Great Falls tribune., 1922-04-25
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THE WHITE HOUSE GARDENS.

THE WHITE H(
Washington, D. g., April 22.-The
formal little gardens close to the south
portico Of the White House are known
as the gardens Of the presidents wife.
The first lady Of the land Is always
consulted AZ to the gardening plans
for the entire White House grounds,
but these two gardens have been the
especial care OF the wives Of presidents
ever since Mrs. Roosevelt had them
laid out. 1t is becoming a custom for
each presidents wife to give full ex-
preston to her taste in flowers and
landscape gardening in these plots.
The gardens are the more personal
to the mistress of the White House
because the public is not allowed to
enter them. The grounds back of the
the public every Saturday afternoon
during the summer, when the marine
band gives concert. People wander
freely about the presidents broad lawn
and park and sit on the grass under
the trees.
On Easter Monday, too, the grounds
are open, this time to the children for
the annual egg rolling. Forty men are
put to work after this celebration is
over, to clean the grass Of egg shells,
papers, mangled toy rabbits, remnants
Of lunch and other souvenirs OF an ex-
citing day.
From these occasions the public is
pretty well acquainted with the White
House lawn. But the gardens, close to
the house and bound by high hedges.
| are not open. They would scarcely
survive the inspection Of a few thou
sand people in an afternoon.
The gardens now are as Mrs. Will
son left them. Mrs. Harding has found
time to put bird houses around the
White House grounds and to plant a
number of trees-only short time ago
she planted magnolia. But she has
ordered no important changes in the
private gardens az yet.
/ First Signs of Life
Just now, the gardens are beginning
/ to show signs Of life. White narcis-
suses, pansies, and pale tinted flags
are out, and profusion OF buds pro-
misses wonderful array OF color In
few weeks.
/ Originally, Mrs. Roosevelt planned
the two plots as colonial gardens, and
they were laid out with curving walks
and variously shaped flower beds filled
with roses and hardy perennials.
! The first Mrs. Wilson is remembered
as one of the most ardent flower lovers
who ever lived in the White House.
| When she was consulted as to changes
in the gardens she expressed desire
to have the two plots different in char
acter. She had always taken great
interest in the grounds Of her home
and she had skilled landscape garden
!! >.e x,,orL ~, tho rIore for tho rardenS
as she wished them to be.
Mrs. Wilson did not live to see the
/ remodeled gardens completed. How
ever, up to a short time before her
1 death she liked to sit among the
i flowers.
/ The gardens now are as Mrs. Wilson
planed them. Both are long, rather
narrow plots of ground, small only in
comparison to the spaclousness OF the
White House lawns. The east garden
is laid out with wide border Of flow
ers around the edge inside the tau
hedge and large plot of grass in the
center. also bordered with flowers. A
pool in the center Of the grassy plot
is the feature of this picturesque re-
treat. In the summer, goldfish swim in
the pool and pink and white water
lilies bloom on the surface Of the
water.
Formal Effects Secured
The walk between the center plot
and the margin Of flowers is out in
straight lines, with rather formal ef-
feet. Old stone benches and quaint
chairs to match, that have stood
: around the grounds for years, are con-
yeniently placed for quiet tete-a-tetes'
A number of golf balls are sometimes
seen on these chairs and it is SAID
that the president occasionally prac..
tees golf shots bit in the privacy OF
the garden enclosure.
n There are no shade trees in the east
garden. The only trees are small ever
green's artistically placed. The land.
|scape architect who designed the plot
for Mrs Wilson planned to have tai
Virginia cedars used, but the expense
of obtaining them was too great and
smaller trees were substituted without
serious change in the desired effect.
The flowers Of this garden are such
delicately colored blooms as the par
win tulip, a large. pink variety; white
and pale purple iris; and later, peonies
larkspur, pinks, candytuft, forget-me
nots, sweet william, and lavender. The
color scheme is soft. No gay red OF
yellow blossoms are admitted to TINS
pastel group Of flowers.
| The west garden Is laiu OUT aiohs
lines similar to those Of the east plot
Here, however, roses are the oni,
flowers featured. Spring bulbs are put
in to brighten the enclosure before
1.-The roses bloom. At present, there if
thickly blooming border of white
poet's eye narcissuses, but by the mid
: die of May the bulbs will be gone ane
red, pink, and pale yellow roses will be-
: gin to bloom. A few Of the varieties
, which adorn the White House rose
garden are pink Killarney, pink radi
ants, yellow sunburst.
Rose Garden Arch
The attraction in this garden, aside
, from the roses, is an arch at the fal
end, formed by the privet of the hedge
English ivy on the lattice beneath thi.
/. arch forms a soft background for s
small statue. Here again, economy il
noticeable in White House manage
. ment. The plan called for marble
statue, but plaster of Paris had to bt
. last years figures, also adds a
causes the increased number o;
! drug addicts, and the paroling ane
hardening of desperate criminals