NEIGHBORING IMPROVEMENTS. 65 
sparkle among them as well set jewels. The pines will em- 
biace a variety of sizes and. forms, from the graceful and lofty white 
pine of our forests, and the much larger pines of California and 
Oregon, down to interesting bushy dwarfs, which do not exceed the 
lilac in size. Making a specialty of the pine and the birch fami¬ 
lies will not prevent A. from having a due proportion of open 
lawn, and a small variety of the finest flowering shrubs and flowers, 
proportioned to the size of his lawn. 
Now we will suppose Mr. B. is his next neighbor, and that he 
chooses to make the maple tree his specialty. No one familiar 
with the almost endless number of varieties of the maple, foreign 
as well as native, with all their diversity of growth and wealth of 
foliage, with their spring loveliness and autumn glories, their clean¬ 
liness and their thrift, can for a moment doubt the beauty that 
might be produced under proper management on Mr. B.’s acre. A 
few trees, but a few, of more irregular outlines, should be admitted 
as a foil to the compacter maples. 
Next Mr. C. must choose his favorites. Supposing his house 
to be of some unpicturesque style, he may take the different species 
and varieties of the horse-chestnut, sEsculus, and the common 
chestnut, Castcmea. At certain seasons of the year his place would 
be unrivalled in display of flowers and foliage. 
If D. will take the oak, he will not find his acre large 
enough to accommodate one-half of the hardy and beautiful varie¬ 
ties which are natives of his own country alone. But as the oak is 
rather slow in developing its best traits, Mr. D. would be wise to 
find a site for his specialty on which some varieties of oak have 
already attained good size. 
The elms, with some other trees that contrast well with them, 
will furnish a beautiful variety for E. 
Mr. F. may make trees of gorgeous autumn foliage his speci¬ 
alty, and, while surrounded by some of the loveliest of spring and 
summer trees, may have his place all aglow in September and Oc¬ 
tober with the dogwood, the liquidamber, the pepperidge or tupe- 
lo, the sassafras, the sugar, scarlet, and Norway maples, the scarlet 
oak, and many others. 
If G. will make a specialty of lawn, shrubs, and flowers alone, 
