Evening star., 1938-09-17

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the fine lawn and shade trees and
shrubs are bare Of foliage. Can one
visualize q more beautiful sight than
the stately spruce dressed in blanket
Of pure white snow which is heavy
enough will bow the lower branches
to the ground, or the slender aborvitae,
utilized In the foundation planting.
likewise nlanketed and blending in
perfectly With the mantle Of snow upon
the roof
In the majority Of cases we find
the fir and the spruce used as speci-
men plants. The average city location
is only large enough to accommodate
one or perhaps two, as they attain
great height, but as we progress to-
ward the suburban sections and be-
yond, where the home plot is larger,
We may find them grouped, espe-
cially serving as background.
It Is only natural to most Of us to
have the ambition to acquire small
part Of this great expanse called the
earth anc thereon proceed to build
. home or else become the possessor
Of one already constructed. And, Of
course, it IS not meet to leave the sur
rounding area Of the house barren
Therefore be he novice or one familiar
with Landscape designing he will pro-
ceed to develop his own ideas in the
way Of acquiring and planting such
ornamental material as he thinks suit
able. 4 + y \
WHETHER novice or graduate, his
first ideas on the subject will
embody some species of the great field
Of evergreens. Perhaps the most nee
essary requisite for success in his VEN
ture Is an ability to see ahead, quite
far ahead, in the planting Of ever
green specimens The greatest Joy to
any gardener, and one to which this
writer subscribes, is, when planting
evergreen material, to obtain the
youngest plants he can which will
make a somewhat decent showing
after the location is adopted and
utilized To the real gardener will
come an immeasurable amount of
pleasure and satisfaction in watching
the process Of growth. Some Of the
material which he will plant, after
seeing some mature specimens in the
neighborhood, will attain heights of
so to 100 feet and more: therefore he
will have to be careful Of his selection
Of locale.
Fir Is the common name Of the
genus Abies and Is more or less adapt
able to a cool climate. Perhaps one
Of the most beautiful and one which
thrive in this climate is A. Douglasii,
or Pseudotsuga tanfolia douglas fir) i.
AS an ornamental it Is one Of the best,
. symbol Of rugged strength, endur-
ance and permanency. Some one has
compared entering virgin forest Of
this species to the entering OF . ca
thedral. This species has an inter-
esting history and Is . native OF this
continent.
IT SEEMS 1t was first discovered BY
DR.. Archibald Menzies, who was
ship surgeon on Van Couver's ex-
pedition. in the year 1871, on what Is
AAO" S11lSOuNC1 n lC~ SpSCl.
mems were taken back to England by
the doctor and successfully grown in
that country. A Scotch explorer by
the name Of David Douglas in his
travels on the Pacific Coast several
years later, in 1927. rediscovered the
fir and subsequently it was named in
his honor.
The name Pseudotsuga taxifolia Is
commonly used now In denoting the
Douglas fir, Pseudotsuga signifying
akin to the hemlock" and taxifolia
"the resemblance to the yew." There
are two distinct forms Of the Douglas
f1r, one, growing in its native Pacific
Coast which attains great height and
is used mostly for timber, and the
other, grown mostly in Colorado,
which we see as an ornamental in our
gardens.
The growth of the latter may be
described as compact and symmetrical,
with rather short needles. It Is pyra-