Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1890-04-25
PUBLIC GARDENING IN PARIS.
How the City is Made and Kept Benu-
IifnI

Paris is just now making its spring toilet.
One of the most interesting features of
this annual preparation for the fine season
is the work in the public squares and gar
dens, which is all done by the city's gar
deners, who are employed by the.year and
are very numerous, 1t is estimated that
1000 days work is necessary every year to
put the gardens and parks into trim for
the spring, and a surface of 250, 600 super
fetal metres is annually garnished with
flowers and Towering plants, In the great
horticultural establishment of La Muette,
which belongs to the city, - gardeners are
busy every day after the first of March
preparing the plants, which must all be in
their places at given date in the public
gardens. One hundred and eighty thou
sand Towering plants are set out within less
than week after the first warm days an
nounce the final break up of the winter.
In the Trocadero gardens, where every
thing has had to be done anew this year be-
cause of the presence of the great exhibi
ton there lately, no less than %, 900 plants
and Towering shrubs have already been
set out. In few days the two and a half
million of people in Paris will all have
green leaves and flowers within easy reach
of their houses and workshops.
The extent of the public gardens and
promenades of Paris is much greater than
is generally supposed. The Bots de Bou
logne comes first, with a superficial area of
$40, 900 metres; next in order is the Bots
de Vincennes, with 5000, 600 metres next
the Buttes Chaumont--an artificial park
with 250, 600 metres; then the Park of
Montsouris, with 100000; the Park Mon
ceau, with 5000; the Champs Eysees,
1856, 000 the Park and Square of the Tro-
cadero, 23O, 900; the Avenue du Bots de
Boulogne, 100, 600; the Avenue of the Oh
servatory 80, 00n, and the Boulevard Rich
ard Lenoir, 10000 There are 100 squares
within the city limits of Paris: some are
very small, some very large, but each re-
ceives careful attention from the city gar
deners. All the gardens are placed under
the direction of gardener in chief, NJ
Laforcade, who has 400 gardeners under
him, and it is needless to remark that they
are not changed every time new city coun-
Gil comes in that none of them, not even
the chief, has any political pull, and that
they are well paid, well fed and happy
The plants which serve for the decora-
ton of the gardens and squares are divided
into three categories, autumn, spring and
summer plants. Geranums take the lead
The city's nurseries annually bring forth
800, 600 plants. They also yield an aver
age of 10000 begonias, $4,000 myosotis
26, 900 dahlias and 1000 hyacinths, besides
others of all kinds. Paris takes for her
annual toilet no less than two millions Of
plants.
The municipal nurseries and greenhouses
are scattered all about. In the Bots d,
Boulogne, near Longchamps, are the nur
series of trees which lose their leaves an
nually at Auteuil is the one for resinou
trees and evergreens and heather; on til,
borders of the Marine, at Petit ry, thu
great trees which line all the boulevard
Of Paris are cultivated; and at Vincenne
a vast tract is devoted to ornamental plants
Finally, at Passy, and near La Muette, i
the central establishment, where all tn
plants de luxe are cared for This grea
horticultural laboratory is one of the larg
est in the world. 1t has 30 immense hot
houses, some of which are colossal I'm
mense cellars, lighted by gas, serve a
storehouses during the winter There ar
special hothouses for the palms, others TO
the camellias, still others for the banani
trees and for the large leaved plants of tin
tropics. All these establishments have heel
built up since the exposition of 1850, whic
first gave Paris the idea of having garden
scattered everywhere throughout its vas
extent.
OF course the nature of the soil in eac
square and park was carefully studied be
fore it was planted. But in some parks
notably the Park Monceau, there is such
diversity of plants that it is like botani
cal garden All this costs "a large sum, bu
the Parisians say that it is worth ten time
what it costs, because this vast number G
plants constantly Tenews the vtiated al
mosphere of the great city, and it has mad
the Parisians the greatest flower loving pee
ple in the world u Boston Journal