In considering intercropping plans, the gardener 

 should be well informed concerning the requirements of 

 each crop, its habit of growth, soil-adaptation, space- 

 requirement, susceptibility to disease and insect depre- 

 dations, time of maturing, and the like. 



The outlook for market-gardening in America was 

 never more encouraging than at the present time. 

 Great advances in prices need not be expected, but the 

 rising prices of meats will unquestionably favorably 

 influence the market for vegetables. Our markets are 

 demanding the highest quality of vegetables, and every 

 gardener should attempt to grow the best and to place 

 it on the market in the most attractive condition. Pro- 

 fits in market^gardening depend quite as much upon 

 the grower's ability as a market-man as upon his skill 

 in production. R. L. WATTS. 



MARKETING OF HORTICULTURAL PROD- 

 UCE. The growing and disposing of horticultural 

 products have from earliest times been bound together. 

 Within the past decade, the tendency to dissolve the 

 marketing from the production has been developing 

 very perceptibly. This division of labor has doubtless 

 been due to the rapid increase in the amount of detail 

 and skill required to do both producing and market- 

 ing successfully. 



The business of disposing of horticultural products is 

 now somewhat specialized and follows fairly well- 

 defined lines. These may be described as (1) marketing 

 directly to the consumer; (2) marketing indirectly or 

 through middlemen of the many and various kinds; (3) 

 marketing through cooperative associations. 



Marketing directly to the consumer. 



By this is meant sending the produce directly from 

 the producing region. This is the simplest, easiest and 

 most satisfactory of all ways. The producer, in this 

 way, receives the best returns for his crop, and the con- 

 sumer secures the produce for the most reasonable 

 price and without the delays between harvesting and 

 selling which very often cause serious deterioration. 

 Many fruit- and vegetable-growers have worked up a 

 satisfactory business by disposing of their products in 

 this way. This is usually initiated by friends of one or 

 both parties and later supplemented by cards inclosed 

 in the package and by advertisements. It is a fairly 

 common practice for fruit-growers to sell directly to an 

 association of farmers in a grain or dairy region. A 

 personal confidence between the grower and the con- 

 sumer develops from this method of dealing, and so long 

 as neither side destroys this confidence the customer 

 becomes an advertising agent for the grower. 



It was thought that the parcels-post system would 

 stimulate direct selling. It has been practised to some 

 extent, but there seems to be no very immediate likeli- 

 hood that it will become a large factor for bringing the 

 horticultural producer and consumer together. So 

 many horticultural products are of a highly perishable 

 nature, while many of a less perishable nature are too 

 bulky. 



In some cities, marketing directly to the consumer 

 is done through city public markets, with satisfactory 

 results to the producer and the consumer. These mar- 

 keting centers are usually constructed by the cities, 

 and for a small fee the farmers, gardeners and fruit- 

 growers rent stalls or stands. Rules and regulations for 

 the conduct of the business of selling are usually pre- 



MARKETING 



ccribed by the city government, and they are enforced 

 by the superintendent of markets or other official in 

 charge. The market is opened and closed and selling 

 is active at designated hours. Usually all sales are 

 made for cash and the buyer carries home all produce 

 purchased. This marketing brings closely together, to 

 their mutual benefit, the producer and consumer. As 

 the overhead expenses of marketing are reduced to a 

 minimum, the public markets have been important 

 factors in reducing the cost of living in many com- 

 munities. 



Marketing indirectly or through middlemen. 



A large part of the horticultural products are sold 

 by the grower to jobbers, dealers and retail merchants. 

 This is the next step in the evolution from direct selling. 

 Much harsh criticism has been applied to the middle- 

 man; however, there can be no doubt but that he has 

 an important place in the disposition and distribution 

 of horticultural products. The marketing and distribu- 

 ting has rapidly become such an intricate, extensive and 

 specialized business of itself that few fruit-growers can 

 afford the time or have the business training or skill 

 required to do this work well. 



There undoubtedly always will be a place for the 

 middleman in the distribution of produce so long as 

 many kinds, grades and varieties of products similar in 

 a general way are grown on small farms and sent to 

 distant markets to be sold. 



The middleman is, in reality, a distributor. It would 

 be impossible for the men who grow the crop to place 

 or distribute it in markets over the country so that it 

 might be purchased at a reasonable price in many 

 regions, and not permitted to accumulate in too large 

 quantities in some markets while in others there would 

 be a scarcity or nothing. Horticultural products are, 

 in a large number of cases, highly perishable and mar- 

 kets must be provided some time in advance of the 

 ripening of the crop. This requires capital, familiarity 

 with trade in many sections, confidence, good-will, 

 and wide acquaintance with the many outlets. 



The general term "middleman" may include buyers, 

 commission men, jobbers, dealers, brokers, auction 

 companies, solicitors, speculators and distributing 

 agencies. 



(a) Buyers and jobbers. 



The term "buyer" in the mind of the truck- or fruit- 

 grower, in most producing sections, is any individual 

 who is located at the shipping-stations and endeavors to 

 buy produce from the grower as it is brought in from the 

 gardens and farms. These buyers may be operating the 

 business for themselves, endeavoring to get together a 

 carload of mixed or similar products to be shipped or 

 consigned to the market. They may be representatives 

 of a jobbing or commission company, working on a salary 

 or commission on the business accomplished. It is their 

 entire purpose to buy the highest grade and best packed 

 products at the lowest price that the grower will take for 

 them . These buyers may buy one or several kinds of prod- 

 uce but usually they want but one kind and one grade. 

 These men make a special business of buying one kind 

 of produce at a time and many of them "follow the 

 crop," i.e., begin in the southern states to buy when the 

 crop is harvested and move north as the later crops are 

 ready for market. This applies especially to strawber- 

 ries, potatoes, peaches, and tomatoes. They do not have 

 an office or permanent location and may or may not 

 return to the same place season after season. 



Carlot purchasers are classified as "jobbers." They 

 usually have a permanent location, an office, scales, and 

 other equipment and return season after season to the 

 same place. This is especially true in some of the 

 important potato-growing sections. 



Some jobbers have a warehouse or store in the city 

 and do a general fruit and produce business through the 



