152 FRITZ BAHR'S COMMERCIAL FLORICULTURE 



with fronds on it six feet long full of scale, which has been in a dark 

 place undisturbed for the past four years, there is a big difference. 



When you know that an old Kentia with two crippled leaves 

 would, with the very best of care, require five years to make a good 

 plant, why not tell the owner about it ? 



It isn't much trouble to properly label every plant received for 

 storing, but think what a lot of trouble it may avoid later on if 

 each plant is labeled at once. 



Take a few pages in the back of the cash book or journal and 

 mark down the date of arrival of each plant and the condition it 

 was in ; and if you have to write a letter about the plant, file away 

 a copy. 



THE IMPORTANCE OF CUT FLOWER ARRANGEMENTS 



pLORAL designs and arrangements play an important part in 

 *■ the business of the retail grower. The wholesale grower in bring- 

 ing his cut Roses, Carnations or other stock to the market, gets out 

 of them just the actual value they represent, while the retailer or 

 florist who displays them to best advantage or uses them in making 

 up a floral design, basket or spray has a chance to make a fair margin 

 of profit not only on the flowers themselves, but also on the labor 

 and skill involved in arrangement. 



Real art in a flower arrangement is never based on the amount 

 of stock used in it, but always on the way it is arranged. The day 

 of the floral pillow or wreath with a solid mass of short-stemmed 

 Carnations, HoUyhocks or Candytuft as a base passed long ago, 

 and that of the light, artistically arranged eifect has taken its place. 



Every retail grower has to depend more or less on disposing of 

 part of his flowers in the form of floral arrangements in order to 

 make money. With the unavoidable loss there is in perishable 

 flowers, one has to have more of an outlet than just the selKng of 

 Roses or Carnations by the dozen. It is for this reason that every 

 effort should be made to encourage your patrons to use cut flower 

 basket effects, centerpieces for their dining tables, corsages, arm 

 bouquets or other arrangements. Not only wiU you find this more 

 profitable, but your patrons wfll get greater value for the money 

 they spend. 



Take an expensive wedding shower bouquet. By themselves 

 the flowers don't look like much, yet their cash value, when 

 properly arranged may be only one-third of that of the bouquet. 

 The same holds good, though maybe to not quite such an extent, 

 with a spray, a basket or any floral design. In all such cases you 

 really get paid for what you know and are able to do. 



