1879. 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



323 



years mif^ht show somewhat greater differences, 

 it appears safe to venture the assertion that, in 

 tlie mean annual temperature and humidity of 

 Amherst and Sapporo, there is no essential dif- 

 ference. 



Temperature. Humidity. 

 Amherst, for eleven years. 4ti.63 74.18 



Sapporo, for two years,* 4().l6 74.17 



A possible difficulty might be encountered in 

 accustoming the tree to the sudden and often 

 severe clianges incident to tlie climate of New 

 England, since tlie changes peculiar to Hokkaido 

 weather are more gradual and much less severe. 

 Doubtless any sach difficulty could be overcome 

 by giving the tree a certain amount of protec- 

 tion ; or, raised from seed, it might adapt itself 

 readily to the climate. 



Respecting its special value for timber, but 

 little can be said as the result of experimental 

 determination, and the question of durability 

 can only be decided at some future time. The 

 wood is light both in color and weight, strong 

 and easily worked. The grain is rather close. 

 For fine indoor work and the manufacture of 

 furniture, the Japanese employ it very exten- 

 sively, while the Ainos consider it one of the 

 best of woods for the construction of " dug-out " 

 canoes, both on account of its lightness and 

 strength, while they can also find an abundance of 

 trees in which the trunk is perfectly straight and 

 free from branches, for a distance of twenty feet 

 from the ground. 



It seems quite probable, from the uses made 

 of the wood, that it must be of durable quality ; 

 and that it will prove a valuable acquisition to 

 the ornamental and timber resources of America, 

 there seems but little doubt. 



HARDINESS OF JAPAN MAPLES. 



BY E. 3IANNING, HAKRISBURGH, OHIO. 



Last Fall I got from Philadelphia a plant of 

 the new Japan Maple, Japonicum atrosan- 

 guineum. I planted it out, turned an old nail 

 keg over it which was minus one stave, all joints 

 open and half the head turned down. I thought 

 to protect it from the cold and the rabbits. 

 After the loss of my Japanese Persimons, I was 

 anxious to examine my new maple, and to my 

 delight, not one bud was injured. 



In the Spring I got three more from ISTew 

 York, and these are growing and doing well, 

 and I expect to try other sorts now. 



The four I have are said to be the best of the 



collection, and I can say safely, although small, 

 they must be seen to be appreciated. No 

 description that my pen can give is sufficient to 

 do them justice. Their varied colors are yet 

 unimpared, and as they gain in size, no doubt 

 they will be exceedingly beautiful. 



EDITORrAL NOTES. 



The record for Sapporo is complete for only two years 



Decay of Centrat^ Park. — In a somewhat 

 recent article in the New York Times we find the 

 following : 



" It is needless to recite instances; the whole 

 park is full of illustrations of negligence and 

 want of knowledge. Shrubs that should be 

 pruned and kept in proper shape are untouched, 

 and straggle at will. Trees whose beauty con- 

 sists in being furnished with foliage from the 

 base are trimmed up to disfigurement, and vines 

 are allowed to hide the beauty they were in- 

 tended to enhance. Dead and mutilated trees 

 are left standing ; living trees of tender age are 

 dying for want of culture, and by the choking 

 clasp of grass and weeds. Trees are growing 

 together and hiding the glimpses of diff'erent 

 lawns, until in a short time the original effect of 

 the park, which we have all enjoyed, will have 

 vanished in a meaningless mass of trees and 

 shrubbery. Many years ago, while in England, 

 I purchased for the park, at the request of the 

 commissioners, a choice collection of rare ever- 

 greens. Since that period large purchases of the 

 same have been made in Europe and America. 

 There should thus be now in the park some of 

 the finest specimens in this country. I could 

 not find them. The question is pertinent. Have 

 they been destroyed, or died from neglect, or 

 what ? As originally formed, the various parts 

 of the park were in harmony. The artiliciality 

 of the lower portions was the connecting link 

 with a great city. Then came the ramble and 

 the lawns and the wildwood. The designers 

 planned vistas and lawn-stretches and openings, 

 supposing that there would always be enough 

 intelligence to keep them open, and to preserve 

 the symmetry of the parts. Should the spirit of 

 their plans not be recognized and sustained, the 

 lame expenditure which New York has made 

 will have lost half its value. 



"Structures now decaying may be restored, 

 water shores may be repaired, vines may be 

 taken from the rocks, vistas may be opened, but 

 nothino; can restore existence to the large elms 



