File:The American florist - a weekly journal for the trade (1914) (17521746943).jpg

Title: The American florist : a weekly journal for the trade
Identifier: americanfloristw50amer (find matches)
Year: 1885 (1880s)
Authors: American Florists Company
Subjects: Floriculture; Florists
Publisher: Chicago : American Florist Company
Contributing Library: UMass Amherst Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Boston Library Consortium Member Libraries

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
igi4. The American Florist. 363 liobbin of wire of about No. 27 is lietler to bind moss on designs than is string :ind not as expensive. These boljbins are almost indispensable when decorating as the wire can l)e Mttached much easier tlian string, is stronger and can i>e quiclily broken when required. For tying large bunches of flowers the wire is prefer- able to string, it does not slip nor require half .ns much wrapping. An cild sewing machine can be turned into :i bolibin winder, with very little troulile and will last a long time. .Many stock designs that are in almost daily use can be mossed up at this time, using good clean sphag- num moss. This preparatory work is a great labor-saver later on. Now is the time to make up the prepared magnolia and oakleaf wreaths, and it will save night work in the busy season. There is great profit in us- ing this class of design work as a foundation for fresh cut flowers. Very beautiful and showy effects are pro- duced with the aid of these prepared leaves and very little objection is raised to their artificial coloring by oft times critical customers. It has ))cen the custom to wire these leaves or stem them on toothpicks and then make them up. A labor saver, how- ever, will be found in the hairpin wires that are now to be had in quantity. By mossing the wreaths ratlier full, the leaves pinned on with the new wires, laying one leaf over the other in such a way as to hide the previous pin. a wreath can be made that is just as effective as with the stemmed leaves and they are also more firmly held in place. In looking over the old stock there can be seen pieces that have been laying around for several years. This should not be. for changes are made too rapidly in these progressive days and people are after something new and will go where it is to be seen. Unless old pieces have merit, it is useless to fill shelves with such junk and spoil the looks of the store, or take up valuable space elsewhere: better forget what it costs, throw it out, and buy more carefully in the future. Now is the time to plan for the com- ing season. Are changes in the store fixtures desirable, or can they be rear- ranged to give more room or show gtiods to better advantage? Is the floor eo\ering all right or can it he im- proved? A clean floor is more than half way to a bright store. Plain straight counters are going out of style, short heavy, round or square hardwood tables, that can be placed where desired, when it is necessary to rearrange the interior, and on which special disjilays may be made are now much in evidence. There is not a day to spare in preparatory work of this kind if one wants to be ready when the action commences in the fall. It is best to be a little in advance, get it in motion ahead of the usual timei K. Storeman's Views of Cut Flower Situation. By John C. Gracey, president of the Ketail Florists' Association of Philadelphia. I'a. What should be done to move the \ast quantities of cut flowers that are being grown in late years with the continual increase of greenhouses? The business will have to be placed on a more modern basis. I believe it is up to the grower and the commis-
Text Appearing After Image:
BOY SCOUTS' EMBLEIVI. For the Iiiiii-i-m1 of the Late .Mrs. Wilson, by .1. II. Small A Sons, Xi-w York. sion man to do it. What I wish 'to condemn is their method of packing cut flowers and the number of flowers to the box. There are often .~>IX) to l.tliW of each variety to a box, and on account of this large number a store will not take a straight box as they arrive. Today they arrive with some attempt at grading, each grower having his own ideas, and are placed in the box by the handftills, some- times ,jO at a time with paper sepa- rating them. What should be done, is to pack the roses, carnations, asters, dahlias and similar flowers, so many to the box, I should say 200, or if they are extra choice 101). and to a.dopt a more standard grade and place them in rows in the box. I have seen roses arranged that way twenty years ago and I know it helped the sale especially after the bad petals had been removed. There can be no question that careful packing is a great aid to the sale. I believe the best way of packing would be to use slat crates that will hold 10 to 20 boxes and sell the boxes direct to the .storemen without re- handling them. Take as an illustra- tion the dahlia situation in Philadel- phia today. Inside of one hour from the time they arrive they are general- ly all sold. The reason is because they are packed so many to the box and plainly marked with number and variety, generally about 250 to the box. You know who the grower is, your order is placed in advance be- cause yoti know what you are get- ting. The storeman can buy all the dahlias he wants in five minutes or less. The commission man makes one delivery a day with dahlias. Mr. Grower, you can hardly realize when 1 say the commission man will make from five to fifteen deliveries a day on other flowers. If flowers were packed .similar to dahlias, I see no reason why more storemen would not visit the commission houses in the morning, a^ that is the only way to buy flowers—■ see what you are getting—and I be- lieve all sales would be over by one p. m. Now. as to the prices asked: that must be modernized. Take carnations, for instance. -1:1.00, .S1..50. %%m. .$3.00

Note About Images