Evening star., 1922-05-11
SUMMER FLOWERS
PLANTED IN PARKS
Federal Garden Squads to
Finish in Two Weeks,
Roses Favored.

Uncle Sam officially declared that
warm weather Is here to stay by
starting his planting Of flowers in
the park beds yesterday. The first
load of bedding plants was hauled
| out of the propagating garden green
houses at 10 o'clock yesterday morn
ing to Lafayette Park, fronting the
White House. Large beds of THE
President" Gamma, OF brilliant red
color with green foliage: which has
been found the very best for this
climate, were set out with acalypha
borders. Mcpherson and Franklin
parks were also planted out for sum.
mer yesterday. The mobile squad OF
gardeners win go from park to park
during the next two weeks planting
all of the beds.
Rose beds are to be feature of
the spring planting this year. Lieut..
Col. Clarence 0. Sheriff., officer in
charge of the public buildings and
grounds. in directing this work has
beeh actuated by artistic and aesthet-
is as well as utilftarian and safety
fi'Sst incentives. He believes. by dem
onstrating how well certain vari-
cites of roses will grow in these
public parks all the year round, that
many home-owners will be induced
to plant them in their own yards and
so the entire city will be adorned.
At important street intersections.
where there is considerable traffic,
rose beds are to be set out with the
safety-first idea as first considera-
tion. Heretofore high shrubbery has
impeded the view Of drivers and pc
destrians. endangering many lives
By planting the dwarfted rosebushes
and keeping them cut back Col
Sheriff. plans to give an unobstructed
view and at the same time beautify
the landscape.
Roses Before Museum.
The biggest stretch of these rose
beds will be along Maryland evenue
northeast, for more than a mile, with
ten large beds. A bed of especially
front of the Old National Museum
building.
Few people in Washington know
that one of the finest rose gardens
in the country was started last year,
just at the entrance to Potomac Park,
East. This garden surrounds the
fountains in a plot of ground on the
river bank between the two bridges.
More than 5000 bushes were set out
there last year and an equal number
will be set out this season.
This garden is one of the most
easy of access from the street car
line as well as by automobile. The
bushes are loaded with blooms and
buds and. by Sunday they will be in
full bloom. Expert gardeners say
that they never before saw as many
Radiance and Columbia varieties pre-
dominate. The Sunburst. rich.
bronze-yellow bloom, is ordinarily not
considered good, hardy rose in this
climate. Those who have planted it
say that it does not thrive well, but
the, section given over to sunburst
bushes in this rose garden by the Po-
tomac is the finest of all.
Iris Along River Bank.
Flower lovers are driving along the
East Potomac Park drive to the point
these days to see the many varieties
of iris which are now in bloom. Col.
Sherrill's force has planted the iris
along the river bank so that for
weeks there will be continuous
mile. with one variety quickly sue
ceeding as another blooms and fades
The hardy azaleas also are in bloom
and more than score Of other flower
ing plants delight the eye along this
drive.
Col. Sheriff. had an unusual proof of
the forwardness of this spring when he
sent to the White House yesterday the
first peonies cut in the propagating
gardens this season. Ordinarily these
flowers are not cut before Decoration
day. but yesterday several hundred
for many years.
Col Sheriff. says that within a month
all of the flower. beds in more than $50
parks in all corners of the National Cap
ital will be in bloom. and looking their
best for the summer.