mix them as you need 

 them; that is the most economical way. 

 Coat some of the faded baskets with 

 gold, some with bronze, some with 

 green bronze and a few with silver. 

 Bronze baskets with gold trimmings are 

 pojmlar, while green and gold of course 

 are attractive. Some baskets may be 

 recoxerecl later with boxwood on the 

 outside. This may be done by sharj)- 

 ening the stems, driving them througii 

 the braid an<l fastening them flat 

 against the outsi(l(» body of th(> basket 

 with wire. When filling the basket, see 

 that wliate\ tT foliage is use(l shall 

 harmonize with the boxwood. 



Two considerations emphasized in 

 these columns before will bear being 

 r(>peated annually. Don't try to trans- 

 plant a Ix'iichful of plants into one 

 basket. So many of these ])lant bas- 

 kets look uncomfortal)leI Cluster them, 

 nestle them together, but don't herd 

 them. The other ])rohibition is, flon't 

 set the stems all in vertical lines. Throw 

 some outward. Tip a few so that the 

 tops will show. 



The Everlasting Color Question. 



Then there is the everlasting color 

 question bobliing u]i. A few "(lon'ts" 

 and a few "does" are in order. Don't 

 associate primulas in jtink and cycla 

 mens in pink. Don't try to mix uj' 

 ciimson ramblers with genistas, yellow 

 tulijts or daffodils. Be careful of the 

 pinks and yellows. Salmon pink may 

 associate with soft yellows, but violet 

 pinks with strong yellows are danger 

 ons ex[)erinients. They will take to 

 deep creams and dull bronze cheerfully. 



