The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1895-05-02
CUT FLOWERS.
ENORMOUS PROPORTIONS OF
GOTHAM'S FLORAL TRADE.
The Florists Sell to the Wholesaler
and They Supply the Retailers
Expeditions Disposition Of
Quickly Spoiled Goods.

4 ~ J IuaG LILO du1OuuL VI Ouo4ASos
done yearly in New York in
potted plants and cut flowers reaches
S2,OOO,O 900. Such g. figure as this
seems excessive at first glance, but
when it is considered that there are II
the city nearly 200 florists who sell
their stock at retail, and that about
one-tenth of that number do whole
sale trade, the estimate does not ap-
pear 80 far out of the way.
It is a rare occurrence when thers
are not enough flowers to satisfy the
demands, because nearly all of those
raised for this market are cultivated
in hot houses. However, very dry OF
very wet weather does affect the plant
to some slight extent.
The florists do not grow for them
selves, nor do the wholesalers. The
latter are commission merchants, re-
ceiving their stock directly from the
grower by messengers or express The
express companies do large business
in handling flowers, and each Of them
keeps one of the familiar big double
wagons busy at this alone. The shall
low trays in which the cut blossomt
are packed come into the wholesalers
stores at eight o'clock every morning,
being shipped from the scores of gar
dens and nurseries so as to arrive al
this hour. From then on to clever
o'clock the wholesalers places present
busy appearance, like one of the city
markets in the early morning. All oi
the retail dealers, or their buyers en-
ployed for this purpose, visit the
stores in turn to select their days
stock. Unless there is likely to be 8
big demand for some especial 7arie'
ties, as for 7iolets and yellow crysan.
themums on Thanksgiving Day, whe1
the Yale-Princeton football match Ii
played, or for all sorts at Easter, ne
stock is ordered before hand. Thu
the buyers can personally select sucl
flowers as they need for the day, choos
ing only the most perfect specimens
after visiting the different wholesale
stores, which are not far apart. Per
haps they will purchase from half-ar
dozen, each one having some fine
blooms of one particular variety ths'
the other has not.
There is much rivalry between thu
wholesalers. Each one naturally
wishes to act as agent for the best an6
most experienced growers, whose bios
SONS may be easily disposed Of Al
all sales are on commission, constant
warfare in percentages is waged. Ons
man may handle the products Of fifty
growers one season and lose half Of
| them the next, if an agent just a.
| reputable as he offers to accept a lower
. rate of commission. The manner Of
/ calculating the latter, however, Ii
necessarily similar in all cases; and nc
wholesaler ever returns unsold stock.
After eleven o'clock in the forenoon ii
| is considered that none of the flowers
! on hand will be wanted by the retailer
here. All Of the buyers have disap'
peared by that hour. Then the work
of getting rid of the surplus is begun
by filing the orders of small out-of
town shops. If any Of the stock Ii
still left, it is sold at low price to the
street venders. That is why some
very choice flowers are often seen on
the sidewalk stands. Of course, il
several hundred perfect specimens OF,
for instance, American Beauty Of
Jacaueminot roses were left on hand,
they would be kept in suitable place
until the following day. All florists.
wholesale and retail, have small glass
compartments in their stores, where 6
cool, damp temperature is maintained
| >rtifcially for keeping flowers fresh.
! By this system all sales are averaged,
| the wholesaler losing proportionately
in commissions what the grower does
in not disposing of the stock he sends
in at what it is really worth. The re.
taller loses all he does not sell, but
experience teaches about how nuci
will be needed in day.
! Thegrowers are generally specialists.
| Certain men are noted for their roses.
others for violets, bulbous roots,
chrysanthemums, plants and ferns,
etc. This is particularly true OF
plant-growers, who, though they are
here included under the head Of
florists, are not technically so. They
sell mainly to the retailer without the
medium of q commission agent.
Where roses are grown to the practical
exclusion of other flowers in winter,
the latter receive attention in the
summer, so as to give the cultivator Q
salable crop all the year around.
It is fact voucheG ,eor by one o.
the leading wholesalers here that
there is not much tendency to expert
ment among many florists. If a
prospective grower wishes to raise a
certain sort of flowers, he is apt to go
where they have been successfully
grown before. So an experienced
florist will tell an inquirer that nearly
all of the violets come from the banks
Of the Hudson near Poughkeepsie, the
roses from Long Island and New
Jersey, the bulbous roots from near
Hoboken and Long Island City, green
plants from New Jersey toward the
Mountains, etc.
Orchids are comparatively new Se
florists and the public, but they are
becoming more common, and ct the
| same time more perfect, every year.
In spite of the fact that they are very
expensive, as indeed sll of the choice
blooms are nowadays, they are be-
coming more common in the sho7
windows. s.-New York Post.
Herst, in Afghanistan, is the cit,
which has been most often destroyed,
E:r4".a:s 4s.o "a hara its rolls heer Laid