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LANDSCAPE GARDENING. 
The Maple Tree. Acer. 
Nat. Orel. Aceracese. Lin. Syst. Polygamia, Monoecia. 
The great esteem in which the maples are held in the mid- 
dle states, as ornamental trees, although they are by no means 
uncommon in every piece of woods of any extent, is a high 
proof of their superior merits for such purposes. These con- 
sist in the rapidity of their growth, the beauty of their form, 
the fine verdure of their foliage, and in some sorts, the ele- 
gance of their blossoms. Among all the species, both native 
and foreign, we consider the Scarlet-flowering maple as de- 
cidedly the most ornamental species. In the spring, this tree 
bursts out in gay tufts of red blossoms ; which enliven both 
its own branches and the surrounding scene long before 
a leaf is seen on other deciduous trees, and when the only 
other appearances of vegetation are a few catkins of some wil- 
lows or poplars, swelling into bloom. At that season of the 
year, the Scarlet maple is certainly the most beautiful tree of 
our forests. Besides this, it grows well either in the very moist 
soil of swamps, or the dry one of upland ridges, forms a fine 
clustering head of foliage, and produces an ample and delight- 
ful shade ; while it is also as little infected by insects of any 
description as any other tree. The latter advantage, the 
Sugar maple and our other varieties, equally possess. As 
a handsome spreading tree, perhaps the White maple de- 
serves most praise, its outline and surface being, in many 
cases, quite picturesque. There is no quality, however, for 
which the American maples are entitled to higher considera- 
tion as desirable objects in scenery, than for the exquisite 
beauty which their foliage assumes in autumn, as it fades 
and gradually dies off. At the first approach of cold, we 
