1902] Macoun Notes on the Arboretum. 12s 



Twelve years ago, when the first planting was made, com- 

 paratively little was known of the hardiness of a large number of 

 trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants, as the number of species and 

 varieties found in gardens was limited. In 1889, 200 species and 

 varieties of trees and shrubs were set out, and by the autumn ot 

 1894 about 600 were being tested ; up to the present time 3,728 

 species and varieties of trees and shrubs have been tested, and 

 about 4,500 specimens were living in the autumn ot 1901, repre- 

 senting 2.871 species and 185 genera. Of herbaceous perennials 

 1,586 species and varieties were living in the autumn of 1901, 

 making, in all, a total of 4,457. This large collection has been 

 obtained from many sources. From donations of seeds from 

 Botanic Gardens throughout the world, a large number of species 

 and varieties have been grown, the Royal Gardens at Kew, sup- 

 plying many of them. The catalogues of nurserymen in America, 

 Europe, and Asia, have been searched to increase the collection, 

 until now it is difficult to obtain additional species of many genera. 

 As far as possible, two specimens of each species of tree and shrub 

 have been planted ; but there are so many cultivated varieties that 

 in many cases only one specimen of each of them has been utilized. 

 At first, three specimens of each kind of herbaceous perennial were 

 planted, but for the same reason the cultivated varieties of these 

 are usually limited to one, unless it is especially attractive. 



Nearly all the Arboretum is now seeded down to lawn grass 

 and this is kept cut with a pony lawn mower. These large lawns 

 add very much to the attractiveness of the place. In order that 

 the trees and shrubs will not suffer by growing in sod, circles are 

 kept cut around them and the surface soil is loosened with the hoe. 

 Most of the specimens are neatly labelled with a zinc label fastened 

 to a stiff wire which is pushed into the ground near the specimen, 

 and as fast as possible duplicate labels are being written and 

 attached to them as the others get cut off or broken off from time to 

 time, rendering identification somewhat difficult. Each label bears 

 a number which corresponds to a number and name in the record 

 book. 



Every year the trees and shrubs are examined and notes are 

 taken on each individual specimen. The principal notes recorded 

 relate to the hardiness and growth of the plants. The dates of 



