SELLING TREES. 249 



the section they have worked in ; others are what you would 

 call cut-throats and never sell twice in the same place and are 

 doing a great deal of harm. He means, he says, to always work 

 new territory. This is the man you want to look out for. He 

 usually has a silver tongue and will talk more and say less that 

 is of any value than any other drummer on the -road. Beware 

 of this man ! Yes, I know he has a nursery in his backyard and 

 will ship in more trees from the east than you could plant on a 

 ten acre lot. 



The ideal salesman is the man that will do a lot of good in the 

 country he is working. He is, in fact, a horticultural missionary 

 pioneer, always leaving a trail of helpful suggestions behind him, 

 which makes him always sure of a welcome from his old cus- 

 tomers. Such a man should first know his bvisiness, know how 

 to handle trees, which are the best varieties to recommend, how 

 best to care for and cultivate his fruit. I would advise a man in 

 starting to have at least a year's experience in some good nurs- 

 ery; this would be a great deal of help to him and give him the 

 power to teach the people the right methods in fruit growing. 

 Nurserymen could well afford to give their salesmen five per cent 

 more on sales if they would take a year's training in their nurs- 

 ery. This would enable them to do a more satisfactory business. 



Of course there are men that could not sell gold dollars for 

 90c ; they are not natural salesmen ; but what is wanted is sales- 

 men that can sell goods and come around the next year and look 

 a man square in the face and sell him a larger bill than before. 



Mr. Philips : What do you think of a nursery that adver- 

 tises for men and says "previous experience not necessary?" 



Mr. Hunter : I think of it about as the rest of vou do. 



Simple Seed Testers. — Very simple, apparatus is recommended for 

 ■home testing of seeds. The simplest and most satisfactory is the sand plaie. 

 Use an ordinary china dinner plate, filled with fine sifted sand, free from im- 

 purities. Pour boiled water over the sand and shake the sand down into an 

 jeven bed In the plate. Drain off the excess of water by tipping plate for a 

 few seconds, and plant seed germ down in the sand. Turn a second plate over 

 tlae fiist to prevent the too rapid evaporation of moisture. Set this tester in a 

 •warm living room an. I remove seeds as they sprout. If the sand dries out 

 before the end of test, more water can be added. 



A second method of home testing is a tin basin, the bottom of which is 

 covered with water. Pans, saucers or dishes of saucer shape are set in the 

 water, and blotting paper or cloth laid on the saucers. The seeds are placed 

 between the folds of paper or cloth, and the top of the basin covered with a 

 pane of glass. This tester is kept in a warm living room and will give satis- 

 factory results if extremes of temperature and moisture are avoided. Record 

 slips can be placed with each sample. 



