| Show i 41111mholiiiii1011000001111100118111110(00100001011110v Crms by &wit — Continued from par 7 0 - Reality treatment for a city: flowers trees lights to withstand dirt and the small amount of sun that is required to sustain flowering spring bulbs She began with four bleak blocks on Park Avenue The rest of course is floral hlitdry The tulips flourished the Parks Department was stunned In 1957 the city still recovering from shock at the wholf thing gave her permission to plant 22 blocks on Park Avenue And that year the city still amazed but by now visibly pleased took over at her suggestion the program appropriating 8309500 for plantings and started the "Salute to Seasons" program Mrs Rosenberg and Richard C Patterson Jr Commissioner of The Department of Commerce and Public Events are of the project of the seasons are Changes acknowledged not only with flowers but with special entertainments "ijust gave a little seed money at the beginning to get things rolling" says Mary Luker Things are indeed rolling! Mrs Lasker and her associates think that there are three elements which can be used to bring beauty into our lives: flowers trees and lighting By late spring of this year all the main avenues of midtown New York will be d like the avenues of Paris tree-line- - A fairyland by Mght - At night nowadays ten blocks of the east face of Central Park along Fifth Avenue from 66th Street up are elaborately lighted This used to be an area of cavernous dark Now it has been changed into a series of "pictures in light" glens carved out of the darkness by astutely concealed lighting One hesitates to use the child's word "fairyland" to describe it but let's call it fairyland That's what it is The park lighting is paid for by a New York real estate corporation Banks have taken over the en US CITIES Tight-fiste- d for city to establish a pleasant image of Usti'" repainting program has been completed with the result that a district which was declining has seen values shoot up and a new lease on life won Amazingly the plantings seem inviolate Incredulous authorities say they don't have a single autheng ticated case of There was a mix-uin 1957 when the first Fifth Avenue plantings happened to coincide with Queen llizabeth's visit to New York Some people assuming the flowers had been put out to welcome the Queen picked them and took them home Since it has been explained that the displays are permanent they have been left untouched THAT HAVE JOINED THE CRUSADE plant-stealin- Here's a partial list of cities now engaged in plantings and revitalization: fA Birmingham has a Beautification Board in charge of placing large concrete urns filled with growing plants in the downtown area oho ti EV1 - - Boston is giving more to its historic Common the oldest public park in the US New shrubs and masonry are going in eye-appe- al need a few zealots Any city that wants to beautify itself will find k hard to do it You'll however that it has-trhave to "sell" the idea and you'll find that people will need time to think it over and get used to the notion of beauty as a public service "You need some zealots to get it going" says Mrs Lasker "But it's one of to a better America Let's remember that we live by joy not by bread alone" In arranging plantings you'll have to be practical "Don't kill the idea by trying to plant petunias Call the where there's no sun" says Mary Lasko local nurseryman and ask him what thrives in the area He will know In crowded northern city streets we find that gingko trees and plane trees do well vo is - "Flower-Bo- Mo x is an example City" distributes of what a small city can dirt-fertiliz- er do Each year the mixture as a free service to citizens )jactivits ktollf and business firms Norfolk has recently undertaken a project offlowering plants and displays in Omaha has made its main effort embellishing a major highway which connects the central business district with the city's municipal airport etZ 0 Eilliginam1111116111111svo:11 - 11446Amist I:it :17r Philadelphia has been engaged in setting plantings and floral arrangements in the heart of the business and finance district ' S Portland Om has pkced over 500 potted trees and flowers downtown City" adtivates lilacs not only -- Washington has the Amami Cherry Blossom Festival the Kenilworth Aquatic Garden and the National Capital Parks System but beyond all this the city' emphasizes beautification around its more than 85 statues and memorials What can you do? To find out specific varieties of plants trees and shrubs suitable to your community's climate conditions you should consult your state university's botany department or agriculture unit or local botanical gardens Your agricultural county agent may also provide information For information on New York's "Salute to Seasons" write on your business or organization stationery to New York Department of Commerce and Public Events 625 Madison Avenue New York 22 N Y I the-way- s downtown streets Rochester N Y long known as the "Flower in private gardens but in public parks as well p You through its City Bureau of Forestry has placed trees and shrubs downtown and has encouraged new lighting in the area Chicago Noosho -- she truly knows of what she speaks One dreary New York Gty area the famous Worth Street textile district downtown has been transformed plantings have been set out a great 1 SOME financing of individual blocks of the Park Avenue displays Mary Lasker's "seed money" has produced quite a crop: plans for new office buildings in midtown New York now include areas for plantings as a matter of course plus reflecting pools and colonnaded walks businessmen ha7e discovered there is something very practical in beauty: it gives distinction to a building a street a New York had suddenly realized neighborhood that 500000 tourists go to Washington every spring just to see the cherry trees bloom Business leaders who had never thought of flowers before except on Mother's Day now feel they have a weapon with which to fight the flight to the suburbs the decline in downtown shopping The businessmen are realizing that when Mari Lasker says "It's important in dollars and cents a - 11 11‘ ps"r-N-- c - So do spring bulbe begonias and mums Farther south you can use azaleas and rhododendrons Crabapples are useful in many places "Try to start with a specific project Have your group make a firm offer to your Park Department and then call the Mayor and work with him There's a good chance that people will pitch in not only for the joy of it but because it makes your town a nicer place to live in work in and visit and brings an increase of activity" Or as Mrs Rosenberg also a busy- woman who has found time for municipal beauty puts it: "It's-- -' vital to do things that make folks feel better When you watch people walk down a street and spot 'the flowers you can actually see them relax It gives them a different feeling about their city a touching kind of pride It's a sign of maturity that we're finding the courage to respond to beauty" --- The led I - g A: : S (41 It STOP Jr t It 9 ‘ ill ' I : 1 k 11111V4iN '--' se 1 SP 1 ' 1 9 |
