IRISH GAiiUENlNG 



151 



The Arboretum, 



With the advent of October the planting season 

 may be said to have arrived again, and hence- 

 forward for some months trees and shrubs of one 

 sort or another may be got out into posit ions 

 already chosen for them. In a well equipped 

 arboretuni more or less planting is always going 

 on. for. as jjointcd out in a previous article, rare 

 and doubt rull\ hardy plants are grown on in pots 

 in the nursery until such time as they ai*e thought 

 strong enough to risk out. Early and late 

 autumn, however, are 

 the months when the 

 bulk of the hardier 

 kinds are planted, 

 thus giving them a 

 chance to get estab- 

 lished ere the soil be- 

 comes too cold and the 

 biting winds of late 

 winter and early 

 spring render tlie 

 chances of success 

 less probable. 



Evergreens are usu- 

 ally dealt with tii'st. 

 as their leaves are al- 

 ways more or less 

 dependent on the 

 roots for support, thus 

 if transplanted early 

 they have the best 

 chance of becoming 

 quickly re-established, 

 and also it is unsafe 

 to move deciduous 

 trees or shrubs while 

 the leaves ai'e still 

 fresh and green. The 

 best time to move tlu' 

 latter is when tlu' 

 leaves are turning in 

 colour and beginning 

 to fall. 



There are many 

 beautiful evergi'eens 

 cultivated in our gar- 

 dens which from time 

 to time have been in- 

 troduced from other 

 lands, but none are 

 more generally useful 

 than the few natives 

 of the British Islands. 



namely — holly, yew, box ivy, and, of course, 

 Scots pine among the larger growing Conifers. 



Our gardens ow(^ mixch to the holly and yew. 

 for as evergreen hedges they are unexcelled, 

 while as isolated specimens few trees are more 

 effective or give a wider range in colour and habit. 

 The ivy. too. is unsurpassed as a hardy evergreen 

 clitiiber. re(|uiring no artificial support, aiul pre- 

 senting innumerable variations in shape of leaf 

 and colour. Young plants of holly are most 

 easily dealt with, and should be jnefericd ))y 

 beginners to larger specimens, as the lattei- do 

 not transplant well. .Most of the gai'deii varieties 

 of holly are. according to tlu' best aut lioi-it ies. of 

 liyt)iid origin : the common s|)eeies Hex n(|ui- 

 folium. witli 1. I'erado and I. plalypliylla being 

 concerned. A useful selection to begin with miglit 

 include camellitefolia, a beautifid species with 



Rhkum 



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glossy green leaves and few spines ; donning- 

 tonensis, with purplish bark and dark green, 

 rather narrow leaves ; Hodginsii, a fine robust 

 variety with large dark green leaves, and usually 

 bearing a good crop of berries ; and Wilsoni. with 

 very large and spiny leaves, making a fine speci- 

 men : these are all green-leaved varieties. Of 

 variegated kinds there are several very handsome 

 varieties of which I would choose Silver Queen. 

 (iolden Queen and Golden Weeping. 



The yew, Taxus baccata, has been fairly 

 prolific of varieties, and although one of the most 

 adaptable plants as regards clipping never looks 

 better than when al- 

 lowed to take a natural 

 shape. It is extreme- 

 ly hardy and forms a 

 most effective screen 

 and shelter. The 



following are some of 

 tlie best and most 

 distinct varieties : — 

 Dovastoni. with hor- 

 izontal branches, and 

 the branchlets pendu- 

 lous: a most effective 

 variety when allowed 

 room to develop ; 

 fastigiata, the Irish 

 yew. a variety of col- 

 umnar iiabit, which 

 has been much plant- 

 ed and is a most 

 effective and pleasing 

 evergreen ; aurea, a 

 variety with golden 

 yellow young leaves ; 

 and recurvata aurea, 

 with the ends of the 

 branches curved up- 

 wards in a rather 

 pleasing manner. 

 .Most nurserymen 



catalogue a large 

 number of varieties 

 from which a selection 

 can be made, but most 

 people will find three 

 or four sufficient 



Tlie ivy. botanically 

 called Hedera helix, 

 is, perhaps, the most 

 useful evergreen in 

 cultivation for cloth- 

 ing a shady wall where 

 few other things of 

 proved hardiness will grow. A very fine effect 

 can be produced by planting a selection of varie- 

 ties varying in shape and colour of leaf. \'arieties 

 are very numerous, but the following can be 

 recommended to beginners : — H. helix dentata is 

 the largest leaved of all, and makes a handsome 

 ol)ject when allowed freedom of growth : a varie- 

 gated foi'in of this, with the leaves blotched with 

 creamy wliite. is most effective : palmata and 

 palmata aurea are varieties attractive in leaf and 

 colouring ; caMiwoodiana. whicii is )u-obal)ly the 

 same as digitata. is a favourite on account of its 

 eleuMutlv cut leaves : lucida has glossy green 

 leaves and makes an attractive covering, while 

 inaruinata aurea and marginata rubra are attrac- 

 tive in the l)riglit winter colour of the leaf margins. 

 Of introduced evergreens perhaps none has 

 done better service than Cupressus lawsoniana 



-MATr.M TANi; 



[S. Hose 



