406 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
to be the great problem and when the market is devel¬ 
oped, getting perishable stock to it, in good condition, is 
quite a problem of itself. 
There is fame and fortune for the man who can con¬ 
trive a method, making it as easy to buy some plants for 
the garden as it is to buy a package of breakfast food. 
In the spring one sees pansy plants, etc., at the grocery 
store, often looking wilted and in bad shape, due to the 
poor system of handling. Would it not be possible to 
greatly increase the demand by putting them in dozens in 
neat little carriers. The same with roses and other 
plants for which there is a lively demand. 
We nurserymen are very hide bound in our methods 
and ideas, we are quite ready to criticize and growl if 
the department stores try to handle our goods, but the 
main question, more important thing is, are we doing our 
best, are we studying the buyers angle? 
The general nurseryman does not have much oppor¬ 
tunity, his line is too varied, but the specalist could, and 
there is a large undeveloped market for hardy perennials. 
WHAT A NURSERYMAN SEES IN HIS TRAVELS 
The fall of the year is a nice time to travel, a little 
warm and dusty sometimes, but there are many compen¬ 
sations especially through the hilly sections of the 
country. Here in West Virginia the fall coloring of the 
trees is superb, one never gets quite used to it. It bursts 
with new glory on the vision continually. To come on 
a fine specimen sour gum or red maple in its prime of 
fall coloring in the proper sunlight leaves its impression 
on the mind. 
Fall coloring of the foliage is not constant, some years 
it is much better than others, depending upon weather 
conditions and in some localities it is much better than 
in others, possibly due to the prevalence of trees that 
color up more vividly than others. 
West Virginia is particularly fortunate, numerous 
sour gums, red maples, dogwood, sumac, scarlet oaks, 
sweet gums, etc., give the reds and crimsons. The tulip 
poplar, sugar maple, silver maple, sycamore, chestnut, 
etc., the golds and yellows. These mingling with the ever¬ 
green of the hemlock, pines, cedars, mountain laurel and 
rhododendron, make a veritable fairyland. This in com¬ 
bination with the rocks, streams, create landscape effects 
that would take untold wealth and time to produce in 
less favored localities, yet with all this natural beauty 
there is no section of the country where the towns are 
more hideously ugly. 
Judging by this part of the country, it does seem as if 
wherever man has settled in numbers he has made a 
fester spot on the face of the earth. 
For planting along the streets in the towns amid all 
the wealth of beautiful trees, he has selected the one, the 
Carolina poplar, that is capable of adding to the general 
lack of beauty of his surroundings. Just why there 
should be such a lack of interest and effort it is hard to 
understand, unless it be as one native said, “we have 
only been concerned with the wealth underground and 
have completely ignored the surface.” 
It is certainly not poverty, because there are plenty of 
costly homes and public buildings with spacious grounds, 
but upon these the landscape effects are produced mainly 
by planting of Carolina poplars. 
Undoubtedly better things are due in the near future 
as there is awakened interest in fixing up. There is a 
tremendous work for the nurseryman with a vision, it is 
and will be slow work at first, but the results are sure. 
It takes a nice row of pin oaks, (at this time of year 
especially) to demonstrate their effect on a street in com¬ 
parison with poplars, American lindens and silver maples 
which are brown and sear, littering the ground before 
better trees have begun to fall, or one nicely planted 
yard to start the neighbors striving for better things. 
INSPECTION POINTS FOR POSTAL SHIPMENTS 
OF PLANTS INCREASED 
Under the postal regulations put into effect in Cali¬ 
fornia, some few months ago, covering the inspection of 
nursery stock and horticultural products generally where 
shipped by parcels post, there were a number of practical 
difficulties. The inspection required in this case was 
required to cover the same sort of inspection that would 
be necessary where such nursery stock might be shipped 
other than by mail, but the regulations for carrying out 
the inspection of mail shipments were so burdensome 
as to have aroused considerable opposition on the part of 
nurserymen and others. The small, short-distance ship¬ 
ments were the ones causing the trouble, as very often 
products shipped to a town a few miles away had to be 
reshipped back to the town from where they had origin¬ 
ally started in order to find the necessary inspector. All 
of this took time, added largely in proportion to the cost 
of shipment, and often injured the stock inspected 
through lack of proper repacking. 
The state horticultural commissioner's office, which co¬ 
operates with the United States Postoffice Department in 
connection with this matter, just now announces a large 
addition to the number of inspection points. Whereas 
previously only the residences of the county horticultural 
commissioners, of which there are forty-five, were in¬ 
spection points for inspecting plants and plant products 
.sent by parcels post, now the residences of each and 
every horticultural inspector, as well as the county com¬ 
missioner, is included in this list, so that there are now 
174 towns in California where such inspection can be 
made, every local inspector being separately designated. 
This will doubtless improve the situation considerably. 
—California Fruit News. 
HOMES MINUS ORCHARDS AND SHRURRERY 
That there are 600,000 homes in the state of Texas, and 
not more than 26,000 with home orchards and shrubbery, 
was the statement of E. W. Kirkpatrick of McKinney, at 
the meeting of the Texas Nurserymen’s Association. 
“The National Nurseryman” office received announce¬ 
ment of the marriage of Miss Dessa Belle Morris to Mr. 
Robin Scott Hartwell, which took place on Saturday, Oc¬ 
tober 2nd, at Franklin Grove, Illinois. 
Mr. Hartwell is of the firm of I .L. Hartwell, of Dixon, 
Ill., and doubtless known to many nurserymen, who will 
join with us in extending hearty congratulations. 
