March 23. 1907 • 



HORTICULTURE 



S73 



eonsiclenible fniit hut not a? much as the next described 

 variety. 



(c) The "round leaved" variety. Tlie leaves of this 

 variety including the comparatively short petioles are, 

 on well developed shoots, not stunted by fruiting, about 

 two and one. quarter inches long, and about one and a 

 third inches wide, and are oblong in shape ; not particu- 

 larly "round-leaved." In general appearance it is more 

 like the "pointed-leaved" variety than like the "small- 

 leaved" variety. At times it does not seem to cling any 

 too well. It is of rather open habit. It bears fruit 

 abundantly, which is very conspicuous and decorative in 

 winter, even at this time of writing, the end of Febru- 



an*. The seed of any of these forms is said to produce 

 plants of the small-leaved type. At one time Ixitanists 

 talked of classifying all these forms with the species 

 .Taponicus. 



Should you find space in your columns for this com- 

 munication I hope that some of your correspondents 

 vho have had experience with this plant will be able to 

 sliow further light on the subject. 



Ornamental Conifers 



The trees we went over in recnt articles belong to the 

 Abietinese tribe of the Conifenv family. Next in order 

 come Taxodinea? and Araucarineas, two tribes in which 

 are found the most curious and also the most gigantic 

 trees among the conifers. Unfortunately most of them 

 are not hardy in our northeastern states. One of the 

 most interesting is the Japanese umbrella pine. Scia- 

 dop)i:is vertieillata which look= quite different from any 

 other conifer in its habit of gruwing. and in the circular 

 arrangement of its long glossy needles. It is a very 

 hardy tree and very useful for outside decoration; big 

 specimens can not be seen in this countrv as it is rela- 

 tively of recent introduction but is growing to a nice 

 compact pyramidal tree. In .Japan it is said the old 

 trees sometimes are one hundred feet high, when they 

 lose tlieir lower brandies, retaining fir like pyramidal 

 form on top of a straight trunk and can be seen from 

 afar looming up over the surrounding trees. 



Taxodium distichum, the southern swamp cypress, is 

 a very useful timber as well as ornamental tree. The 

 young trees are generally pyramidal in form and grow 

 to a great height before they spread out their branches. 

 The leaves, which are deciduous, are very finely 

 divided in the shape of a mimosa leaf of a light green 

 color. This can be grown anywhere but its natural place 

 is the edge of a brook or lake. There they produce, 

 when old enough, what are called "knees" which are 

 very interesting, ovate formed, excrescences from the 

 roots, which in their natural state grow sometimes two 

 feet above the ground. In cultivation they are much 

 smaller, and generally make a Imrder to the edge of the 

 water. There are a few natural forms in cultivation; 

 the most distinct is T. d. pendula, a small tree of 

 drooping habit 



Glyptostrobus (Taxodium) heteropliylla is a little 

 Chinese tree, not quite. as hardy as the bald cypress. The 

 young shoots sometimes freeze back. It has the same 

 habit of growth, with smaller leaf. 



Cryptomeria japonica. The long pendulous shoots 

 thickly clothed with .short needles make this look a 

 very attractive tree. In gen'^ral aspect some of the 



cryptomeria are not unlike WcUingtonia, the "big tree" 

 of California. The shoots are coarser and the branches 

 more apart. In Japan it grows to a big tree of pyr- 

 amidal outlines. * It likes a good deep soil and substan- 

 tial shelter against north wind, for it is quite tender 

 and will not grow everywhere. There are some very 

 interesting forms imported from Japan; some are 

 (Iwarfer than the type, with long twisted or pendulous 

 shoots ; some grow very compact with short needles and ■ 

 others have the young shoots colored white, making a 

 beautiful effect, but they are all tender. C. j. Lobbi 

 (viridis) which is of European origin is the hardiest and 

 look* much like the type with thinner shoots of a light 

 green color. C. J. elegans, one of the nicest, is not 

 liarily. 



Sequoia semijervirens and S. (Wellingtonia) gigantea, 

 the big tree of California, can only be mentioned here 

 iis lielon.sing to that tribe; we are not fortunate enough 

 to grow these wonders of the vegetable kingdom in New 

 Eniffland ; we lost all those we had. 



Athrotaxis, lycopodium-looking little trees from the 

 inountains of Tasmania, liave to be mentioned here also 

 as not hardy. 



Araucaria imbricata from the Andes of Peru and Chili 

 is the only one of that genus which can be grown in 

 temjierate countries, but T do not think farther north 

 than Washington. What a curious and beautiful tree it 

 makes in England and Ireland. We have to give it up. 

 We have one about 15 feet high, but have to build a 

 frame house over it in winter. About the same kind 

 of a tree in appearance is the following. 



Cunningharaia sinenesis, also called Pinus laneeolata, 

 from China. A little while ago Pari- and Cemetery 

 spoke of some specimens in Delaware and Alabama but 

 we cannot gi-ow them. 



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(The ne<r.t article will he on Cnpressinme} 



