GARDENING. 



Sept. 15, 



Trees and Shrubs. 



THE SMALL-LEAVED OR "CHINESE" CYPRESS. 



This tree is a variety of our common 

 bald cypress ( Taxodium disticbum) of 

 the southern states and one ot the hand- 

 somest of our hardy coniferous trees. 

 Botanically it is generally known under 

 the name of Glyptostrobus pendulus, but 

 its proper name is Taxodium distichum 

 var. microphyllum, and its garden name 

 of "Chinese" cypress is, probably, a 

 misnomer, as it is nothing more or less 

 than a variety of our bald cypress; in 

 fact, seedlings raised from seed of it are 

 mostly the plain Taxodium disticbum. 

 In a garden sense, however.it is a distinct 

 and desirable tree of tall, straight, col- 

 umnar form, and we can make good use 

 ol it in various ways in planting. Ordi- 

 narily it is slow growing, much more so 

 than the plain cypress, still it soon rolls 

 up foot upon foot and becomes a tree I'll 

 to 30 or more feet high, and it is easy to 

 transplant. Our illustration is engraved 

 from a photograph taken ol one at Doso- 

 lis a couple of years ago, and is a very 

 truthful repiesentation of this tree. 



We never before appreciated the value 

 of these cypresses, that is the different 

 forms of the deciduous cypress, so much 

 as we do now, for we find many large 

 trees of them in Pittsburg, and they are 

 by far healthier and bigger than any 

 other conifers of any kind that we have 

 seen in or about this city. Although in- 

 digenous in wet swamps they thrive ad- 

 mirably in our dry clay lands, and resist 

 the evil effects of the pois nous murky 

 atmosphere. The glyptostrobus in par- 

 ticular bursts into leaf very late in spring, 

 and some urge this as an objection to its 

 use in planting, but we don't, we rather 

 like it, it incites interest and gives us va- 

 riety. A very graceful and rapid growing 

 tree is the weeping deciduous cypress 

 Taxodium distichum var. pendulum; in 

 its young state it is quite peudulous, but 

 as it advances in years it loses this droop 

 ing form largely and becomes a good deal 

 like a plain cypress. 



SEtECT TREES AND SHRUBS FOR THE MIDDLE 



SECTIONS OF THE SOUTHERN STATES. 

 TWELVE BEST DECIDUOUS HARDY FLOWER- 

 ING SHRUBS. 



Althiea frutexor Ros- of Sharon — The 

 new dwarf growing varieties lately intro- 

 duced from Europe are exceedinglv valua- 

 ble, both in the profusion of their bloom- 

 ing qualities and the variety of their 

 colors, which include white, pink, purple, 

 blue, red, violet, etc. Some flowers are 

 variegated, others mottled, etc., and give 

 a succession of bloom from Mav until 

 September. 



Calycanthus pra;cox — a Japanese vari- 

 ety of the well known sweet shrub. 

 Flowers yellowish white with a delight- 

 ful hyacinth fragrance; blooms very earlv 

 in March. 



Caryopteris Mastacanthus, or shrubby 

 verbena. Why called blue spiraea is a 

 puzzle, as it has no affinity with the lat- 

 ter class of plants. It is an exceedinglv 

 handsome shrub during September and 

 until frost. The flowers resemble those 

 of the chaste tree (Vitex agnus-castus) 

 but of a brighter azure blue, and fragrant. 



Chilopsis linearis or Texan flowering 

 willow is a tall growing shrub with linear 

 leaves and flowers in terminal racemes. 

 Each flower is composed of a corolla - 

 like tube divided afr-the end into-frre 

 nicely crimped lobes; the tube is lilac in 

 the typical variety, and the end of the 

 corolla mottled deep lilac, with two vel- a 



low stripes in the center of tube. The 

 flowers resemble somewhat those ot the 

 snapdragon and the tree may not inap- 

 pro priately be called "Tree Snap Dragon. ' ' 

 The flowers are produced in the greatest 

 profusion as early as May, and successive 

 crops of them follow during summer and 

 until autumn. There areseveral varieties 

 lately introduced, such as C. linearis alba 

 with pure white flowers, C. linearis lila- 

 cina, with white tubes and lilac lobes. 



Cydonia (Pyrus) Japonica (Japan 

 quince). We have now a large range ot 

 colors in this old favorite early spring 

 blooming shrub. The common red flow- 

 ering variety is seen in almost every old 

 garden, but the newer sorts are not as 

 well known as they should be. Among 

 the twenty or more varieties the follow- 

 ing are the most conspicuous: Candida, 

 white; cardinalis, vivid red; rubra plena, 

 double red, macmcarpa, a pale pink find 

 bears a large fruit much esteemed for jel- 

 lies; rosea plena, double pink; umbilicata, 

 pale flesh and valuable for its profusion 

 of fruit; Mauleii, deep orange, and 

 Simonii, dark crimson. Some of these 

 varieties bloom during a period of six 

 weeks and the fruit bearing sorts arc ex- 

 ceedingly handsome when laden with 

 their wax-like fruit during fall. 



Deutzias are among our desirable early 

 spring flowering bulbs. D. Fortune! is 

 the best single white, Pride of Rochester 

 and crenata fl. pi. alba are the best double 

 ones. Their period of blooming is during 

 the latter half of March and until middle 

 of April. 



Exoehorda grandi flora is a handsome 

 shrub from northern China, and when it 

 is covered with a myriad of pure white 

 flowers during April it stands preeminent 

 among spring bloomers. 



