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AMERICAN FORESTRY ASSOCIATION. 



187 



of more then 2,400 species and 2,000 

 varieties cultivated or introduced into 

 Europe and more particularly into 

 France. 



On March 3, 1885, California created 

 a State Board of Forestry, and it is to 

 that Board that we owe, directly or in- 

 directly, nearly all we know of experi- 

 mental forestry in Southern California. 

 The thousands of trees reared and dis- 

 tributed by them are now old enough to 

 judge of their good and bad qualities. 

 By far the larger number were Eucalyp- 

 tus. Should our visitors be asked what 

 trees are most prominent in our land- 

 scape, what trees have done most to 

 beautify our streets and parks, I think 

 they would reply, the Eucalyptus. Ten 

 to twelve species out of one hundred and 

 fifty have been pretty thoroughly tested 

 in our parks and elsewhere ; we have 

 learned that Eucalyptus Globulus (Blue 

 Gum) and Eucalyptus Robusta (Swamp 

 Gum) will not succeed on our foot hills. 

 We have found several varieties well 

 suited for this purpose, and there are 

 probably many more which have not as 

 yet been tested. 



At the Forest Station at Santa Monica 

 are the original 50 to 60 species of Eu- 

 calyptus, planted out by our former State 

 Board of Forestry. These should prove 

 valuable for collecting and distributing 

 seed and for identification of species, 

 though I am sorry to say they are now 

 of a shape that render it rather difficult 

 to obtain specimens of seed or fruit. We 

 have now, however, planted out dupli- 

 cates of nearly all of the varieties, in the 

 Elysian Park, and in a few years we 

 shall have specimen trees for comparison. 



For economical or other reasons the 

 State Board of Forestry was abolished. 

 The Forestry Station at Santa Monica 

 was handed over to the University of 

 California, and, perhaps from lack of 

 funds, from that time very little has been 

 accomplished. The locality for the sta- 

 tion was, I think, not well chosen. It is 

 too inaccessible ; we need a Forestry 

 Experimental Station in our parks 

 where the public can see it and become 

 interested in it. Since the formation of 



our Forestry School at Los Angeles, 

 such a station has become more than 

 ever a necessity to give the students 

 practical lessons in arboriculture and 

 knowledge of forest trees. 



A beginning in this direction has al- 

 ready been made. A rare and beautiful 

 collection of trees and shrubs, number- 

 ing some three hundred specimens, ex- 

 ists in the Elysian Park. These speci- 

 mens were collected and planted by a 

 former resident of Los Angeles, Mr. 

 Harvey, assisted by W. S. Lyons, for- 

 merly State Forester, and others inter- 

 ested in these matters. Many rare and 

 valuable trees and shrubs are growing 

 well, and would form a very good begin- 

 ning for a suitable botanical collection. 

 It is of the greatest importance, how- 

 ever, to commence systematically; let 

 each great botanical family come in its 

 proper sequence, and let a plan be 

 mapped out giving proper space to each 

 genus. 



I have not here dwelt on what is per- 

 haps outside of a Forest Association 

 the selecting and testing of avenue trees; 

 the introduction of flowering shrubs for 

 beautifying our lawms and gardens. 



Such a station near our homes would 

 be extremely useful. From the many 

 brilliant-colored flowering shrubs of Aus- 

 tralia we could select some rare and 

 beautiful plant to light up the conifers 

 and palms which, too often, form the 

 only ornament of our lawns and gardens. 

 Los Angeles, so progressive in other 

 matters, has been slow in this work. 

 Hundreds of botanical gardens exist 

 elsewhere in the world. It was over 

 three centuries ago that Italy and Ger- 

 many, having recognized the necessity 

 for so doing, commenced to establish 

 botanical gardens. 



Is it not time that we should profit by 

 the countless beautiful gifts offered to us 

 by Nature, more especially in this fa- 

 vored climate, where we may mingle the 

 trees and shrubs from our Eastern gar- 

 dens with the gorgeous extra-tropical 

 vegetation of the New World ? 



A. Campbell Johnson, 



Los Angeles, Cal. 



