October 8, 1910 



HORl" "CULTURE: 



497 



Tricky Peonies 



Some are not only tricky, but are absolutely dis- 

 honest. You can put no dependence whatever on them. 

 One who has spent years developing new kinds finds 

 this out to his sorrow. I visited a man who had thou- 

 sands of seedlings — some very fine ones. There was a 

 j)lunt with an immense crimson flower. I bought it, 

 cut it up and gave it the best of care and never in six 

 years has it produced a decent flower. Another time I 

 saw a glorious deep pink — full lustrous — one of the 

 finest. I bought a half interest, and in seven years it 

 has not flowered. On my own grounds one bloomed — • 

 absolutely the grandest in 200 kinds. I let it stay there, 

 thinking it might be discouraged if I moved it. The 

 next year it had a very inferior flower and in five years 

 not another bloom. One year my visitors noted a glor- 

 ious bloom, resplendent in beauty. A representative 

 of the press was there. "Let me name it." He called 

 it "'Exquisite." I got a good stake, printed the name 

 ou it, and watched it carefully the next year. The win- 

 some bloom we saw was finely variegated — nothing like 

 it known. Next year that identical plant bore a great 

 ugly single fiower, and never has had anything decent 

 since. 



All peony growers have been longing for a purely 

 yellow peony. We have just been suffering for it. I 

 had a lot of unnamed seedlings. One of them I divided 

 up so as to make eight plants. Well, they bloomed 

 pure yellow — no other color — just solid gold. All 

 bloomed alike. Next year they did not bloom. I knew 

 there were off years with fiowers as well as fruits' and 

 I forgave them. Soon I had some to sell. A score of 

 people had seen those golden flowers. My eyes could 

 not deceive me. So I put "Golden Wedding" on the 

 market. I was honest, but the peony wasn't. It was 

 a shy bloomer and when it did bloom it was a worthless 

 inferior pink, and then I had to catch it and make good. 

 I am keeping some yet to see how mean they can be. 



Another I named Sunbeam. Never among all my 

 treasures did I see one of such rare and delicate beauty. 

 It was ethereal in its loveliness — white, with a glorious 

 silver reflex. It was radiant. Well, I sold some of 

 those. But ever after the flowers were absolutely worth- 

 less — mean and miserable; nothing like the promise first 

 made. 



Many peonies will do well in one place but are 

 worthless in other locations. Gigantea is a great favor- 

 ite in the East, but with me it hasn't had a decent flower 

 in eight years. I would not give it standing room. Mil- 

 ton Hill, of such delicate beauty in old Massachusetts, 

 never has shown a bloom. Then other kinds can be de- 

 pended on. Golden Harvest, Grandiflora Rosea and 

 many others never fail. We find one of the most satis- 

 factory is Mons. Dupont. It is an annual bloomer, 

 much like Festiva Maxima, but much more hardy and 

 independent. It is very late, has a good strong stem 

 and the flower keeps a long time. Madam Emile Le- 

 moine is all right, one of the finest on earth. Baronness 

 Schroder is a success. Loveliness cost $10 a root, but 

 it is worth it. Avalanche, Mons. ^lules Elie and Asa 

 Gray are glories. 



One trouble with new kinds sent out by Desert and 

 others is that they ship them before they are confirmed. 



They should keep them till they get through wobbling 

 and settle down to know their own minds. They should 

 be true to themselves and get thj-ough with all their 

 tricks and pranks before being introduced to the public. 



York, Neb. 



(^ S.[fturH/h^ 



Arnold Arboretum Notes 



Among the rhododendrons of the newer and lesser 

 known varieties that have made a good record for hardi- 

 ness and vigor at the Arnold Arboretum, are F. Gomer 

 Waterer, blush white with yellow spot ; Lady Hillingdon 

 and Mum, similar in color ; Salmoneura Roseum ; Mar- 

 quis of Waterf ord, red ; Viscount Powerseourt, red with 

 dark blotch; Baroness Henry Schroder, white with 

 chocolate spot. All the foregoing have been planted 

 four years, have made splendid growth each year and 

 are now splendidly set with flower buds for next year, 

 with that luxuriant dark foliage which indicates perfect 

 contentment with their position. 



Any one contemplating to plant rhododendrons can, 

 we believe, safely include all the above-named varieties 

 in the same class of hardiness as Everestianum, Carac- 

 tacus or Charles Dickens. Four years' test under fair 

 conditions ought to give them a standing. 



Of course, planting should be done with a due regard 

 to their essential requirements. Planters will do well 

 to visit the Arnold Arboretum plantations, which fur- 

 nish a valuable example of how and where to plant. 

 Mr. Dawson agrees with Mr. F. Gomer Waterer, who 

 has been visiting him, that in New England climate a 

 position where the morning rays of the sun are more or 

 less broken — especially at the turn of winter — is neces- 

 sary to the well-being of the rhododendron. With a 

 liberal amount of top light they will stand plenty of 

 shade even for the greater part of the day. A western 

 or northern exposure is best. 



If well-drained, a deep soil is not necessary for rhodo- 

 dendrons. They are surface feeders and if given plenty 

 of moist leaf mulch will luxuriate in it, sending out 

 their roots in wide spreading mats. 



Over two miles of walks in the Arboretum have been 

 sowed with grass seed this year and a carload of ferns 

 have been collected for planting along the brook, in 

 association with five thousand Callunas. Callunas are 

 not partial to shade but, contrary to the prevalent no- 

 tion, want a sunny position. 



Mr. Dawson recommends Taxus cuspidata as one of 

 the best subjects for use as an evergreen hedge plant. 



A new Paulonia among the Wilson Chinese introduc- 

 tions has leaves 18 inches to 2 feet across, on stalks 18 

 inches long, and produces a noble sub-tropical effect. 



Acanthopanax ricinifolia, another tropical looking 

 tree of great beaut}', which was illustrated in HORTI- 

 CULTURE two weeks ago, has ripened a quantity of 

 fine seed this )ear. Only once before did it produce a 

 few. 



Comus candidissima and Mountain Ash are among 

 the beautiful berried trees at present, but it will not be 

 for long as the robins regularly strip these trees each 

 vear about one week before they migrate south. 



