130 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
COOPERATION IN SELLING NURSRY STOCK 
AND MARKETING FRUIT 
Extract from an Addres* Delivered by T. B. Thackston at the Tennessee 
Nurserymen’s Association Meeting 
Some one has said that every man has a subject which is 
his pet theme. If I have a pet theme or theory, a hobby, 
your Secretary would doubtless say, that hobby is Coopera¬ 
tion. I believe in cooperation most heartily, for the reason 
that I believe that it will assist you in solving most of the 
great problems of the day that confront the American 
people—the social, the economic, the industrial problems 
of the day. Further than this, I am confident that coopera¬ 
tion will unite the interests of the pro¬ 
ducer and the consumer. I shall simply 
take this subject in a plain way and view 
the issue, though I claim no originality, 
for I have long since learned that no one 
man thinks all the good things. 
Cooperation in selling nursery stock 
and marketing fruit, this is the subject 
that I have been assigned. When you 
read the subject, you would suppose that 
it would divide itself into two parts, I 
prefer to discuss these together. 
Cooperation properly means working 
together where two men are doing the 
same line of work and doing it in the same 
way, but I believe that it is possible for 
two men engaged in different but related 
lines of work to cooperate. I believe 
that the nurseryman can cooperate with 
the fruit grower, as well as two 
nurserymen can cooperate. We need 
a complete, full, practical soil survey of the State, especially 
of the fruit areas of the State, the orchard locations. I have 
come to the conclusion that orchards have been located as a 
matter of experiment. I believe that you have not studied 
the condition of orchards, the soil conditions of the State. 
It will cost money to make such a survey of the State, but it 
will return one hundred fold. Other sections have these soil 
surveys, these orchard surveys, why should not Tennessee" 
Why should a man who lives in Tennessee, who has decided 
to establish a commercial orchard, go down into Georgia to 
get a location ? I do not understand why he should; I think 
it is a mistake. 
Again, I want to say just one word to the nurserymen. 
1 think there should be some cooperation in the matter of 
selling nursery stock, and I want to make a suggestion to you. 
I believe we have something like 350 nurseries in the State, 
nurserymen and fruit growers combined. Most nurserymen 
send throughout the State, agents who will just show pictures 
of the fruit. These men know very little about nursery stock 
or fruit trees, or the growing of trees, and they do not hesitate 
to sell a tree to a purchaser whether it is adapted to that 
locality or not; they want to sell. I want to suggest that 
there is an educational possibility in this. When we get this 
soil survey of the State, I want to see the nurserymen visit the 
localities where these orchards will be grown; if necessary go 
to other states and talk to the people growing fruit. I want 
to have them teach the ordinary man how to properly care 
for his trees; how to set them out; how to cultivate; howto 
prune; how to use the remedies for diseases and insects. 
Now, you may say that this is going to quite an extreme; 
I do not think so. We are building up 
an industry, and we want to see that 
the orchards are profitable. 
Again, you can cooperate in the en¬ 
forcement of the laws of the State, 
especially the laws against the introduc¬ 
tion of diseases. Only a short while ago, 
I attended a Short Course in Agriculture 
held at Cleveland, Tennessee. There 
were exhibited there trees that had been 
sold in that county, that had hairy root 
and crown gall, and the agent was trying 
to convince the man who had purchased 
those trees that they were not injured. 
I do not want that thing in Tennessee! 
Again, I want to see fruit trees sold and 
then that particular variety delivered to 
your purchaser. Gentlemen, I do not 
believe in this thing of substitution. If I 
send to you an order for trees, I want 
those particular trees delivered to me, 
and if you cannot supply me, then notify me that you cannot 
fill the order but will supply other trees. 
Again, I want to insist that it is necessary that the nursery¬ 
men be especially particular in supplying trees that are true 
to name. Years ago, I knew a gentleman who was planting a 
commercial orchard. He put out 10,000 apple trees; waited 
patiently several years for fruit to mature. When it did so, 
he found about ten per cent of the trees were what he ordered; 
he cut them down and went out of business. 
I am inclined to think that here in Tennessee, it would be 
best to establish community orchards. Let the citizens select 
the location and then employ an experienced man to look 
after the management; I believe that for the present this 
would be the wisest plan. 
Now another thing; you fruit growers are not advertising 
your products. When I look around this room at this fruit, 
and inquire where it came from, I find that it comes from the 
West. I asked each grower here, where are your Tennessee 
apples." Only a few are shown. Either you cannot grow 
apples in Tennessee equal to these, or you are not growing 
them. I think that you ought to exhibit your fruit at your 
home, county and state fairs. If you can grow fruit of a 
The New President of the Tennessee Nurserymen’ 
Association, Mr E. W. CHATLIN of Winchester 
