For July, 1921 



637 



seasons. Herein lies the hint that the normality of 

 flowering on the part of the singles and the Japanese 

 varieties, and on the part of manj- of the tree peonies 

 even, although they are so very early, as is well known, 

 may be accounted for b\- the looser structure of their 

 buds. This may explain the fact also that Primevere, so 

 highly esteemed for its lovely yellow center, gained this 

 year added merit by safely carrying its terminal buds 

 through the freezing and by expanding them as suc- 

 cessfully as did any red ; it has not very compact form. 

 Its rival for rank as the nearest approach to a yellow 

 peony, Laura Dessert, has fuller blooms. It failed alto- 

 gether to carry its terminal buds through. But it is 

 earlier than Primevere and in a normal season would not 

 suffer so much in competition. 



The good strong red-flowering sorts have been referred 

 to as having been, as a class, most nearly normal. P>ut 

 they were not greatly surjjassed by the good strong pinks, 

 particularly those of full and rather flat rose tyije, like 

 La Fee, Etta and Sister .\nnie. Fortunately for the mass 



of peony growers the two other rich pinks that are so 

 commonly found and so deservedly given a place in 

 almost every collection, Ediilis supcrba and I\Ionsieur 

 Jules Elie, proved to be quite resistant to unfavorable 

 climatic conditions. This is all the more remarkable in 

 view of the fact that they, fully double in form of bloom, 

 are early varieties, the first being the earliest of all 

 tolerably good pink varieties. 



Now, just as these words are being written, upon 

 almost the last day of June, the freaky season, strangely 

 conglomerated from untimely warmth and untimely cold, 

 persistently chilling rain and excessive drought, is being 

 brought to a close by a farcical performance, as it were, 

 of two members of the troupe whose performances have 

 been passed in review. .\ plant of Claire Dubois, and 

 one of Helen Wolaver, the latter probably the latest to 

 bloom of all herbaceous pecnies, is each bearing a bloom 

 two months after Richard Carvel and the officinalis tribe 

 ushered in with their brilliant beacons, the time of 

 peonies. 



Half a Dozen Hollies 



C. H. CHESLEY 



THE hollies, of various species, are not so common on 

 our lawns as their beauty and usefulness would 

 seem to warrant. We usually think of holly a9 a 

 necessary part of Christmas decorations but there are few 

 who have learned how beautiful the native Ilex opaca is 

 as a tree or shrub for the lawn. This species, universally 

 known as American Holly, was originally found as far 

 north as ^klaine and still occurs near the coast in Massa- 

 chusetts and is more or less common throughout the 

 Central and Southern States. It is the species par excel- 

 lence for lawn planting and will be found hardy every- 

 where except in the arid ]jlains section and the bleak 

 Northwest. In favorable localities this species becomes 

 a tree approaching fifty feet in height. 



The Christmas sup[)ly of holly was formerly obtained 

 largely from the piny lands of New Jersey, where Ilex 

 opaca once grew in abundance. Most of the supply now 

 comes from farther south, where it is still found in great 

 quantities. This leads us to wonder if the time will come 

 when the available supply of wild holly will be exhausted. 



For single lawn sjiecimens, select small regular-growing 

 bushes and set in the Fall or early Spring. A good rule 

 to observe in taking any wild shrub from the woods is to 

 set it in the same way in its new home as it stood in 

 the old with regard to the points of the compass. Thickets 

 of holly are very attractive if there is room on the lawn. 

 Other wild shrubs may be intermingled with good efifect. 

 For this purpf)se the native Juneberries, Hawthornes, 

 wild cherries and mountain laurel are suggested. Red 

 cedar and hemlock make attractive evergreens for inter- 

 mingling. 



Ilex opaca is the only evergreen holly that will thrive 

 north of New York. South of that point the European 

 holly. Ilex aqmfoUum may be set in the ground with rea- 

 sonable assurance of success. This is probably the pretti- 

 est of all hollies, the leaves being of shiny green color 

 and wavy outline. This species of holly is largely propa- 

 .gated by the florists of Holland and much lias been 

 shipped to America and sold in tubs for Christmas deco- 

 ration. It is native to England and the continent of 

 Europe but the regular-growing specimens seen in this 

 country are propagated in pots and tubs. You who live 



south of New York should set your holly plant in the 

 ground after it has filled its purpose in the Christmas 

 festivities. If the ground happens to be frozen, keep the 

 plant until Spring before settmg out. 



Two other species of holly are native in the Southern 

 States and will withstand the climate along the coast as 

 far north as New York. These are Ilex vomitoria and 

 Ilex Cassiiie. The former is the plant from which the 

 celebrated "black drink" of the Southern Indians was 

 made. The natives of North and South Carolina still 

 use the leaves of this holly to make a kind of tea much 

 used among them. Both of these species are evergreen, 

 but the leaves are not of so dark a shade of green as in 

 the case of Ilex opaca. The berries are smaller and of a. 

 more brilliant shade of red. 



There are three or four species of hollv which shecf 

 their leaves during the Winter. These are all common 

 and hardy in the North. Planted in thickets they arc 

 odd, yet at the same time attractive, and against a "back- 

 ground of fir or spruce, they appear especially pleasing. 

 .\gain they furnish an abundance of food for such birds 

 as robins and Ijlackbirds when most other sources of 

 supply have been cut off. The lawn which has a lot of 

 these shrubs will attract many birds and keep them even 

 throughout the entire Winter. Ilex rerticillata, known 

 as black alder, is the most common. This bears bright 

 red berries in great profusion, which remain on the bushes 

 for some time after the leaves fall. A species very similar 

 but bearing larger berries is Ilex Icvi'igata. In connection 

 with this species, the Mountain Hollv. Ncmopantlnts 

 mucronata. makes a pretty effect, the berries being of a 

 (lifl'erent hue. The Inkb'erry, Ilex glabra, bears black 

 berries. The leaves of this are inclined to be evergreen. 

 It is entirely hardy at the North, but requires a sandy 

 soil for best results. 



In transplanting our native hollies, it should be borne 

 in mind that the flowers are in the class known to botanists 

 as diiecious and some plants standing alone will not pro- 

 duce berries. It may be possible to find plants known to 

 produce fruit, or several may be taken up and set in 

 the desired location, then later all undesirable ones re- 

 moved. • 



