i8g5. 



GARDENING. 



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attain their greatest perfection in this 

 country along the middle states. Like 

 most Japanese plants they love shelter 

 from cold winds, fairly good ground, 

 abundant moisture at the root and good 

 drainage. . 



All of the varieties can be propagated 

 by layering, and it is a fine way of raising 

 them too, for by it we get sturdy, healthy 

 plants with good roots and of fine root- 



ing 



action. But of course layering 



slow process and nurserymen could 

 hardly afford it. The commonest way of 

 propagation is by grafting. There is a 

 general impression that the Japanese gar- 

 deners are perfect mechanics in the art of 

 grafting, and superior to our propa- 

 gators, but this is a mistake, uglier and 

 clumsier work than we get from Japan in 

 grafting and inarching maples we have 

 never seen; such uncouth grafting would 

 not be tolerated in an American nursery. 

 And the fact that they work several vari- 

 eties on to one stock is nothing remarka- 

 ble, it is simplv a finnicky ])icce of work 

 that any boy can do, just as he can with 

 roses or fruit trees. If you want a per- 

 fect plant restrict it to onevariet}-. These 

 maples are also raised from seed. But 

 the seedlings raised fromseeds saved from 

 the varieties are largely the same as the 

 original type; in some instances, however, 

 as in the varieties atropiirpiireum and 

 sanguineum quite a numlicr are apt to 

 come true to the variety. These are 

 marked in the seed beds and saved apart 

 from the others. And they make the 

 finest plants, for there is no tree likely 

 to be so healthy as the one on its own 

 roots. 



Among the best varieties to get are 

 Japonicum and its larger leaved form 

 macranthuw, also aconitifolium with 

 much divided leaves, and a gem, These 

 are not fern-like leaved varieties. There 

 is a very distinct form, too, with yellow 

 leaves and cilled aurciiw, but it burns in 



summer with us. Among the finely cut 

 sorts get dissectuin, green; dissectuni 

 atropurpureum, crimson; atropurpureuw 

 and sanguineum, with larger and less 

 divided leaves than the others, deep crim- 

 son color and vigorous habit. And by 

 way of variety get the hornbeam leaved 

 maple (Acer carpini folium), a rare and 

 pretty little tree with plain leaves not at 

 all like those of a maple. It is perfectly 

 hardy at Boston; in '77-'78, there was a 

 fine specimen of it at the Botanic Garden, 

 at Cambridge, and which we layered, 

 raising many yotmg plants from it. 



Where the climate is too severe for these 

 beautiful little maples let us urge upon 

 you to plant the Ginnala maple (.leer 

 Tartaricum var. Ginnala), a Manchurian 

 tree, also common in Northern Japan. It 

 makes a small leaved beautiful little spec- 

 imen 10 to 20 feet high in the garden. 



Our illustration was engraved from a 

 photograph of a Japanese maple {palma- 

 tum atropurpureum) 0.5 it is now grow- 

 ing in the Mount Hope Nurseries, Roch- 

 ester, N. Y., and we are indebted to the 

 courtesy of Messrs. Ellwanger & Barry 

 for the use of it here. 



TRflNSPLflNTINO fl LflROB HORSE CHESTNUT 

 TREE. 



Subscriber, Aniityvillc, L. I., writes: "I 

 have a horse chestnut tree about 30 fe:t 

 high which I would like to transplant this 

 fall or winttr. Can it be done with 

 success?" 



Take your ladder and saw right away 

 and cut in the branches of that tree (|uite 

 hard, even head it down a good many 

 feet. Then describe a circle around the 

 stem ofthetree, on the ground, say run- 

 ning six feet out from the trunk. Just 

 outside this circle cut a deep trench, say 4- 

 feet deep, so as to sever every root pro- 

 jecting bevond it, and fill it up at once. 

 Abou't the end ofMarch or first of next 



April throw out this trench again and 

 dig the dirt away from the roots till the 

 ball is reduced enough to permit of the 

 tree being carried from one place to an- 

 other, llorscchestnuts areeasy to trans- 

 plant, but in the case of such a big tree as 

 that there are risks; besides it is a labori- 

 ous and expensive job, and often times a 

 healthy young tree will, after a few years, 

 outgrow the big old one. 



J. B. G., Flushing, N. Y., asks if they 

 are hardy. 



Matrimony vine (Lycium): Yes, per- 

 fectly. 



Madeira VINE (Bot/ss/n^g'au/tya): No. It 

 is a tuberous rooted plant, so we dig up 

 the roots before sharp frost sets in, cut 

 the vines off, let the tubers dry a little in 

 tiie sun, then store them past dry in the 

 I cllar just as we do dahlias. When the 

 i;round gets mellow and dry about the 

 riid of .\pril or first of Mav we plant 

 ihem out again. They don't need much 

 warmth in winter; simply, like potatoes, 

 keep them from frost. 



Manettia cordifolia: No, it isn't 

 hard}- either. It is a tuberous species, in 

 tliis way differing from M. bicolor, the 

 kind boomed so much during the last few 

 \ ears. On the approach of sharp frost 

 I ut the plants well back, to within a few 

 inches of the ground, and lift the roots, 

 keeping a little loam to them if it will 

 stick, then store them close together in a 

 shallow box, covering them with loam. 

 Keep in the cellar over winter and away 

 from frost, but don't let them get dust 

 dry. In early spring j'ou may pot them 

 up singly and start them a little before 

 planting them out; or you may leave 

 them dormant in the box till it is time — 

 first of Mav— to set them out. 



SflSSflFRflS TREE IN FRUIT. 



C. B., New York, writes: "I enclose 

 herewith a siiray of leaves and fruit from 

 a tree growing by a roadside in Engle- 

 wood, N. J. The tree is about 20 feet 

 high and covered with the fruit. It has 

 the appearance and characteristics of a 

 sassafras, but I have never seen a sassa- 

 fras in fruit. I shall be much pleased to 

 know what it is. I wish to express my 

 continued pleasure in reading Gardening." 



It is a sassafras. But the part you send 

 us is only the pedicels, the fruit, a blue 

 drupe, must have already dropped 

 and jou didn't see it. Even the multi- 

 tudinous red, fleshy pedicels, however, 

 hanging in clusters all over the twigs, 

 without the fruit, are very ornamental, 

 and^ in fact, not very common by the 

 wavside. 



Roses. 



TAB ROSES ARE MILDEWED. 



X, South New Jersey, writes: "On re- 

 turning from a trip away I find all the roses 

 mildewed and their lower leaves growing 

 j'cUow and dropping off. The kinds were 

 selected from a careful comparison of 

 many different lists in Gardening;— La 

 France, Malmaison. Persian Yellow, Mrs. 

 John Laing, Mnie. Georges Bruant, Clo- 

 thilde Soupert, Paul Neyron, Hermosa, 

 Cramoisi Superieur, etc. I am trying sul- 

 phur, but am afraid it is too late." Would 

 cutting them back severely do good? And 

 if so, when should it be done? They are 

 in good rich soil, two feet deep, which 



