70 NEW YORK ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



the leading nurseries east of Chicago to personally inspect their 

 stocks, make selections, and place orders for everything desired. 

 By this method the stock secured was particularly fine, and it was 

 also specially adapted to our purpose. In the item of rhododen- 

 drons, for example, about 1,500 fine, large bushes were procured at 

 the unusually low average rate of 70 cents each, delivered in New 

 York. Five carloads of laurel were obtained at the rate of 20 

 cents per plant, which represents about one-half the usual market 

 price for such stock. 



The wellnigh complete exposure of the Park grounds along 

 their southern front called for energetic measures. The poverty 

 of the soil on the site of the proposed border plantation required 

 the purchase of about 2,000 cubic yards of good top soil and about 

 700 loads of manure. In addition to this, a great amount of 

 underdraining was necessary. 



By the time the first carloads of evergreens arrived the ground 

 was in perfect readiness, and the planting forthwith began. All 

 these operations were directed by expert foremen gardeners, and 

 the laborers employed were all carefully selected for that work. 

 By working extra hours the stock was planted almost as rapidly 

 as it arrived, the majority of it going into the ground on the 

 day of its receipt. 



In these border plantations about 5,000 large conifers were 

 used, of which about 750 were white pine, with about the same 

 number of hemlocks. The remainder were white balsam, blue 

 Norway spruce, Nordmann's silver fir, Colorado fir, red and 

 white cedar, Austrian pine, Scotch pine, and pitch pine. In 

 smaller quantities there were numerous other varieties. All these 

 were planted thickly for immediate efifect, and about one-half of 

 them will be available for transplanting in the near future. 



In places this mass of evergreens was fronted by groups of 

 deciduous shrubs. Of the latter there were planted such species 

 as arrow-wood, hobble bush, high-bush huckleberry, snow berry, 

 June berry, witch-hazel, several varieties of sumach, leather wood, 

 bush honeysuckle, red-twigged dogwood, the cornels, chokeberry, 

 and pepper bush, to the total number of about 12,000. 



On the western boundary, fronting the Southern Boulevard, 

 the fences were moved in from 20 to 50 feet, to afford additional 

 room for boundary planting. The 30-foot strip originally fenced 

 off was found to be too narrow. 



In accordance with the plans of the architects, Baird Court was 

 planted with the best specimens procurable of the large-leaved 

 European linden. The north bank of Cope Lake received a quan- 



