ABOUT MAYFAIR’S PLANTS 
This year, the second under the new management, our stock has been increased 
threefold over last year’s, and the better quality is remarkably noticeable. Those of you 
who were satisfied last year will be more than pleased with these, our new sturdy 
plants. 
Unfortunately we have had to delete a number of very choice items from this 
catalogue because of a severe shortage of sellable plants, however they will reappear as 
quickly as we can propagate and build up a fair stock, which should be in a year or 
two in most cases. To counterbalance these deletions we have added several new 
species and varieties never before grown by Mayfair Nurseries, and some of these are 
new introductions never before offered for sale in the United States. In order to find 
these new additions easily, we have market them with an asterisk (*) before the name. 
Growing rock plants and alpines is nota specialty, but the ONLY business of Mayfair 
Nurseries. Every plant we grow is perfectly suited to a place in a rock garden, except 
for two or three in the catalogue of RARE NATIVE PLANTS AND SHRUBS 
collected by Mrs. Mary G. Henry which have been included because of their special 
worth as rare and interesting natives. All our plants are perfectly hardy and capable of 
withstanding the severest of Winters. You may have heard a great deal of talk about 
protecting alpines in Winter, but this is not protection from cold. It is protection from 
warmth and drying. Alpines do not like this business of alternate freezing and thawing. 
They want to freeze in Winter and stay that way fntil it is time to grow again in 
Spring. Protection is also employed to prevent the winter winds from drying the roots 
of any plants that may have heaved out of the soil. In short, protection is used in place 
of a snow cover where snow does not lay on the ground all Winter as it does in the 
native habitats of these tiny plants. 
We still continue to grow all our plants in pots, except for two or three species 
which do not particularly like pot culture. Special note is made of these in the descrip- 
tions. The reason we grow our alpines and rock plants in pots are manyfold, the most 
important reason being that this method insures a sturdy plant with a good root system, 
built by three or more pottings. When the cutting comes from the propagating bench 
it is potted in a two inch pot. After several weeks of growing it is repotted in a three 
inch pot. Then after two months of growing, or if it had a late start, the following Spring 
it is taken from its pot, most of the soil removed from its roots and repotted in fresh 
soil in a threeinch pot, or in the case of a rather large growing plant, in a four inch pot. 
In this manner of handling there are no big roots that go deep into the soil to be 
broken off when the plant is taken up to be shipped. Growing plants in pots also enables 
us to give each species its exact requirements for soil, drainage and exposure, thus 
insuring well grown plants. 
The next most important reason is shipping. Our pot grown plants and proven 
method of packing permits us to guarantee that your plants will reach you in any part 
of the country in excellent condition. We can guarantee this because each plant 1s 
wrapped individually, with all its soil and roots, packed to withstand possible rough 
handling and delay in transfer. In packing, we take the plant from the pot, being careful 
not to disturb the roots. Then we apply a collar of excelsior between the ball and the 
crown of the plant to prevent moisture from seeping up and rotting the foliage. Next we 
cover the entire ball with damp peat moss and roll it up in waxed paper together with 
its label and cultural directions. The next operation is to pack the plants in a carton or 
crate and ship it off to you. When you take them out they will look as fresh and 
healthy as they did going in at the nursery. 
