Chapter I 



^TO BE OR NOT TO BE" A NURSERYMAN 



IF the reader of this book is already a nurseryman, or 

 if he is just starting such a business or department, 

 it may seem foolish to ask whether or not one should 

 embark on the venture. But there are certain considera- 

 tions that it may be well to review. 



First, with respect to the florist-nurseryman. One 

 does not expect to find Henry Penn or Max Schling out 

 in the field discussing the merits of Spiraea Vanhouttei. 

 Yet it seems perfectly natural to us that the great Rose 

 growers like F. R. Pierson and A. N. Pierson should have 

 nurseries of which they are justly proud. Out in the 

 Middle West is the firm of Holm & Olson which success- 

 fully combines the work of retail florist and nurseryman. 

 In the ranks of the seedsmen the name of Vaughan stands 

 out as a well-known example of the successful combina- 

 tion of a nursery with other lines. 



From this brief mention of the more familiar names, 

 we can turn to that longer list of country florists who 

 have profitably added a nursery branch to their business. 

 This leads us to the conclusion that the first requisite for 

 a nursery is a location in or near the country, within easy 

 reach of other kinds of work. 



A seedsman with a chain of stores recently told the 

 writer he had been selling shrubs for years because ''the 

 people demanded it and when they came to the store to 



buy a shrub, they usually bought a good order of seeds, 



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