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Although the city of San
Mateo seized upon the designation of the "Floral City" some few
years ago, this title could well be extended to take in practically
the whole county; the rich soil, dependable rains, and equable
temperature causing a growth of semitropical verdure the year
around. Wild flowers and orchids, palms and hardy apple trees-all
seem to do equally well, some of the larger country estates being
famous for the beauties of their gardens, while nearly all of the
most modest bungalows are surrounded by beds of roses or covered
with clinging vines.
San Mateo County in its entirety, from northern to
southern boundary; and from bay to ocean, is one extensive flower
garden. As proof of this claim it may be stated that the county
supplies 75% of the cut-flowers used in San Francisco. Besides this,
the peninsula florists and growers are making daily shipments of cut
flowers, plants and seeds to all parts of the country-especially
Oregon, Washington, and the middle western states.
The rarer specimens of the nurseries; which cover the
largest area under glass this side of the Rockies, are in demand in
the east and abroad. Particularly is this true of the orchids
raised, valuable shipments of which have been made to the King of
England .and the Queen of Holland.
It is estimated that the public nurseries, with their
stock equipment, represent an investment of $1,000,000, with an area
of thirty acres under glass. There are at least fifty large private
nurseries on the various country estates, and the total sale from
this business aggregates $750,000 a year.
This is shown to be a comparatively large amount when
compared to the total output of nursery products in the State of
California, which in 1909 were valued at $3,601,301. From these
figures, San Mateo County is shown to produce about 20% of the
state's entire floral output.
San Mateo County's floral industry is divided into
three almost distinct growing districts, each adapted to its own
particular variety of flowers, plants or seeds. In the northern
section of the county, fanned by the cooling ocean breezes, are the
violet gardens; in the central portion roses are the principal
product; while in the warmer southern district, orchids,
chrysanthemums, carnations and smilax are produced. An extensive
seed industry is carried on in the southeastern portion of the
county near the shores of San Francisco Bay and also on the coast
side.
An inspection of the county's floral productiveness
shows large areas devoted to exclusive culture, as in the northern
corner between Colma and South San Francisco where 450 acres of land
are used solely in the cultivation of violets, grown chiefly by
Italians, and sold to the San Francisco wholesalers. That part of
the output not sold directly in San Francisco is packed in cracked
ice, and sold to customers as far east as Missouri and Kansas. In
the violet season from August 1, to June 1, one hundred dozen
bunches come to San Francisco daily. The popular variety is the
Prince of Wales.
At Millbrae, a few miles south of the violet belt, there is a
nursery doing a good business in flowers and potted plants.
Carnations, Chrysanthemums, American Beauty roses, and other cut
flowers and nursery stock are sent to the San Francisco market from
the extensive conservatories of the Hillsborough Nursery on the
estate of Mrs. Malcolm D. Whitman, located a little over two miles
further south.
From Burlingame, adjacent to Hillsborough, large daily
shipments of roses are made to San Francisco, consisting of as many
as 7,000 separate flowers. Many of them are reboxed and shipped to
the north and middle west. These roses come from the firm which has
its hothouses in this city. This concern has more than 300,000
square feet of flower beds under glass. Few people realize that in
Burlingame is located the largest rose nursery in California. The
roses handled include the American Beauty, pink, and white
Killarneys, Richmond, Mrs. Aaron Ward, and the Mme. Cecil Brunner.
In San Mateo City there is located a dahlia farm which
grows more varieties of dahlias than any other dahlia farm in the
west-with one exception. About a thousand varieties are produced
here. This concern was awarded the Grand Prix at the recent Panama
Pacific Exposition.
South of San Mateo near Beresford is the establishment
of the MacRorie-McLaren Company which located down the peninsula six
years ago, and now has an extensive area of about eighteen acres
under cultivation. One of the most important branches of this
company's business is orchids. In the recent Panama-Pacific
Exposition their exhibit of these rare blooms was the largest of its
kind and attracted much favorable comment.
The San Mateo County climate is thus shown to be most
favorable to the cultivation of these rare and exotic blooms, in
fact seven eighths of all the orchids used in San Francisco are
raised here.
The chrysanthemum district in San Mateo County extends
all the way from the city of San Mateo to the southern extremity of
the county,. emphasizing the adaptability of the county's soil and
climate for these flowers. It is interesting to know that local
growers have walked away with the prizes at all the chrysanthemum
shows held
in Central California.
At Atherton are the elaborate conservatories of Mr.
Jos. B. Coryell, whose orchids are famed throughout the country.
Here are a large number of hothouses, in charge of an expert
nurseryman, containing about a hundred varieties of orchids yielding
daily from 200 to 300 blooms for the market during the season.
The Lynch nursery at Menlo Park, ships out daily during
the height of the season, more than two thousand chrysanthemums and
an equal number of carnations. This concern has the distinction of
growing more smilax than any other firm in the world.
Still further south on the Dumbarton Cut-off is located a seed farm
where almost a thousand acres are devoted to the growing of seeds
alone. This tract belongs to the Braslan Seed Company.
The Morse Seed Company, one of the largest in the world
also has a flourishing seed farm on the coast side of the county.
Many of the blooms from these nurseries found their way to the
floral booth in the county's recent exhibit at the Panama Pacific
Exposition. Here the continuous and unrivaled display of flowers
attracted the attention of many visitors to. the California State
Building where the exhibit was located.
Before ever a hothouse or garden was located in the
county, the wild flowers adorned the mountain slopes and sheltered
meadows. Wild mustard was especially in evidence, growing so high
that it almost obscured the view of a man on horseback. The entire
county is famous for its many varieties of wild flowers as well as
for its cultured blooms; and enjoys the unchallenged reputation of
growing more wild varieties than any other county in the state.
In one of the school competitions which were held every
year until recently, a boy entered ninety-six varieties which he had
picked in one section of the county near Hillsborough. These were
classified by a representative from the botanical department of the
University of California. Among the specimens he secured were
several kinds of wild orchids.
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