For Jan.; 1920 



219 



Ornamental Flowering Trees 



ARBORUM AMATOR 



{Continued ) 



TliliSE may be used on grounds of moderate area 

 as single specimens on open spaces, or for outlining 

 dri\'e\vavs, or along the boundary lines, or in 

 corners. 



THE SOUTHERN CATALPA {Catalpa bignonici- 

 dcs) is hardy as far north as Xew England, and is of 

 vcrv rapid growth, and thrives in almost any soil. It 

 has a spreading habit of growth and carries many 

 branches. In mid-June its panicles of fragrant white 

 llowers. spotted with violet and yellow, a|)pear amid its 

 heart-shaped leaves. 



The poetess i'hoebe Cary brings before our mind's 

 eve in the following lines the shape of the Southern 

 Catalpa : 



"Near the porch grows the broad catalpa tree. 

 And o'er it the grand zcistaria 

 Born to the purple of royally." 



THE EMPRESS TREE (Paiclonia iniperialis). a 

 relative of the Catalpa. resembles that tree both in folia.ge 

 and habit of growth. This noble, broad headed tree, 

 though hardv as far north as Massachusetts, does not 

 bloom regularlv north of Xew York City- It bears in 

 great profusion in June panicles of very fragrant, violet 

 colored, trumpet-shaped flowers resembling those of the 

 foxglove. Forty-eight Of these trees planted in a row 

 just inside the street boundary line on the derkin estate 

 on King's Highway, Brooklyn, N. Y.. are splendid speci- 

 mens of this tree, and present a beautiful sight when in 

 bloom. The odor of their flowers is delightful and so 

 penetrating that it is carried a considerable distance by 

 the winds. So numerous are the blooms of the Pawlonia 

 that when they fall they cover all the space beneath the 

 tree with a beautiful violet blanket. The leaves of this 

 tree are heart shaped and often on young trees eighteen 

 inches or more in diameter. The growth of the Paw- 

 lonia is very rapid, and trees from the seed, which are 

 produced in great numbers, flowers when no more than 

 eight or ten years old. This tree is a native of jaiKUi 

 and China, and the first specimens are said to have been 

 im|>orted Ijy the late Robert P>uist, of Philadelphia. 



THE XAT1\I{ Rb:D BUD TREE (Cercis Canaden- 

 sis) bears on its leafless twigs in i\Iay a profusion of 

 rosy purple llowers, arranged in fascicles directly on the 

 bark. There is a white flowering variety (alba) of this 

 species. The species Japonica is a lower growing tree 

 bearing larger flowers more thickly placed, and silaquas- 

 truni. the European Red Bud, has brighter ]ntrplc 

 flowers. .\1I the Red Buds have a branching habit of 

 growth. Canadensis and its variety, alba, are hardy, but 

 the other species are not hardv farther udrtli than X''cw 

 York. 



The Red iiud is sometimes calleil the judas Tree, be- 

 cause of the tradition that the betrayer of our Savior 

 hanged himself on a tree of this kind. I'.uUver Lytton 

 speaks of it by this name in one of his verses: 



''Your Judas tree begins to slicil those criuison buds 



of Ills." 



TUV. YELLOW WOOD {Cladrastris ) ]> a hardy 

 native tree. The species, tinctoris. bears white. ])ea- 

 shaped flowers, which droo]) gracefully from the ends of 

 its branches, while the species Amurense produces its 

 flowers in erect clusters, and the standard petal of each 



liuwer has on it a yellow spot. The pinnate foliage of 

 this tree adds greatly to the beauty of its June blooms, 

 and in the Autumn assumes a bright, yellow color. 



THb: S0RRI-:L or SCJUR wood TREE (O.ry- 

 dendrnin arboreinn or Andromeda arborca) in Mid- 

 summer bears tiny white bells in loose clusters. The 

 light brown seed pods also make this tree attractive dur- 

 ing its seeding period and after its blooming and seeding 

 season is over its long, shining, green leaves turn to a 

 lironzy-red. and later to orange, and prolong its beaut\ 

 into Autiunn. This tree is native to the mountains of 

 i'ennsylvania and southward, but is quite hardy in the 

 middle northern States. The name. Sour Wood, is given 

 this tree because of the acidity of its leaves, and for the 

 same reason it is called Sorrel Tree, as the leaves of 

 Sorrel are aciil. The flowers coming in slender terminal 

 panicles from their form and beauty have caused the 

 tree to be called sometimes Lily of the \'alley Tree. 

 Though in a wild state it sometimes reaches a height of 

 40 to_ 50 feet, it be.gins to bloom when no more than 

 three feet high, and it can be grown as a shrub as well as 

 a tree. 



YULAX MAGXOLI.\ (Magnolia conspicua). a na- 

 tive of Japan and China, is a tree of spreading habit of 

 growth. This is one of the most showy of the magno- 

 lias, especially in April and May, wdien its sweet scented 

 flowers appear often six inches across, campanulate in 

 form, and of purest white. 



THE U:MBRELLA MAGXOLIA {Magnolia tripc- 

 tala). a native of Pennsylvania, and farther south, de- 

 rives its common name from its spreading habit. Its 

 very large May flowers are showy, but their odor is 

 rather unpleasant. 



MAGXOLIA MACROPHYLLA. One of the pro- 

 nounced features of .Magnolia inacrophxlla. a native of 

 Kentucky and farther south, is the leaves, one to three 

 feet long, which clothe its spreading" branches. Entirelv 

 in keeping with these are its extremely large, cup shaped, 

 fragrant flowers, white, with a purple base, which appear 

 in May and June. It might well be called the Long Leaf 

 Magnolia, which is a translation of its specific name, 

 uiacrophylla. 



ERASER'S MAGXOLIA (Magnolia Fraseri) is in- 

 digenous from Mrginia west to Mississippi, and south 

 to Florida. Its sweet scented white flowers are followed 

 by bright rose-red fruits. 



In the conclusion of this article in our ne.xt issue the 

 large ornamental flowering trees will be mentioned and 

 described. 



Laying out grounds, as it is called, may be considered 

 as a liberal art, in some sort like poetry and ])ainting: 

 and its object, like that of all the liberal arts, is. or ought 

 to be, to move the affections under the control of good 

 sense. If this be so when we are merely putting together 

 words or colors, how nuich more ought the feeling to 

 prevail when we are in the mid>l of the realities of 

 things; of the beauty and harmony, of the joy and happi- 

 ness of living creatures: of men ,and children, of birds 

 and beasts, of hills and streams, and trees and flowers, 

 with the changes of night and day, evening and morning, 

 Summer and Winter, .-md all their iniwearied actions 



and energies. 



Wordsworth. 



