46 



Isaac Hicks & Son, Westbury Station, N, Y. Evergreens 



White Spruce in the park of Mr. H. McK. Twombly, Madison, N. J. They screen the house from the entrance drive 

 until a good point of view is reached. They also help stop the noise and smoke from the railroad. No evergreen surpasses 

 the White Spruce in beauty, utility and health in that 1 ,000 acre park and arboretum. 



White Spruce, continued] 



The White Spruce is liable to suffer from the bad 

 reputation of its relative, especially from those 

 people who are not sufficiently alert to see the good 

 things and learn the points of difference. One reason 

 that people, have not become acquainted with the 

 merits of the White Spruce is because so very few 

 of them have been planted in years past. Naturally, 

 the European nurserymen do not grow many of 

 them because their own species fit their conditions 

 better and grow more rapidly. American nursery- 

 men have not grown them because of the difficulty 

 of starting them from seed. We do not know of any 

 nurserymen in the eastern part of the United States 



White Spruce on the lawn of Mrs. John H. Cheever, next the 

 ocean, Far Rockaway, L. I. It is on poor gravelly soil. The fiercest 

 gales and salt spray only serve to make the foliage thicker. 



who have grown evergreens in large quantities from 

 seed. One large Long Island nursery which, years ago, 

 made a specialty of evergreens, gave up growing 

 them from seed because of the difficulties in the 

 first month. Our own first attempt largely failed. 



By scientific experiment to determine the proper 

 temperature of the soil and degree of moisture and 

 light, we got them past their infantile troubles. 

 After they are a month old and have begun to form 

 woody fiber in the stem and make the second whorl 

 of leaves, they are easy to grow. 



Therefore, buy these little plants and plant them 

 in beds. An economical way is to plow and harrow 

 the ground smooth. Mark it off into squares of 

 about 8 inches by a marker made like a big 

 rake. Plant them with a dibber in the same 

 A manner as cabbage. Pack the ground firmly 

 around the roots. Watering is not necessary 

 if the ground is moist. Cultivate with a wheel 

 hoe. In November mulch with 5 inches of 

 leaves. Throw on a half-inch of soil to keep 

 the leaves from blowing away. In spring, un- 

 cover, but let the mulch remain between the 

 plants. Very few weeds will appear, the 

 mulch being cheaper than cultivation. In 

 two or three years the plants will be i>2 to 

 2^2 feet high or more, and can be planted 

 out in their permanent positions and will 

 need no cultivation, being strong enough to 

 overcome the grass, weeds and bushes. This 

 is easy, cheap and sure. Will you do it? 



The amount of capital needed has been the 

 principal reason for not making large plan- 

 tations of evergreens. The above is one way 

 to overcome that objection. Many people 

 buy land and do little or nothing to develop 

 it for several years, when trees might be grow- 

 ingthisway. The land, rain and sunshine cost 

 them practically nothing. A nurseryman has 

 to charge for the use of his land. It is lack of 

 knowledge, decision and foresight that pre- 

 vents getting the most out of the investment. 

 It is the wealthiest people who buy the small- 

 est trees. They have the most foresight. 

 Another way is to plant the little Pines or 

 Spruces 3 inches to I foot high in the grass 

 and briers, and let them alone. They will 

 come along all right. 



