108 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
PLANTING FOR HOME ADORNMENT. 
By W. C. Steele. 
Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen: 
When I was notified that I had again 
been appointed as a member of the stand¬ 
ing Committee on Ornamentals, I felt 
that there was nothing which I could say 
that would be worth the time which it 
would occupy. 
So many able committees have already 
made reports covering the entire subject 
that it did not seem that there was any¬ 
thing left for me to say. 
After some study, I thought that I 
would recommend the planting of native 
trees for home adornment; but that would 
leave out some things which I wanted to 
mention, therefore, after changing my 
plan several times, I finally settled upon 
the title given at the head of this report, 
which will admit of the introduction of 
anything which can be made useful for 
the purpose. 
Those of you who heard President 
Taber’s address to this Society at the 
meeting in May, 1905, or who read it 
as printed in the annual report for that 
year, will remember the eloquent tribute 
which he gave to the beauties of the na¬ 
tural growth in a thicket near his home. 
It is a fact, greatly to be regretted, that 
the American people do not appreciate 
the toeauties of the natural growth around 
them. If they can get something which 
has been imported at great expense, they 
will buy it at a high price, when the 
woods are full of much more beautiful 
things which may be had for the trouble 
of going after them and digging and 
bringing them home. 
I am a believer in the use of native 
plants so far as possible, not to the ex¬ 
clusion of the many beautiful and desira¬ 
ble foreigners which have come to stay, 
but rather to supplement them, or to take 
their place around many homes where the 
expense of these foreign beauties cannot 
be afforded. 
Of course, the evergreens stand at the 
head, the list including Magnolia grandi- 
flora and Magnolia glauca, the latter be¬ 
ing known as Sweet Bay. Both are indis¬ 
pensable where the space can be spared to 
allow them the room needed for proper 
expansion. To them I would add the 
Hollies, the common species Ilex opaca, 
is so well known that it needs no farther 
mention, but it may not be so well known 
that there are other species, Ilex Dahoon 
and I. cassine which are quite as valuable 
and are even more showy, when in fruit, 
as the red berries are borne in greater 
profusion. 
It is often desirable to have a tree 
during summer where shade is not wanted 
in winter, a deciduous species is much 
more desirable for such a situation. 
One of the best, if not the very best, 
of our native species is Acer rubrum, the 
soft or swamp maple. It usually blooms 
in February or early in March, but this 
year it blossomed in January. A single 
flower of this tree is small and incon¬ 
spicuous, but a large specimen covered 
with clusters of blossoms, which are 
found at the end of every twig, is very 
showy and attracts a great deal of atten¬ 
tion. The flowers are bright scarlet and 
the seeds as soon as formed, and until 
ready to d'rop, retain (the same bright 
