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THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
But I may have drifted from the point at issue. If you 
are prepared to fix the average trade price of Hydrangea 
P. G. 2 to 3 feet at seven cents each and that is the lowest 
trade price at which all nurserymen will sell the stock, then 
I would say unquestionably a nurseryman should not sell 
the plant to Parks, Cemetery and Landscape Gardeners at 
seven cents each, his price should be at least 20 to 25 per 
cent higher. Or, if the average price of Norway Maples of a 
certain grade is $1.00 then the price to the Park, Cemetery 
and Landscape Gardener trade should be no less than $1.25 
each, but until some standard price on every item of orna¬ 
mental stock is fixed and adhered to by all nurserymen 
alike, east and west, north and south, I fail to see how this 
question of what if, a trade price can be overcome. 
In no other trade does this condition of affairs exist. 
You cannot buy iron pipe, hardware, spades or other tools 
direct from the manufacturers at what we call trade prices. 
He may perhaps sell his goods direct to you at a list price and 
perhaps give you 10, 20 or 30 per cent discount, but when 
the jobber goes to him for a price, he will get an extra 10 or 20 
per cent off, that you cannot get. The jobber is protected. 
But conditions are somewhat different between the 
manufacturer and the nurseryman. The manufacturer 
knows exactly, to the fraction of a cent, just what his goods 
cost him to produce and fixes his selling price based on the 
cost of production, but where is the nurseryman who can say 
“My 2 to 3 feet Hydrangea P. G. cost me exactly four, five 
or six cents to grow, ’’and can prove it. 
A nurseryman once said to me “I keep figures which 
show me exactly what my stock cost me to grow.’’ and he 
showed me an elaborate system of figures. I took several 
items and asked him if he did not think certain items of his 
expense on that item were greatly in excess of what they 
actually should be. He assured me they were not and that 
his figures were taken from correct records kept during the 
actual process of the work. I took his figures and proved 
to his satisfaction by his own figures that his men would have 
to stand with spade poised in the air for half a minute between 
each spade full of earth to enable them to put in the time his 
cost sheets required. 
From what I have said it may appear to you, gentlemen, 
that I am in sympathy with the idea of selling nursery stock 
to Parks, Cemeteries, and Landscape Engineers at Trade 
prices. I have had occasion in the past to put myself on 
record as being against the practice and I do so again now, 
but I still maintain, as I have done in the past,—that until 
some plan is devised whereby a standard trade price is 
fixed and maintained on every item and on each grade of 
nursery stock grown we, as nurserymen can only float along, 
cut each others throats and at the end of the year count up 
our profits or losses and pray for the time to come when we 
can get together in some way and adjust this most difficult 
and knotty problem, but until that time comes, how are we 
to know what is a trade price and how much more are we to 
charge the Landscape Gardeners, the Park and Cemetery 
Superintendents; and even then we must devise some plan 
other than a “gentlemen agreement’’ to compel each nursery¬ 
man to stick to it. 
I am afraid that when that time comes, we will have no 
need of money, every man will love his neighbor like a 
brother and the angels will sing us sweet songs to lull us to 
rest. 
WHY NOT HAVE MORE LIKE THIS? 
Last fall the Kinderhook (N.Y.) Pomological Association 
was formed, and its membership was limited to twenty. 
Farming and fruit growing have been looking up in that 
region of late, partly due to the fact that several recent col¬ 
lege graduates have gone into farm work in good earnest in 
that locality. These young men and the more experienced 
growers of Kinderhook, with their progressive spirit, realized 
something of the value of cooperation; and already they 
have found from specific cases the importance of union to 
business enterprises. The three objects of the Association 
are, first, the study of various horticultural problems; 
second, cooperation in buying and selling, etc.; third, social 
intercourse. If one can judge from the interesting account 
in the Tribune Farmer for June 8, the Association is fulfilling 
its threefold mission admirably. 
THE MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN 
The Missouri Botanical Garden, known to many as 
Shaw’s Garden, is the result of Mr. Henry Shaw’s enthusias¬ 
tic interest in the culture of trees and plants. In 1840, when 
but forty years old, he was wise enough to retire from active 
business, having amassed a fortune sufficient for his desires. 
It was in 1851 that he visited the gardens of the Duke of 
Devonshire, at Chatsworth, Derbyshire, and immediately 
afterwards began to plan for an artistic garden which should 
surround his country residence. This garden was from the 
first intended to be a source of pleasure and instruction to the 
public as well as to the owner. The last thirty-five years of 
Mr. Shaw’s life were spent in the development of the extensive 
grounds in accordance with careful study of the theory and 
practice of gardening and after the counsel of such a compe¬ 
tent adviser as Professor Asa Gray. The garden was main¬ 
tained and expanded by Mr. Shaw until his death in 1889, 
and the present director. Dr. William Trelease, was desig¬ 
nated for this position by Mr. Shaw himself. 
The site of the garden contains about 125 acres, of which 
only a little over half is developed, and extends from Shaw 
Avenue on the north to Magnolia Avenue on the south. 
The garden is open to the public week days from 8 a. m. till 
half an hour after sunset, and the employees are forbidden 
to receive fees from visitors. The library and herbarium, 
each valued at over $100,000 are open to qualified students. 
In accordance with Mr. Shaw’s desire to “give pleasure 
with incidental instruction to the public, to train gardeners 
and botanists, and to provide for the increase and dis¬ 
semination of botanical and horticultural knowledge,’’ both 
the common and Latin names of the many thousands to 
species and varieties grown are indicated, a four years’ 
course for the training of gardeners has been established, and 
systematic study of scientific questions is made by the 
Director and others. 
The main divisions of the garden may be briefly described 
as follows: The flower garden of about nine acres is in the 
