Resource Book on Horticulture Nursery Management

Marketing is systems that will make consumers believe that they are buying
something special. It is a system which meets the needs of the consumers and supplies the
right amount of product when the customer needs it. Customer perceptions are not just
about price and quality. They may also include status, enjoyment, attractiveness,
convenience, health. Producers should decide which factors are special for their product
and emphasize these in the promotion and advertizing of the product.
Direct Marketing
This is sales by the nurseryman direct to the consumer. Different studies show that
many consumers prefer direct contact with the nurseryman/seller compared to an
impersonal service, although the latter are in some cases more efficient. One of the main
advantages of direct sales to consumers is the opportunity to reduce marketing costs and
to add value to the product in this way, the profit margin is increased. Nurseryman need
to become aware of existing marketing tools in order to maximize sales.
Nursery Markets
A nursery market is a form of direct marketing that is located in or within proximity
of a community where growers sell directly to numerous customers. Cash sales and the
possibility of selling under or oversize units that cannot be marketed through other
marketing channels are the main benefits of this system for nurseryman. For consumers it
provides the opportunity to buy new plants and to interact with nurseryman in an
informal environment.
Order Markets
The nurseryman take order from the customer then prepares the seedling with desirable
variety/ species of crop. These marketing systems are very popular and profitable for both
nurserymen and customer. Customer gets healthy plants of desirable variety within short
period and the economical losses and risk of over or under production is lowered for the
nurseryman.
7.3 Glossary
Air Layering: A propagation method practiced in fruit crop like pomegranate.
Budding: Method of vegetative propagation where the scion is reduced to a single bud
and is inserted into a rootstock.
Corm: A short, thickened underground storage organ formed usually by enlargement of
the base of the main plant stem.
Germplasm: The genetic variability of a population of organisms.
Hardwood cuttings: Cuttings made from woody deciduous species and narrow-leaved
evergreen species, such as grape.
Integrated Pest Management (IPM): A pest management method that utilizes all
techniques of pest control like cultural, biological and chemical, in an integrated
manner to keep pest populations below an economic threshold level.
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