IKISH CAKIM.NINC 



I AM AUV 



in llowcr Krua cariUM alba. CJanva clliplit.;i. 

 IvMUcora Slaiulishii 1,'ivinj,' a lolal of seven 

 \>\v crin.C slirubs lor January. One tree also had 

 v^ponod. Alnus Anu-ricana. Ol ll.o lour nanioil 

 i^arrya is the most striking;, and it is llie most 

 useful devoralix e shrub ol early sprini^. perhaps 

 not quile hardy in all situations ; if not in ex- 

 posed positions it will slanil fairly hard frosts, 

 and where doubllul it lan be used to eover old 

 walls a\h\ buililinj^s. for w hi. h purpose it answers 

 well. 



The \arieties ol' Arbulus unedo are worthy o\ 

 lilenlion. C'onipaet s^rouers. with sliiiiin^;, 

 erowded e\erj^reen foliaj^e. they are al-'le to hold 

 their own in most localities, and the \aiiety 

 rubra, ijener.illy known as e'looniii, is a ;^reat 

 beauty, lasting;- in (lower tor nearly two months. 

 In localities where arbutus fruits, the fruits. iiid 

 llowers are on the plants at the same lime. To 

 the seven shrubs named as beiuj^- in llower in 

 lanuarv. on ist I'ebru.iry two others are .ukled, 

 Hanianielis arborea and I.onicera frai^rantissima, 

 troin japan nnd China respectively. Lonicera 

 Standishii ami I.. fras^raiUissima are species 

 with small while llowers, which are very fras^- 

 ranl and which List well when cut. Both are 

 h.-irdy at (.ilasp.ex in. Duriiii^- i'"ebruaiy se\ en- 

 teen additional shrubs came into llower, i^ix ini; 

 a total o( twenty-six species o\ llowerini.;;- shrubs 

 open durint;" this treacherous and uncertain 

 monlh. Of these the most interestini^ are 

 .\zara microphvlla. Corxlus ;i\ellana, the hazel, 

 Cvdonia japonica and its \arieties, Haphne 

 Hlatjavana. and Xuttallia cerasiformis. .\/ara 

 microphvlla is a i^raceful and beautiful e\er- 

 j^reen from Chili. The llowersare inconspicuous, 

 crowded on the under sides of the branches, so 

 frag'rant that the distinctix e \'anilla perfume can 

 be noticed yards away from the plant. This 

 plant has the reputation of being tender, but it 

 is quite hardy, and came throug-h last winter 

 uninjured where thj laurestina was badly 

 damaj^-ed. Its twii^s are \ery useful lor winter 

 ijreenery. It is scarcely necessary to speak ol' 

 the merits ol' the Japanese quince, Cvdonia 

 Japonica ; either as a shrub in the open or 

 trained aifainst the wall it is one of our very best 

 spriui^- shrubs, and one has in the flowens every 

 shade from white to scarlet. One of the nicest 

 combinations on a wall is a mixture of the deep 

 red cydonia and the bright yellow For.sythia 

 suspensa. Xuttallia cerasiformis has small pen- 

 didous racemes of white flowers with a slronj.; 



hawlluMU scent. It conies Irom (. .ilifornia. 

 ihoui^ii no\ Ire.itiut; ol' rhododendrons in this 

 p.iper, I m.i\ mentiiMi that three llower in feb- 

 iuar\ K. dauricum, K. p.irv ilKtrum, .uul l\. 

 pra'cox. 



.March brings further marked additions 

 thirteen ad».lilion.il species Am.] varieties are 

 added, but seven of these which were in llower 

 in January and eail\ I'ebruary Cease tlowering. 

 These aie ham.imelis. jasminum, .irbulus, 

 g.irrya. chimonanlhus, Lonicera Slandishii, thus 

 le;i\iiii4 t went \ -sc\ en i-lislinct species .and varie- 

 ties to bri-hlen the lenglhening, but often \ erv 

 cold. d;i\ s o\ M-Awh. Xoleworthy amongst the 

 aildit ions are ericas, forsvthias, prunus, almonds, 

 llowering curr.uit, and lauiesiina. I'nfortunatel) 

 the ericas are not suit.iMe \'o\- all garden.s, as 

 some of the best ol them h:ive ;i marked aver- 

 sion lo lime in the soil. It is useless trying to 

 glow v.. arborea, \i. lusilanica. or \'.. X'eitchii in 

 limestone districts, but lorlunately two oi" the 

 best, K. carnea and IC. mediterranea, are not so 

 fastidious, especially the former, which grows 

 and nourishes in ordinary soils and situations 

 without any special preparation, and is as hardy 

 as our native heather. 



]i. mediterranea is found in the west oi' Ire- 

 lantl, but in severe winters it is liable to be 

 injured b_v frost anel broken by snow. There are 

 several varieties, some tall-growing, some 

 dwarf and compact, some with glaucous foliage, 

 some with green toliage, and the colour of the 

 llowers also varies. In the voung state, when 

 it fiM-ms dense, compact bushes, it is hardier. 

 It llowers mer a lengthened period, and is very 

 valuable for sheltered, moist positions. ICrica 

 .arborea, 1^. lusitanica, and K. X'eitchii .ire un- 

 iortunately rather tender. 'I'he first of the plum 

 group to open is Prunus cerasifera atropurpurea, 

 more generally known as P. Pissardi, a garden 

 variety, and a most valuable one. It is a 

 veritable harbinger of good things to come, and 

 a welcome arrival in our spring'-flowering 

 shrubs. It is very hardy, and withstands frost, 

 hail ;ind snow . Vo see it to advantage it should 

 be planted against a dark background, not only 

 to bring the delicate white flowers into relief 

 but also to enhance the beauty of the soft pink 

 foliage, which is so lovely in April and earl) 

 M;iv, much more captivating than the darker- 

 tinted older foliage. It is closely followed by 

 P. august ifolia, a very free-llow'ering and hard}- 

 tree from eastern United States, which flowers 



