September n>. jycig 



HORTI CULTURE 



347 



Rambles in the Rockies 



NO. 2. 



Let those who will prefer old ocean, but give me 

 these grand mountains with then' sublime peaks,- deep 

 canyons, granite turrets piercing the sky. To us, hor- 

 ticulturists, these marvelous conifers have the greatesl 

 attractions for here are found the most beautiful trees 

 in all I he earth. 



Lei us go up a bridle path beside a roaring stream 

 where the crystal waters laughing in boisterous glee 

 are tumbling over the rocks in their haste to reach the 

 plains. Here is the silver cedar, [uniperis scopulorum, 

 in form like the Irish juniper but far transcending it in 

 beauty. The foliage sparkles and glistens in its frost- 



ings of silver. It is \er\ hard) and is one of the -i 



beautiful trees cue can plant on our western prairies. 

 The other day in Nebraska 1 saw- a row of them in front 

 of a cemetery, planted some years ago. The row was a 

 quarter of a mile long and every tree was worth $5 if 

 placed singly in a lawn. They are hard to propagate. 

 Years ago we used to collect them, plant them in nur- 

 series and let them develop. It takes two years for the 

 seeds to mature and then it is difficult to germinate 

 them. They do not retain their exquisite coloring as 

 well in the moister climate of the East. 



The heroic Finns ponderosa is here in its glory. You 

 see them in the valley, or adorning the steep hillsides, 

 or on the very brow of the precipices sticking their toes 

 in the rocks and waving defiance to drouth and storms. 

 After years of careful experimenting we have a system 

 perfected for raising these trees so that they can be 

 grown as readily as deciduous trees, and when once es- 

 tablished they will defy everything. 



The Technical World of last June gives a process by 

 which the long needles of this tree are made into fiber 

 which is manufactured into cloth, so "Go West, young 

 man," plant a lot of ponderosa pine on the great plains 

 and then let science and art wave their wands over them 

 and turn them into a flock of sheep! 



Let us go higher up through the ranch of T. C. Thur- 

 h>w\ the peony prince of New England. He always 

 takes the peony prizes, and if lie could take some of his 

 groves of trees, clothed in more than roya] beauty, down 

 to old Massachusetts he would take the prize over every- 

 thing in the State. You never saw such concolors. 

 They are rolled in such imperial garments they might 

 fittingly stand sentinel at the very gates of Paradise. 

 Look at that grove; note the grace and symmetry of 

 coloring of each tree. Every needle flashes and shim- 

 mers in the sunlight. There is n radiance indescribable. 

 There are no seeds 'in i hem i In- year, but when they 

 bear cones it adds to their beauty. For instance, two 

 trees stand side by side bearing immense cones about 

 the size of early sweel cum. One tree has those of 

 light green, the other is of deep purple. Yon note no 

 difference in the shape of the tree or the color of the 

 foliage. It is a trick of nature to give us all the variety 

 possible in the same species. Here on the same ranch 

 are proves of the Douglas spruce. There is not a tree 

 on earth that can show such infinite variation. Often 

 the mountaineers would come to me and say, "We have 

 found a tree of an entirely new species, something you 

 have never seen." At greal trouble T would climb some 

 steep place and there in a quiet nook would find a 

 Douglas with a dress entirely different from its neigh- 

 bors. Tn fact this tree witli its numerous sports and 



variations has over liin names. In secluded placi 

 will find those of deep glauca type vieing ivi 1 1 1 the rich- 

 est pungens. Some ha vi rigid limbs and others have 

 a graceful pendulous habit. A weeping Douglas of 

 silver foliage is a tree of entrancing beauty. These 

 grew very rapidly and in man) places will lead all other 

 trees in the nursery. 



I wish Brother Thurlow could visit bis ranch and 

 spend a summer on n -he would find himself nearer 

 Paradise than he ever was before, where the intense 

 blue of the sky would pitch tent above him and the 

 silent clouds in voiceless sympathy would gather around 

 bim ; where trees wearing garments of more than court- 

 ly splendor would stand sentinel about him. 



I'.ut let us go higher up. We find the Pinus hYxilis — a 

 i ree much like your cemhra pine. I never have seen it in 

 l In East, but 1 think it would do well there. It is a 

 success on our western prairies often assuming a silvery 

 type which makes it very attractive. Now we come to 

 pungens and Engelmcn belt. I need not describe the 

 former. I think the latter is fully as attractive. Up 

 near the timber line are immense forests of these trees. 

 Dr. Fernow of the Forestry Department and myself 

 years ago measured a fallen monarch which was three 

 feet through and 125 feet tall. I see no reason why 

 tins tree should not be a favorite of the North. 



In climbing a mountain you go from the temperate 

 to the frigid zone in a short time. For instance, the 

 white oak will be of fair size in the foot hills, but it 

 "rows smaller and smaller as you ascend until it dwin- 

 dles to the size of a currant bush. At this elevation we 

 find the subalpina fir. 'this grows fairly well in Massa 

 chiisetts. It has a straight stem with bark nearly as 

 while as the birch. The lower side of the needles is of 

 silvery whiteness and the upper side deep green. It 

 has a habit of dropping the lower limbs into the leaf 

 mould and these take root. You often see beautiful 

 clumps of these tree- surrounding a dead parent. 



At this altitude you find the most unique of all the 

 conifers — the Aristata or Foxtail pine. For some rea- 

 son this tree has not been grown much in the nurseries. 

 While very young it is inclined to sunburn. With age 

 it becomes stronger and 1 have known it to thrive in 

 the hot climate of Nebraska. Here also you find the 

 Pinus contora. When the lower limbs die they turn 

 and twisl and writhe like so many serpents. This is 

 the tree of the Yellowstone National Park where they 

 are packed and crowded together like so many i 



I enter this charming grove where these trees become 

 my welcoming hosts and I their grateful guest. Here 

 T am alone with sublimity and God. These mountains 

 draped with green are mute anthems attuned to His 

 praise. Par as the eye can range are forests and hills, 

 deep canyons and towering peaks. I am in the heart of 

 Nature's mighty song: the thrill of it goes through my 

 soul. There is no roll of organ, no swelling chorus; 

 \ei some way all these groves — these trees dressed in 

 imperial robes, the rocks, the crags and peaks and mas- 

 sive towering summits, seem to swell the anthem. 

 Instinctive!) I uncover my head and over me comes an 

 awe and a gladness as if I had come to my own. lam 

 in harmony with this silent praise which swells upward 

 to the unseen. Oh, the sublimity of it: the thrill and 

 inspiration to worship the Creator in Nature's holy of 

 holies. 



£ ifj%LA^/lrvy\ 



Y,>rl-. Neb. 



