The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1915-07-26
(Mrs. Marian A. Meadow in Florida
Grower

Lakeland editor recently took q
motor trip through a part of the
State with which he was unfamiliar
On his return he wrote up his i'm.
pressions of his little get-acquaint.
ed trip with part of his own State
that was as foreign to him as Utah
He advises others to take such trips
and see the surprises their own Flor
ida can give them. AS good roads
and automobiles increase in the
State there is no doubt about their
enlighteninf influence on us al, and
this knowledge will have much to dc
with fostering a cooperation that
will be for our mutual benefit. Con-
ventions and meetings, farmers in
stitutes and county fairs have a
large educational value for the
masses. by teaching them what is
being done by their fellows who are
near them and yet far away. unless
they be brought to ether by some
common cause.
Northern Florida looks on the
southern part of the State as a
swampy morass covered with tall
grass and teeming with noxious in
sects buzzing around in an atmos-
phere of sizzling heat We in the
southern part of the State think OF
the northern part as being sparsely
settled with people who are satisfied
to grow limited amount of produce
on dry, barren clay banks. Nothing
could be farther from the truth than
these ideas of ours, and we'll never
know the facts until the time comes
that we take some little journeys ont
into our own little dominion ana
learn what resources belong to us
and how much they are already de-
veloped. Not only shall we learn
how much is being done by the small
units in our developing force, but
we will be astounded by the results
that money, combined with good
taste, have produced. Well scatter
ed over the State from north TO
south and from east to west are
large estates that are perfect dreams
of beauty Some of these are al
ready old and well developed, while
others are in the making.
Three years ago, when I visited
Miami | saw the Deering estate,
which was well started at that time.
Something over million dollars
will been expended on this place be-
fore half is taken. In five years
time in Southern Florida, trees and
shrubs can be pushed to such a size
as would take twenty in the north.
On our West Coast, Mrs. Potter
Palmer has bought up thousands of
sofa Bay hartm rahtm rahtr htmr
acres continuous to beautiful Sara
sofa Bay, which are now in the pro-
cess of magical Transformation
Everything in the nature of rare
tropical Vegetation that can be pro-
duced in tropical lands will be ad-
ded to the natural beauties of these
large estates, and these must, in the
course of time, assume great i'm
portance to all lovers of the beauti-
full in nature, and not only lovers of
nature in Florida, but those of for
eign lands who will be attracted
here by the privilege of seeing rare
plants from widely separated parts
ofthe earth brought together in these
places under balmy skies, soft airs
and absence of insect and animal
pests that go to make trip to see
them in their native haunts a VEN
ture fraught with more or less
danger and certainly much discom-
fort. It is in our natures to love the
beautiful vegetation of the tropics
and we go to much expense and
trouble to collect together in glass,
artifcially heated houses, a few Of
smaller things that can be confined
in small space, but think of how
much more desirable it would be to
take short trip down into a corner
of your own country, where all these
fine conservatory plant gems and the
large trees and shrubs of the tropics
may be found growing in natural
conditions, and with as much vigor
as they do in their native habitat.
The Royal Palm is found growing
wild in the West Indies and also in
South Florida, and in Prof. Charles
Simpsons contribution to the Pro-
ceedings of the State Horticultural