134 



THE GARDENER'S MONTHLY 



[May, 



Germantown is famous for its neat gar- 

 dens, nurseries and florists' establishments ; its 

 woolen, cotton, carriage, and carpet establish- 

 ments ; its newspapers, and for its Revolutionary 

 history, — and strangers should remember when 

 coming to the place for any special purpose, that 

 it is nine miles long ! Many a person has had 

 half a day's hunt, because he did not get his ex- 

 act directions before leaving home. 



Tom Thumb Arbor vit^. — It may be with- 

 in the recollection of many of our readers, that 

 although it was well-known that the Tom 

 Thumb Arbor vitae was raised from the com- 

 mon arbor vitse, and that it is common for this 

 and many allied plants to carry on their " free- 

 leaved" or primitive condition for many years, 

 or even for life, yet M. Carriere of Paris in- 

 sisted that it must be something else, and re_ 

 named it "Retinospora EUwangerania." Ac- 

 cording to the Gardener's Chronicle he has at 

 length discovered that " Retinospora Ellwanger- 

 iana is a form of Thuia." He seems to have 

 started to doubt on "Retinospora ericoides," 

 which he now asserts " is a Biota," — that is, a 

 form of Chinese arbor vitse. It would not hurt 

 M. Carriere to read American publications. 



How TO Propagate Mistletoe. — A corres- 

 pondent of Gardening Illustrated, says : " At this 

 season of the year, when so many possess Mis- 

 tletoe berries, it may interest some to know 

 how to obtain plants from these berries. Select 

 two or three of the finest of them, and when 

 the wood of any apple tree, on which it may be 

 desired Mistletoe should grow, is quite dry, take 

 one of the berries between the finger and 

 thumb, and rub it gently on the part of the tree 

 where the Mistletoe is wanted to grow. When 

 the berry breaks, the gummy juice inside causes 

 the seeds to adhere to the bark. In a short 

 time two small prongs will be emitted from the 

 centre of the berry, and these will turn round 

 and root and grow on the branch to which the 

 berry is attached. This is a simple way of 

 propagating the Mistletoe which any one may 

 try with success." 



The Japan Snowball.— IN"ot only in America 

 have the merits of this beautiful shrub been 

 overlooked ; Shirley Hibberd notes the same of 

 Europe, and says : " If we have to say again 

 and again that this or that is not sufficiently ap- 

 preciated, it is not so much our fault as our mis- 

 fortune. How true it is of this Viburnum ; the 

 noblest of all the hardy flowering shrubs of its 

 class, and a quite surprising subject for a wall, 



while it is also a grand plant to grow in a pot or 

 tub for the cool conservatory, where Viburnum 

 tinus would be at home with it in the climate of 

 London. The common Guelder Rose, Vibur- 

 num opulus, is a fine thing that one meets with 

 in every shrubbery, and also as a wilding in 

 many a woodland glen. The wayfaring tree, 

 V. lantana, is another of the family that we 

 meet with as a wilding in woodland districts, 

 but it is a limestone plant and not often seen in 

 company with V. opulus. But none of the 

 tribe can equal V. plicatum in beauty, whether 

 of leaf or flower, and the matter for surprise is 

 that we may look for it in a thousand gardens 

 ere obtaining a glimpse of its glorious globular 

 clusters of snow-white flowers." 



NEW OR RARE PLANTS. 



Rose Jules Chretien. — Judging by the 

 colored lithograph just issued by Mr. Saul, 

 we should think that this new crimson hybrid 

 perpetual Rose is a very beautiful kind. A sin- 

 gular peculiarity is that the thorns are all ar- 

 ranged in two opposite lines on the sides of the 

 stem touching each other just like sharks' teeth. 

 It must have a strange appearance on the living 

 plant. 



Early -flowering Chrysanthemums. — 

 For out door culture the Chrysanthemum 

 flowers rather late. Eff'orts have been made in 

 France and Belgium to obtain a race of early- 

 flowering kinds. The eff"ort has been so success- 

 ful that a class which will begin to bloom in 

 July in England has been introduced. The fol- 

 lowing are said to be the best in this class : 



Jardin des Plantes, (white). — A very dwarf, 

 free-branching and floriferous variety, producing 

 flowers quite two inches across; white with 

 slightly yellow centre, very double ; lasts a con- 

 siderable period in flower; a first-class variety. 



Jardin des Plantes (yellow). — This is rather a 

 taller-growing variety than the preceding; free 

 flowering, with bright golden yellow flowers ; a 

 very suitable companion to the last. 



Indicum nanum. — A similar variety to the 

 first, somewhat more of a pure white in its first 

 stage, but passing as the flowers acquire age to 

 purple ; very dwarf habit and free flowering. 



Andromeda. — A very free variety, producing 

 very large flowers of a bright yellow color. 



Cassy. — Rather tall growing, and bearing 

 large light rose-colored flowers of great beauty. 



