THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



63 



three from within six inches of the base 

 of the very tip of the vine. Two or 

 three round and slightly flattened beans 

 smaller than the common pea were 



Selling Vegetables in Cities 



Two of Mr. Gamble's Coffee Plants 



found in each pod. Their productive- 

 ness can be judged from the fact that 

 Qver a bushel was harvested from four 

 ounces of seed. 



Japan Qxiince is E-dible 



Prof. H. L. Hutt, O.A.C., Guelph 



Is ttie fruit of the Japan Quince, Pyrus Jap- 

 wica, an edible thing? It seems as if it might 

 je, but one scarcely likes to risk it. — J. S. 

 McClelland, St. Catharines. 



The Japan Quince, Pyrus Japonica, 

 las been cultivated for its flowers rather 

 ;han for the fruit, hence the develop- 

 nent has been more in the improve- 

 nent of the flowers than in the improve- 

 nent of the fruit. The fruit, however, 

 s edible, although not nearly so good 

 IS that of the common quince, which 

 las been grown especially for the fruit. 



have used jelly made from the fruit 

 >f the Pyrus Japonica, which was ex- 

 client, but this is probably the chief 

 vay in which it can be used to ad- 

 vantage. 



Crushed Bone is a cheap and valu- 

 ble fertilizer. Nothing is more bene 

 icial to a lawn than a fair sprinkling 

 arly in the spring. — Rev. P. C. L. 

 larris, Guelph. 



arftn 

 dsno 



it I'M 



initcli 



Early Tomatoes. — I grow a few early 

 omatoes for the fancy market, and 



obtain best results from plants 

 hat have been transplanted at least 

 hree times before being set out. When 

 his is done there is a ball of fibrous roots 

 nd practically no top root. These 

 lants when set out never wilt. I start 

 he seed about February 1 5, and set the 

 lants out soon after May 24. — Geo. 

 ienner, Burlington, Ont. 





Many vegetable growers who can pro 

 duce excellent crops are not successful in 

 disposing of their products. Those who 

 attended the meeting of the Toronto 

 branch of the Vegetable Growers' Associ- 

 ation on January 6, and heard the re- 

 marks made by Mr. Geo. Syme, obtained 

 many pointers of value to growers who 

 truck their crop to the town or city. 

 He emphasized the fact that every gar- 

 dener must linderstand the trade thor^ 

 oughlv and also know the characteristics 

 of his customers if he hopes to do a good 

 business. 



Sortie men want to do business in a 

 hurrv but there are others who are slow- 

 going and there is no use trying to rush 

 matters as it is detrimental in closing a 

 sale. He advised growers never to have 

 more on the waggon than the merchant 

 wants and not to pretend they have all 

 their load sold except enough to meet 

 their requirements. As a rule it is best 

 to make the retailer believe you are 

 somewhat ignorant and to keep him 

 thinking he knows it all. S 



Too many growers are afraid of com- 

 petition. This should not be the case 

 and no matter how many vegetable 

 growers' waggons are around a store 

 door an attempt should be made to do 

 business there. If no sales can be made 

 that day, learn what the chances are for 

 another. The best practice is to have 

 a load sold ahead, and no grower should 

 take in more than he knows he can 

 handle. Customers should not be secur- 

 ed too close together, because if one 

 merchant sees a gardener supplying 

 another a few doors from him it creates 

 a jealousy and it is much better to hold 

 a large trade with one man than to sell 

 a little to several. The practice of sell- 

 ing to an individual in front of the door 



TKe Progressive Veg'etable 

 Grower 



A. McMeans, Brantford, Ont. 



The progressive vegetable grower is 

 an enthusiast and, unlike the farmer, he 

 believes in intensive cultivation, and 

 wants to secure two or more crops from 

 the one piece of ground. He may be 

 classed with the florist, bee-keeper or 

 chicken-fancier, in the fact that he is 

 more ready to attend conventions, sub- 

 scribe for trade journals (and right here 

 let me drop a word of congratulation to 

 the management of The Horticul- 

 _TURiST for the improvement they have 

 made in that valuable magazine), or in 

 any way further the interests of the busi- 

 ness they are engaged in. 



Take the florists as an illustration, 

 and look back a few years and see the 

 improvement that has been made in that 

 industry. The question then arises: 



of a customer was strongly condemned 

 because it was claimed that he immediate- 

 ly lost faith in the producer who resorted 

 to such practices. 



The shrewd gardener exercises great 

 care in loading his stock and in getting 

 rid of the inferior grades. As a rule the 

 retailers who are after the low grade vege- 

 tables are out early in the morning to 

 meet the growers before they reached 

 the city. The good product should be 

 kept covered, because if a box of good 

 vegetables is placed beside inferior stuff 

 the latter looks 100 per cent, worse than 

 it really is. Usually the low grade stock 

 can be sold before the merchants who 

 wanted the good line are reached. Mr. 

 Syme advised the producers to hold out 

 for a good price for a good article and 

 not cut down the price through fear of 

 losing the sale. Poor stuff, however, 

 should be got rid of at any price. 



Growers were warned never to mis- 

 represent their goods by saying it was 

 first-class when it was not. When a re- 

 tailer asks for a certain article and you 

 find that you had none on hand it is 

 good policy to buy it for him from some 

 other grower. 



The general appearance of the man 

 and his team and rig were fully discussed 

 by Mr. Syme. He advised every grower 

 to furnish a first-class outfit as there is 

 nothing that keeps a man down so much 

 as a poor team and rig. As for the man 

 himself he should never go into a store 

 with a pipe in his mouth or smelling of 

 liquor. It is never wise to interrupt a 

 man when he is doing business. In every 

 case he should be approached in a busi- 

 ness way, but if he does not want any of 

 your stock do not raise a fuss about it or 

 hang around coaxing him. There is no 

 use trying to force goods on a merchant. 



How and why has this advancement been 

 made? Because the florists are en- 

 thusiasts, or in other words, what some 

 people choose to term cranks on the 

 business they are interested in. They 

 are always striving and seeking after 

 new ideas and new methods of culture 

 so as to be in the advance guard: So, 

 too, is the advanced vegetable grower, 

 with this difference, that he is just enter- 

 ing into the new era that will eventually 

 place him where he belongs. With the 

 co-operation of the Government through 

 a fully equipped and thoroughly up-to- 

 date experimental station, be will soon 

 forge to the front, arid be a credit to his 

 home and an honor to his country. 



• Kindly send me The Canadian Horticul- 

 turist for the ensuing year. It is well worth 

 the price asked and should be in the hands of 

 all who are interested in fruit or flowers. — 

 (Samuel Shearer, Niagara-cn-the-l,ake, Ont. 



