THE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY OF NEW YORK. 



ferns, are grown for the beauty of their form and foliage alone, but it is 

 often desirable to have a department of the garden devoted to plants of 

 peculiar interest apart from their flowery display. I will illustrate this by 

 reference to the marvellous carnivorous plants which have the most 

 curious and complete arrangements for the capturing of flies and other 

 insects, such as some of the Drosera, and Dioncca, the Venus fly-trap. It 

 is wonderful, when it is considered that these plants secret a digestive 

 juice similar to the gastric juice in our own stomachs, by which the sub- 

 stance of these insects is rapidly decomposed and absorbed into the tissue 

 of the plant. Another very interesting illustration of this portion of the 

 garden is the so-called compass plants found upon our semi-arid plains 

 of the West, where the natural light is too strong for the leaf organs, and 

 instead of exposing their plain surface to the sunshine, as other plants do 

 where the glare of the light is less intense, they turn their edges to the 

 light so as to shield the broad surface of the leaves from the powerful 

 rays of the sun. This function is so marked that travelers of the desert 

 can ascertain the points of the compass from the position of the leaves 

 of these plants. Such a department of the garden excites a great interest 

 with visitors, and is a helpful stimulant to the children reared upon the 

 place. 



One of the ideals of horticulture is thus to stimulate an interest, which 

 is quite as important as the mere gratification of the eye by beauty alone, 

 and here the skillful gardner who is in charge of the garden and green- 

 house of some wealthy proprietor can find an opportunity to overcome 

 one of the most trying facts of his position. There are many wealthy 

 owners who know, or care little for, the work of plant growth and flower 

 production, and are willing to incur the expense involved simply that their 

 houses may have the flowers which are considered necessary for their 

 proper furnishing. These people look upon flowers as something that 

 can be obtained from the florist at so much per dozen, and to them they 

 mean little more. 



" A Primrose by the river's brim, 



A yellow Primrose was to him 



And it was nothing more." 



This relation to the proprietor is a very difficult one for the gardener, 

 and if he can by tact and skill have something of interest, outside the 

 ordinary, to which he can occasionally ask the attention of the members 

 of the family, it gives him an opportunity for e.xciting an interest on 

 their part which may grow into a higher and better appreciation of the 

 work, as, indeed, this should be the aim of every gardener in charge of 

 such a place. Fortunate indeed is the gardener where the members of 

 the family take an interest in everything pertaining to his work, and 

 where they love the flowers they have seen grow and take a pleasure in 

 arranging them to display their beauty. 



I have occasionally presented flowers to ladies who accepted them as 



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