He tries growing a lot of different 

 material; things that don't do well 

 (flowering dogwoods, magnolias, 

 and evergreen azaleas were some 

 that came to mind) are eliminated. 

 He still may sell them (he buys in 

 about 30% of his stock), but he's 

 apt to teO a customer about his 

 own experiences and offers no 

 guarantee. 



He also buys in perennials, but 

 this year he planted a few (sedums 

 and dayliiies) himself and hopes to 

 grow more each year. He feels 

 there's still a strong market for 

 them: last year, his supplier 

 convinced him to buy in 900 — 

 Bob thought he was crazy to do 

 so — but they were sold in three 

 weeks. 



Growth has been steady since he 

 began, averaging around 30?.. a 

 year. Last year was the only off- 

 year — only a 2'- increase and a lot 

 of material needing to be gonen 

 rid of ("we had a lot of mid- 



summer sales"), but this year has 

 been good. Fewer landscapers are 

 buying, but more home-owners 

 are. ("People figure they're not 

 going to sell the place, so they 

 might as well make it look nice.") 

 But Bob feels that he's at the 

 maximum sales capacity of the 

 retail center and is looking for 

 other ways to market what he 

 grows. This year he sold to five 

 smaller retailers— and felt "it 

 worked out about the wa\' 1 ex 

 pected." So he may look for other 

 wholesale markets — or open anoth 

 er retail stand. (".Another location 

 south of here — between Concord 

 and Manchester — is in the back of 

 my mind.") He feels the fact that 

 his plants have already been 

 growing well in the area is a 

 strong selling point — and the low 

 overhead keeps his prices at a 

 reasonable level. 



And while he's thinking things 

 over, he's taking courses at 



Easy-to-Grow Everlastings 



(from GrowerTalks, June 1991.) 



Many common annuals and perennials are easy lor home gardeners lo grow and 

 dry themselves. Offer plugs or divisions of tfiese plants and promote them witli 

 tie-ins. such as dried wreaths, bouquets, flower presses and wire frames. Garden 

 centers and local colleges often hold well-attended classes in preserving and 

 arranging everlastings. Try some of these everlastings with your customers. And 

 don't forget the newly popular ornamental grasses. Check with your seed suppliers 

 lor availabilit>' 



FLOWER COLOR 



range of pinks & whites 



wide range of colors & forms 



pink, purple, white, red 



white or rose 



red, purple, pink, white, yellow 



white, blue. pink, purple, ros(- 



rose, blue, white 



white, yellow^ apricot, blue, purple, rose 



pink 



wide range of colors 



ANNUALS 



Acroclinium 



Celosia cristata 



Gomphrena 



Gypsophila elegans 



Helichrysum 



larkspur 



Nigella (Love-in-a-mist) 



Statice sinuata 



Talinum 



Xeranthemum 



PERENNLiU^ 



Achillea 



Allium 



Chinese lantern 



Delphinium 



Echinops 



Eryngium (Sea Holly) 



Gypsophila paniculata 



Statice latifolia 



FLOWER COLOR 



yellow, white, pink 



purple 



orange 



white, purple, blue, rose, pink 



purple 



silvery green bracts 



white, rose 



lavender 



Statice tatarica (German Statice) silverv' white 



GRASSES 



Avena saliva (Oats): Briza maxima, B. media. B minor (Quaking grass); Hordeum 

 vulgare (Barley); Lagarus ovatus (Hare's tail grass); Pampas Grass; Pennisetum 

 species (Fountain grass or Feathertop), Phalaris Cananensis (Canar>' grass); 

 Setaria italica (Foxtail millet); Triticum aestivum (WTieat) 



To promote research and education efforts on behalf of dried flowers, the 

 Intemational Freeze-Dry Floral Association was recently formed in Des Moines, 

 Iowa. For infarmaHon: (515) 226-9225. 



Concord 'Vo-tech — one course in 

 the spring and one in the fall in 

 the Certificate Program in Ixind 

 scape Design. This is his third 

 year; he has about three to go. In 

 a year or so, the program may 

 offer an associate's degree. ..but 

 that's not most important: it's 

 just "good to know what you're 

 talking about." 



.And while he's doing these things, 

 his business is growing in it^ 

 steady, slep-by-step way. There's 

 nothing llashy about it, but Black 

 Forest Nursen- will probably be 

 around for a long time. (B.P.) 

 For information, call Bob at Black 

 Forest Nursery & Garden Center in 

 Boscawen at (603) 796-2756 or 1-800- 

 924-2756. ^ 



Let 



Rough Brothers' 



expertise 



turn your 



greenhouse into 



a powerhouse 



— for profits. 



Call the experts at Rough Brothers 



for information and technical 



assistance on these quality products. 



Manufacturers of: 



• WhiteHouse 

 ■The International 



• Harvest House 

 •The"2100"gutter-connecte(j house 



■ Free-stan(jing poly arch houses 

 •Techlite glazing 



■Ro-Flo benches 



■ Ebb & Flo benches 

 Distnbutors of: 



• Alcoa Aluminur^ Fin Heating 



• Healing antj ventilating equipment 



■ Maintenance supplies, glass, parts 

 ... and more. 



Rough Brothers 



P.O. Box 16010 



Cincinnati, Ohio 45216 



rem 



ROUGH 



BROTHERS 



1-800/543-7351 



20 THE Pla.nts.ma: 



