338 



GARDENING. 



Aug. /, 



Trees and Shrubs. 



T«E MftiWMOTH TREE OF CflllFORNIfl. 



In the early days of California, when the 

 knowledge of the existence of trees 20 feet 

 or more in diameter and some 300 feet 

 high came to the ears of eastern tree lov- 

 ers, seeds were gradually sought for and 

 planted. Many sredlings wereraiscdand 

 scattered through the gardens of the east- 

 ern portion of the continent, but with the 

 exception of a few here and there all have 

 disappeared. The trees lose their lower 

 branches during the summer, and by the 

 fall only a few of the more recent branches 

 at the top had life, and these few branches 

 would have to be sufficient to carry the 

 tree through the next season, whin again 

 they would lose their branches, and in 

 most cases lose them all. The trees usu- 

 ally died entirely before ten years old. It 

 was thought at thattimethatthe trouble 

 arose from improper soil or some other 

 condition which could be remedied by the 

 cultivator, but with the few exceptions 

 noted no success followed a change of 

 plan. In Meehans' Nurseries they have 

 been tried over and over again, and in no 

 case did any one live to reach a diameter 

 thicker than a spadehandle. WheninCal- 

 ifomia in 1883 the writer saw that the 

 trees naturally grew in swamps, and that 

 when the mountain ranges were thrown 

 up and these swamps drained the trees 

 were left in comparatively dry places, but 

 that their original tastes were no doubt 

 for swampy locations. Near Clark's 

 ranch, on the road to Mariposa, where a 

 great grove is still existing, a number 

 were found in the swamp where he was 

 botanizing, thriving with a remarkable 

 luxuriance — he supposed he had found a 

 new natural location of young trees, but 

 learned afterwards that the}' were plan ted 

 there when quite young. With this 

 thought in mind some plants were 

 brought from California and set in a 

 swamp on his own grounds. They grew 

 with amazing luxuriance for a year or 

 two, but the old trouble finallyappeared. 

 All except one died, losing their branches 

 wholly during the summertime. Some of 

 the injured branches were sent to that 

 eminent mycologist, Mr. J. B. Ellis of 

 Newfield, N. J., who decided that the in- 

 jury was caused by a parasitic fungus, 

 almost peculiar to the Sequoia, and the 

 spores had followed the seed from the par- 

 ent trees. Just why this fungus should be 

 more disastrous in the eastern portion of 

 the United States than in its own native 

 home is a question which cannot be an- 

 swered any more than why the spores of 

 the fungus which went from America to 

 Europe to attack the potato should have 

 been more disastrous there than here in 

 America, the original home of that para- 

 sitic fungus. The fact remains that this 

 fungus has swept off nearly all of the 

 , mammoth trees that have been raised in 

 our eastern gardens. When this fact was 

 clearly demonstrated through the kindly 

 help of Mr. Ellis the one tree left was 

 sprayed with a coppersolution two years 

 ago.' This has kept the fungus in check, 

 and this one tree in the swamp, although 

 still presenting a sorry sight, gives some 

 evidence that it may eventually recover. 

 Our hot and dry summers are probably 

 more favorable to the growth of this fun- 

 gus than the colder mountain elevation in 

 California where the mammoth tree is 

 found, and it would be well therefore for 

 those who desire to try again what suc- 

 cess they may have with this tree to either 

 sow the seed or set the young seedling in 

 as^cold and shady situation as it is possi- 

 ble to select. 



In regard to the planting in swamps, it 

 must be remembered that even a swamp 

 loving tree will not grow if planted di- 

 rectly in the swamp— they want to push 

 their tap roots down and send the feeding 

 fibres near the surface, but above the wa- 

 ter level. The proper method therefore in 

 swamp planting is to get a bottomless 

 tub and put it on the surface of the 

 swamp, filling it with (arth and planting 

 the tree in it, so that it can send what 

 roots it wants to go down into the 

 swamp in that direction, and let the oth- 

 ers extend on the surface as thej' grow. 



Some questions have been raised as to 

 the age of these trees, some contending 

 that as some trees in some cases will make 

 two or three growths a year there may be 

 two or three rings of wood formed a year, 

 and therefore it is not safe to coimt the 

 age of a tree by the rings of wood; but in 

 the case of the CaHfornia trees I satisfied 

 myself there by otherevidencethan theso- 

 called annual circles of wood that the trees 

 are of the great age imputed to them. 

 This was evident from other trees than 

 the sequoia growing in the vicinity. 

 Every horticulturist knows that some 

 pine trees have an annual cycle of 

 branches which push out at the base of 

 the growing terminal bud, by which we 

 can tell years afterwards what age the 

 tree really is. The white pine trees for 

 instance, this cycle, or stratum it might be 

 called, appears at about evtryoneor two 

 feet along the trunk. A tree 50 feet high 

 might have 50 of these strata of 

 branches. I saw sugar pines of some 40 

 or 50 years old, the age of which could be 

 readily testified to by these cycles of 

 branches cut down, and I foirad the num- 

 ber of rings of wood corresponded exactly 

 to the number of cycles of these branches. 

