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interpretation of john bartram's garden by - University of Delaware ...

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32<br />

rebuilt to its original dimensions and planted with the<br />

appropriate aquatic plants.<br />

River Bottom Area<br />

The Schuylkill River is an integral part <strong>of</strong> Bartram's<br />

Garden, its banks providing a natural habitat for river bot-<br />

tom plants. On the opposite bank, however, oil refineries<br />

mar the landscape, breaking the historic mood <strong>of</strong> the <strong>garden</strong>.<br />

Thus, the design objective <strong>of</strong> this area is to unobtrusively<br />

screen the industry on the eastern bank without screening<br />

the river itself from the <strong>garden</strong>. This can best be accom-<br />

plished planting a belt <strong>of</strong> both de c iduous and evergreen<br />

species along the Bartram bank. All species chosen should<br />

be tolerant <strong>of</strong> wet soil and occasional flooding. As these<br />

trees grow, the branches should be removed to a height <strong>of</strong><br />

ten to fifteen feet. In this way the visitor looking down<br />

to the river from the <strong>garden</strong> will be able to see the river<br />

under the trees canopy while the canopy itself will screen<br />

or at least s<strong>of</strong>ten the industrial landscape on the opposite<br />

shore.<br />

Marsh Area<br />

The area in the northeast corner <strong>of</strong> Bartram's Garden<br />

along the Schuylkill River represents an important habitat<br />

necessary for the <strong>interpretation</strong> <strong>of</strong> the horticulture <strong>of</strong><br />

John Bartram. This low, boggy marsh is where Bartram would

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