The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1895-02-13
The Perfumery Industry.

The perfumery trade is large and grow
ing one. There will always be demand for
scents, perfumed soaps and cosmetics, and
the means of supplying the demand must
expand in proportion Within recent years
this necessity has led to the production of
an imitation article, the result OF chemical
manipulation These crystal scents, as they
are called are largely manufactured in Ger
many and are being bought i'll the absence
of the pure material. Many trade lists of
''f1oral products" are simply catalogues OF
such limitations. They are not by any
means so pleasant or so harmless as the gen
uine article, and one who habitually uses
the latter can tell at once the difference. A
comparison can be drawn between any nat
ural scent and it's artificial prototype al
ways to the disadvantage of the chemical
product with its "reminiscences Of the min
eral basis. The public in this instance pre-
ter the real to the artificial. If the pure ar
ticles were placed on the market in sufficient
quantities to fix their taste the crystal scents
would soon find themselves bOycOtted.
There is thus an opening for he production
of the legitimate article which might be
taken advantage of by many O. the colonies
to supply the United Kingdom. We think
the suggestion is worthy the consideration
of our small capitalists or cultivators whose
means are not fully employed or invested
and who are DESTROYS of adding to their Or
binary sources of income.
Jamaica could produce perfumes both of
ordinary and special character in abundance
The conditions of cultivation are exception
ally favorable and the establishment OF
flower farm would, we believe. be profitable
the fact that flower farming in Jamaica was
feasible, but we are unaware of the results
of his efforts in the direction of starting an
industry. Tue enterprise might verv we'll
form an adjunct to some of the l-rger poor
houses. In the neighborhood of Grasse in
France there are hundreds of acres where
the old, the ailing and the children, earn a
livelihood by picking roses for the scent mar
ket The only obs acle in the way OF en-
barking on the Industry is the preliminary
expense. To make perfume from flowers re-
quires somewhat costly plant. But ad-
hitting that difficulty, anyone with fair
capital could easily start a farm and conf
IDENTIFY calculate OH handsome return for
his capital and labor, In India flower gar
den started in 1890 in the industry and is
now doing a prosperous business and en-
p.oying over ninety hands. If this result
can be achieved in the East, it ought to be
duplicated in the West Indies.
Flower farming in Europe for perfumery |
purposes is engaged in almost exclusively at
Var, France it is here that the jasmine,
tuberose. cassia, rose and violet, grow to
great perfection and where the subsequent
process of manufacture are commercially
worked Of orange blossoms alone as many
as / 900 tons are used annually, and nearly
1000 tons of roses. In the Grasse district
the buyer is always ready to purchase as
small quantity as kio of roses from the
the small proprietaire. THIS fact furnishes
a hint upon which we might improve. A
central factory system might be organized.
The plant holder would buy the modest
crops from the settlers and others, in addi-
ton to being farmer himself, and utilize
them for the various purposes of the scent
market. An entire family could engage in
flower growing, or the farm might be the
special care of one member while the re-
mainder are otherwise occupied. There are
many ordoriferous and other vegetable sub
stances which the floral chemist might find
a profitable use for, and the culture of which