Seed catalog cover, 1893, New Hardy Ever Blooming Roses

Object Details

Date
1893
Description
Color lithographic seed catalogue cover for 1893. The cover features an illustration of New Hardy Ever Blooming Roses including White La France, Striped La France, and La France de 89 on a brown background with polka dot stripe across the middle. The cover is mounted on cardboard within a decorative black, red, green, and gold printed frame.
Label Text
Horticultural commerce flourished in the mid-to-late-nineteenth century, and many seedsmen and nurserymen published elaborate trade catalogs illustrated with chromolithographs to boost sales. Until the 1870s, seed catalogues were largely printed lists of the different varieties available with their prices. By the 1880s, many companies were producing sizable booklets with bold-colored detailed illustrations of plants both inside and on their covers, and many were selling additional gardening products as well, such as books, garden furnishings, tools, and supplies. In addition to goods, many of catalogues contained advice on garden layouts, bedding designs, and advice on plant culture. In the face of intense competition in the seed industry, the catalogue was an essential tool for many businesses to market their goods and forge trust with their customers. These catalogues were often so successful that for many seed and plant merchants the catalog was their only salesman, and they did not have to hire agents or traveling salesmen. Lithography, chromolithography and the steam press all contributed to their proliferation, and advances in transportation and mail services led to their widespread distribution. The successful use of catalogues gave seed companies the ability to deploy their products nationwide and bring the consumer together with their goods as speeds previously impossible.
Paper/Support
Mounted on cardboard
Topic
advertisements
chromolithographs
trade catalogs
advertising
bulbs
floriculture
flowers (plants)
gardening
horticulture
marketing
nurseries (horticulture)
print advertising
Seed industry and trade
See more items in
Horticultural Artifacts Collection
Credit Line
Smithsonian Gardens, Horticultural Artifacts Collection.
Data Source
Smithsonian Gardens
Accession number
1984.250.063
Type
Trade catalogs
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Medium
Paper
Dimensions
8 11/16 × 11 3/4 in. (22.1 × 29.8 cm)
GUID
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/aq4ee4ce718-139a-489a-bc0a-ad15b764a2a4
Record ID
hac_1984.250.063
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