84 
August, 1918 
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I PUBLISHED MONTHLY ON THE FIRST OF THE MONTH BY j 
| MADISON COOPER, CALCIUM, N.Y. 1 
FOR BOTH AMATEUR AND PROFESSIONAL FLOWER GROWERS | 
E 'IIIMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII = 
| Subscription Price OUR MOTTO: Canadian and Foreign | 
| $1.00 per year. Special favors to none, and a Subscription Price | 
1 3 years for $2.00. square deal to all. $1.25 per year. = 
Growers are invited to contribute articles or notes over their own 
signatures, but the Editor reserves the right to reject anything which 
in his judgment is not conducive to the general welfare of the business. 
CojyyriyJit 1018 by Madison Cooper 
The contents of THE FLOWER GROWER, formerly "The Modern Gladiolus 
Grower" are covered by general copyright. Permission is given to editors to use not 
more than one-third of any article providing proper credit is given at the beginning or 
end of such quotation, as follows: “From THE FLOWER GROWER, Calcium, N. Y." 
Special permission necessary for reprinting illustrations, long extracts or articles entire. 
Vol. V August, 1918 No. 8 
“ He who sows the ground with care and diligence acquires a 
greater stock of religious merit than he could gain by the 
repetition of ten thousand prayers.”— Zoroaster. 
Changing German Names of Flowers. 
" what’s in a name ?” 
The New York Sun in a recent article prints some reso- 
lutions adopted by the Park Garden Club of Flushing, L. I., 
which in substance proposes to change the names of all roses 
and other flowers bearing names of Teutonic origin to the 
names of people who are prominent in the work of the 
allied nations. 
While the motive which prompts such a suggestion is 
correct and commendable we doubt very much if the actual 
changing of names, which have been honored by the pass- 
ing of time, is wise or reasonable. It is probable that 
many of the German names are after people who originated 
the flowers or who were prominent in floral work. In such 
cases they are entitled to due credit for their activity and 
accomplishments in their chosen line. Where the names 
are simply Teutonic without being the names of individuals 
there can be no serious objection to making changes, but 
we do think that where the name indicates the origin of 
the flower, that the names should remain as they are. We 
believe in " giving the devil his due ” and if persons of Teu- 
tonic origin have done good and original work in horticul- 
ture that there can be no objection to retaining their names 
as attached to flowers which they may have originated or 
patronized. 
There are many thousands of true American citizens 
who have Teutonic names and surely these patriotic Ameri- 
cans may be displeased to have names of German origin 
taken from favorite flowers, and these true Americans are 
entitled if possible to even greater respect and consideration 
than those of allied or American ancestry. 
In passing we may remark that to show one’s patriotism 
it is not necessary to go to the extreme indicated by the 
resolutions adopted by the Park Garden Club. The editor 
feels as strongly about the war situation as anyone can, has 
one son actually in the service and another ready to go 
when he is 18 years of age, and is willing to go himself if 
men upwards of fifty are needed. This is said to explain 
that the above opinion is not based on personal grounds, 
but on purely common sense grounds. It really seems 
childish to change time-honored names although they may 
be distasteful just at this time, and we venture the opinion 
that those who take such an extreme position at this time 
will after the war is over and a few years have passed, be 
surprised at their own lack of perspicuity. There is no 
doubt but what the war will end soon and the way it will 
end has never been in doubt in our mind nor in the mind of 
any true American, since the very start. Let us look for- 
ward and be liberal in our views. 
Madison Cooper. 
Benefits of Flower Shows. 
Flower shows are becoming more popular from year to 
year, and even under war conditions there has been a great 
interest manifested by the various floral organizations 
throughout the country. Many people believe as do we, 
that war time is no time to neglect flowers and that flowers 
should be given special attention now. 
Flower shows serve to bring together those interested in 
many different kinds of plants and flowers and the very 
best flowers in each class. Flower shows are often special- 
ized and given up to one particular flower. Such, for in- 
stance, as the American Dahlia Society’s show and the 
American Gladiolus Society’s show. Comparison of the 
best flowers of the best varieties on the show bench brings 
out the defects that exist as well as the good qualities and 
thus improvements are made possible. Many growers think 
that they have the best and honestly believe that their 
product is superior to others, but when their specialties are 
placed alongside the product of other growers they may 
prove inferior in some respects or their superior qualities 
made manifest. Flower growers should always seize every 
opportunity of visiting flower shows and showing their 
own product alongside the product of other growers. Some 
surprises are bound to be in store for them. It is hardly 
possible that they have a true gauge of the value of their 
own product. 
Flower shows have still another beneficial and valuable 
result which is even more important and that is the educa- 
tion of the public in the use of flowers and the creating of a 
desire to possess the beautiful flowers seen at the show. 
When many people view a floral exhibit a large percentage 
of them will become interested to a greater or less extent. 
The educational value of a flower show is immense from 
many different standpoints and flower lovers should do all 
they can to promote and keep up interest in flower shows 
even during war time. 
Correct Selling Prices for Flowers. 
The price of almost every commodity has advanced so 
greatly and the price of labor has increased so much that 
the question of prices for flowers is an important one and 
worthy of careful attention. Some flower growers seem to 
think that if the price is advanced it will reduce the use of 
flowers, while others maintain that unless the price is ad- 
vanced the floral business will become unprofitable and 
cease to exist. There is no reason why prices of flowers 
should not be advanced in keeping with the general tend- 
ency toward higher price levels in all lines and we can see 
no reason for attempting to keep down the price of flowers 
under present conditions. Prices are bound to be higher 
and a modest advance in proportion to actual cost of pro- 
duction is no more than right. The flower grower who can 
get cost or a little better during war time should be satis- 
fied, but if he sells at old prices he is not getting the cost 
based on present market value of labor and materials. 
