23 
extent, be discharged by laying suitable emphasis on the second 
half of the aim just stated, namely the diffusion of a knowledge 
and love of plants; and this is accomplished by labeled collec- 
tions, indoors and out, by popular lectures and publications, by 
courses of instruction in various branches of botany, by giving, 
without charge, information on all phases of plant life, and by 
cooperation in various ways with the instruction in geography, 
nature study, and botany in the public and private schools of the 
City. 
From the broad standpoint of general education and culture, 
and as one of the most potent influences in arousing in the people 
an enthusiasm for the ideal of a city beautiful, one can hardly 
imagine anything more effective than to create and foster a knowl- 
edge and love of plant life, in all its varied phases. 
A publicly supported botanic garden is also in a position to 
give reliable information to the department of parks on the care 
of trees and shrubs in streets and parks, and especially on the 
treatment and prevention of destructive diseases to which they 
are subject. 
Our own Garden, through its department of public instruction, 
and otherwise, has been able to render such services, and to meet 
increasing demands for them on the part of the public. Now 
that the Garden is becoming better known in the City, requests 
for information and advice are of almost daily occurrence. Our 
distribution of seeds to school children, and the children’s gardens 
may be mentioned as two of the numerous ways 1n which the 
Garden meets a variety of public needs. 
"A botanic garden is, moreover, of special benefit in a large city 
by the mere fact of being a garden or park, thereby offering an 
additional breathing space, and a place of natural beauty where 
one may keep in touch with growing things, and retire from the 
noise and dust and confusion of the city streets; in fact it minis- 
ters in a unique way to the educational, aesthetic, and recreational 
needs of a city population. 
The Garden as a Scientific Institution 
Need of Investigation—But a botanic garden that confined its 
activities merely to the diffusion of knowledge already known 
