54 
House & Garden 
THE FIRST STEP IN GARDENING 
Some Suggestions on How to Get the Best Service 
From the Spring Seed and Nursery Catalogs 
ALEXANDER DORN 
S INCE the passing of the 18th 
Amendment, indulging in nursery 
and seed catalogs is the only law¬ 
ful—and most popular—form of intoxi¬ 
cation permitted the American people. In¬ 
toxication it certainly is. Weeks before the 
first warm whiff of spring air, men and 
women everywhere have been furiously 
studying catalogs, making out lists, tear¬ 
ing them up and making them over again, 
spending hypothetical thousands and then 
reducing them to a few actual dollars. 
It is a grand orgy! It is a legitimate, 
significant and perfectly delightful orgy! 
But, like any sort of orgy, it has its 
morning after. 
Of the making of seed and nursery 
catalogs there is no end. But reading 
even a mere half dozen of them requires 
a strong will and a clear head. The 
peculiar form of confusion that follows 
on the perusal of many catalogs may 
bring disastrous results to the gardener. 
He may become a seed profligate. These 
words are written not to prevent him be¬ 
coming a profligate—that would be quite 
impossible!—but to help him derive 
some benefit from his orgy. 
The first thing that 
is desirable in a seed 
or nursery catalog is the 
truth. Honest descrip¬ 
tions, simply written, de¬ 
void of rapturous ex¬ 
aggeration is the desired 
feature. The gardener 
reads a flowery descrip¬ 
tion of some annual. It 
is pictured in its perfec¬ 
tion. He visualizes 
himself as creating that 
perfect blossom. He 
buys the seed, plants it, 
cultivates the seedling—- 
and when the flowers 
appear they may fall 
short of the catalog de¬ 
scription. In nine cases 
out of ten he will blame 
the seeds and the seeds¬ 
man. The same is true 
of nursery descriptions. 
The home owner, for 
example, pictures a 
grove of dogwood in the 
back of his garden. 
His purse prevents him 
buying large trees. 
When the trees come, 
they are little affairs— 
and he waits several years before he has 
his grove. Of course, much of this can be 
blamed on the stupidity of the gardener 
or on his method of handling the plant 
material, but it also can be partially 
blamed on the men who write the catalogs. 
Consequently, the first rule for the be¬ 
ginning gardener is to avoid those cata¬ 
logs that contain exaggerated statements. 
You will find that well established firms 
are satisfied to let their seeds and plants 
speak for themselves. Those are the 
firms to patronize. 
On the other hand, the descriptions 
must be adequate in addition to being 
accurate. The reading matter in the 
catalog should help the amateur make 
(Continued on page 104) 
Among the i923 novelties is a 
new aster, “Amazon”, lavender 
pink, that grows to unusual size. 
It is grown by Charles Elliott 
A. E. Kimderd, who gave 
us ruffled gladioli, has 
created a fringed type. 
It is very rare 
The hybrid cactus dahlia 
“The Marchioness” is a 
neiv creation brought out 
bv M. G. Tyler 
I 
C 
The new antirrhinum 
“Radiance”, is terra-cotta 
shaded salmon. Courtesy 
of Alex. Forbes & Co 
A new baby aster “Tom 
Thumb,” 8" high, with 
double and semi-double 
flowers. Hart & Vick 
