Evening star., 1947-10-12
still maintained by his widow as a
memorial tn him


"The varieties of iris plants are so
entirely different and SO magnificent,
in comparison with the older ones,
there is no comparison" was told
Many now on the market bloom
both in the spring and in the fall,
and a few bloom more often. They
may be secured from any reliable
nursery establishment"
incidentally, Florence Richberg
and her husband delight in Sur
prise" features in their garden vistas.
Among them are the wild flower
and tulip and other bulb paintings.
With its hundreds of wild flowers
native to this environment, all
transplanted by Mrs. Richberg. it
is spot of rare beauty in the SPRING
time. Breathtaking in their love-
illness are the several thousand nat.
uralized daffodils, and the festoons
of wistaria whose color effects
supplement each other exquisitely.
Leaves Bulbs in Ground.
With all Of her bulbs, she believes
she achieves the best results by not
transplanting them, but letting them
stay in the ground for three seasons,
and then renewing them with i'm
proved new varieties.
In this climate, carefully selected
rose paintings, given the requisite
busting against the inevitable garden
pests, produce perhaps the best, all
summer long Towering results" she
commented.
The Richberg formal rose garden
.on the sunny level below their front
terrace, with the rock garden below
it, constitutes another attraction.
. Shaded garden spots may be
made attractive by finding out which
plants like to grow in the shade.
Hardy begonia as, for instance,
often thrive and give abundant
bloom year after year in shaded
garden areas" Mrs. Richberg said.
Vital adjuncts to the feeding of
her myriads of plant and flower
children are her two compost piles.
Completely hidden from view in two
partially submerged, stone poison
gas testing laboratory stations built
on the place during World War I,
it is here that she thriftily mixes
wood ashes, old cuttings and leaves
to produce the rich, productive loan
which is so essential in all garden
ing adventures.
She Saws Firewood.
Fallen trees are converted into
f1rewood by Mrs. Richberg and her
friend, Mrs. Basil Manly, who often
get winter exercise through ma
nipulation Of two buck saws. Piles
OF neatly sawed logs testify to their
handiwork.
The out-of-doors constantly comes
indoors into the Richberg native
stone house, for every window looks
out upon trees, lawns and other
garden effects. The gnarled branches
Of an ancient apple tree form nat
ural frieze for the side window in
Mr.. Richberg's study, which over
looks his vegetable garden with its
mingling of old-fashioned flowers.
Here, In this room where Mrs
Richberg keeps her delightful and
authoritive collection of garden
manuals and nursery garden cata-
logues, an unusually fine oil portral.
Of Senator Benton of Missouri hangs
over the fireplace mantel. In front
of the fireplace Is the deep, comfort
able lounge chair in which he wrote
many Of his speeches and the entire
manuscript of his Thirty Years in
the United States Senate" on his
wife's sewing board. On a duplicate
of this, tucked beside the chair, Mr..
Richberg wrote many of his own
papers and still uses it.
A number of pictures of unusual
interest IN the drawing room link |
up out-of-doors vistas with the
charm of this room. One called
Water Iris" by Dorothea Sharpe,
r. B. A., shows children picking
multi-colored iris, and provides the
color scheme for the general decor.
Another by George H. Bogart gives
the dramatic contrast OF q snow
scene. Greatly priced is a rare RUS
sian Icon which was the gift of Mr..
and Mrs. Joseph e. Davies.
With their daughter Eloise, who is
a senior at Wellesley, the Richberg
family prefers Hickory Hill" as
summer vacation spot to any other
they know and are practically never
persuaded away from it until the