68 



THE GARDENER'S MONTHLY 



{March, 



community of Philadelphia the sum of S5,000, in 

 trust, as a perpetual fund, the income of which 

 I desire shall be annually, forever, expended in 

 planting and renewing shade trees, especially in 

 situations now exposing my fellow-citizens to the 

 heat of the sun." The will of Andre Francois 

 Michaux, of Vaureal, near Pontoise, France, da- 

 ted September 4, 1855, bequeathes the sum of 

 S12,000 to be divided equally between the Amer- 

 ican Philosophical .Society of Philadelphia and ! 

 the Society of Agriculture, Art, etc., of Boston, \ 

 Mass. Of late years city trees are rapidly being I 

 destroyed by the neglect of the gas companies to 

 make the mains gas-tight, the leakage under ' 

 ground destroys the roots. It would seem that 

 those who have the above legacies in charge 

 might take some interest in this gas-killing ques- 

 tion. It is as useful to preserve a tree after it is 

 planted as to get one planted in the first place. 



Absurd PRACTiCES.^It is very often the case 

 in horticulture, as well as in many other branch- 

 es of human employment, that practices often 

 continue after the reasons wliich induced them 

 have long ceased to exist. It is said in the 

 recent "memoirs" of Prince Bismarck that "One 

 da}' I was walking wit^ the Emperor of Piussia 

 in the Summer Garden of St. Petersburg, when, 

 coming upon a sentinel in the centre of a lawn, 

 I took the libert}' of inquii'ing why the man was 

 placed there. The Emperor did not know. The 

 adjutant did not know. The sentinel did not 

 know, except that he had been ordere<l there. 

 Thf adjutant was then despatched to ask the 

 officer of the watch, whose reply tallied with the 

 sentinel's — 'Ordered^ Curiosity awakened, mil- 

 itary records were searched, without yielding 

 any satisfactory solution. At last an old serving 

 man was routed out, who remembered hearing 

 his father relate that the Empress Catherine II., 

 (me hundred years ago, had found a Snowdrop on 

 that particular spot, and given orders to protect 

 it from being plucked. No other device could be 

 thought of than guarding it by a sentinel. The 

 order once issued was left in force for a centu- 

 ry." It is more than likely if the planting of 

 the Snowdrop had been examined, some practice 

 as silly would have been found as the keeping of 

 the soldier guar<l over them. 



Landscape Gardening.— The landscape gar- 

 dener has in his mind a beautiful picture of the 

 future, and he plants accordingly. The little 

 scattered trees and bushes are put where they 

 will work admirablv fiftv vears hence. It is not 



surprising that proprietors are often dissatisfied 

 with the best work of the landscape gardener. 

 They cannot s,ee as the landscape gardener sees. 

 They want results now, and not merely to please 

 their future grand-children. It is well enough to 

 have these future thickets and groups outlined by 

 a dozen or two of trees, but why not fill in thickly 

 with commoner things so as to have results 

 now ? Thus thought the writer as he passed a 

 pretty circle of evergreens on the level lawns 

 fronting the office of Hoopes Bro. & Thomas, 

 at Westchester, recently. A few score of 

 dwarf evergreens made at once a handsome 

 clump of green on a field of snow. The average 

 planter would have had a half dozen plants scat- 

 tered a dozen yards or so apart, because some- 

 time in 1880 they would perhaps touch each oth- 

 er. "We pass continually these weak conclusions. 

 The little "clumps" near gate-ways will look 

 like clumps some-day ; but why not have them 

 now? It is as easy to have the perfect body as 

 these ugly skeletons lying around. 



NEW OR RARE PLANTS. 



Neav Hakdy Trees and Shrubs. — The col- 

 lection of Parsons & Sons Co., contain the 

 following, which have either not been noticed at 

 all or very briefly in our pages : 



Betula alba J'asfigiata. Branches grow very 

 upright, forming an elegant pyramidal tree, re- 

 sembling the Lombardy Poplar. 



Betida alba purpurea. Foliage of a beautiful 

 purple color, as dark as that of the Pm'ple Beech, 

 and contrasting beautifully with the silvery bark. 



Broussonetia papyrifera cucullata. A very fine 

 variety, with its large leaves curled down around 

 the edges. 



Carpiuu.s betulus incisa. A very handsome 

 slow growing tree, with shining leaves very 

 deeply cut. Can be pruned into any shape. 



Catalpa Bungei. Leaves large and glossy ; 

 flowers in large clusters a foot Ions. An orna- 

 mental low tree. 



Betula sifringcpfolia aurea. Leaves large and 

 entirely suffused with a permanent golden color, 

 giving a beautiful warm tint to the foliage. A 

 remarkably handsome tree, with noble foliage 

 of peculiar character and long clusters of fra- 

 grant, white, variegated flowers in August. 



Cera-sus padus fiore-pleno. An exceedingly 

 prett}' low tree, with pure white, semi-double 

 flowers produced in great profusion. 



