CHAPTER III 

 ADAPTATION OF CONIFERS 



THE keynote to success with conifers is adaptation; and 

 of course the adaptation is really a local problem, dif- 

 fering with each separate place. A few wide-spread and 

 prevalent species, as white pine, Austrian pine, Norway spruce, 

 arbor-vitse, can be made to thrive under diverse conditions, 

 but, for the most part, each species is peculiar unto itself and 

 the intending grower must read all the notes he can find on 

 the adaptation to his region, closely observe successes and 

 failures where the plant has been tried; and often he must set 

 more plants than he needs, with the expectation that some of 

 them will succeed. The present chapter is mostly a record of 

 experience in adaptation in different regions. 



CONIFERS IN THE NORTHEASTERN STATES.— Dukbar 



Conifers have formed a very important part in decorative 

 gardening for hundreds of years. Their variable forms are well 

 adapted to many expressions of landscape gardening in parks, 

 cemeteries, private estates, and small gardens. Some of the 

 hardier forms are admirable for screens, protective belts, and 

 windbreaks. 



In ornamental gardening, the growing of many conifers, 

 with suiBcient room for spread of branches and adult develop- 

 ment, so as to give ample opportunity for individual expression, 

 has appealed to many devotees of gardening with keen artistic 

 perceptions, and numerous collections have been established 

 on private estates in Europe and the United States. A notable 

 collection of conifers was established at Dosoris, Long Island, 



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