87 
ing of lotus, reminiscent of oriental art and sacred religious asso- 
clations, and seldom found in this part of the country, is a close 
second to the flowering cherries as an attraction. 
In the fall, we look forward to the American asters and the 
display of chrysanthemums, which wind up the season. Among 
the other attractive features of the fall are the fruits of the 
crab apples, the rose hips, and the berries on the beauty bush and 
other shrubs. An exceptionally beautiful display in the late fall is 
the brilliant coloration of the leaves of Euonymus alatus com- 
pactus, which forms a unique hedge on the Plaza in front of the 
building. 
Many special features have been developed, and Dr. Gager 
quickly adopted the term, suggested by a friend of the Garden, of 
“Gardens within a Garden” 
— 
as a very apt description. One of 
the earliest special developments among the plantations was the 
Native Wild Flower Garden, or Local Flora Section. Because 
of Dr. Gager’s special interest in the plants growing within a 
hundred mile radius of New York, a section devoted to the local 
flora was begun in the spring of 1911. A valley 600 feet long, 
covering about two acres, was chosen as the site, and numerous 
—_— 
beds for native plants not requiring special habitats were prepared, 
woodland conditions being provided for others. 
1931, reconstruction of the Local Flora Section was begun 
on an ecological basis and it was divided into sections, each pro- 
viding the very different conditions for growth which are found in the 
area surrounding New York City. The area was carefully land- 
scaped to present the characteristic plants in settings which are, 

on a small scale, as nearly like their original natural surroundings 
as possible. 
Conditions of full sunlight and deep woodland shade, dry sandy 
soil and moist rich forest humus, pond, bog, and wet meadows, 
limestone, serpentine and granite rock, are all found in this rela- 
tively small garden, each supporting the growth of characteristic 
native plants. These conditions not only provide differences in 
moisture, light and plant foods, but also reflect the geological 
areas found near New York—the sandy coastal plain, crystalline, 
limestone, and serpentine rock outcroppings, and mountain areas, 
from which the plants have been collected. 
