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I GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 
I OF AMERICA 
1 Devoted to the Science of Floriculture and Horticulture 
■ Vol. XXI. 
JANUARY, 1917 
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No. 1. I 
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Things and Thoughts of the Garden 
By The Onlooker 
GARDENING is an ancient art whicli has been the 
study and recreation of men for ail ages. Its lit- 
erature is e.Kceedingly voluminous, e.xceeding 
probably a total of between 12,000 and 15,000 volumes. 
Notwithstanding this great body of literature, and the 
historical record of the art, there nuist forever be begin- 
ners. These beginners need not always be youths, or on 
the threshold of life. It frequently happens that a family 
has been denied the pleasure of a garden from circum- 
stances over which they had no full control until middle 
life, or a later period. We would suggest that the begin- 
ner in gardening start with well-known favorites, and 
when these have become well established, and a good 
framework and foundation have been achieved for the 
garden, finer subjects, or those that are less well known, or 
perhaps which rec|uire more care, may be added. Choose a 
list of showy, ever-blooming, vigorous perennial plants. 
The same remark applies to ornamental shrubs and vines. 
When the garden fever has seized hold, it may be that 
the enthusiast will want to specialize in a good flower. 
-Most flowers, it will l)e found, deserve and appreciate 
special care and treatment and there are many genera 
or families that oflfer infinite opportunities for study, in- 
terest and recreation when taken up in detail and made 
the most of. 
* A ^; 
The more popular plants are of course the Dahlias, 
Sweet Peas, Chrysanthemums, Pansies, Roses, Peonies 
and Gladioli. The Rose furnishes in itself an endless 
source of interest. The study of its various kinds would 
require one's whole time, as well as deiuanding travel 
in many parts of the world. One of the beauties of 
gardening, or the special study of any one flower, is that 
it brings us in close touch with people of kindred tastes; 
some of the warmest friendsliijjs have been formed in 
this way ; friendships that have become a family tradition. 
It will be found that those who love flowers are of a 
generous and kindly temperament, gentle, and given to 
the pursuit of the finer arts generally. It is a quiet 
recreation, pursued at home. It is good for tlie man 
of the house ; good for the lady ; good for the children. 
In recent years school gardening as a feature has been 
much encouraged and it has many points to commend 
it, both observationally and from the point of view of 
bodily well-being. 
* * * 
Much of the best work in gardening and in the develop- 
ment of plants, either by hybridizing or selection has 
• been done bv the man or woman whose business has 
lain in an entirely different direction than that of horti- 
culture. We are indebted to many amateurs for valu- 
able plant introductions from other lands. Beyond the 
purely sentimental, recreational, or cultural benefits to 
be obtained from the pursuit of gardening as a hobby, 
there is also the economical side to be considered. There 
is money in it. Perhaps not always in the direct pro- 
duction of plants or vegetables for sale, although that 
side also would warrant atteiuion, but in the saving that 
a garden eflfects on one's household bills. An attempt 
has been made in a section devoted to fruit and kitchen 
gardening to show how families of varying sizes may 
obtain the greater part of their culinary or fruitarian 
products from their own home grounds. 
It may be fitting to explain some of the more promi- 
nent divisions of the plant world. The number of 
species of known plants is 180,000. These are divided 
into arboraceous and herbaceous groups, and these again 
into their several divisions. Thus there are trees and 
shrubs, which, in turn, are divided into hardy, tem- 
perate or half-hardy, and tender or tropical kinds. In 
the herbaceous division of the plant world we have the 
same classification, namely, the hardy, temperate, and 
tender. It is with the fully hardy or temperate va- 
rieties of trees, shrubs or herbaceous plants that this 
book of course deals, and the various divisions of these, 
such as bulbous plants, ferns, border plants, aquatic sub- 
jects and succulents are each discussed in groups by 
tliemselves. 1 rememiier, many years ago, listening to a 
very interesting lecture on Lilies by a clergyman, who, 
in opening, made a remark that stuck in our mind, 
namely, that in taking u]) the study of any floral subject 
the first thing he wanted to do was to get into the 
history of it; in that way he had the fullest comprehension 
of the plant, — what it had been and what it had come 
from, and it saved him needless work and gave him the 
right ]ioint of view. It will be found in gardening" that 
there are books treating of the history of the subject; 
bright books, interesting books, which touch on the 
social side of the development of man's interests and in- 
cidentally refer to many well-known historical characters 
that have been interested in gardening, and the reading 
of which can be commended as warmly as the most in- 
teresting story-book, or other book of a purely enter- 
taining character. 
* * * 
In addition to the historical side of the subject there 
is the cognate one of plant geography, or the story of 
the distribution of plants over the world. Although this 
