9 ° 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
A DETROIT ANTHOLOGY 
Extracts From Papers Presented at the American Association 
Convention—Practical Suggestions for the Trade. 
Lack of space prevents the reproduction of all the papers 
that were presented at the Detroit convention. Provision for 
such reproduction is made in the official proceedings. We 
present herewith some extracts which show the drift of the 
proceedings : 
A Permanent Business. 
“The nurseryman who wants a profitable and permanent business 
can find no surer way than by guiding intending planters towards the 
purchase of the most suitable varieties, regardless of any surplus 
stock he may have of less desirable sorts.”—J. H. Hale. 
A Proud Monument. 
“ It seems to me that few men may claim a prouder monument than 
that which grows to crown the life work of an honest nurseryman. 
The orchards on mountain and plain which grew from the little trees 
which he started and loved and endowed with true character will keep 
his memory forever green.”—H. W. Collingwood. 
Texas Needs. 
“The nurserymen of Texas are in sore need of closer organization* 
Some are up-to-date, others are behind the spirit of these progressive 
times. We are all wanting a more generous sympathy and fraternal 
co-operation with each other and with our patrons. We think it good 
policy to encourage the planters to engage with us in the work of 
improving and even propagating varieties, thus enlisting more 
interest in all horticultural work.”—E. W. Kirkpatrick. 
Ought to Stand for Dore. 
“ The American Association of Nurserymen ought to stand for more 
than it has, as an organization of business men representing nearly 
every state in the Union, with a capitalization of $ 55 , 000 , 000 , a 
property valuation of $ 45 , 000 , 000 , a working force of 60,000 persons, 
and a growing stock of more than three billion plants and trees, 
according to the last federal census.”—Ralph T. Olcott. 
One Vast Sanitarium. 
“ The nurserymen of Texas have no protective laws to keep out 
the pestiferous bugs and humbugs, the scales and aphides, the 
injurious diseases such as root-knot and what-not, so much talked of 
in other states. The result has been that we are and have been the 
constant and universal dumping ground of all infected, diseased, 
rejected and condemned stuff from other states, yet we are troubled 
with none of these things because our state is one vast sanitarium for 
all plant ailments and these pests and diseases are eliminated immedi¬ 
ately in coming in contact with our atmosphere, thus rendering us 
immune.”—E. W. Kirkpatrick. 
Old Customers the Best. 
“ There is something wrong in a nursery that is always seeking new 
customers ; old customers should be our best ones and will be if care 
js taken always to give them the best stock you have and never sell 
them a variety you would not plant yourself. J. II. Hale. 
Spiritual Side of Fruit Growing. 
“ It seems to me that the honest and conscientious nurseryman who 
is true to his business comes closest to what I call the spiritual side of 
fruit growing. Such men put character, hope and promise into 
worthless sticks of wood.”—H. W. Collingwood. 
General Publicity Favored. 
“ Perhaps you will question my judgment when I say to you that I 
verily believe that this Association could wisely expend an adver¬ 
tising appropriation upon general publicity that would induce people 
to use fruit more largely. California has done more along promotive 
lines in this direction than any other state ; in fact, than all other 
states combined. Two or three years of general advertising would 
make a demand for nursery stock such as this country has never 
dreamed of and the question of price would be secondary; the 
question of quality uppermost. Your business or profession would 
be elevated to a higher plane. You are all ready for such a campaign. 
All that is needed is backbone and money.”—Frank B. White. 
Assist the Experiment Stations. 
“It is our duty to see that our legislatures make more liberal 
appropriations for experiment stations ; and it is our duty to furnish 
to the stations freely samples of all new plants and trees a few years 
before introduction if possible.”—J. H. Hale. 
The Golden Rule. 
“ There are men in your business who come as close in their desire 
to carry out the principles of the Golden Rule as any who deal with 
their fellows. In twenty years of business I have never heard one 
word of complaint of a score of nurserymen that 1 could mention. 
They settle every question promptly and cleanly. Such men honor 
an honorable business. On the other hand there are men about whom 
we constantly receive complaint of mixed varieties, stock untrue to 
name and weak or diseased trees. 1 conclude that it is true in the 
nursery business as in other things, that a man stamps his character 
and care, such as it is, upon everything that leaves his hands.”— 
H. W. Collingwood. 
The Nurserymen at St. Louis. 
“ Fifty acres at the St. Louis Exposition grounds are being laid out 
entirely in the interests of such nurseryman and florists as desire 
making exhibits upon them. It seems to me that one striking and 
really effective thing which the nurseryman can do will be to place in 
the hands of the Department of Horticulture everything he has of a 
new and unusual character. There will of course be exhibits of all 
those things which are common and everyday, but the nurseryman 
who does not seize this opportunity to show his fellow craftsman or 
the public in general such things as he has discovered or been able to 
improve is not living up fully to his opportunities. We hope par¬ 
ticularly to be able to bring together in one group or portion of the 
grounds the distinctly American shrubs and trees. 
“ I think those of us who have spent many years in the growing of 
nursery stock have felt very many times that many mistakes have 
been made in the introduction of those things which have been 
perhaps for a long period of time valuable in climates and under 
conditions entirely different from those in which we must place’ them. 
It has seemed to me for many years that from our own woods and out 
of our own mountains and growing along the streams and in our own 
valleys are scores of things which if treated as well as we treat 
cultivated plants in our gardens would far excel many of those 
imported things which have frequently disappointed us. 
“I think perhaps the one thing from all the exhibits which should 
really be of most use to the nurserymen themselves will be the special 
exhibits which are to be brought together in one place of the different 
varieties of fruits as grown under varying conditions.”—Frederic W. 
Taylor. 
To Advance American Association. 
“ If some of the discussion that is usually confined to groups of two 
or three or five in the hotel lobbies at the conventions, regarding 
practical nursery topics, the season’s trade, the price of stock, the 
amount of planting, the prospects, and the methods that have been 
found successful under special conditions, were given wider publicity 
by being transferred from the hotel lobby to the floor of the conven¬ 
tion, in addition to the topics of the program, and the active 
operation of the question box, the annual gatherings of the American 
Association of Nurserymen would be of so great value that not a 
nurseryman in the country would feel that he could afford to miss a 
convention or remain outside of the organization. There should be at 
least one thousand names on the secretary’s roll.—Ralph T. Olcott. 
The Proportion of Rogues. 
“ I do not believe that the rogues and frauds in the nursery business 
represent as large a proportion as the black sheep in other lines of 
trade. One would think so to hear what buyers say. But we must 
remember that the rogues are advertised by every disappointed 
victim, while the honorable men must advertise themselves.”—H. W. 
Collingwood, 
Will Pay Extra For Good Trees. 
“I am sure there is a generation of planters growing up who will 
gladly pay any extra cost of propagation to the nurseryman who will 
propagate from fruiting stock only.”—J. H. Hale. 
