CHAPTER VII 



LABURNUM (Cytisns laburnum), BROOM (Savoihammts 

 scoparhis), AND GORSE fUlex europcvus) 



In Ma}^ and June the familiar laburnum makes a 

 strong appeal to our aesthetic tastes. Its graceful, 

 pendent racemes of yellow blossoms are con- 

 spicuous in man}^ a shrubbery, enlivening by 

 contrast the green foliage which has so recently 

 appeared to clothe the branches, and now fills up 

 almost all the intervening spaces amongst them. 

 The laburnum never looks so beautiful, however, 

 as when growing near a full bushy tree of deep 

 red may, or hawthorn. I have just seen it thus 

 neighboured, and when the late afternoon sun was 

 casting its glow fully upon it. It was separated 

 from its ruddy neighbour by a dark green yew 

 tree, making altogether a most charming and 

 delightful combination of colour that instantly 

 arrested the attention and held it captive for some 

 minutes. 



My enthralment terminated somewhat abrupt- 

 ly, however, when I suddenly remembered that I 

 was a roaming botanist, travelling down to yonder 

 heath, where I knew the broom and gorse bushes 

 would be flaunting their golden flowers. But 

 before I go I am going to beg from the good 

 lady standing at the gate a small branch of these 



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