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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] Miller Nursery is sneaky

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  • From: "Dave Griffin" <griffingardens@earthlink.net>
  • To: "North American Fruit Explorers" <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Miller Nursery is sneaky
  • Date: Sat, 13 May 2006 18:10:43 -0500

Ginda,
I think you may be giving Miller's more credit than they deserve. Imagine
the profits on selling a one year old weed like buckthorn for $8 - I pulled
thousands of dollars worth out of my woods again this spring and there are
thousands of dollars worth left, and I've done this each spring for 20
years now. It should be the responsibility of any purveyor of plants to
avoid selling plants the contribute to the destruction of native plant
comunities regardless of their profit in doing so. Their deceit in doing so
makes them even more irresponsible regardless of their reason for it.
Enclosed is a copy of my letter to them on the subject. I know they
aren't the only nursery selling the plant but it is one I buy from and
perhaps it is a good place to start in order to get others to stop too.
Promoting this plant is not a necessary evil and voluntary compliance here
eventually gave way to making it illegal when nurseries saw there was
nothing for them to loose as long as everybody couldn't sell it. Please
join me in making the message heard.

info@millernurseries.com

Dave
zone 4a
central MN, where they finally did this right.

Dear Sirs:
It has come to my attention through the NAFEX computer discussion group
that your "Tallhedge OT112 " is nothing more than Buckthorn, a weed that is
overrunning the eastern deciduous forest in epidemic proportions. I believe
that it is corrupt of you to contribute to the expansion of this major
problem for profit and note that you do so without identifying the plant by
name and that you have no image available so that even people who are aware
of the problem by name or picture are unable to identify it from your
description, another corruption. I have had an order with you for nursery
stock for each of the past 5 years and had one again this spring for
grapes, however, I never again intend to place an order with you as long as
you disregard your responsibilities as a purveyor of plants and continue to
promote this noxious weed, by name or otherwise, that continues to be a
major influence displacing the native vegetation and preventing the
regeneration of hardwood forests wherever they occur, not just in
Minnesota. Furthermore, I intend to ask that the other members on the NAFEX
list, a large group of copious buyers of nursery stock, join me in my
boycott of your nursery until you stop the deceitful and irresponsible
promotion of this cursed plant.

Sincerely,
David Griffin
central MN
customer #4239135

> [Original Message]
> From: <list@ginda.us>
> To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
> Date: 5/13/06 5:05:30 PM
> Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Miller Nursery is sneaky
>
>
> On May 13, 2006, at 12:32 PM, sherwindu wrote:
>
> > My neighbors were looking for a quick solution to give them a
> > privacy and noise
> > screen for their backyard. They found something called 'Tall
> > Hedge' in Miller's
> > catalog . . . nowhere in the ad did they use the description
> > Buckthorn.
> > . . . Why is Miller selling this stuff and keeping it a big
> > secret? This goes hand in hand with their policy of not telling
> > people what rootstocks their fruit trees are planted on. They
> > survive on deception of the public, taking advantage of people who
> > don't know
> > better.
> >
>
> I've found that a number of legitimate nurseries sell plants that are
> pests at least somewhere in the US, including bittersweet, Norway
> Maple, purple loosestrife . . . the list goes on and on.
> Massachusetts just banned the sale of about 20 invasive aliens, and
> all of them are readily found in trade.
>
> Usually nurseries even say what it is. Anything that's described as
> growing extremely quickly, having no pests, etc., is likely to be
> problematic somewhere. "Tall hedge" sounds like a tip-off of an
> invasive plant to me. My guess is they didn't call it "buckthorn"
> because of the word "thorn", not because people are actively avoiding
> buckthorn for its invasiveness. My guess is also that if you called
> Miller and asked "what species is that 'tall hedge'?" they would
> happily tell you, just as they told me what rootstocks they had under
> each apple variety. They aren't marketing to the specialist, but to
> the casual grower, who doesn't know from rootstocks and has never
> thought about invasive aliens, at least, not botanical ones.
>
> I'm not a huge Miller fan - they sent me mislabeled currants, and
> they sent my uncle a different pear than what he purchased. On the
> other hand, their plants are consistently healthy and usually are as
> advertised. They are just a large, imperfect nursery.
>
> Ginda
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