Two color lithographs from a seed catalogue depicting cabbages. The pages have been mounted on a single piece of cardboard and placed in decorative green, red, and gold printed frames. The first page illustrates “Landreth's Earliest Cabbage” in a blue border and the company name, David Landreth & Sons. The second page illustrates “Types of Tillinghast's Puget Sound Cabbages” with the Early Winningstadt and Newark Early Flat Dutch pictured below. By the mid-nineteenth century in America, advertisements regularly appeared in newspapers, magazines, trade journals, and catalogues. Companies could run ads in major national publications to reach customers nationwide, or they could reach out to more narrowly targeted audiences through ads in local papers or specialized trade journals. Advertisements employed color, illustrations, clever wording to attract business and influence consumers. All this was made possible by technological advances in the economical manufacture of paper and the printing press. Ads ranged from full-page spreads to smaller features within the column space. Many companies added promotions to their advertisements as a marketing tactic to excite business.
By the mid-nineteenth century in America, advertisements regularly appeared in newspapers, magazines, trade journals, and catalogues. Companies could run ads in major national publications to reach customers nationwide, or they could reach out to more narrowly targeted audiences through ads in local papers or specialized trade journals. Advertisements employed color, illustrations, clever wording to attract business and influence consumers. All this was made possible by technological advances in the economical manufacture of paper and the printing press. Ads ranged from full-page spreads to smaller features within the column space. Many companies added promotions to their advertisements as a marketing tactic to excite business.
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.
