92 STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



which may or may not carry bright floral gems. These wonder- 

 ful missionaries of nature are constantly at work attempting to 

 cover some ugly scar which civilized man has made in his strug- 

 gle with the earth to wrest from her the living which he claims 

 she owes him. 



In flowers we find, according to our ability to interpret, 

 expressions of beauty, of love, of truth, and of purity. In order 

 to appreciate these beautiful attributes of plants and flowers the 

 mind of the observer must be trained to interpret and appreciate 

 these expressions. The more fully the observer is familiar with 

 the functions of the plant, the structure and purpose of its leaves 

 and flowers the more fully and completely will he appreciate and 

 interpret these subtle attributes. To plant a seed and observe 

 the unfolding of the first leaves, the increasing stature of the. 

 plant from day to day and finally its fruition with the accom- 

 panying production of flowers and fruit and be able to see in this 

 brief life of but one summer the model for man's existence is in 

 itself a worthy end. 



Beautiful plants and flowers naturally grouped are pleasing 

 because they are restful anl quiet. Association with nature is 

 soothing: because the crudities of man's invention in which fric- 

 tion is such a large factor are all eliminated. The sounds in the 

 woods are musical, harmonious, and rhythmical, soothing, and 

 pleasing in effect ; the colors are beautifully blended and harmo- 

 nious ; they hold the eye and the attention without effort and 

 without fatigue. Nature in such moods is restful. 



While man can not call in upon a small place these larger and 

 broader expressions of nature, he can pleasingly use a limited 

 number of the factors which go to make up this final result for 

 the purpose of adding beauty to his abiding place. Trees may 

 be used to give protection from wind and sun. The varieties 

 may be so chosen as to give expressions of pleasure, of restful- 

 ness, of sprightliness, or of sorrow. Trees have all these 

 expressions and they influence to a great degree the lives and 

 characters of the persons who daily go among them. It there- 

 fore behooves us in selecting trees for the adornment of our 

 home grounds to choose those with pleasant and elevating, 

 rather than those with somber and depressing, expressions. 



Trees are not only attractive while in leaf and capable of giv- 

 ing refreshing shade but after the beautiful autumn tints have 



