500 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA. 



ROr.ERT .\TJ.ERT()X'S UlCSIliEXCK. SHOWING THE LAKE. -THE FARII.^ 



MONTICELLO, ILE. 



The Farms, Monticello, III. 



To take hold of prairie and forest lands and to convert 

 them into beautv spots in a few years is no small task, but 

 this is what was accomplished in a comparatively short 

 period of time on the country estate of Robert Allerton, 

 at Monticello, 111. "The Farms,'' as the estate is known, 

 is located on the Sangamon River and comprises about 

 twelve thousand acres of some of the finest farming land 

 in America, situated, as it is, right in the heart of the corn 

 belt. 



Evergreens have been liberally employed in the beauti- 

 fying of "The Farms" and some excellent specimens are 

 to be found, considering the few years the place has been 

 under development. 



The walled gardens are one of the features of the es- 

 sate. The fruit garden is surrounded by an eight-foot 

 wall on which are grown trained fruit trees, such as 

 Pears, Apples, Peaches, etc. The vegetable and small 



fruit gartlens are likewise enclosed in cement walls. 



Fach }ear "something new" is undertaken in the way 

 of improvement on the estate so that interest in its de- 

 velopment never ceases. At the present time a large 

 Sunken Garden is under course of construction and next 

 spring a large Chinese Pagoda, forty-two feet in height, 

 will be added to the Chinese Mase Garden, which was 

 completed last spring. 



Fxtending along the Sangamon River are more than 

 two thousand acres of natural woodland and last year a 

 system of paths were begun through the woods, of which 

 about four miles are now completed. 



'Mr. Allerton takes a great personal interest in his 

 beautiful estate. His superintendent, James C. Shield, 

 who has supervised its development for the past eight 

 years, is well known in the gardening profession as an 

 able horticulturist. 



EXTERIOR OF MUSIC ROOM, .\ P.VRT OF THE .ALLERTON 

 RESIDE^'CE. 



OUTDOOR SWIMMING POOL .ADJOINING THE HOME .\ND 

 FACING THE LAKE. 



