2 4 



GARDENING. 



Oct. 



houses, why not in our vine work. This 

 question came to me when I concluded to 

 shade the western end of my porch, which 

 is ten feet wide. I originally grew Cobaea 

 scandens there but two years ago planted 

 Akebia (juinata, young vines eight inches 

 apart, making a frame work ol one-quar- 

 ter inch iron rods, at the proper height, 

 reckoning from the porch floor, there is 

 an iron "hoop" of the same iron, oval in 

 form. The upright rods are hooked over 

 it and fastened with wire, all being home- 

 made. The mass of vine as seen from the 

 porch is ten feet wide, and about the 

 same in height, with the window about 

 the center. W. C. Egan. 



Chicago. 



Meadow Beauty (Rhexia Virginica). — 

 I have a big patch of this pretty little 

 flower still in bloom in my meadow pas- 

 ture. They were mowed over with the 

 machine when we cut the hay there in 

 summer, but now we are getting a second 

 crop of blooms from them, the plants are 

 shorter and stockier than they were when 

 cut among the hay, and are bearing 

 blossoms far more abundantly. Near by 

 them the little lady's tresses (Spiranthes 

 cernua) is in bloom and in quantity. 



Conn. M. S. 



Centaurea Americana — N., Tracy 

 City, Tenn., sends us a bloom of this very 

 beautiful Texas thistle-like flower. It is 

 an annual, tall growing species with very 

 large pale purple to deep purple (Unlliil 

 flowers, and it is easilv raised from seed. 



Trees and Shrubs. 



VARIEGATED SHRUBS. 



What do you regard as the best low 

 growing shrubs that are variegated, and 

 for this latitude, which is that of Louis- 

 ville, Ky. The background for them is a 

 row of Norway spruce to be kept in a 

 sort of hedge. Remember that the ther- 

 mometer here, while usually in winter it 

 seldom goes below zero }-et occasionally 

 sinks as low as 15° below. 



D. W. Fisher. 



Hanover, Ind., Sept. 24, '96. 



While we have a good many variegated- 

 leaved shru is tha are hardy in your 

 neighborhood and which may be kept 

 low by a little timely care and manipula- 

 tion, the number of those that will re- 

 main low, if left to themselves, is few. 

 Best among them is the variegated Spirtea 

 Bumalda, but like many other Japanese 

 plants its variegation is only partial, that 

 is, all the branches are not equally well 

 colored. 



The variegated Yucca Mamentosa may 

 not be classed as a shrub, but it answers 

 every purpose of one and is hardy and 

 finely colored. 



The variegated Indian currant {Sym- 

 phoricarpus)\s of low stature and spread- 

 ing habit and it is freely but not con- 

 spicuously variegated. 



The dwarf Japan maples, that is the 

 varieties of Acer palmatum and A. Japoni- 

 cinn are the gems among colored-leaved 

 plants, and although naturally they 

 grow several feet high, there is no fear of 

 them ever getting beyond proper bounds 

 in our gardens. 



The variegated kerria (Corchorus) is 

 quite pretty and by pruning we can keep 

 it under three feet high as long as we 

 want to; but if left alone, under favorable 

 circumstances it will form a bush five or 

 more ieet high. 



The variegated althaeas have very de- 

 cided white leaf markings that last un- 

 tarnished all summer; by hard annual 

 pruning we can keep them under three 

 ieet high and without apparently injuring 

 the plants. " 



The variegated weigelias retain their 

 variegation quite well all summer, but in 

 good ground they grow most as thrifty 

 as a green weigelia, pruning however will 

 keep them under. 



Among cornuses we have Spath's gold- 

 en-leaved and the older white marked 

 ekgantissima forms of C. alba, both of 

 which are desirable; note, however, that 

 the more variegation there is in the leaf 

 the more apt it is to scald in summer. 

 With very little trouble both can be kept 

 under 4 feet high. The variegated-leaved 

 Cornelian cherry, however, is brighter 

 colored than either of the other two and 

 it retains its variegation all summer very 

 well; naturally we would expect it to 

 make a shrub 10 or 15 feet high, but 

 really it seldom exceeds about 6 feet. The 

 finest of all variegated cornuses, however, 

 is brachypoda, but it forms a little tree 

 about the size of our wild C.alternifolius. 



The variegated or tricolor privet is ex- 

 cellent in its way but it grows 4 to 6 feet 

 high. It ought to be hardy with you. 

 The golden privet too is quite nice and 

 hardier than the other, but its coloring is 

 not decided enough. 



The golden dwarl mock orange forms 

 broad dense 3 to 5 foot cushions of yel- 

 lowish leaves and are neat and pretty 

 bushes. 



You can get an excellent low-shrub ef- 

 fect by taking the golden-netted honey- 

 suckle or variegated cissus and a few old 

 tree stumps or roots and let the vines 

 grow over them. Much the same thing 

 but in a more condensed form may be had 

 in a well-sheltered somewhat sunless spot, 

 in good moistish ground, by letting var- 

 iegated European ivy crawl over roots or 

 logs in the same way. 



