4] 
The first autumn frost, on the night of October 25-26, brought 
much of our fall bloom to an end earlier in the season than usual. 
Ice remained in the pool of the Conservatory Fountain until the 
afternoon of the 26th. 
The Overlook, at the north end of the Rose Garden, was in- 
cluded in the five-year plan of permanent improvements published 
in the Botanic Garden Recorp for May, 1930. It was designed 
by Mr. Caparn, and was completed on May 7 by the firm of John 
Thatcher & Son, contractors. Like the conservatory fountain and 
the Armillary Sphere, it was made possible by the bequest of our 
late trustee, Mr. Alfred W. Jenkins. This has already become 
one of the most popular spots in the Garden. 
Davidia in Bloom.—In 1919 a specimen of the Dove Tree, Da- 
vidia vilmortniana, was planted among the Dogwoods, to which it 
is related. This tree was introduced into Europe in 1897 from 
China, where it was discovered in 1869 by a French missionary, 
Abbé Armad David, after whom it is named. As the hardiness 
of the plant in the Brooklyn climate is doubtful, it has been pro- 
tected each winter. During the week of May 15, the tree came 
into bloom for the first time. As in the Flowering Dogwood, the 
so-called “ petals” are bracts which enclose a cluster of small, in- 
conspicuous flowers. When the flower-bud opens, the bracts are 
relatively small and greenish, later becoming larger and white. 
Unlike the Flowering Dogwood, which has the four petal-like 
bracts of the same size, one of the bracts of the Davidia is much 
longer and larger than the others. The tree, at present, 1s about 
20 feet high. It bore only about 12 flowers. 
The Dutch Eln-Disease, causec 
C35 
by a fungus Graphium Ulmi, 
while reported in New Jersey, has not, as yet, been detected in 
the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. The New York Times for August 
le 33 = nepomed station @s MM. Liming: of thes Uisou Depart. 
ment of Agriculture, found one diseased elm on Ocean Parkway 
near Prospect Avenue, Brooklyn. The disease first appeared in 
Ohio three years ago, and the second outbreak, reported in New 
Jersey, is said to have assumed large proportions, more than 200 
infected trees having been located. The symptoms of the disease 
are a yellowing, browning, and wilting of the leaves, and the 
browning of the sapwood when young twigs are cut. The Federal 
