Omaha daily bee., 1909-03-07

Acres of carefully prepared, and as carefully tended, soil are
under glass In the environs of Omaha and Council Bluffs. To
speak In terms. there ri upward of 100000 square feet of
double strength glass spread on the frames OF the greenhouses
hereabout. 1t is bought by the carload by every florist of any
pretensions, and comes from Kansas. Indiana. Ohio, Pennsylvania,
wherever glass IL made. Modern greenhouses ar largely of
steel construction, ana there r. systems of ventilation perfected
especially for this business, with clever mechanical contrlvances
for raising and lowering the shining upper sections of the great
flower nurseries.
How many among the ordinary run Of citizens know that once
during each year the earth In these acres of boxes has to be
shOveled up and carried outdoors, to be replaced by other soil
which has been prepared with the most extreme are. Soil that will
be removed from the boxes say in July next will be spread out
doors on reserve ground and will be sown to grass or grain. 1t
may lay 30, under seed, for 1--WE or six years before It is brought
back again to the boxes; but it will come back in good time
and thus there is a continual changing of soil and a progression of
learning that the successful florist must have. In this business,
of all others. care and work. work and care are the foundation
ana the keystone.
Florists have to do with burglars and sneak thieves. too
not of the kind that are locked up when caught but that must
be killed. Their slaughter goes on hourly, and all the year
round. Mr.. Trip and Mr.. Red Spider are the two particular ups
desirable visitors that the florists must guard against and murder
on sight. Trip is very, very small but Red Spider is even smaller,
and to be able to know him next time you see him you must do
the Bertflon stunt with a magnifying glass. Trip, he goes into
the flower while it is in bud. If he isn't headed on, and saps the
petals. Red Spider. he makes his unlawful camp on the under
side of leaves and proceeds to his work of sure destruction until
a busy man comes along with a hose spouting water under heavy
pressure. which he directs to the location where Red Spider has
ensconced himself II the water be real cold 1t stuns the minutes
sinai outlaw, as 1t does also Trip; but to paralyze the miscreants
entirely. preparations of tobacco and pepper n used.
No florist anywhere In this Vicinity can meet the demand. as
a rule. One man was asked II he kept ahead of the public de-
mand. and with a half sarcastic smile he queried. why do you
suppose We IT always building new houses?" For example. Hess
& swoboda Of Omaha, will this season build three new houses
at their plant. They will be longer than an ordinary block and
will be twentyseven feet wide. Wilcox of Council Bluffs, has
100000 feet of glass over his flower beds, and he hasn't enough
yet Henderson of Omaha is every year putting more money
into greenhouses and the same is true of Herman Bros, of
Council Bluns, and of every other professional florist.
Before leaving Wilcox, it may be interesting to know that
he has the greatest Conservatives in the west, OF the fiat and
terraced; $4,000 cut flowers every day is a conservative est-
mate OF his production Where do they go? Omaha gets a
great NAM. and SC do Kansas City, st Joseph. ST Louis. Min
neapois, ST. Paul, Denver, Chicago. Salt Lake City. Seattle. In
Spokane, Wash, he hnds a great market for rosebuds, which
are there metanized into the natural flower hatpins that we see
today IN the ieWelry and department stores. He fills wedding