For October, 1922 



291 



Ornamental Flowering Trees and Shrubs 



CAMILLO SCHNEIDER, in the Magazine Gartenschoenheit, Berlin 



(Continued from August Issue) 



JUNE-BERRIES (.hnclaucli:cr) and Choke-berries 

 (Aronia.) In our European woodlands there is no 

 blossoming shrub or tree that in Alay can vie with 

 the June-berries of the United States. At this time, in the 

 eastern States, there blooms before all others Amelancliicr 

 canadensis (A. Botryapium) and A. Iccvis {A. canadensis 

 of the gardens) : the last is immediately recognized by its 

 broad and almost horizontal branching. It is particularly 

 beautiful at the time of blossoming, with its pendant flower 

 racemes and purple young leaves. But the genuine, al- 

 most perpendicularly branching canadensis has its great 

 charms, as the blossoms, which appear before the leaves, 

 are in thick nodding inflorescences covered with silky 

 hairs. When in the thin woodlands Cornus florida also 

 shows itself at the same time in its blinding white 

 splendor, one can scarcely think of anything more sur- 

 prising or impressive. How enchantedly did my eye look 

 upon the May landscapes when I journeyed in I'll'* from 

 Washington to New York, after I had already stood in 

 astonishment before many a shrub of these Spring blos- 

 soms in the vicinity of Washington. 



Accordingly the Amelanchiers deserve more than any 

 other woody shrubs to be naturalized in our country. 

 Their native representatives. A. rotundifolia or I'ulgans. 

 with which I became intimately acquainted upon mv excur- 

 sions in the hill country south of Vienna, makes a much 

 smaller appeal. Somewhat taller shrubs than ours are the 

 .American A. sanguinca and A. oi'alis, both of which pass 

 usually as spicata. the latter, with its erect berries, espe- 

 cially deserves this name and merits the greatest esteem. 



Deserving of quite cordial recommendation is the choke- 

 berry, or Aronia, which is generally classed with Sorbus 

 or Pyrus. I still remember clearly the vivid impression 

 which A. arbutifoJia made upon me in the nineties in the 

 Greifswalder Botanical Gardens when the purple orange 

 of its autumnal foliage was glowing. The splendor of its 

 coloring attracted me to my first attempt at writing for 

 publication. No less charming is A. mclanocarpa and A. 

 atropurpurea. likewise native to eastern North America. 

 The most beautiful of all, however, is arbutifolia, which 

 holds its attractive red fruit far into Winter, while that of 

 mclanocarpa ripens as early as August and soon drops. 



The family of fruits with pits or Pomacccc, to which the 

 apples and pears, as well as the genuses named last, be- 

 long, is not at all exhausted by the enumeration of these 

 types. I make quick mention only of the quince, Cydonia. 

 of the Japanese Pseudo-quince, Chcenomcles. of flame red. 

 which merits wider dissemination because of its fruits. 

 Pseudocydonia cliincnsis, the Chinese quince, whose pink 

 flowers are not too striking, but have a wonderful fra- 

 grance, and whose stems have bark that peels off like that 

 of the plane trees, should come into consideration for 

 warm sites. 



An additional genus, large and rich in form, whose 

 sorts for the most jiart, however, bloom late in the Spring 

 or even in the Summer is that of the Mountain Ashs and 

 Alders : Sorbus. They deserve, like the thorns, Cratce- 

 gus, and the rock sprays, Cotoncaster, a detailed account 

 for their many kinds and forms play a great role in the 

 gardens, not only at the time of bloom, but also in the 

 case of many, at the time of fruiting in late Summer and 

 in Autumn. 



For the present onlv brief reference can be made to 



them. Among the mountain ashes, Sorbus aucuparia, the 

 most noteworthy to me are the north Chinese 5. puhuasJv- 

 anensis and S. discolor {S. pckurensis) but S. splendida 

 also, a cross of the native 5. aucuparia and 5. Americana, 

 merits its name. Our mountain ash with 5". aria, has 

 yielded the beautiful S. hybrida or 6". qucrcifolia in which 

 tlie variation of the leaf structure of mountain ashes so 

 markedly expresses itself. Of the Asiatic group I have 

 always prized .S". Itostii the most, which far excels both its 

 parents, S. Chamcemespilus and S. Mongestii in neatness. 

 Very rich in bloom is the interesting east Asiatic 5". ( Mi- 

 cro meles) alnifoUa also. 



Among the thorns, Cratccgus, we treasure in the gar- 

 dens perhaps above all others the red and pink forms of 

 the native C. monogyna. The darkest colored is known as 

 Paul's New Scarlet, or kcrmesimo-plena. What a hand- 

 some eflect these thorns make I have often realized in the 

 wonderful Place of the Prison in Dresden, for which, to 

 be sure, one might wish a still more pleasant garden ar- 

 rangement. A still larger number of Cratccgus are of 

 importance as Spring bloomers, and in the first rank are 

 the east Asiatic C. chlorosarca, C. dahurica, C. korolkozm 

 and C. sanguinea. Among the hundreds of North Ameri- 

 can species we must first determine upon a selection suit- 

 able for us. 



Very manifold are the rock sprays. Cotoneastcr. As 

 rich and handsome sorts irom China and eastern Asia, I 

 learned to know in the Arnold Arboretum C. hupehcnsis 

 and C. multiflora var. calocarpa. I believe that these two 

 are not equaled at their period of blooming by any other 

 sort, to say nothing of their being surpassed. At the same 

 time the latter is especially of extraordinary beauty when 

 decorated with its vividly colored fruit and bears its name 

 quite properly. But the charms of the blossoms of the 

 types having smaller stature, like adprcssa. Danimeri or 

 horizontalis are not to be valued too little. 



In conclusion, let me add a few words further about the 

 adaptability of these beautiful flowering trees and shrubs 

 in our parks and home grounds. They are still all too 

 uncommon, and in only a few cases have I seen, up to the 

 present time, the attempt to allow them their full effect. 

 For this a particular eft'ort ought to be made in our public 

 parks which could make an essential gain in attractiveness 

 thereby. There is, of course, needed along with this a cer- 

 tain education on the part of the visitors so that they do 

 not wantonly break ofif the beautiful branches of blossoms, 

 as too often, alas, happens even still in fruit orchards. We 

 must acquire for these wonderful flowers the reverence of 

 the Orientals. The sight of them must not arouse in us 

 only an individual and selfish desire to possess ; it must 

 free in us a feeling of pure enjoyment, of devoted rapture. 

 We must find in them works of art, before which we stand 

 in admiration and full of inner feelings. 



r.et the cherries and the apples be introduced into our 

 public parks, but not as detached specimens or in small 

 scattered groups. No ! in large, animated groups which at 

 the time of blossoming would draw thousands, as they do 

 in Japan, and as I saw' was the case in the Arnold Arbor- 

 etum also. There no one hindered the visitors from stej>- 

 ping upon the grass in order to look at them more closely. 

 People reclined in the Spring sunshine around the blos- 

 soming trees and the impression upon the visitors was so 

 deep that only seldomly a froward hand thoughtlessly 

 (Continued on page 292) 



