120 ARISTOCRATS OF THE GARDEN 



been planted by the carload in groups and rows on 

 large estates is certainly an offense against good taste. 

 This Blue Spruce grows fairly rapidly and when young 

 is compact, symmetrical, and handsome; but at an 

 early age it loses its lower branches and later becomes 

 unsightly. In the Arnold Arboretum there is growing 

 a tree raised from seeds collected by Dr. Parry when 

 he discovered this Spruce in 1862. This example has 

 lost all its lower limbs and has now only a cluster of 

 branches near the top and is very far from being an 

 object of beauty. Authorities who have seen this 

 Blue Spruce growing wild near the banks of streams in 

 Colorado tell us that it naturally behaves in this man- 

 ner. Those contemplating planting this tree for per- 

 manent effect will do well to bear these facts in 

 mind. 



Another tree that has been very extensively 

 planted is the Norway Spruce (P. Abies or P. ex- 

 celsa). This has proved both accommodating and 

 quick growing, but in New England, where exposed 

 to the winds, the tops of the trees become thin and 

 bare. Most of the older trees exhibit this failing 

 and there seems little likelihood of it being a long- 

 lived subject on this side of the Atlantic. How- 

 ever, up to thirty or forty years of age it thrives. 

 The branches are wide-spreading, with the lower 



