Monday 13 March 2017

Vintage Seed Catalogues - part 1

An increased flow of exotic plants from the Middle East, South Africa and the Americas appeared in England at the end of the eighteenth century, encouraging a love of plant collecting and botany among the upper classes, as well as tradesmen who competed and developed the ideal forms of “Florist” flowers. By the nineteenth century the enthusiasm for all things botanical was spreading to all levels of society. After 1840 the seed and nursery trade expanded exponentially along the railways, improved mail service, and annually published booklet catalogues.

In America, many more seed and nursery companies came into being during the second half of the nineteenth century, especially after the Civil War. Mail-order became much more common due to improved transportation networks amd postal reforms that made it cheaper to ship plants and seeds, as well as catalogues. Mail-order companies increased the size and number of catalogues they produced.

With the growth of towns and cities throughout the country, seed and nursery companies faced a huge potential market, but also increased competition. As a result, many catalogues tried to distinguish themselves from their competitors by promoting more novelties and giving vegetable and flower varieties names containing superlatives such as Mammoth, Giant, and Perfection. Catalogue covers became more elaborate.


This is part 1 of a 3 - part post on Vintage Seed Catalogues:


1882 The New Guide to Rose Culture
The Dingee and Conard Company, West Grove, PA

1883 Benson, Maule and Reliable Seeds
Benson, Maule & Co., Philadelphia, PA

1883 Landreths Rural Register Alamanac and Catalogue, Philadelphia, PA

1884 Landreths' Companion for the Garden Farm, Philadelphia, PA

1885 John Lewis Childs, Queens NY
Illustrated Catalogue of New, Rare, and Beautiful Flowers
front cover

1885 John Lewis Childs, Queens NY
Illustrated Catalogue of New, Rare, and Beautiful Flowers  
back cover

1887 Burpee's Farm Annual - Garden Farm & Flower Seeds
W. Atlee Burpee & Co., Philadelphia, PA

1888 I.V. Faust Garden - Field - and Flower Seeds
I.V. Faust, Philadelphia, PA

1888 Faust Garden or King of the Blacks Pansy
I.V. Faust, Philadelphia, PA

1888 Burpee's Farm Annual. Garden, Flower & Farm Seeds.
W. Atlee Burpee & Co., Philadelphia, PA

1888 Wm. Henry Maule, Philadelphia, PA

1889 The New Guide to Rose Culture
The Dingee & Conard Co. West Grove, Chester Co. PA

1889 Rawson's Vegetable & Flower Seeds
W.W. Rawson & Co., Boston, MA

1889 Maule's Seed Catalogue
Wm. Henry Maule, Philadelphia, PA

1890 New, Rare & Beautiful Flowers
John Lewis Childs, Floral Park, NY

1890 Child's Superb New Gloxinias
John Lewis Childs, Floral Park, NY

1890s Seed & Plant Guide
H.W. Buckbee, Rockford, IL

1890s Floral Treasures
The Good & Reese Co., Springfield, Ohio

1891 Maule's Seed Catalogue for 1891
Wm. Henry Maule, Philadelphia, PA

1892 Northern Grown Tested Seeds
Northrup, Braslan & Goodwin, Minneapolis, MN

1892 Bulbs, Plants, Seeds.
Peter Henderson & Co., New York

1892 Wilson's 16 Annual Price List and Catalogue
Samuel Wilson, Mechanicsville, Bucks County, PA

1892 Sutton's Amateur's Guide in Horticulture for 1892
Sutton & Sons, Reading, UK

1892 Our New Guide to Rose Culture
The Dingee and Conard Company, West Grove, PA

1893 Seed Catalogue
D.M. Ferry & Co., Detroit, MI

1893 Illustrated Hand Book Rawson's Vegetable & Flower Seeds
W.W. Rawson & Co., Boston, MA

1893 The Perry Seed Store, Syracuse, NY
front cover

1893 The Perry Seed Store, Syracuse, NY
back cover

1893 The Storrs & Harrison Co., Painesville, Ohio

1893 The Storrs & Harrison Co., Painesville, Ohio

1893 Special Advertisement of Burpee's Seeds
W. Atlee Burpee & Co., Philadelphia, PA

1893 Pansies, Poppies and Sweet Peas
W. Atlee Burpee & Co., Philadelphia, PA

1893 Burpee's Catalogue of Flowering Bulbs, Plants & Seeds for Autumn Planting
W. Atlee Burpee & Co., Philadelphia, PA

1894 C.E. Allen Plant and Seed Guide
C.E. Allen, Brattleboro, VT
front cover

1894 C.E. Allen Plant and Seed Guide
C.E. Allen, Brattleboro, VT
back cover

1894 Cole's Garden Annual 1894 Garden, Farm and Flower Seeds
Cole's, Pella, Ohio
front cover

1894 From Cole's Seed Store
Cole's, Pella, Ohio
back cover

1894 F. Barteldes & Co., Lawrence, Kansas

1894 Child's rare Flowers, Vegetables & Fruits for 1894
John Lewis Childs, Floral Park, NY

1894 Scott's Roses, Philadelphia, PA

1894 The Huntington Seed Co., Indianapolis, IN
front cover

1894 The Huntington Seed Co., Indianapolis, IN
back cover

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