St Louis College of Pharmacy - Prescripto Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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----as Dnfscnllsro e----- ing of medicinal plants was established, so that students of medicine and phar- macy now have the rare opportunity of examining the objects of the vegetable materia medica in the living state. The extension of the Garden 'has demanded wider resources, and an immense tract of land was purchased several years ago at Gray's Summit, bordering the Meramec River, which is now in course of development. The Missouri Botanical Garden is famous throughout the world, and its fame rests upon a solid foundation. The Missouri Botanical Garden has always held a prominent place in my spiritual landscape, I Hrst saw it in my boyhood, far back in the eighteen eighties. A visit to the Garden was a formidable affair in those days for those who did not have the command of horses and a carriage. The only tram line that came within a reasonable distance of it had its terminus at Grand Avenue and Arsenal Street, the southwest corner of Tower Grove Park. Then came a half-mile walk through Tower Grove Park and another of about a quarter mile along what is now Tower Grove Avenue, to the entrance. All about the Garden was country, South Grand Avenue was a muddy industry highway, according to meteoric con- ditions, with a few country mansions on either side. Kingshighway was a road passing through a mysterious hinterland known only to market gardeners. To the south of Tower Grove Park were farms and near what is now Russell Place, even coal was mined on a modest scale. Then came extensive woods, with clearings here and there, where fire-clay was dug. It all sounds, now, like a dim tradition! A trip to Shaw's Garden was planned a week in advance and assumed the dimensions of an expedition. But, the magic gates passed, all the antecedent dis- comforts were forgotten. In the glow of calm which the afternoon sun evoked, we became but one eager eye and the plodding, commonplace, work-a-day world receded into the realm of the non-existent. Vtfhat is mortal of Henry Shaw rests in the mausoleum which was con- structed under his own direction in the Garden. His recumbent figure rests on the tomb, the image of a man in a quiet sleep in surroundings to which he hopes to awake again after his repose. His hand holds a rose. It is a fit symbol. N 7 lyiziir TJ Page Eighty-Three

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-------al DIQESCDIIDTC sl- The great plan of the Garden thus realized all went according to Mr. Shaw's desire. But he soon felt that the superintendence of so vast an enterprise was beyond the power of a single man and he accordingly looked about for a lieutenant. He was fortunate in finding an able one in 1866, in Mr. james Gurney. Mr. Gur- ney was connected with the Gardens of the Royal Botanical Society in Regents Park, London, and was a man of wide experience and practical knoweldge in his field. He 'enjoyed his employers full confidence, and it was through the co- operation of the two men that the Missouri Botanical Garden became what it is. About 1883 Mr. Shaw had authorized the chancellor of Vtfashington Uni- versity to place before the Board of Directors a definite plan whereby he proposed with the concurrence of the Directors to endow a school of Botany as a Depart- ment of Wfashington University, by donation of real estate, yielding over live thousand dollars revenue, and to place it in such relation with the largely endowed Missouri Botanical Garden and Arboretum as would practically secure their best uses for scientific study and investigation, to the professors and students of the said School of Botany, in all time to come. At a meeting of the Board of Direc- tors held June 8, 1885, resolutions were offered in acceptance of this proposal, and Dr. W'illiam Trelease of the University of 'VVisconsin was elected the first Engelmann Professor in the Henry Shaw School of Botany. Dr. Trelease was also elected Director of the Garden after the death of Mr. Shaw in 1889. Under Dr. Trelease's administration the activities of the Garden were extended, as Mr. Shaw had desired they should be. The founder's idea of maintaining and developing the ornamental features was religiously adhered to at the same time that the scientific functions of the Garden were put upon a solid basis. They last received an impetus through the connection of the Garden with the School of Botanyg students, graduates and undergraduates, came from all countries of the world to pursue their studies here. Taxonomy, plant physiology, economic botany in all its phases, horticulture received the attention of scientific workers. An intense scientific spirit permeated the place. 1 -Mlm. .-, 5:25 Dr. Trelease resigned in 1912, to be succeeded by Dr. Geo. T. Moore, a student of Professor Farlow at Harva1'd, and who had carried on research prev- iously during the administration of Dr. Trelease. The introduction of Dr. Moore into the Directorship was followed by an unprecedented expansion of all the activities of the Garden, he being supported in his plans and their execution by the generosity of the Board of Trustees. Large plant-growing houses were con- structed, special laboratories for scienlitic investigation were added, and tracts of land were reclaimed for the outdoor cultivation of the hardier plants. Additions were made to the herbarium and library, the staff was enlarged. The library has been fortunate in securing the splendid collection of Pre-Linnaean works, known the Sturtevant Library, one of the most nearly complete collections of old Herbals and similar works in the world. A few years ago a garden for the grow- N bs. ...-I Q ffl. 3 2 L... pq 1 r Page Eiglityffwo

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at--la-a Dnliscnlnro l Glass Gardens An unusual and unique decoration for a drug store may be realized in these elaborate miniature greenhouses or glass gardens. Not only do they beautify the surroundings in the store itself, but they also serve to exemplify with much more dignity the professional air that seems to have been lost in the modern drug store. These artistic devices were beyond the scope as well as skill of most amateurs. It remained for Miss Ruth Barry, Secretary of the St. Louis Horticultural Society, to discover the ease of converting an ordinary fish bowl or candy jar into a glass garden. Planting these gardens is a matter of half an hour's pleasure preceded by a ten-minute stop at the florist's or an afternoon excursion to the nearest woodland. Then, with the aid of the pharmacist's Botanical knowledge and easy access to glass candy jars, it should be a task well worth its time. Once planted, they thrive everywhere out of direct sunlight or heavy shade. They require watering perhaps in six months, perhaps in a year, and ten minutes ventilation ranging from a day or so to a full week. In other words-they are distinctive, highly individual-since everyone's glass garden is his own personal creation-little or no trouble, and a nearly neglect-proof as flies and persons coming into one's store asking for change. A variety of odd or decorative glass enclosures may be used, but the most convenient is the ordinary aquarium in the form of a very flat disc or very flat cylinder-a round fish bowl with Hat sides. The glass must be clear, since plants will not thrive under tinted glass. First a large handful of charcoal in the bottom will aid in keeping the soil sweet. Next comes a handful of broken flower pots or of irregular shaped rocks. The soil most thoroughly tested for all suitable varieties of plants is a mixture of one part each, good garden soil, leaf mould and sandg but if native plants may be used a mixture of two parts well rotted leaf mould direct from the woods, plus one part sand. is probably better. It should be moistened after it is placed in the bowl. Landscaping begins long before the bowl is filled to its required level, about one- third of the way to the top. Moss and bits of colored stone are forced down the Hat sides. The moss grows upward in a miniature forest. The surface of the soil should be arranged in tiny hills and valleys to represent a natural woodland. A little decorative skill on the part of the Glass Gardeneru will make up for the lack of colorful plants. - Through the year and far into November the tiny rills in woods near the city will yield treasures of moss and baby ferns hidden against the winter under fallen leaves. Seedling of pine, cedar or spruce under three inches tall are real dis- coveries. Every variety of moss that grows on soil Cnot on woodj can be used and the tiny bright or boulder shaped bits of rock that probably will be found right along with it will add handy touches to the decorative scheme. A tiny rooted cut- ting of Begonia will begin to bloom almost immediately to add the color. f' te ' QQ ...Q 1 Q 3 2 15... .Q N LJ! Page Eighty-Four