Book of Cut Flowers

Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. Many people who are fond of flowers have but little knowledge of the length of life in water of any but a few of the commonest kinds, of the best methods of cutting and of keeping them fresh, of using them economically, and of arranging them effectively whether as regards the form and colour harmony of the flowers and foliage, or the variety and suitability of the vessels holding them, or the harmony of the flowers and vessels with their surroundings. To spread a knowledge of such matters and to stimulate investigation, my wife and myself some years ago offered prizes at the Dundee Flower Show for arrange ments of cut flowers in suitable vessels, the judging not taking place till the third day, in order to roughly test the lasting qualities of the flowers. The experiment resulted in disappointment, only one exhibit being meritorious. Next year the experiment was repeated with little improvement in result, and we concluded that some other method of inculcating economy in the use of cut flowers, and another way of showing how to.