12 Retrospective Vie7v, ^'c. 



Commercial Gardening. 



Commercial gardening continues in a flonrishing condition. 

 New nurseries spring up in various parts of the country, espe- 

 cially in the west, and most of the older ones go on augment- 

 ing their stock, and increasing the extent of their grounds. 

 How far this success can be looked upon as an evidence of 

 the profitableness of the profession of the nurseryman, is a 

 question we shall not undertake to enlarge upon. A country 

 so extensive as ours, and so bare of good fruits, as it is in 

 most instances, must, for a long period, create a good demand 

 for fruit trees ; and, from the increasing taste for ornamental 

 planting, a fair demand for trees and shrubs cannot otherwise 

 than be expected. 



The introduction of new varieties of fruit, from abroad, and 

 of new seedlings at home, is a subject attracting the attention 

 of zealous nurserymen ; at the present time, when so many 

 sorts are annually produced, it is not to be supposed, that 

 all of them will be found to possess great merit ; and if, 

 among twenty poor kinds, one of high character is found, it 

 will repay the time, the labor, and the expense, attendant, in 

 adding such to collections. It does not follow, that every 

 amateur should add all the new fruits to his collection that 

 the nurseryman adds to his catalogue. By no means. Yet it 

 would be injudicious, and greatly retard the progress of po- 

 mological science, to indiscriminately reject all new fruits, 

 merely because some of them have not come up to the stand- 

 ard of excellence which had preceded their introduction. 



In our several volumes, we have annually given some ac- 

 count of the principal nursery establishments in New York, 

 Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, and other cities. In 

 our last volume, we have given two articles upon the gardens 

 and gardening of Western New York : these will be con- 

 cluded in our present volume. We therefore need not reca- 

 pitulate what we have already stated, in reference to the state 

 of commercial gardening in these places. 



In the neighborhood of Boston, there is the usual activity 

 among the trade. The reports of the Massachusetts Horti- 

 cultural Society will show the great nimiber of fruits which 

 have been exhibited, trees of which will be found for sale in 



