Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1922-04-08
Wild Flowers Need Help.

One catches glimpses in the news
of the activities of the Wild Flower
Preservation Society of America.
There is a branch of this society in
Washington, with a large membership
of men and women whose business is
science, and of men and women who
think as the scientists do about the
preservation of wild flowers. These
people carry on campaign to educate
persons needing or desiring instruc-
ton in flowers and interesting them
in the cause of flower preservation.
The destruction of wild flowers Is a
senseless thing. 1t is done either by
persons who do not even pretend an
interest in flowers or by those who
only pretend such interest. These
classes seem to be so numerous that
at the present rate of destruction all
the ANIMALS among the flowers which
are conspicuous and bright and all
the Towering trees and shrubs will be
gone within perhaps a generation.
The Towering dogwood trees have
been so mutilated each spring that it
is hard to come upon one within miles
of Washington that is not a mere
bush, unless it is inclosed in the gar
den of home or guarded in a. public
park. The same is true of the red
bud' or Judas tree, tree that is es-
pecially colorful and conspicuous in
early spring. The same fate has come
upon the characteristic shrub of this
part of the country which old-time folk
called mountain laurel" and which
new-time folk, when they know it at
all. call kalmia.
Arbutus has been so nearly extin-
guished that little punches bring high
prices to street flower peddlers, and a
botanist or member of the various
walking clubs of Washington who
finds a good bed Of arbutus in some
sequestered spot keeps the secret very
much as fisherman keeps the secret
of place where the bass bite hard
and fast. One finds only a poor patch
here and there of the pink wild aZalea,
which once covered miles of country
in the Potomac valley and which gray
haired learned people. when they were
children, called wild honeysuckle."
Columbine, pink lady's slipper or
moccasin flower, Indian pink, snake.
mouth, ragged robin, flre-pink, basque
flower, purple virgins bower, monks
hood, huntsman's cup, blue lupine,
eglantine, grape hyacinth. the gen.
tians, downy, closed and fringed;
cardinal flower or cardinal Iobelia and
coral honeysuckle are just few of
hundreds Of wild flowers, common in
our homeland thirty. forty, fifty years
ago, which are now quite hard to find,
and are generally found in places that
are too hard for the average sort of
city person to get at. Even hepatica,
the anemones, dutchman's breeches,
meadow beauty and pimpernel are
coming to be classed as scarce" and
every spring cart loads or automobile
loads and armfuls Of spring beauty,
Virginia cowslip, adder's tongue or
dog-tooth violet, wild pansies, downy
yellow violets. bird-foot violets. white
violets, bloodroot flowers, wild gera.
NUNS and a hundred other varieties
are torn up. 1t would be good thing
II everybody in town. would Join one
Of the walking clubs, or form one of
their own, and learn something about
the trees and flowers. Those persons
who go in" for this sort Of thing de.
clare that it is very interesting, and
1t seems to be quite as practical and
educational as many of the fads which
attract people.