PARK ORNAMENTATION. 249 



allow them to gnaw street trees. If no other method seems available a 

 very effective and always successful protection may be secured by wrap- 

 ping the trees with old pieces of bagging or other cloth, but as this is not 

 very ornamental it would look better to use some of the more improved 



ways. 



PRUNING ELMS. 



Most of the elms that have been set in the park were set as bare poles 

 and after a season's growth many pendulous branches have generally come 

 out near the top. It will be a good plan to at once cut these branches 

 back to within an inch of the main stem. After this treatment the buds 

 at base will start strongly and the trees will be of much better form than 

 if left to grow naturally. 



PLUM TREES. 



There seems to be a very general impression that fruit trees can not be 

 successfully grown here in gardens. I think this a mistake. If you do 

 not plant any other fruit you should at least plant a few plum trees of 

 the improved native sorts. Some of these are as hardy as elms and bear 

 an abundance of good sized fruit of excellent quality. The De Soto is the 

 variety that generally gives the most satisfaction in this state. 



SHRUBS. 



There seems to have been little attention thus far paid to improving 

 our park by planting flowering shrubs. This is an important line of 

 work for beautifying our homes. It can be overdone, but there is hardly 

 a lot in this park but what would be greatly improved by a judicious 

 planting of them. They form admirable screens to protect back yards 

 from too great publicity and to cover up unsightly outbuildings; to define 

 without stiffness the outlines of your property, and to set off and as it 

 were serve as jewels in the lawn frame surrounding our home. Besides 

 which they may be so selected that you will have some of them in flower 

 during nearly all the entire growing season. 



Among those which are perfectly hardy and thrive with very little care 

 are the following: 



Missouri Currant. — This well-known hardy shrub is one of the cleanest 

 early spring flowering plants that we have. It grows strongly and flowers 

 profusely, and is well adapted for the purposes of screens and ornamenta- 

 tion. 



Lilacs.— All of these except the narrow leaved kinds are very desirable. 

 The white variety is probably the most attractive. They are very valu- 

 able as screens and for hedge purposes. The common purple kind is a 

 freer grower than the white. 



Spireas.— Most of the shrubby spireas are hardy and desirable here. I 

 would call especial attention to S. Van Houtii, S. Douglassii, S. Reeosii, 

 and the Golden Leaved spirea. The latter is very pretty in both flower 

 and foliage. 



Snowball. — You have all known it from childhood. It is very attractive 

 with its white balls of sterile flowers. 



High Bush Cranberry. — This is the natural form of the snowball, and 

 it bears edible fruit and grows in our native woods. It is pretty in flower 

 and foliage, and is especially attractive in autumn when loaded with its 

 red fruit. 



