THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
Report of the Special Committee of the American Forestry 
Association Appointed January 9, 1912, for Consideration 
of the Subject of State Owned Versus Privately Owned 
Nurseries 
From the investigations of this Committee under the 
resolution adopted at the last meeting, authorizing its 
appointment for considering “the advantages of State 
nurseries for the propagation, cultivation and sale of forestry- 
material in competition with the business of private owners,” 
it is our conviction that the matter of producing and dis¬ 
tributing forestry material is one of such importance to the 
people of the country, that the subject should be handled 
as a matter of mutual interest, on the part of the United 
States Forestry Department, the different States, this 
Association, and those owning private nurseries and en¬ 
gaged in the business, rather than as a subject which might 
cause antagonism between the States and private nurseries. 
The Committee wishes to emphasize the fact that the 
suggestion for investigating the subject arose more from a 
desire on the part of nurserymen to have the subject investi¬ 
gated than on the part of the Association. 
From various data obtained by the Committee from the 
leading Foresters and representative firms engaged in the 
business, the following summary of opinions is here pre¬ 
sented: The opinion of State foresters who are conducting 
State nurseries, all other State foresters and all foresters 
in other employment, is, with two exceptions, unanimous, 
that State nurseries should be permitted to sell stock to 
private parties mainly for the following reasons: 
(a) Previous to the establishment of State nurseries 
private nurseries had not furnished stock at prices which 
would permit the planting of large quantities of trees for 
forestry purposes. 
(b) As a res-ult there was comparatively small demand 
for nursery stock for forest planting until certain States 
instituted the policy of supplying such stock to private 
planters. 
(c) The demand for nursery stock for forest planting 
is largely the result of this policy on the part of the States, 
and the claim is made that private nurseries have in the 
aggregate been benefitted rather than injured by it. 
(d) The State is justified in encouraging forestry planting 
by assisting private owners to obtain cheap nursery stock 
in order to secure to the community the benefits of forestry. 
Private nurserymen contend and are generally of the 
opinion that, 
1. State nurseries which sell to private parties act to 
deprive privately owned nurseries of their legitimate busi¬ 
ness, causing them financial loss and should be prohibited 
from competing with them. 
2. They also contend that it is not the proper function 
of a State to engage in this industrial enterprise more than 
in the manufacture and sale of any commercial product 
in which large amounts of private capital are already in¬ 
vested. 
Between these opposing opinions decision should rest 
upon ascertainable faets bearing on the cost of producing 
and distributing nursery stock of the desired quality and 
quantity, and the prices asked for this stock by States and 
private nurseries, respectively, upon the demand for stock 
for this specific purpose and the supply of nursery stock 
available from States and from private nurseries. 
The committee is advised by the United States Forest 
Service that ten States reported maintaining forest nurseries, 
the aggregate acreage of which is 140.5 acres: Connecticut, 
Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New 
York, Oh'o, Pennsylvama, Vermont and Wisconsin. There 
were produced during the past year 19,058,000 plants, 
including both seedlings and transplants. The cost of 
raising this stock varied for seedlings from 45 cents to $5 
per thousand plants, with an average of $2.50 per thousand; 
and for transplants, from $2 to $6 per thousand, with an 
average of $4.50. This covered all species, both hardwoods 
and soft woods. The hardwoods were in all cases seedling 
stock and very much in the minority. The number of plants 
distributed by these States amounted to 14,001,100, for 
which a price varying from $i to $7 per thousand was 
charged, the average being $4 for both seedlings and trans¬ 
plants, as well as hardwoods and softwoods. The apparent 
discrepancy between the figures of production and distribu¬ 
tion is accounted for by the fact that several of the States 
are themselves large users of the planting stock which they 
raise. There are a few States on the other hand that distri¬ 
bute considerably more stock than they produce, the addi¬ 
tional amount of course being stock purchased from com¬ 
mercial dealers. Only two States report direct importation, 
the total of which amounts to less than 250,000 plants. 
The committee has been unable to ascertain as to the 
cost of producing and distributing forestry material by 
privately owned nurseries. 
The cost of raising forest nursery stock includes the 
following items: 
(a) Initial cost of plant, as land, buildings, equipment, 
waterworks. The legitimate charge for the item of interest 
on investment and depreciation of equipment. 
(b) Skilled supervision and overhead charges. 
(c) Labor cost. 
(d) Selling costs, including advertising. 
(e) Legitimate profits. 
These cost items vary according to the following condi¬ 
tions : 
(a) Size of output. Overhead charges are greatly re¬ 
duced with large annual output. 
(b) Character of labor. 
(c) Soil and climate. 
(d) Assurance of definite and stable markets. 
