Plate-Books

In the late nineteenth century nursery salesmen were sent out into the field to sell saplings, sight unseen, for delivery the following spring.  The nurseryman’s plate-book was a remarkable marketing tool, exquisitely displaying richly colored images of plant varieties, most notably fruit.

The images of plums are from a Jewell Nursery plate-book.  Note the pink laces strung between images to aid in flipping through the book.  Visit the Andersen Horticultural Library to see a nurseryman’s plate-book on display.