REPORT OF MR THOU. A. 8HARPE £27 



SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 



Almost without exception, the trees have grown well and many of them, such as 

 the larch, elm, and basswood, are over thirty feet high and a foot in diameter a foot 

 from the surface of the ground. They were planted in rows ten feet apart each way. 

 The first year, the land was cultivated and, in the spring of the second year, seeded 

 with red clover, which has been gradually killed out in the shade of the trees until the 

 latter occupy the ground almost entirely, there being only some scattered tufts of 

 native grasses. The white pine appears to be admirably suited to this soil and climate 

 and some of the trees of that timber will, in a few years, be almost large enough to 

 cut for lumber. 



In the spring of 1892, 1893 and 1894, a large number of small seedling timber 

 trees were planted in the open spaces on the steep sides of the mountain, from near 

 the base up to an elevation of over one thousand feet. These trees have received no 

 care or attention since they were planted but a great many of them have made a fair 

 growth. Owing to the dense growth of ferns and scrub, the growth of the trees has 

 been slender, and clean of limbs below. They promise to make fine timber trees in 

 time, if the mountain can be protected from fire. A quantity of black walnuts, butter- 

 nuts, hickory nuts and chestnuts were planted on the mountain and a fair percentage 

 of these grew and are making fair progress. As the initial expense was very small, 

 the land of no value for other purposes, and no further expense was incurred, the 

 timber will, at a future time, be valuable at little cost. 



ORNAMENTAL AND FLOWERING TREES AND SHRUBS. 



Nearly all of the ornamental trees and shrubs planted have grown well but, of 

 course, some are much more desirable than others. In flowering trees, the Mag- 

 nolias have grown well and bloom early in spring, as does the pink, scarlet and white 

 Hawthorn, the pink and white flowering Dogwood and the Laburnum. All of the 

 above are growing vigorously and flower freely. In shrubs, the Rhododendrons, Aza- 

 leas and Kalmias make a magnificent display early in May, followed by the Lilac, of 

 which we have a very good collection. 



All of these shrubs and trees are hardy enough to endure our severest winters aud 

 bloom regularly and profusely. Following these, the Weigelias, Deutzias, Wistaria 

 and Snowball furnish bloom until the roses come, almost all of the hardier varieties 

 of which grow and bloom luxuriantly. For later bloom, the Japanese Hydrangeas 

 commence to flower early in July and continue until the frost cuts them off in Novem- 

 ber. The Chinese Wistaria blooms freely a second time as a rule, commencing late 

 in July and continuing through August. The Hydrangea grandiflora makes a mag- 

 nificent display of bloom in August and September, and the Clethra alnifolia makes 

 a fine show of sweet-scented spikes of white flowers from early in August until Nov- 

 ember. There are a number of flowering shrubs in our collection which are very 

 ornamental, but those mentioned are perhaps the most striking and valuable. 



The following trees grow vigorously in this climate and, whore they have room 

 to develop properly, make very handsome shade trees, cither for lawn or street plant- 

 ing: — white oak, scarlet oak, mossy-cup oak, pin oak, English oak, chestnut oak and 

 red oak; Amercan elm, American, copper and fern-leaved, beech; American and 

 European linden and white basswood; Scarlet, sugar, European cork, sycamore, 

 Norway, Reitenbach's purple, and Schwedler's, maple; the tulip trees and the Eastern 

 white pine. Of all of the above, we have very handsome specimens, some of the oaks 

 being over twenty-five feet high, with splendid heads. 



