THE NATIONAL NUESERYMAN 
43 
ENDORSES “THE OPTIMIST” 
Editor National Nurseryman, 
Flourtown, Pa. 
Dear Sir:— 
We have just read with much interest the views of the 
“Optimist” on the subject of Market Development in the 
January issue of the National Nurseryman. It was a 
splendid article. It shows a comprehensive study of the 
matters most vitally interesting to nurserymen just at 
this time. 
Especially do we want to commend the “Optimist” on 
the stand he takes on the subject of “getting together and 
pulling together,” referring to the grower and the re¬ 
tailer. For too many years have the grower and retailer 
fought at cross purposes with each other. Things that 
are of interest to the grower are of interest to the retailer. 
Matters that affect the retailer’s business affect that of 
the grower also. When we are able to effect a “getting 
together” of the grower and retailer, then and only then 
are we going to he able to put the nursery business where 
it belongs. If the growers and distributors will get to¬ 
gether and establish prices that will allow a ])rofit to 
both parties concerned this will serve to do away with 
haphazard prices. For too long have the prices of nur¬ 
sery stock been governed by the immediate demand or 
supply. Of course, this necessarily affects prices to 
some extent, but any business man knows that in order 
for his business to be a paying proposition, the price he 
gets for his product must be governed by the expenditure 
necessary to produce this product. How much longer 
are nurserymen going to be so unbusinesslike as to trust 
to Providence, fate, or ordinary every day luck to make 
money out of bis business. Under present conditions 
there are some years when a nurseryman can make good 
money, especially if he happens to have in good supply 
some particular item that is in good demand but not very 
plentiful among nurserymen in general. That is all right 
for that particular year, but the very next year his sur¬ 
plus may consist mainly of items that have been grown in 
considerable quantity by other nurserymen, and in con¬ 
sequence will have to sell cheap. So what assurance 
does the nurseryman have of a profitable business? Very 
little, to be sure, as long as prices vary according to the 
supply or demand. 
Now the finished product, be it a fruit tree, shade tree, 
shrub or vine, is worth a certain price to the man who 
plants it, regardless of the supply of this particular ar¬ 
ticle, or the demand. If it is worth one dollar, measured 
in terms of beauty, comfort, and added value to his prop¬ 
erty, to a man to have a certain kind of tree planted on his 
lawn, he should pay no less than one dollar for that tree 
regardless of whether there are a million just such trees 
on the market or a thousand. Consequently, the prices 
the grower gets for his stock should never be based upon 
anything except the cost of the product and the value of 
the product to the ultimate consumer. When prices are 
estal3lished according to the above nurserymen won’t be 
forced to sell their products far below their real value 
and thus lose money just because there happens to be an 
unusually large supply of that particular item at that 
particular time. The nurseryman should realize that his 
product is worth a certain amount to the consumer, and 
that there is a field for disposing of it if he can only dis¬ 
cover that field. And right there is where the Market De¬ 
velopment should come in, by opening up new fields to 
enable the grower to dispose of his surplus without hav¬ 
ing to take a loss. 
And now to sum up what the Market Development 
should include; First and foremost, it should bring about 
established prices based on the cost of the product that 
will allow a profit to both the grower and the retailer. 
Second, it should open up new fields of business, and 
when these two things have been accomplished other mat¬ 
ters will be of minor importance. Several other things 
may, and probably will be included in the plan of Market 
Development, but these two, I would say, should be the 
chief end and aim. Or in other words, to make of the 
nursery business a sure enough business proposition, in¬ 
stead of the haphazard, hit-or-miss business it has been 
in the past. 
An Alabama Nurseryman. 
THE PROBLEM OF STOCKS FOR AMERICAN FRUIT 
GROWERS 
By B. T. Galloway, From the Bulletin No. 143 U. S. Dept, 
of Agriculture, Bureau of Plant Introduction. 
For a good many years the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant 
Introduction of the Department of Agriculture has been engaged 
in bringing in plant material that gave promise of value for 
stocks. Special attention has been given to fruit stocks, par¬ 
ticularly stocks for the apple, pear, peach, apricot and plum. 
Since 1898 something over 400 types of pears have been intro¬ 
duced and disseminated. Many types of peach and plum have 
also been introduced and have been placed in the hands of 
specialists and others for work in connection with securing 
disease and insect resistance, soil and climatic adaptability, and 
congeniality. 
Recently the Federal Horticultural Board announced a pro¬ 
posed quarantine on nursery stock and other plants and seeds 
imported into the United States. On and after June 1, 1919, all 
plants and plant materials will be excluded except two groups 
one of which will be admitted without restrictions and regula¬ 
tions and the other with restrictions and regulations. Fruits, 
vegetables, cereals, and other plant products imported for med¬ 
icinal, food, or manufacturing purposes; and field, flower, and 
vegeable seed will have unrestricted entry,—unless on account 
of some dangerous disease or insect, when there may be issued 
either a temporary or permanent quarantine. It is conceivable 
for example, that there might be a disease affecting the lemon in 
a foreign country which would make it necessary to quarantine 
against that country. The Federal Horticultural Board has issued 
a number of these special quarantines and will no doubt con¬ 
tinue to issue them in cases of emergency. 
PLANTS ADMITTED UNDER RESTRICTIONS. 
The plants and plant materials that will be allowed to come 
in under restrictions and regulations are lily bulbs, lily of the 
valley, narcissus, hyacinths, tulips, and crocus. In case any of 
these materials are packed in sand or soil, the sand or soil must 
previously be sterilized by heat in a manner satisfactory to the 
Board. Seedling fruit stocks, cuttings, scions, and buds of fruits 
for propagating will also be admitted under regulations, together 
with rose stocks for propagation. All nuts, including palm seeds, 
will be admitted, as well as seeds of fruit, forest, ornamental, 
and shade trees, together with seeds of deciduous and evergreen 
ornamental shrubs, and seeds of hardy perennial plants. 
PLANTS EXCLUDED 
The groups that will be automatically excluded, include such 
things as budded and grafted fruit trees; grape vines; bush 
fruits; forest and ornamental deciduous trees; ornamental de¬ 
ciduous shrubs; coniferous trees, including pines; evergreen 
trees and shrubs, including the broad leaf types; and a consid- 
