—Its importance to 
Commercial (growers 
Plant selection does not differ from the breeding of horses; cows and other 
animals in the matter of keeping up the "Strain" and improving it. Townsend s 
have always taken pride in the "Strain" of plants offered their customers. 
Our thirty-four years of experience in the growing and propagation of small 
fruit plants has given us valuable information that could have been ob¬ 
tained only through constant contact with our propagating fields throughout 
the years we have grown plants. Every Townsend's plant is an offspring of a 
selected plant that has special merits back of it. We go into our fields each 
of one of the Townsends 
We use the same 
methods in selection 
of parentage in the 
development of our 
plant stocks that are 
used by cattle and 
horse breeding ex¬ 
perts. This means 
many dollars to the 
buyer of plants at 
picking time. 
year with experienced men under personal supervision 
and personally select plants that are to be used for 
mother plants. Plants are chosen that show outstand¬ 
ing vigor and productiveness, and to the greatest de¬ 
gree exhibit the true characteristics of the variety. 
These selected breeding plants are then reset into a 
plot of fertile soil where they are grown until the fol¬ 
lowing spring. During this period of growth numerous 
strong healthy runner plants are produced. These 
plants are then taken up during the spring at proper 
planting time and set in large acreages on our farms 
where they are grown for our many customers through¬ 
out the country. 
We do not stop here, but go on year after year 
selecting this stock and keeping our strain up to the 
nearest to perfection that thirty-four years in small 
fruit plant breeding has taught us. Our many custo¬ 
mers benefit by the selected strain in larger yields 
and better quality fruit. 
WHAT IT MEANS TO HAVE A PLANT 
OF STRONG CROWN DEVELOPMENT 
Recent research has shown that 80% of the fruit stems on 
strawberry plants are formed in the crown of the plant from 
September to November of the season before blossoms ap¬ 
pear. It is, therefore, important to set nothing but well de¬ 
veloped plants for your fruiting beds; plants that will have 
sufficient vigor to send out strong crowned runner plants in 
which these fruit buds are formed. This governs the yield of 
berries you will get the following spring after setting. 
With Townsend's selected strain of plants you are assured 
of a well developed fruiting bed that will yield far above the 
average plants offered, when grown under normal conditions. 
Many thousands of our customers know this to be true and 
write us convincing letters about their heavy yields obtained 
from our plants. 
2,500 QUARTS OR 10,000 QUARTS TO 
THE ACRE—WHICH YIELD DO YOU 
PREFER? 
The fact is that the average yield of strawberries, taking 
the country over, is less than 2500 quarts per acre (accord¬ 
ing to government figures). This low yield will barely pay 
cost of growing strawberries, while a yield of 5,000 to 14,000 
quarts per acre will usually net from $500 to $1400. This is 
a very good profit even at the lower figure, and much more 
than is being made on the average truck crop. Many of 
Townsend's customers report yields of 10,000 to 14,000 
quarts per acre and seldom report less than 5,000. This is 
convincing proof that the Townsend's strain of plants have 
much higher average yields per acre than just ordinary plants. 
MONEY-MAKING OPPORTUNITIES 
GROWING STRAWBERRIES 
There are big profits in growing strawberries. The first step 
is to secure healthy vigorous plants with yielding qualities 
bred into them. Plants that will produce uniform berries 
of the highest quality; berries that will bring the top price 
on any market. The local and distant markets are usually 
well supplied with small undersize berries during harvest 
season bringing the price down on this class of berries to an 
unprofitable basis while the same markets are glad to get 
berries of superior quality and perfectly willing to pay a 
premium price for them. Our customers often write us that 
their berries have been topping the market from three to 
five cents per quart; this extra price being a very good profit 
and one that no grower of strawberries can afford to pass up. 
LET US HELP YOU GET STARTED 
Our instructions are easily followed; simple enough for 
the average 10 year old boy to understand. To those of 
our friends with little or no experience in this profitable 
strawberry field we are most happy to take up your 
problems and give you the benefit of the information 
that we have gained through the years we have been 
in the small fruit plant business. We also issue a com¬ 
plete culture guide on small fruit growing. This booklet 
is free for the asking. 
SATISFIED CUSTOMERS 
Thousands of our customers have grown up with us. 
They started in a small way just as we did. Following 
our advice and instructions they have made more money 
year after year in grov/ing strawberries and other small 
fruit plants than any other crop. These thousands of old 
customers have sent to us tens of thousands of new 
customers. In this way TOWNSEND'S NURSERIES have 
grown until today we are the largest growers and ship¬ 
pers of Strawberry Plants in the country. We enjoy the 
full confidence of the Strawberry growers throughout the 
country. We are mighty proud of our business and just 
as proud of our long list of faithful customers who have 
contributed their share in building our business to its 
present standing. For this faithfulness we are giving to 
each of them the best that is within our power in trying 
each year to grow plants that will please them better 
and to give the best service at our command. 
