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PARK AND CKMETERY 
states we may hope for most successful decorative art 
only as we use the materials which nature has placed 
ready to our hands. 
One word more. Woods and shrubs alike are un- 
fortunately passing from our sight. They will soon 
be known only by the dry, fragmentary mummies of 
the herbarium. We claim to be a patriotic people, and 
to some extent we are ; but shall we allow the whole 
natural beauty of our country to be swept out of sight 
forever, meanwhile attempting to decorate our land- 
scape with plants of foreign origin? Failing in this, 
we suffer present dearth of beauty, and our children 
will grow up ignorant of one of the most potent charms 
which ever bound a man to home and native land — - 
perennial, natural loveliness. 
NOTES ON NATURALISTIC PLANTING, 
From Bulletin No. 11, New England Association of Park Superintendents. 
As a study for naturalistic planting there is noth- 
ing better than to go into the fields and woods and 
there make observations of the natural arrangement 
of plant life. It is well for a person seeking technical 
information to make the observations not only in a 
large and comprehensive way, but also to make them 
minute and detailed ; to make lists of plants composing 
the scenery, and to note the grouping and spacing of 
them, to find out why the same scene in one light is 
exquisitely charming, and in another dull and unin- 
teresting. 
The matter of light and shade effect is one which 
demands much attention, more perhaps than is ordi- 
narily given it by planters. Most plantings, no matter 
how well arranged, if displayed before the observer 
so that the shadows are not visible, and with the sun 
blazing into every nook and crevice, are extremely un- 
interesting. On the other hand, there is hardly any 
planting, even if badly arranged, which does not take 
on some charm as the light and shade effect becomes 
apparent. A person may see a grouping of trees and 
shrubs which impresses him delightfully from the 
place where he stands, let us say a point to the north 
of the scene, from where shadows can be seen all day 
long. He wishes to produce a similar effect some- 
where else, and copies the planting of his ideal picture 
literally, but perhaps makes the fatal mistake of plac- 
ing it so that it can be seen only from the south. The 
result is disappointing, and the planter wonders what 
the matter is. 
The outlines of plantings ought to be continuously 
broken, instead of continuously unbroken, as is 
often the case. Deep bays, and large projections will 
look hard and stiff if their outlines are planted exactly 
in accordance with the hard sinuous lines by which 
such plantings are usually represented on working 
drawings. Where it is intended to give a high degree 
of polish and finish to a small place hard lines may 
possibly be admissible. Where they will be likely to 
be seen, it is necessary to guard against straight lines, 
triangles and other geometrical suggestions which are 
apt to creep in during the execution of plantings. In 
the interior of large shrub plantations which will be 
viewed only from the outside, it does not pay to be 
too particular in this respect, however. 
Oftentimes much material for planting can be dug 
up in the neighboring fields and woods. During the 
past three planting seasons something like seventy 
thousand plants so obtained have been used in Keney 
Park, and have given results more satisfactory than 
anything we could have bought. To have grown 
plants of a similar size in the nursery from seeds and 
cuttings would have put us behind from five to ten 
years. Also, either bu3dng or growing would have 
been much more expensive. This collected stock is 
dug up with a disk of soil which, on account of its 
sod-like character, is very tough and will stand lots of 
rough handling before going to pieces. Where the 
haul has been short the teaming was done with a 
two-horse tip cart, and the load dumped like so much 
dirt. 
A careful handing out plant by plant was not neces- 
sary, except in the case of mountain laurels, pines and 
hemlocks. The average cost of our collected plants, 
landed on the spot where they were to be planted, was 
about eight cents a piece. Some were collected on 
parts of the park where clearings and thinnings were 
called for, and the rest were obtained in the surround- 
ing country. So far, not much difficulty has been ex- 
perienced in buying up desirable lots of plants from 
property owners at a nominal sum. The locating of 
all plants, except those which are herbaceous, is best 
done in the winter when the plants are laid bare to 
view by the absence of leaves. 
A partial list of the kinds of plants collected are as 
follows : Amelanchier Canadensis, Ilex verticillata, and 
laevigata. Viburnum cassinoides, dentatum. Azalea 
nudiflora, and viscosa, Rhodora Canadensis, Andro- 
meda ligustrina, Nemopanthes Canadensis, Aronia 
nigra, Corylus Americana, Carpinus Americana, 
Ostrya Virginica, Vaccinium corymbosum, Kalmia 
latifolia, and angustifolia, Betula lutea, Quercus rubra, 
alba, tinctoria, coccinea, palustris, Alnus incana, Rhus 
typhina, Lindera Benzoin, Nyssa sylvatica. Sassafras 
officinale, Fagus ferruginea Ulmus Americana, Acer 
rubrum, Pinus Strobus, Tsuga Canadensis, ferns of 
various kinds and other things. 
Some of the Amelanchiers were twelve feet high 
and bushy. There were fifteen thousand pines, rang- 
ing in height from one to seven feet, and ten thousand 
hemlocks. Of Kalmia latifolia there must have been 
at least ten thousand. Some native plants we find it 
more profitable to grow in the nursery from seeds 
and hardwood cuttings, for instance, Cornus stolon- 
ifera and sericea, Rosa lucida, Carolina and blanda, 
Cephanlanthus occidentalis. Spiraea opulifolia, and 
some of the trees. 
Hans. J. Koehler, 
Forester Keney Park, Hartford, Conn. 
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