Evening star., 1925-07-30
NO. ".

No. ~.
A collection of costa blue spruce
probably uneXcelled in the United
States has been gathered on the
estate of DR.. Sterling V. Mead. Thirty
third and Rittenhouse streets.
This tree, which is the most valu,
able and beautiful of evergreen shrub
berry, grows only in Europe. Each of
the more than three dozen specimens
owned by DIR. Mead was imported
either from Holland or Norway. The
American variety of blue spruce,
which grows in some of the Rocky
Mountain States, it was explained, is
unsuitable TO this climate and is in
ferior in quality to the European va
riety.
The value of his blue spruce trees.
DR. Mead says, is inestimable because
they are not replaceable. Even = new
specimens were brought from Hol-
land il would require from 10 to Is
years for them to attain the size and
shapelinesS of the ones already inter-
spersed in his shrubbery. The trees
are all about 30 feet high, forming
almost perfect cones, with foliage of
deep steel blue, which makes them
notable objects for a considerable dis
tance from the house.
Variety of Valuable Specimens.
They are set in the midst of a very
valuable collection Of other American
and European evergreens ranging
from pines to arbor vita and Norway
spruce. The estate, consisting of four
acres, which has been laid out for the
past 10 years. is particularly rich in
shrubbery of all sorts. Among the
spireas, foTSythia, altheas, aZaleas,
mock orange and scores of other
bushes, according to DIR. Mead, there
is some one in blossom all the time
from early April to late November
When the leaves have fallen from the
other bushes, especially after the first
snowfall, the blue spruce trees give
an exceptionally rich Winter effect,
standing out as brilliant touches of
color in an otherwise barren land
scape.
The Mead estate is exceptional in
the District for it's fine fruit orchard
This always attracts the notice of au-
toists driving down Rittenhouse street
toward Military road, the Sc apple
trees ranging in straight rows from
the fence to the garage. Interspersed
with the apples are cherry, pear, plum
and ounce. The Rittenhouse street
side of the estate is lined with a high
barberry hedge, while on the Thirty
ninth street side there is a privet
hedge planted when the grounds were
set out ana now more lldn ~ le6l
high. but kept perfectly trimmed at
all times.
Adding to Unique Shrubbery.
The unique shrubbery collection
was the work of previous owners,
among whom was Clarence Saunders,
former head of the PigglyWiggly Co.
DR.. and Mrs. Mead are adding to it
as the needs require, but they are
devoting their chief landscaping at
tention now to the creation of a peren-
NAL garden in the rear of the house
and in the shadow of the high privet
hedge.
Behind the house is another unique
feature for a Washington home,
grove of more than so stately oaks
rising straight as cornstalks from the
lawn. All of these are believed to be
more than a century old. The whole
gives the effect of one of the old Eng
lish parks with greensward replacing
the underbrush of American parks.
Although it rapidly is being sur
rounded by new houses the estate is
now much frequented by rabbits and
quail. He never takes walk about