Johnstown High School - Spectator Yearbook (Johnstown, PA)

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2 THE SPECTATOR How 2k Florist Prepares for Easter T'HERE is perhaps no time of year when the florist is busier than during the time in which he prepares for Easter. The florist must begin his preparations before other men think even of Lent. Some plants, the Easter Lily, for example, he must plant months before Easter; other plants, as tulips, hyacinths, and daffodils, need not be planted so soon. All plants are started in a dark, moderately warm place. When they are of sufficient size and strength, the florist takes them from the green-houses and plants them in hot-beds in the open. This time out of doors, which makes the plants hardy and strong, varies with different plants. The tulip and daffodil need not be in the open more than four or five weeks, but the lily must spend more tim there. When the florist finds that his plants have been long enough in the open, he plants them in pots and again places them in the green-hpuse. He must see that they have an abundance of fresh air and moisture. They need not have much heat, for if it is too warm, they will be weak and pale. Sometimes the plants grow too fast and show signs of blooming before Easter. In such a case the florist puts them into a cold room or “cooler,” which not only keeps them from blooming too soon, but also makes them hardy and strong. If the plants do not progress fast enough, they are put where they may receive all the fresh air and sunlight possible. The best substitute for sunlight is a strong electric light. Some people think that heat is need- ed to force the flowers, but the scientific florist tells us that he never uses heat for this purpose. The week before Easter finds the green-houses beauti- ful indeed. Come with me and let us look at the flowers now. We will first go where the lilies are kept. Here also the ferns and lilies-of-the-valley are grown. Lovely indeed is the sight that greets our eyes! The tall, graceful lilies with their many buds almost ready to open, and here and there a flower of purest white, peep out among the beauti- ful green of fern and smilax. At either side are the pure,

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TTbe IHigb School Spectator. ‘ Vires acquirit eundo.” VOL. IX. High School, Johnstown, pa. No. 7. i Easter Paean E ASTRE, thou blushing Queen of Earth and flowers, Aurora bids thee don thy vestments gay ; With roseate smiles she enters earthly bowers To bid thee deck the land in new array. Arise ! Go forth in sweet created dower . May no dark cloud bedim this radiant day, For lo ! a vision comes in mystic hours ; A song : ‘ ‘ Rejoice ! The King returns for aye. ’ ’ To thee, fair Queen, all Nature glad will bring Fresh wreathes and offerings of grace divine ; With happy tones each floral bell will ring A heavenly message o’er thy incensed shrine. Arise ! Bid Earth prepare to greet thee, Spring, While o’er the land Aurora’s face doth shine, For lo! the heavenly heralds sweetly sing, “Rejoice ! This Day the light of God is thine.” The nodding snow-drops ope their drowsy eyes ; The shy arbutus scatters incense rare ; The dainty daffodils in glad surprise Toll out their matins in the perfumed air; The fragrant roses view the dappled skies, While twining smilax adds its verdure fair ; Sweet-faced lilies on thy altars rise, Or lowly kneeling, bow their heads in prayer. Awake ! 0, Eastre, loud thy paeans raise ; Upon the flowery altar seek protection. Awake ! Tune lute and harp for endless praise. For on thy face shines a divine reflection. Open thy temple-gates for festal days, And reverent homage pay with true affection, On winged flames speed Easter hymns and lays, For thou, 0 Spring, art type of Resurrection. MABEL R. DAVIS ’07.

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THE SPECTATOR 3 white blossoms of the modest lily-of-the-valley, which fill the whole place with sweet perfume. Passing the lilies, we see a sight gorgeous with beauty. Here are the half-opened buds and full-blown flowers of the bright-colored tulips. Yonder are the daffodils with their hidden wealth of gold. Further on we see the hyacinth, with the white, pink, and lavender petals peeping out from the green covering. Here is the graceful narcissus, whose buds have almost burst. Everything seems to sing out the joy and gladness of spring. We can scarcely imagine the beauty of the large gar- dens where flowers are grown for supplying the markets of large cities. At Lake Crossing, Mass., is one of the lar- gest rose nurseries in the world, where roses of rare beau- ty are cultivated. From this house flowers are shipped even to Europe. In the Scilly Islands, however, most of the flowers for the London Easter market grow. They are cultivated in the open, for the climate of these islands is al- most semi-tropical. The flower-grower provides against occasional cold winds by surrounding every field of his flower farm with high and thick hedges. Travelers have told us that the island of Samson, where many daffodils are grown, is a field of green and gold from February to April. During the week previous to Easter, the florist is busy getting ready for his Easter display, which takes place on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, before Easter. The cut flowers are plucked the day before they are to be taken from the green-houses, and are placed in water in a cool room where there is abundant fresh air. The temperature of this room must not be more than about 6o° Fahrenheit. It is no easy task to get these flowers ready, for in a first- class flower-shop thousands of every variety are sold every day during the display, and the florist is never able to sup- ply the demand. What a wealth of beauty the florist gathers into his shop! It may be called his canvas, where he, the painter, composes a picture, not in oils or water colors, but in flower colors. No Cimabue or Giotto ever painted a richer altar- piece than the florist makes with his blossoms. Or, if you like, call the flowers his Easter Anthem, for they seem to sing out the joy and gladness of the resurrection. aldisa Rhine ’07.