The National Nurseryman. 
FOR GROWERS AND DEALERS IN NURSERY STOCK. 
Copyright, 1893, by the National Nurseryman Publishing Co. 
VoL. III. ROCHESTER, N. Y., JANUARY, 1896. No. 12. 
AMERICAN NURSERY INDUSTRIES. 
The following paper was read by C. E. Greening, of 
Monroe, Mich., before the annual meeting of the Michigan 
State Horticultural Society, on December 4th. 
No special subject having been assigned to me, you will not take it 
amiss that I should select a topic which naturally occupies my thought 
most. It is one of vast importance to all in any way connected with 
the interests of horticulture. I refer to the nursery industry ; one of 
the most important industries of our country, which has kept pace with 
the wonderful progress made throughout this country. 
The nursery business is one of our great factors in commerce, giving 
direct employment to thousands, and indirectly to millions of people. 
Nurserymen ought to be considered benefactors of the country, for 
they not only promote a healthy circulation of the nation’s circulating 
medium, the honest dollar, but contribute naturally to the health and 
happiness of the people, creating an appetite for refreshing, health¬ 
giving fruits, and furnishing the plants that bear them. Do they not 
deserve appreciation and the.meagre profit so grudingly bestowed by 
many ? 
Seriously speaking, you will agree with me that the nursery industry 
is worthy of our earnest consideration. Permit me for a moment to 
glance back at the industry as it was carried on in the years gone by. 
The first impressions of nursery life are still vivid in my mind, not only 
the impressions made by the famous birch rod that never decays, but 
more so of the impression made by father’s work among the trees. 
The work at that time differed, not so much in principle as in method, 
the tools and working material being behind those of to-day. The 
scions for grafting, I remember, were cut principally from bearing 
trees. The bandage cloth for grafting was prepared in the primitive 
way, on the kitchen stove, the sticky mass giving off volumes of smoke 
and perfume not much relished by the more delicate members of the 
household. And thus it was in many other respects a slow, plodding 
kind of work. As to the varieties of fruit, the list was small, the few 
better sorts having a high price.. When the Concord grape was first 
introduced, one year vines sold at .$5 apiece, and they were well worth 
this price. To-day, the price of Concord vines has dropped to almost 
nothing, still the Concord is to-day the standard all-purpose grape, and 
has the esteem of the people. Some of the fruit varieties of earlier 
days, are extensively planted to-day, because of their standard qualities. 
Although varieties are changing and excellent new sorts are being 
brought into the market, yet many older sorts, such as the old and 
tried Baldwin, Spy and Wagner, still bear comparison with our best 
sorts of to-day ; and among the pears the Bartlett, Anjou and Duchess 
are holding their own. Formerly many new varieties were imported 
from Europe. I remember well when father imported some German 
sorts for introduction, among which were the famous Borsdorfer apple 
and the different sorts of Bergamont pears. This experiment taught 
us that most of the foreign varieties must be improved here, in order 
to be of any value. Our home varieties are superior to the foreign 
kinds, and ought to be preferred by all nurserymen and dealers who ' 
desire to furnish their customers with the best sorts. 
In former years fruit was considered a luxury and was not grown to 
any greater extent generally than for domestic use ; even then, how¬ 
ever, there were seasons of over-production, and large quantities went 
to waste, for the simple reason that the value of fruit, the art of pre¬ 
serving, and the method of marketing it was not known as to-day. 
The demand for ornamentals at that time was equally small, as the 
new settlers had their hands full in getting land cleared up for the 
raising of the necessary grain. But with the influx of educated emi¬ 
grants from all parts of Europe, wdio had been taught to love plants 
and trees and beautiful surroundings of their homes, this gradually 
changed. To-day you will scarcely find a cottage that has not some 
kind of ornamental tree, shrub or climber. The nurseryman’s business 
methods were in accordance with the times, and his means. The be¬ 
ginner had to undergo all kinds of hardships and trouble. All soliciting 
of orders was done by the nurseryman himself. The orders were small, 
as commercial orchard planting was then unknown. When delivering 
trees, they often had to be carted for many miles into the country over 
almost bottomless roads; the fastest conveyance in those days being 
the historic ox-team. 
Very little office work was required in those days. Few letters were 
exchanged. Some of them contained something of the humorous, and 
helped to keep up the humor of the business. I recall a countermand 
that caused mueh mirth. It was a postal card, and was directed to the 
“ Postmaster ” who was requested to hand it to the man who sold trees 
to Maria Jones. As to advertising, very little could be done under the 
limited means of the nurseryman. He had to do the greater part of it 
himself while soliciting the orders. 
And to-day : What a change in the conditions of the nursery bu.si- 
ness has taken place. The country in general and our own dear Michi¬ 
gan in particular, has developed itself wonderfully. Improvements 
everywhere ; railroads in every direction, forests cleared, and fine farms 
with large fruit orchards everywhere ; fine residences in city and 
country, with modern conveniences showing the prosperity and intelli¬ 
gence of the people who have been educated to appreciate fruit as a 
food, to see the profits in fruit culture, and to cultivate their tastes in 
beautifying the surroundings of their homes. Our government has 
also been doing its part to encourage fruit growing, in the dissemination 
of desirable varieties, and has established experiment stations, where 
new varieties may be tested as to their merits. The results are published 
in various bulletins which are issued at dilferent times, and distributed 
gratis among the people. 
But where was the nurseryman while such evolutions are going on ? 
He was not sleeping, I can assure you ; nor is he idle to-day, for he 
was one of the principal factors to effect such a wonderful change. 
Believe me, my friends, it is not all sunshine and profit that falls to the 
lot of the nurseryman. It is hard work, constant care and worry ; 
more risks to run than in any other business, and more grumbling cus¬ 
tomers to pester one’s life than in any other business I know of. And 
for all this the nurserymen of this country are investing their capital 
regardless of the existing uncertainties, with a vim almost to be envied. 
No piece of land requires more constant and expensive care than nur¬ 
sery grounds. To grow first-class trees and plants the soil must be 
kept in first-class condition all the time. If the soil deteriorates, the 
product of the soil must deteriorate also, and failures are the conse¬ 
quences. To be successful, the nurseryman must consider the demands 
of the fruit grower. He should raise the kinds of trees that are in 
popular favor, and at the same time he must educate the people regard¬ 
ing the value of the different sorts. He must also improve the work 
of propagating trees, and the caring for them, using only the best 
implements and methods. Formerly the varieties were propagated 
mostly by grafting ; to-day budding is generally practiced, and with 
the most satisfactory results. Much improvement has been made in 
the quality of stocks used for propagation. Formerly small stocks 
w^ere used ; to-day, only the best selected stocks are planted. Instead 
of the single straight root, nurserymen now use the branched root 
seedlings of which only the heaviest, of extra large calibre, are selected. 
The bulk of these seedlings are grown in France, and imported into 
this country, the soil and climate of France being adapted for the grow¬ 
ing of a better class seedling than can be produced in this country. 
Unfavorable seasons cause much anxiety. More than once has the 
dreaded frost destroyed the prospects of se\ eral years’ labor, and what 
the frost does in a few hours, the drought accomplishes in a longer 
period of time, but with equal results. Then there is a great army of 
insects and diseases that threaten the life of the nursery, and the wel¬ 
fare of its owners. Although our professors have arrayed themselves 