The variegated Japan quince is a very- 

 neat, low-growing shrub, but we don't 

 know where you could get stock of it. 



The variegated elders are too coarse. 



If you cared to use evergreens, besides 

 the yucca already referred to the varie- 

 gated box is quite hardy with you and it 

 will never grow out of bounds. Then 

 there are variegated retinosporas and 

 arbor-vita;s that can easily be kept in 

 bounds; also Thujopsis borealis, and sev- 

 eral of the junipers, but for evergreens 

 generally you want shelter from cold and 

 drying winds, deep, moderately moist 

 well-drained soil, and immunity from 

 drouth at all seasons. 



in cultivation we know of no good rea- 

 son why it should not be used. 



Clematis paniculata has been a mag- 

 nificent sight for the past three or lour 

 weeks, and is yet in good form. What a 

 splendid vine this is for fall effect! A part 

 of the front of the residence of C. Barry 

 on East Avenue, in this city, is a snowy 

 bank of its white flowers and attracts 

 general attention. 



C. Flammula has taken a freak of giv- 

 ing us quite a few flowers this fall. 



Hall s Honeysuckle is producing lots 

 of bloom just now and the red trumpet 

 honeysuckle is in fairly good bloom. 

 Lonicera glauca has large bunches of con- 

 spicuous reddish berries, and is the most 

 showy of any of the honeysuckles now in 

 fruit. The bushy species have all dropped 

 their fruit. 



Thunberg's, Siebold's, Canadian and 

 common barberries are all heavily laden 

 with showj- truit. 



The different forms of European privet 

 are covered with jet black and whitish 

 fruit. The large fruited scarlet thorn, the 

 black or pear thorn, the dotted fruited 

 thorn, and all the European thorns are 

 covered with differently tinted and crim- 

 son and scarlet fruit, and all look attrac- 

 tive. 



Some of the cotoneasters are just now 

 pretty in front. C. Simonsii in red, C. 

 nigra in black and a form we have under 

 the name of C. Fontanesia, with long, 

 whip like branches, and covered with red 

 bunches of conspicuous berries are very 

 attractive. 



The American and European enony- 

 muses are displaying their crimson and 

 orange-colored fruit. Burge's enonymus 

 with whitish axils and red seeds is showy. 

 E. obovatus (claimed by some to be a 

 variety of E. Amerieamis), a prostrate 

 glowing form is pretty in fruit. 



The rugosa rose makes a handsome 

 display with its scarlet heps. The winter 

 berry (Ilex rerticillata) is exceedingly 

 showy, covered with showy red berries, 

 and there is a form here with yellowish 

 tinted berries. 



Fontanesia Fortunei looks as fresh 

 and green as if it had newlj- unfolded its 

 foliage in spring. The lustrous green foli- 

 age and graceful habit of this shrub 

 through the entire season make it v.ry 

 desirable. 



Manchurian and spinosa aralias have 



been very show}- of late with their large 



white terminal panicles of bloom, and A, 



spinosa is still displaying good trusses. 



John Dunbar. 



Highland Park, Rochester, Sept. 28, '96. 



SEASONABLE ORNAMENTAL SHRUBS. 



Lespedeza Sieboldii [Desmodium pen- 

 duliflorum ) is now an abundant mass of 

 rose purple colored pea-shaped flowers; 

 the plant has stout, pithy stems from five 

 to six feet long. Although herbaceous in 

 character it answers the purpose of a fall 

 flowering shrub. It grows best with us 

 in light sandy soil, and as it has proven 

 to be hardy here for the past three or four 

 years, we intend to plant lots of it. It is 

 easily propagated by division or by cut- 

 tings of the ripe wood. 



Sea Elder (Baccharis halimifolia) the 

 female or pistillate plant is in full bloom 

 with numerous white, hairy tufts at the 

 tips of all the branches. We never saw it 

 in its native state, along the sea coast, 

 look as well as it does here. In cultiva- 

 tion it forms a very symmetrical shrub, 

 by being cut back quite severely in spring. 

 It grows splendidly in light, sandy soil, 

 holds its 3 - ellowish green foliage until late 

 in the season, and although seldom seen 



QUESTIONS ABOUT TREES AND SHRUBS. 



"Would tarred paper make a good 

 winter covering lor an English ivy grow- 

 ing over a large rock?" 



Ans. Yes, if there were a few branches 

 or a little straw between the paper and 

 the ivy to keep the paper away from 

 touching the ivy. We would far rather 

 burlap or coarse bagging, in this case it 

 wouldn't matter how close it hugged the 

 i vy . 



Oleanders. Is it best to set oleanders 

 in tubs in full sunshine or in shade?" 



Ans. In full sunshine with the tubs 

 plunged in the ground. Then keep them 

 well supplied with water. On the Gulf 

 coast where the oleanders are largely 

 planted in gardens they flourish out in 

 the hot sunshine. 



"Will leaf mould worked into the 

 soil, help to retain moisture, in a dry 

 garden?" 



Ans. Yes. Use it abundantly, although 

 it is not as nutritious as manure it is 



