April, 1909 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



159 



perform this miracle, though she may use 

 American symbols. And these symbols, 

 if I am any prophet, will be American 

 rhododendrons, holly, and mountain laurel. 



HOW ENGLAND CAN BEAT US 



How book notions change when one sees 

 the real things! I was brought up to 

 believe that England has the best climate in 

 the world for evergreens, and consequently 

 it is folly to try to rival her. The first part 

 may be true, but the second is not. We can 

 probably never attain more than 90 per 

 cent, of English luxuriance, but we can beat 

 her on variety. For example, we can never 

 expect to speak of rhododendrons in our 

 woods as "weeds," or game coverts of 

 English laurel as "evergreen rubbish," 

 as William Robinson justly does in criticizing 

 certain English excesses. On the other 

 hand, do you know 

 what the English call 

 broad - leaved ever- 

 greens ? They often 

 call the peat-loving 

 members of the 

 °roup "American 

 plants," for they 

 have in mind chiefly 

 mountain laurel and 

 the two rhododen- 

 drons which grow 

 wild in our Northern 

 States. 



Of the forty-nine 

 kinds we can grow in 

 the North, twenty- 

 two grow wild in this 

 very region, and ten 

 more are native to an 

 allied climate (that 

 of Japan), while only 

 eight are native to 

 Europe. 



HOW WE CAN BEAT 

 ENGLAND 



The only place 

 where we can repro- 

 duce practically all 

 the English effects 

 with English mater- 

 ial is Oregon, for 

 that is about the only 

 place that combines 

 a cool, moist summer 

 with a mild winter. 

 However, nine-tenths 

 of the evergreens that 

 flourish in England 

 will thrive on the 

 Pacific coast if given 

 enough water during 

 the dry season. 



The South can 

 equal the English lux- 

 uriance, at least near 

 salt water ; but with a 

 different set of plants 

 which will show a 

 family resemblance, 

 yet individual dis- 

 tinction. 



The Northwest can have no broad-leaved 

 evergreens worth mentioning, and the Middle 

 West cannot rival the East. 



The East spends the most on broad- 

 leaved evergreens, and is popularly sup- 

 posed to have the worst climate for them. 

 So I shall concentrate on that region. Yet 

 even here, I believe, we can reproduce 

 seven of the most important English effects 

 with broad-leaved evergreens, while there 

 are only four that we can never hope to 

 have. This may seem like a formidable 

 list, but all these effects fall roughly into 

 three groups — flowering, fruiting, and 

 foliage, and they may prove interesting if 

 examined in that order. 



THE SPRING-GARDEN EFFECT 



Undoubtedly the most gorgeous flower- 

 ing effect in the world is that of rhododen- 



' landscape forestry " 

 evergreens, such as 



effect we can have. Everywhere under these deciduous trees are broad-leaved 

 holly and rhododendrons. We can carpet the ground with evergreen trailers 



drons. True, roses and azaleas have a 

 wider range of colors, while lilacs and 

 hydrangeas have bigger trusses, but they 

 do not have a magnificent background 

 of evergreen foliage. The English spring 

 strikes high C in June when the rhododen- 

 drons bloom, while our dramatic moment is 

 in May when the leaves come out and the 

 fruit trees blossom. We already have some 

 spring gardens more gorgeous than any I saw 

 in England, but they are of a very different 

 kind, as explained in an article on shrubs 

 in last month's Garden Magazine. The 

 English type of spring garden is a collection 

 of rhododendrons and azaleas, and I believe 

 we can reproduce it with joyous results. 



The example we should follow is illus- 

 trated by the Rhododendron Dell at Kew, 

 and the gardens of the Royal Horticultural 

 Society, or by the Vale of Cashmere in Pros- 

 pect Park, Brook- 

 lyn, N. Y. The first 

 principle is to get a 

 little ravine or valley, 

 so that we may enjoy 

 the rhododendrons 

 both from above and 

 below. Then let 

 there be a path fol- 

 lowing the natural 

 contours, so that 

 everyone may see the 

 whole show without 

 retracing steps or be- 

 ing plagued by a 

 maze. By this 

 method there will be 

 a new picture every 

 two or three steps. 

 Next observe that all 

 the shrubs which 

 bloom before the 

 leaves look best 

 against an evergreen 

 background ; there- 

 fore put your azaleas 

 chiefly in front and 

 rhododendrons 

 chiefly in the back. 

 Finally, arrange the 

 ' ' magenta crowd ' ' by 

 themselves, and 

 nine-tenths of the 

 color discords will 

 be avoided. By 

 "magenta crowd" I 

 mean all the colors 

 derivable from pur- 

 ple, e.g., lavender, 

 crimson-pink, 

 mauve, light and 

 dark purple, and 

 crimson. These col- 

 ors give exquisite 

 effects in a bed by 

 themselves. The 

 other colors will 

 usually take care of 

 themselves. A col- 

 lection of 100 vari- 

 eties arranged on 

 such a plan would be 

 a joy unspeakable. 