 A tree therefore which we know from out- 

 side evidence was 50 years old would have 

 the 50 concentric circles. Another method 

 was pursued, namely, to find fromanum- 

 ber of smaller trees, the age of which was 

 known, the average width of the annual 

 wood circles. We might, for instance, 

 find that one inch of wood would be 

 formed on the average in from 6 to S 

 years. Taking this for data and multi- 

 plying by the number of feet in diameter 

 of the huge trees the result would give the 

 corresponding probable age. When the 

 cycles of wood in the large trunks were 

 counted they would correspond pretty 

 closely with what ought to be the result 

 from the known average growth per year. 

 From these examinations no doubt was 

 left on my mind that the trees are of the 

 great age imputed to them. 



Thomas Meehan. 

 Germantown, Philadelphia. 



for the past two weeks. The flowers of 

 this species are a little more conspicuous 

 than those of any of the other species of 

 symphoricarpus. 



Indigofera Dosua, a dwarf pea shrub 

 from India, is opening its axillary racemes 

 of purpUsh red flowers. It always gets 

 killed back a little in winter. 



The button bush, a common native of 

 the swamps, does remarkably well with 

 us in ordinary dry soil. In fact it seems 

 to develop more handsome foUage than it 

 does in its native habitat. It is in full 

 bloom, and the globular balls of flowers 

 are quite pretty in their way. 



The white jessamine {Jasminum offici- 

 nale) has been producing a few fragrant 

 flowers for the past two or three weeks, 

 and will keep on blooming for some time 

 yet. It is not hardy with us. [Neither is 

 it rehably hardy at Dosoris.— Ed.] 



The chaste shrub (Vitex Agnus-castus) 

 has opened a few flowers to-day, and the 

 Cornish heath (Erica vagans) is showing 

 a few pale purplish red flowers. 



The old man's beard (Clematis Vitalha) 

 looks beautiful in white almond-scented 

 flowers, and C. Flamwula and the com- 

 mon native Virgin's Bower (C. Virgin- 

 iana) arc in full bloom and showy. C. 

 viticella has still a fair show of blossoms, 

 and C. coerulea a few lingering ones. 

 Among the large flowering clematises 

 Jackmanii is extensively planted and does 

 well, so too are Henryi, creamy white, 

 and Gem, lavender blue. 



Several forms of Vitis heterophylla are 

 showing their small inconspicuous flow- 

 ers, but their pale blue bunches of IruiL 

 are very pretty later on. Vitis orientalis 

 with handsome compound lustrous foli- 

 age is a very beautiful form, but it never 

 fruits with us. Vitis ffexuosa is now in 

 flower and later on will be very showy 

 when in fruit. 



Hypericum prolificum, aureum, An- 

 drosccmum, elatum, Kalmianum and 

 densifforum are in bloom and all yellow. 

 Androssemum has the handsomest flowers 

 among the above mentioned species. 



In the way of spirsas Douglasii, some 

 of the forms of Japonica, Bunialda, etc. 

 are still showing quite a few flowers. 

 Alba, argentea and latifolia, all forms of 

 S salicifolia, and a form we have under 

 the name of S. Nepalensis with small 

 white panicles and distinct foliage are in 

 bloom. The dwarf horse chestnut has 

 been looking handsome with its prettily 

 fringed looking flower spikes for the past 

 two weeks, but it is now past its best. 

 |. DUNllAR. 



TREES AND SHRUBS IN BLOOM AT ROCHES- 

 TER, N. v., JULY 22. 



lluddlcia curviffora, a coarse leaved 

 shrub, has racemose spikes of purplish 

 flowers. As it is not quite hardy here we 

 protect it in wioter. 



Hydrangea querci folia (oak leaved hy- 

 drangea) is in good bloom; and so too 

 are H. arborescens. with cymes of green- 

 ish white flowers and a few sterile white 

 ones around the margins, and H. canes- 

 cens with greenish white inconspicuous 

 flowers. The varieties of //. Japonica, 

 such as Dr. Hogg andOtaksa, underdose 

 protection in winter always get killed to 

 the ground line, but sprout away freely 

 again. They never flower, however, but 

 we sometimes get a few blossoms from 

 two varieties we have under the names 

 alba and rubra; they don't get killed 

 back as much as the other varieties. 



Symphoricarpus mollis, the wolf berry, 

 has rosy white flowers ami been iu bloom 



OOLDEN OflK SCALE. 



I notice what yousaj' in Gardening lor 

 July 1 about the golden oak scale (Aster- 

 odiaspis quercicala) which was first 

 noticed in this country some fifteen or 

 twenty years ago, and since rather widely 

 distributed on the English oak, Quercus 

 robur, and its varieties, the golden oak, 

 Q. robur concordia, being one of them. 

 It is now a half dozen years or more since 

 I first noticed the above named species of 

 scale on my specimen of the golden oak, 

 and while being perfectly well aware of 

 the efficacy of kerosene emulsion for des- 

 troying such pests I neglected to apply it, 

 and last year many of the smaller twigs 

 and branches of the tree died and were 

 cut away, as I fully intended this season 

 to clean the tree or dig it up. Upon ex- 

 amining the tree this spring preparatory 

 to applying the emulsion not a scale 

 could be found, all having suddenly dis- 

 appeared, and the tree has made a most 

 vigorous and satisfactorj' growth. The 

 tree has not been treated in any way 



