EXPERIMENTAL FARM NOTES. 



509 



are often misses. Good crops may be re- 

 lied on from young wood if it grows from 

 old roots. It is not, however, a wise prac- 

 tice with the amateur, if the two arm or 

 horizontal system is adopted, to renew the 

 vines every year, as, if they are broken when 

 being bent to be covered, the crop will be 

 lost. As long as the arms are pliable and 

 the buds all show vitality they may be left. 



Now that the flowers have gone, the 

 leaves fallen, and the deciduous trees and 

 shrubs become bare, there is nothing which 

 brightens up a landscape so much as some- 

 thing with red or scarlet fruit. The follow- 

 ing hardy trees and shrubs are among the 

 best for this purpose, as the fruit is very 

 attractive : 



High-bush Cranberry (Viburnum Opu- 

 lus). This is a well-known native shrub 

 from six to nine feet in height, which 

 is attractive almost the whole year round. 

 It is a free bloomer, and the flowers, while 

 not showy individually, when massed to- 

 gether on the bush produce a fine eff'ect ; 

 the leaves also, which are a bright green 

 color and of good form, render it a pleasing 

 object throughout the summer. But it is 

 in the autumn and nearly all through the 

 winter when this shrub shows its most de- 

 sirable characteristics. Being a profuse 

 bloomer, it is a heavy fruiter, and the clus- 

 ters of scarlet berries hang in great masses 

 from the branches. The fruit keeps its 

 color well, which makes it particularly use- 

 ful where pleasing effects in winter are de- 

 sired. 



Climbing Bittersweet, (Celastrus scan- 

 dens) : There are few hardy climbers which 

 have as many good points as this one. It 

 is a rapid grower, with smooth, green 

 leaves. It is not subject to disease, nor is 

 it affected by insects. After the first severe 

 frost in autumn the orange colored berries 

 burst open and the inner part, which is 

 brighter in color, revealed. In addition to 

 its value as a climber, it may be kept in a 



bush-like form on the grounds by pruning 

 back the young growth, and a plant of this 

 kind is very attractive in winter when cov- 

 ered with fruit. In procuring this shrub, 

 care should be taken to get plants with 

 both male and female flowers, as the flowers 

 on some are all males and no fruit is formed. 

 There is a Japanese variety, Celastrus ar- 

 ticulatus, which has smaller berries, in which 

 there is more contrast in color. It is also 

 very desirable. 



Thunberg's Barberry (Berberis Thun- 

 bergi): The barberries are all highly orna- 

 shrubs, both on account of their attractive 

 foliage and highly colored fruit. Thun- 

 berg's Barberry is, however, one of the best. 

 It is a highly ornamental shrub at almost 

 any time of the year. The small leaves are 

 bright-green, and as the shrub is of compact, 

 neat habit, not growing more than four feet 

 in height, they are shown to advantage. 

 The small yellow, flowers, while not showy, 

 are pretty and are a pleasing contrast to the 

 leaves. While an extremely desirable shrub 

 for ornamental purposes in the summer, it 

 is very attractive in winter, as the fruit is 

 bright scarlet and quite abundant. 



European Mountain Ash, (Pyrus Aucupa- 

 ria) : The Mountain Ash is a well known 

 tree, which need only be referred to as 

 among the best of the trees whose bright 

 fruit remains during most of the winter. 

 If the Mountain Ash is grown as a lawn 

 tree, the branches should start from near 

 the ground. .\ tree of this kind becomes 

 very shapely and is always attractive. The 

 Mountain Ash is much troubled with borers, 

 but these may be prevented by washing the 

 trees with soft soap reduced to the consist- 

 ency of thick paint by adding a saturated 

 solution of washing soda, or by destroying 

 the borers when their work is noticed. 



There are many other shrubs which are 

 quite ornamental in winter, and which 

 brighten up the grounds ver}- much. Among 

 these mav be mentioned the Chinese Matri- 



