TWENTY-NINTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE 
DIRECTOR 
Gentlemen: 
I have the honor to submit herewith the twenty-ninth 
annual report of the Director. 
Perhaps the improvement of greatest importance at the 
Garden during 1917 has been the reconstruction of the 
Garden between the main gate and the palm house, with 
the accompanying rearrangement of the water gardens here, 
they now being in the form of permanent concrete pools of 
dignified design. This very necessary improvement has 
necessitated a great amount of grading, the removal of over 
1,500 cubic yards of soil, the removal of old and construc- 
tion of new and more direct walks, the laying of new drains, 
etc. A number of large trees have been transplanted to this 
area, including two ginkgos, several liquidambars, and 
thirty fine specimens of Magnolia grandiflora, as well as 
many small junipers and other conifers, and a hedge of 
barberry, extending from the main gate to the palm house. 
As a part of this general scheme, a new rose garden has 
been established to the south of the Linnean house, on the site 
formerly occupied by the old greenhouses, removed in 1916. 
Practically all the plants from the old rose garden near the 
administration building have been transferred to this new lo- 
cation, and a great many new varieties added, as well as addi- 
tional roses which have been proved to be hardy in St. Louis. 
The new location will undoubtedly make this—one of the 
most popular attractions at the Garden—much more ac- 
cessible to the public. The garden has been enclosed with 
a planting of several hundred hawthorns, which will mate- 
rially add to its beauty in both spring and fall. All of this 
has undoubtedly been well worth while, since the incorrect- 
ness of the grade has been an eyesore to all observers, and 
the dignity of the new formal approach to the conservatories 
impresses the visitor at once on entering the main gate. — 
Work begun on the economic garden in 1916 has been 
continued throughout the year. A walk and flight of steps 
from the economic house to this garden have been built, 
four Is have been completed, and permanent planting 
installed, including a collection of shrubs, sample nse 
plots, cordon fruit trees, and birches for pleached alleys. 
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