Lagerstrijcmia Indica (crape myrtle) is a 

 magnificent tall shrub or small tree that 

 has become naturalized throughout mam- 

 sections of the southern states where it has 

 found congenial conditions of soil and cli- 

 mate. Dense thickets are often met within 

 abandoned settlements and this shrub has 

 become so common that its great value for 

 ornamental planting seems to be ignored. 

 The smooth glossy bark of the tree makes 

 it a conspicuous one when denuded of 

 foliage, but when covered with dense 

 masses of blooms there is nothing that 

 surpasses it in beauty. The flowers are 

 nicely crimped, which givesthetn the name 

 of "Crape myrtle," but why myrtle is 

 another anomaly difficult tn explain. 

 The colors usually found vary from a 

 pale pink to a light purple pink, but the 

 newer sorts, such as white and dark crim- 

 son are surprisingly beautiful. What a 

 wealth of material for the landscape 

 architect in using the variously colored 

 varieties for grouping. The flowering 

 period extends from June until September. 



Spirsea. — Here we have the choice of va- 

 rieties beginning to show their flowers as 

 early as February during mild winters 

 and of others which continue in constant 

 bloom during summer and until cut off 

 by the frost. All the spring blooming 

 sorts yield white flowers, beginning with 

 S. prunifolia or Ladies' Wreath, and fol- 

 lowed by the double Reevesii. S. Thun- 

 bergii is extensively used for low growing 

 ledges; it also blooms very early. The 

 best summer flowering sorts are the sub- 

 varieties of callosa, such as alba, rosea, 

 Bumalda and atrosanguinea, and of the 

 thyrsoid section, Billardii, paniculata 

 rosea, and Fortenaysii give a continuous 

 crop of flowers. 



Ail the above mentioned shrubs require 

 no special methods of cultivation, anj- 

 good garden soil will give good results, 



nd besides this thev are able to with- 



stand our wannest as well as coldest 

 weather. 



Punica or pomegranates. The double 

 flowering varieties, such as red, while 

 and variegated (Legrellii) are very hand- 

 some shrubs for the middle sections of the 

 south. They need protection north ol 

 Atlanta. 



Hydrangea. — If planted in partially 

 shaded places as on the north side of a 

 '. uilding and given a rich soil we question 

 if there are more desirable plants than 

 Thomas Hogg, ramis pietis and Otaksa 

 when in their profusion of bloom during 

 May to July. 



Hydrangea paniculata is also an excel- 

 lent plant for more exposed situations 

 but is at its best in a rich and somewhat 

 moist soil. P.J. BERCKMANS. 



Fruitlands, Augusta, Ga. 



WANTS A CHOICE SMALL TREE. 



Alldredge, Salt Lake City, writes: "I 

 have a spot in my small lot where I would 

 like to have a very choice small tree (not 

 over 20 or 25 feet high at maturity), and 

 would like you to help me to make a 

 choice. I already have the weeping birch, 

 Primus Pissardii, golden hop tree, Gin- 

 nala maple, dwarf red maple and halesia, 

 so would not care to use either of them. 

 How about the kcelreuteria, Van 

 Houtte's dwarf horse chestnut, Paul's 

 thorn, large double-flowering almond or 

 the English corkbark maple? Or would 

 the maple colcbicum rubrum be hardy 

 here? Or some of the hybrid magnolias?" 



Ans. The kcclreuteria would probably 

 suit you admirably. We would try Mag- 

 nolia hypoleuca because of its beauty and 

 fragrant blossoms; true it will in time 

 grow bigger than that, but when it gets 

 to be 25 feet high you'll cut its neighbors 

 down so that it may stand. The hybrid 

 Magnolia Soulangeana would be good, 

 and so would Pyrus malus floribunda or 

 Pyrus Parkmannii. Colchieum maple is 

 good looking enough in form, size, and 

 foliage, but like other maples its fl >wers 

 are not showy. If Paul's thorn thrives 

 in your neighborhood, it in time is a 

 beauty. The others named by you should 

 be hardy with you. 



HYDRANGEA PANICULATA ORANDIFLORA. 



This handsome hydrangea is now a fa- 

 vorite shrub in many gardens. The 

 flower heads are composed of numerous, 

 small star-shaped flowers intermixed 

 with generally more numerous sterile 

 ones, the latter about one inch in diame- 

 ter. These are the ones we see unless 

 upon close examination, and produce the 

 general effect. The plant is perfectly 

 hardy and will stand considerable abuse, 

 but it responds so cheerfully to good 

 treatment that it is a shame not to grant 

 it. V\ hen planted it should be cut back 

 on the past season's growth so as to 

 leave only two eyes on the old wood, and 

 each spring the same cutting back is ad- 

 visable. Should one desire very large 

 flower heads examine the shrub earlv in 

 July and cut out all thin weak shoots, so 

 as to allow full strength to the more vig- 

 orous ones, and as the bloom heads ap- 

 pear, give the plant diluted manure water 

 once a week. Like nearly all Japanese 

 plants it is fond of moisture. If large 

 bushes are desired, cut back only one- 

 third of last year's growth. To produce 

 a standard plant three to four feet high, 

 take a strong plant, place it in rich soil, 

 cut it down to the roots, and allow onlv 

 one stem to grow, staking it firmly to 

 carry it up straight, and force it all "you 

 can as this one year's growth determines 



