Evening star., 1932-03-07
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES F. TRACEWELL.

the same fragrance in a bottle. But
he can and something is changed or
something is missing. Perhaps it is
9S per cent perfect, which is very
large measure of perfection, to be sure,
but the missing per cent contains the
whole essence of the flower.
The happy thing about natures floral
odorS is that seldom are they cloyng-
With the exception of tuberoses and
few other blooms, her fragrances are
part and parcel of the outdoor me-
where lusty smells are toned down by
the sheer amount of oxygen surround
ing them.
The vigorous tang of salt air, Won
derful beyond description might not
seem so fine surely would not seem SO
fine, if it could be put into bottle and
sold at SO much an ounce. The con-
centration which would be required
would be contrary to the plain genius
of sea air. 1t requires room, eXpanSe,
amplitude
The fragrance of the lilac. 1t seems
to us, is more like sea air in this re-
Spect than any other floral odor; there
is something so crisp about 1t, yet fllled
with lingering sweetness which builds
memories.
However fresh this odor of lilacs, it
is not SO obtrusive that it infringes at
any and all hours That is why it is
mostly a fragrance of happiness. In
times of sorrow few ever noticed it.
Fresh with the sweetness of gardens,
their dew and darkness, its call was not
so inSiStent that it pushed through the
guard which unhappiness erects for its
own defense.
Like the SUN dial, which marks only
sunny hours, the sweet fragrance of
lilacs ordinarily strikes the attention of
human being when he is in a mood
to appreciate it.
There is perhaps no other homely
shrub so closely associated with the
happy hours of mankind as the lilac
Even the rose-and it, too, is a shrub
has its aspects of sadness Its odor is
VIGOROUSLY depressing one. The ef-
fort to raise it often is associated with
failure in the mind of the amateur
gardener
The lilac is the bluebird of shrubs
Its green leaves and pannicles of
scented blossoms stand for happiness.
In the old days it was almost the only
ornamentation the busy people of farms
and small towns could afford. hence it
came to occupy a place with them sec
ond to none
Rightly enough. they put it in their
front yards. They did not relegate it
to the rear, as so many homeowners
do today, on a mistaken notion that it
is cheap and common and rather out
of-place in front.
If it is said that it grows too vigor-
ously 1t may be replied that the prun-
ing shears are always available If it
is answered that the lilac bush goes
without leaves in Winter. the best re-
tort is that so do most other true
shrubs.
No one would advocate a planting of
just lilac bushes any more; there are
too many fine things available today to
be content with the paucity of the
pioneers, especially those who lived in
cold climates, where a shrub of ex-
treme hardness was the only safe
thing.
EvergTeenS take a foremost place in
the so-called foundation planting of
the modern home. but even with them
a lilac or two may be mixed. Properly
pruned, at intervals, it would do as
well as the spireas, so universally and
properly popular.
Friends of the lilac would like to see
more of them planted especially near
houses where their fragrance might
come in at open windows, and from
which they might be more easily SEEN
In sunny positions they are clean
shrubs, feature which adds to their
desirability for planting close to the
home.