340 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
A “TRAINING” LETTER TO A NURSERY AGENT. 
To Nurserymen:—If there are any “pointers” for you in the fol¬ 
lowing I will be glad of it, for my belief is that Nurserymen do not 
train their agents sufficiently. 
The beginner should have a series of personal training letters so 
as to help him to properly present the merits of his goods. If the 
beginners are allowed to “go it, sink or swim,” a large percentage 
never do business. 
Getting the start is more than half the battle. 
Irving E. Spaulding, Sales Mgr., 
Alpha Publishing Co., 
Ferguson Bldg., Springfield, Ill. 
Dear Mr. Lucas:— 
Rather recently we talked to a lady who is a great lover of the 
beautiful in everything and with a particular love for trees and 
plants, their flowers, foliage and fruits. She was speaking of the 
possibilities of beauty in the home-lawn of the poorest man as well 
as the richest and she laid largely the blame of the lack of adorn¬ 
ment with shrubbery, vines, etc., to the nursery agent. 
TO QUOTE HER OWN WORDS 
“Some agents do not show sufficient interest in their own work 
to interest the persons to whom they are talking, and do not post 
themselves enough about the good points of their own stock and 
varieties to intelligently direct the prospective buyer a‘s to what she 
or he really ought to have.” 
“Agents have often shown me their book and everything in them 
looked so lovely that I wanted everything I saw pictured, but so 
long as I could not have and could not afford to buy everything and 
the agent could not tell just what was best suited to my particular 
place nor what had not been most tried and tested, I would not order 
anything at all, whereas, if he had only been able to tell me what 
vines he knew were especially adapted to my porch or house and to 
cover up unsightly places about my yard, and what shrubs were 
known to be particularly satisfactory and what trees would be suited 
to my lawn, I would gladly have given a good order. 
“I never like an agent to act as if I were compelled to buy 
whether I want to or not, or who gets angry or impudent when I 
don’t care to. It invariably antagonizes me and I often will not 
purchase simply because the man«is discourteous, when I really 
would like to have the goods. On the other hand if he greets me 
pleasantly, says that he has some lovely specimens in the plant and 
tree line and that he would like to show me even if 1 don’t care to 
buy, looks around the place to see what he would recommend for it, 
and is truly interested in what he is selling for the sake of the beauty 
in it and really seems to care for what I could do to improve the 
place, it is a pleasure to buy from him, and I have no desire to do any¬ 
thing but buy everything that I possibly can afford. I hope you 
will tell your salesmen what I have said.” 
• THIS WE HAVE DONE 
Trying to repeat her words exactly—for in them we see a lot of 
“pointers” of which we know you can make good use. It is always 
better for a salesman to be able to see things from the purchaser’s 
point of view rather than from his own. It will be wise for you to 
look around the buyer’s yard, recommending suitable vines to cover 
up the porches and fences, hedges to entirely do away with fences, 
vines to cover the house itself and to cover the barns and old out¬ 
houses, trees and shrubs to shut off and hide unsightly views, shrubs 
and hardy plants blooming at different times of the year—so that 
flower-loving women and children may have blossoms at all times, 
and enough fruit trees, even if there is room for only a few in the 
back yard, to furnish the family with fresh fruit during the entire 
summer and some to can for winter. While for the front yard 
recommend ornamental trees to make the place look cool and invit¬ 
ing in summer and also attractive in winter. 
STUDY THESE THINGS 
And grow an interest in their beauty, and you will be astonished 
at how much more profit as well as pleasure you will derive from it. 
Have you studied carefully “What constitutes judicious planting,” 
(see on 2d page in your plate-book) ? Have you read how to “Pro¬ 
vide for succession of fruit” (see next to last page in your plate-book) ? 
Appropriate such “talking points” when you are soliciting orders. 
NOW IS A FINE TIME 
To sell for next year’s growth—now when everybodyis more or 
less flower hungry and fruit hungry, and "you will notice if you will 
only stop to think, how every place you pass can be improved by the 
addition of the splendid things in your book of plates. The smallest 
home should have a vine or two on the house and an attractive yard 
and garden, for in buying nursery stock a very little money goes a 
great way m improvement, adornment, comfort, and in the enhance¬ 
ment of value. 
Following are a few of the things considered as among the very 
best for special purposes and we know (from experience on our own 
grounds) to be more than satisfactory. 
FOR HEDGES AND SCREENS 
California Privet, Barberry, Japan Quince, Norway. Spruce, 
American Arborvitae. (See plate-book.) 
VINES AND CLIMBING ROSES 
To cover porches 'and unsightly places, Crimson Rambler rose, 
Clematis Paniculata, Wisteria, the Boston Ivy or Ampelopsis 
Veitchii, which clings close to stone, brick or wood walls and it 
requires no care to train. 
TO HIDE UNSIGHTLY SPOTS IN YARD AND TO BEAUTIFY 
Syringas, Spireas, Altheas, Lilacs, Hydrangeas, Weigela, 
Golden Glow, Rose bushes, also Climbing Roses, Crimson Ramblers, 
Tree Roses, Dwarf Perpetual Baby Rambler Rose, also Rugosa 
Rosa. For covering banks and bare spots where grass does not 
grow readily—use the trailing Wichuriana or Memorial Rose. (See 
.plate-book.) 
RAPID GROWING SHADE TREES 
Silver-leaf Maple, Carolina Poplars, American Elm, Box Elders 
and Oriental Plane. (See plate-book.) 
RARE ORNAMENTAL TREES 
European White Cut-leaf Weeping Birch, Teas Weeping Mul¬ 
berry, Horse Chestnut, Cut-leaf Maple, Magnolias, Tree Roses, Tree 
Hydrangeas, Bechtel’s Double Flowering Crab and Colorado Blue 
Spruce. 
QUICK BEARING 
Our grape Collection—the Berries in great varieties as shown in 
our plate-book, and Mulberries, Peaches, Plums, Cherries, Pears, 
Asparagus and Rhubarb, and English Walnuts. 
Everything in your plate-book is beautiful! The best of every¬ 
thing! No home should be without the things recommehded at the 
bottom of page 2 in your plate-book, and select your “leaders” from 
the above familiarizing yourself thoroughly with such “leaders” as 
you select. 
Your co-worker, with best wishes, 
Irving E. Spaulding, Sales Mgr. 
THE SEED TRADE. 
Conrad Appel, Darmstadt, Germany, has just issued his 
report on the crop of grass, clover and agricultural seeds 1 
generally, for the season of 1908. The crop of grass seqd on 
the whole seems to be somewhat smaller than last year and 
the prices will probably range a trifle higher. Low tem¬ 
peratures and limited sunshine in June and July prevented 
the ripening of seed. The crop of clover seed of Red, White 
and Alsac and Crimson varieties, appears to be larger than 
usual and- prices are likely to range from medium to low. 
Alfalfa seed is somewhat below the average in quantity. 
P. J. Berckmans Company, Inc., are enlarging their 
landscape department and are now prepared to execute 
promptly all orders without reference to size or location. 
