August 27, li 



Garden and Forest. 



410 



6 



GARDEN AND FOREST. 



PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY 



THE GARDEN AND FOREST PUBLISHING CO. 



Office: Tribune Building, New Yokk. 



Conducted by Professor C. S. Sargent. 



ENTERED AS SECOND CLASS MATTER AT THE POST OFFICE AT NEW YORK, N. Y. 



NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 1890. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



PAGE. 



Editorial Articles : — Growth in Thought Relating to Forestry Matters. — Two 



Kinds of Garden Art 413 



The Sacred Olive-Tree of Blidah. (With illustration.) 414 



The Arboretum of Dr. Dieck at Zoeschen Dr. Carl Bolle. 414 



Notes on the Mexican Water Lilies C. G. Pringle. 415 



Plant Note :— Pyrus arbutifolia. (With figure.) C. S. S. 416 



New Orchids F. A. Rolfe. 416 



Foreign Correspondence: — London Letter IV. Watson. 416 



Cultural Department: — Training up an Orchard T. H. Hoskins. 418 



Notes on American Plants F. //. I/or.sford. 420 



Rose Notes IV. H. Taplin. 420 



The Narcissi and their Culture E. O. Orpet. 420 



The Florists' Convention : — The President's Address J. M. Jordan. 421 



Experience in Crossing Plants E. S. Carman. 421 



Special Fertilizers Under Glass Professor S. T. Maynard. 422 



Hellebores for the Commercial Florist William Falconer. 423 



Exhibitions : — The Horticultural Show at Boston 423 



Notes 4 2 4 



Illustrations :— Pyrus arbutifolia, Fig. 52 417 



One of the Sacred Olive-Trees of Blidah 419 



Growth in Thought Relating to Forestry Matters. 



TFIE principal gain in relation to matters connected 

 with forestry and the preservation of scenery in this 

 country in the last two or three years is probably the in- 

 creasing definiteness of thought regarding them. More 

 persons comprehend the truth that if anything is to be 

 accomplished in the way of improvement in the condition 

 of these interests much work will be required, and some 

 money must be expended. There are new organizations and 

 activities for the promotion of such objects in this state, in 

 Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine, and their influ- 

 ence, in conjunction with the increasing discussion of these 

 subjects by the press of the country, has led to a perceptible 

 advance in public thought. There is increased clearness, 

 definiteness and sobriety, and less ha/.y enthusiasm and 

 fantastic talk. The new temper is more favorable to ac- 

 tion than the old, although there is still room for much 

 improvement in all these respects. 



Meetings, addresses and essays have their place and 

 are often highly useful, though more is usually expected 

 from them than they are really suited to accomplish. 

 They arc good only if they lead to something beyond 

 themselves, to intelligent and systematic endeavor to 

 change the condition of the public mind and the course of 

 public action in relation to the particular matter which 

 requires improvement. Unless orderly and persistent 

 work of this kind is contemplated, and is actually pro- 

 vided for and taken up in action adapted to bring in a new 

 order of things, it would often be better not to start a new 

 movement or publish resolutions setting forth the plan of 

 a great reform. An abortive beginning of this kind makes 

 all subsequent effort for similar objects more difficult, and 

 the effect is depressing and injurious in proportion to the 

 attention and expectation which have been awakened. 



Enthusiasm is a good thing in such matters if it is of the 

 enduring kind which sustains a man in a long course of 

 effort to arouse public interest and enlighten and direct 

 public sentiment. In every attempt to bring about an 



advance in matters pertaining to forestry interests in this 

 country, or to scenery and public out-of-door possessions 

 and opportunities, the greater part of the work, and much 

 the most difficult part, is that of interesting and engaging 

 the people in support of the proposed measures of im- 

 provement. The question of means and methods for the 

 diffusion of knowledge and the propagation of ideas is 

 what chiefly requires attention. The difficulty of work of 

 tills kind, and the amount of it which will be necessary, 

 arc nearly always underrated by those who plan new 

 movements. In many instances this part of the work 

 seems to be left out of sight altogether, and its necessity 

 is not recognized. Apparently, it is expected that the 

 existing order of things will be entirely changed by the 

 adoption of resolutions and the election of a board of 

 officers- 



But the best possible beginning avails little unless it is 

 followed by a new course of action. If anything valuable 

 is to be accomplished new centres of energy must be 

 established and new activities must be set up. To bring 

 about any considerable improvement in the situation of 

 the interests connected with the forests or with scenery, in 

 any of the states of this country, much conference and cor- 

 respondence would be required in order to bring the people 

 who are interested in such objects into relation with each 

 other, and thus render effective co-operation possible. It 

 is important in any effort of the kind not to undertake too 

 much at first. After a definite purpose is outlined which 

 can be commended to the public as moderate, reasonable 

 and desirable, the main idea must be developed, patiently 

 and clearly, and its relations to existing conditions and 

 interests fully set forth. Few persons will attend or heed 

 at first, and prejudices and prepossessions of all kinds have 

 to be overcome. It requires time and much iteration of 

 impressions to change habits of thought and action. There 

 is little chance for the success of such undertakings unless 

 obstacles which are certain to be encountered are recog- 

 nized at the beginning. Any successful enterprise of the 

 kind must have a business basis, and business methods 

 must be followed so far as to provide for necessary expen- 

 ditures. But many persons think themselves deeply inter- 

 ested in local movements for the preservation of scenery 

 and in similar objects who never really assist in any effec- 

 tive way. They never reach the stage of serious or defi- 

 nite thinking in regard to the matter. The movements for- 

 the preservation of scenery in various states of this coun- 

 try afford opportunities for valuable service to the general 

 welfare which should be most welcome to men of public 

 spirit. 



A year ago Mr. William McMillan, Superintendent of 

 Parks in Buffalo, read a paper before the Society of Ameri- 

 can Florists, in which he argued in favor of the natural 

 treatment of grounds which are large enough to have a 

 distinctive landscape character as opposed to what is known 

 as decorative treatment. That is, beds of bright colored 

 plants were spoken of as altogether out of keeping with a 

 picture of pastoral simplicity. Mr. McMillan pursued his 

 argument with some raillery against staring contrasts 

 and loud colors and the use of trees and plants with con- 

 stitutional deformities instead of a more moral, quiet and 

 delicate style of art. It was said that if the opportunity 

 had been given to reply to Mr. McMillan his position would 

 have been criticised by many members of the Convention, 

 and, therefore, at one of the sessions of the Association in 

 Boston last week the question was again brought forward 

 with the avowed purpose of continuing the discussion. It 

 would naturally be supposed that members of a calling 

 whose business is primarily with flowers would favor the 

 use of material with which they are most familiar — that is, 

 that they would insist upon the splendors of color which 

 can be furnished by conspicuous flower beds as an essential 

 feature of planting. But, in truth, it seemed that the 

 majority rather preferred the kind of art which Mr. McMillan 

 advocated. 



