My three grown daughters have inherited their father’s love of overcrowded used bookstores (such as Macleod’s in Vancouver and Russell Books in Victoria), places full of faded spines, long-forgotten inscriptions and fascinating ephemera. These are the shops we meander through to discover one-of-a-kind gifts for our immediate family, one of which was transformed into a stocking stuffer for me last Christmas. It was a 1937-38 plant catalogue from Layritz Nurseries Ltd., which was founded in the 1890’s and once had garden centres on Kingsway in Vancouver and Fort Street in Victoria, as well as a nursery on Wilkinson Road in Saanich.
While thumbing through it about a week later I was surprised to see how comprehensive it was and while many of the plant varieties they offered are now obsolete, many were still being sold today, some 88 years later. So, I thought it might be interesting to share a few of these with you using modern images paired with their original descriptions and prices, with the latter having changed substantially but the detailed text holding up rather well.
📸 MK Lascelle
‘Gravenstein’ Apple (Malus domestica)
The best fall table apple, highly valued wherever grown. A very strong grower and prolific bearer; fruit golden-yellow with red stripes, very juicy, and of high quality. September, October. Two years, 4 to 6 ft…$1.00 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
‘Bartlett’ Pear (Pyrus communis)
First on the list, and quite deservedly so. The most valuable commercial table pear, and unsurpassed for canning and drying. The demand for well-grown Bartletts is practically unlimited for canning purposes alone, and the ease with which pears as a whole, and Bartletts in particular may be grown to perfection, especially in the coast districts, makes the planting of pears a good investment. Two years, 4 to 6 ft…$1.50 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
‘Italian’ Prune Plum (Prunus domestica)
Medium, oval, dark purple; flesh juicy and delicious; free-stone, excellent for drying. Tree a strong grower, and where conditions are right, immensely prolific. Needs summer moisture. September. Two years, 5 to 6ft…$1.25 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
Loganberry (Rubus x loganobaccus)
Too well-known to need description. Trails on the ground like a Dewberry and like the latter needs a trellis to hold it up. The Logan if on suitable ground is certainly a fine fruit, and its aromatic flavour makes it highly desirable for preserving, canning and wine making. Each…$0.25.
📸 MK Lascelle
Japanese Snowbell (Styrax japonicus)
One of the prettiest and most graceful little trees, so far practically unknown. Fine twigged, with pendulous pure white, snowdrop-like flowers appearing in great profusion. 2 to 5ft. balled…$1.00 to $3.00 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
Pink-Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida ‘Rubra’)
When established the clear rosy-red flowers envelop the tree almost entirely. Very attractive. Grafted trees, 2 to 4 ft... $1.50-$3.00 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
Chinese Dove Tree (Davidia involucrata)
Rare and remarkable. Its distinctive beauty lies in the two enormous snow-white bracts which subtend the flower proper, and being pendulous, on fairly long stalks, are stirred by the slightest breeze, and resemble small doves hovering among the branches. 2 to 3 ft…$3.50 to $5.00 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
Maidenhair Tree (Ginkgo biloba)
A deciduous coniferous tree from China with leaves like giant maidenhair fern. The oldest tree known, dating back to before the Ice Age, and sole representative of a lost fossil flora. 2 to 5 ft…$1.00 to $2.50 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
Star Magnolia (Magnolia stellata)
For small gardens and rockeries this is the most popular. Certainly, the light white star-shaped flowers appearing in great profusion on quite young plants, make this a highly desirable variety. Earliest to bloom. 1½ to 6 ft…$1.50 to $10.00 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
Japanese Scented Apricot (Prunus mume)
A newly introduced type, earliest to bloom of all plums, often by the end of January, and the dainty blossoms have a most delightful fragrance. We have two varieties, single crimson, and double pink, both highly desirable. 4 to 6 ft…$1.50 to $2.50 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
Purple Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum ‘Atropurpureum’)
Attains a height of about 8 ft. and is one of the greatest attractions in the garden with its vivid red foliage. Grafted plants, 1½ to 5 ft…$1.00 to $5.00 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
Witch Hazel (Hamamelis mollis)
Fragrant rich golden yellow flowers cover this little shrub in the middle of winter. Highly interesting. Grafted plants, $2.00 to $3.00 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
Common Snowball Bush (Viburnum opulus ‘Sterile’)
Most popular shrub with large globular heads of flowers. 2 to 5 ft…$.50 to $1.00 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
Hops (Humulus lupulus)
A fast-growing climber. Where dense shade is wanted in summer it fills the bill. It dies back in winter, breaking up again in spring. Each...$0.25.
📸 MK Lascelle
Passionflower (Passiflora caerulea)
A rampant tendrilled climber from South Brazil for a sunny wall, with a profusion of large blue flowers, unique and beautiful. So named by the early Spanish travellers, who considered the flower represented the emblems of the crucifixion. Strong plants, $.75 to $1.00 each.
📸 MK Lascelle
So, as you can see, garden centres have been an integral part of everyday life in British Columbia for well over a century now and here at Amsterdam Garden Centre (established 1979), we are hoping to keep that tradition alive for many years to come.
Copyright 2026 MK Lascelle
