106 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
American Seedmen and catalog publishers, the beloved and la¬ 
mented James Vick, whom in later years I learned to he so good, 
so generous and so truly a gentleman. His catalog or guide was 
filled from cover to cover with inspiration for the lover of gar¬ 
dening. 
The house in which I was born was built by Robert Scott in 
1912, at Scott’s Landing, Penn’s Manor, Pa., on a farm of some 
250 acres, known as “Ash Mead.” 
My father died when I was ten years old, and at the age of 
sixteen I assumed the management of Ash Mead Farm. Oh! how 
times have changed since then! The farm was devoted to grow¬ 
ing farm crops and dairy products. I remember so well that 
everyone, including all the “men folks” at least, was obliged 
to be downstairs at 5 o’clock every day in the year. When not 
in school, it was my “painful duty” to take the milk to the train 
(we shipped it to Philadelphia) each day, and in winter it was 
still dark when I went those two lonely miles and back before 
breakfast. To say it was “Bitter cold” some mornings does not 
half express it. I am sure I never before or since felt the cold 
so severely; in very truth, it makes me shiver yet when I think 
of it. 
Strange as it may seem, “our folks,” in common with our 
neighbors, gave a Tttle thought or attention to a garden, though 
our family was large, and nearly all the “hired help”—a consider¬ 
able force of men and boys and several hired girls”— was given 
board upon the farm. Hence I was regarded as being, in a 
measure, wrong in my head, when in addition to growing vege¬ 
tables in large variety and perfection, I planted berries and 
flowers also. I recall very clearly my first planting of the small 
fruits. I bought the plants of Mahlon Moon, Morrisville, Pa., and 
in the lot were the Wilson and Kittatiny Blackberries, the 
Nicanor, Agriculturist and Jucunda Strawberries—all novelties 
at that time. In addition, Joseph L. Lovett of Emilie gave me 
a quantity of the Philadelphia Raspberry from the old Lovett 
homestead. Everything succeeded admirably and my neighbors 
were forced to admit, though I was so foolish as to “bother with” 
flowers, that my berries were “splendid” and really wonderful. 
Catalogs were my only teachers and from them I acquired suffi¬ 
cient information to enable me to become a skillful grafter. (Too 
bad I did not become a politician or a public official.) 
During these years I felt compelled by duty to devote at least 
twelve hours each day to the affairs of the farm and would sel¬ 
dom permit myself to give any time to my garden except in the 
evening, after the “men folks” had left the fields. This, however, 
was my recreation, and pure, sweet, delicious recreation it was 
indeed. All these years, while engaged upon the farm or driving 
upon the road, it was my constant wish and hope that I might 
engage in the nursery business. Learning that A. Hance & Son, 
proprietors of the Rumson Nurseries, Red Bank, N. J., were in 
need of an office assistant, I applied for the position. A reply 
soon came to the effect that they had been unfortunate with 
young men, they had decided in future to employ only elderly 
ones in their office. I was then 19, and with this encouragement 
I at once started off alone, reaching my destination at 12 o’clock 
at night, January 10, 1872, in a snow storm. I remained with 
these good people for six years; in fact, I have been in the 
same neighborhood ever since that Memorable January 10th, 
save for a part of one year when I was associated with the 
lamented Rev. E. P. Roe, the author, at Cornwall- on-the-Hudson. 
In the autumn of 1878 I sent out the first catalog of the Mon¬ 
mouth Nursery, and in 1888 I purchased the Rumson Nurseries 
which first tutored me for my life work, and merged them with 
the nursery I had established. J. T. L. 
Mr. Lovett catered especially to the catalogue trade 
transmitting his interest and intense love of plants to 
everyone he could reach. 
Growing a general line of ornamentals he specialized 
upon herbaceous plants for which his nurseries were 
famous. 
To him belongs the credit of introducing many new and 
little known plants to the buying public among them 
phlox, paeonies, Japanese iris, cannas and dahlias. 
lie remained faithful to his early love, small fruits, 
strawberries, currants, gooseberries, raspberries, black¬ 
berries and grapes, always in the forefront with the new 
kinds. 
The general use of the California Privet for hedges was 
mainly due to Mr. Lovett, who first recognized its value 
for this purpose. 
The inspiration, he mentioned which he received from 
Ik K. Bliss, Briggs Bros., James Vick and those nursery¬ 
men of a former generation has been faithfully passed 
along. 
What finer tribute can be given, when it can be truth¬ 
fully said, “The world is richer and better for his having 
lived.” 
EXTENSION OF THE WHITE PINE BLISTEIt RUST 
QUARANTINE 
The quarantine preventing the shipment of five leaf 
pines, currants, gooseberries, etc., has been extended to 
cover the entire State of Washington. 
BOOK 
PEARS OF NEW YORK 
New York State 
Dr. U. P. Hedrick, Horticulturist of the New York Ag¬ 
ricultural Station, Geneva, N. Y., and associates G. H. 
Howe, 0. M. Taylor, E. H. Francis and II. Ik Tukey:—has 
completed his sixth volume of a series of monographs of 
our leading tree-fruits which have been published by the 
New York Experiment Station. 
This volume, Pears of New York, is truly a magnificent 
work and shows painstaking care by a master, in its 
preparation. 
The only adverse criticism one could make is in the 
limitation of the title, indicating a political boundary to 
such.a complete treatise on the Pear. The list of varie¬ 
ties is so complete and the treatment so thorough, dealing 
as it does with the History of the Pear, Species, Pear 
Culture, Leading and minor varieties, Bibliography, etc., 
that the work has national if not universal application. 
The eighty, full page, four color plates are works of 
art and identifies the leading varieties beyond cavil. 
Their merits and defects being set forth with candor. In 
addition, brief descriptions are given of 2,838 varieties of 
minor importance. 
A perusal of the book has a tendency to make one an 
enthusiast on the subject of pears and to regret pears do 
not rank higher in the United States. To quote the 
author, “The pear competes with the apple in importance 
in Europe where blight is unknown. In America it is a 
poor fourth to the apple, peach, and plum, and takes 
fourth place instead of second because of ravages of 
blight. About the most important discovery to be made in 
pomology is a race of blight resistant pears. Failing in 
this, if the pear industry is to grow, or even continue in 
its present magnitude, blight-resistant stocks must be 
found.” 
