THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
290 
and if we can hope for a race of hybrid Rhododendrons 
better suited to the conditions of the New England climate 
than any we now possess, it will be obtained by mingling 
,the blood of these four species and by excluding entireh 
■the blood of the Himalayan species to which the garden 
Rhododendrons of Europe owe a large part of the bril 
Raney of their flowers. 
Rhododendron Smirnowii. This is a plant from 
which a good deal may be expected. Tt has been grow¬ 
ing in the Arboretum for several years and has not suf¬ 
fered from cold or drought. When, however, the plant is 
fully exposed to the sun the leaves often droon and their 
edges infold, and it does better in partial shade. The 
leaves are pale grayish green above and below are thickly 
covered with pale felt which successfully protects them 
from the attacks of the lace-wing fly. The flowers are of 
good size and of pleasant shades of pink or rosy nink. 
and are borne in large clusters. As compared with the 
dark green leaves of Ft. ratawbiense those of this plant 
are less attractive, but the flowers are much more beau¬ 
tiful in color and are equally large. Several hybrids of 
Ft. Smirnowii with varieties of Ft. ratawbiense have been 
raised in Europe, and there are a few of these in the Ar¬ 
boretum collection. They have proved to be good garden 
plants here, flowering earlier than Ft. Smirnowii and pro¬ 
ducing larger pink flowers; they have never been injured 
in the Arboretum, but as there is only a trace of the felt 
left on their leaves they will probably suffer from Iho 
lace-wing fly. Jthododendron earolinianum is said to 
have suffered last winter in a few places near Boston, 
but it was uninjured in the Arboretum and in several 
other Massachusetts gardens. Tt is the most beautiful of 
the dwarf small-flowered Rhododendrons which can be 
grown in this climate and may prove valuable to cross 
with other species. Tt has now been out of flower for 
more than two weeks. Rhododendron Smirnowii is now 
at its best. The flowers on Ft. ratawbiense are just open¬ 
ing. and those on Ft. maximum will not be out for another 
fortnight. The flowers of a few of the Catawbiense hy¬ 
brids are in bloom but most Rhododendrons are late this 
year, and many of them are only beginning to show the 
color of their flowers through the opening bud-scales. 
A nurseryman writing to “The National Nurseryman” 
inquires as follows: 
“What is a fair price for a plant or tree, when one is 
quoting to a retail buyer, owner of a city backyard, or 
the owner of a large estate, a landscape gardener, a 
florist or a farmer. To me it seems a real chaos. II 
you think the subject of enough importance I should be 
very glad if you would give your opinion in the columns 
of “The National Nurseryman.” 
It is very true there is still entirely too much variation 
in the prices of nursery stock, largely due to the fact 
that it is so difficult to arrive at actual cost ol production. 
Then again the cost of production varies so much, ac¬ 
cording to conditions, which are constantly changing. 
Prices, however, have settled down to a fairly common 
basis, and if you will examine the retail catalogues of a 
number of the leading nurseries in the United Stales, you 
will find (he prices for a given plant or grade are very 
much the same. 
You will find the following table a basis for retail 
prices. This table is not intended to be used arbitrarily 
but to give the nurseryman, w hen making his catalogue 
and fixing his prices, a system by which lie may arrive 
at uniform prices accordingto the value of the stock. 
It is for the individual nurseryman lo fix his own 
prices according to the way in which he does business. 
Some nurseries make separate charge for packing, while 
others include it in the price of the plants, especially to 
the retail trade. Then again, the class of trade to which 
he is catering will have a bearing on tin 1 grade and kind 
of stock which he grows, so that Ik* w ill have to lower or 
raise his scale accordingly. 
Basis of Retail Prices. 
Shrubs that propagate 
very easily and produce 
18-24 in. @ 
.25 
saleable plants in very 
2- 3 ft. @ 
.30 
short time. Hard wood 
3-4 ft. @ 
.35 
cuttings, such as Willows 
4-5 ft. @ 
.50 
Plants raised from soft 
wood cuttings, seed. 
18-24 in. @ 
.25 
layers fairly common and 
2-3 ft. @ 
.35 
easy to grow, such as 
3-4 ft. @ 
.50 
Wcigelas, Spiraeas, Deutzias 4-5 ft. (a) 
.75 
and Hydrangeas. 
Small growing shrubs, 
12-18 in. @ 
.25 
such as Deutzia gracilis, 
18-24 in. @ 
35 
Berberis Thunbergii, Hy¬ 
2-21/2 ft- @ 
.50 
pericum, etc. 
21 / 2-3 ft. @ 
.75 
Choice Hard wooded and 
12-18 in. @ 
1.50 
evergreen shrubs such as 
18-24 in. @ 
2.00 
$1.00 
Azaleas, Rhododendrons, 
2-21/2 ft. @ 
2.50 
to 
Magnolias, Japanese 
21 / 2 - 3 “ ft. @ 
3.00 
$2.00 
Maples, Osmanthus, Ilex 
3-31/2 ft. @ 
3.50 
per 
etc. 
31 / 2-4 ft. @ 
4.00 
foot 
4-41/2 ft. @ 
4.50 
Common, quick-grow ing 
Evergreens, such as 
50c lo 75c per 
foot 
Arbor Vitae, Norway Spruce, 
Common Pines, etc. 
Choice slow-growing evergreens $1.00 per foot 
Very slow-growing and rare $1.50 to $2.00 per loot 
Quick-growing trees 75c per inch 
Medium-growing trees $1.00 per inch 
Hard Wooded trees, such as 
Norway Maple, Oriental 
Plane and common Oaks 
$1.25 and $1.50 per inch 
3 inches and up at $2.00 
Rare trees $2.00 per inch 
Magnolias 75c per foot 
Have an X grade priced as above XXX grade priced oik* 
size in advance. 
The nursery doing both w holesale and retail realL has 
three sots of prices; a retail price for the customer buy¬ 
ing a single plant, a wholesale price w here stock is pur- 
