50 THE BOOK OF CLIMBING PLANTS 



shrubs but little grown on walls, but which look 

 remarkably handsome in such a position with their fine 

 evergreen or deciduous leaves, are the Elaeagnuses, the 

 Oleasters or Wild Olives. Argentea, glabra, with its 

 variegated forms, longipes, and pungens, with its 

 varieties, are all pretty on a wall, their beauty being 

 usually heightened by their coloured fruits. They are 

 raised from seeds, or propagated by cuttings or layers, 

 and like a dryish, warm soil. The Cytisuses, or Brooms, 

 give us some pretty shrubs which may be trained to a 

 wall if desired, though in the opinion of the writer they 

 are most charming in a bush form. Praecox, albus, and 

 Scoparius andreanus, are among the best for this 

 purpose. They should be so fastened to the wall that 

 their long thin branches will hang out gracefully from 

 it, and ought to be well cut in immediately after 

 flowering is over. 



Fabiana imbricata is a very ornamental Heath-like 

 shrub of moderate height (about four feet) and suitable 

 for a low wall, though it has little chance of surviving 

 except in favoured places unless it has such shelter. At 

 least as far north as Edinburgh it may thus be 

 cultivated with a mat before it in hard frosts. It is 

 quite a charming thing with its white flowers, and 

 thrives best in a peaty soil, being propagated by cuttings 

 under a glass in summer. A singular-looking wall-plant 

 named Colletia spinosa is little seen, although its 

 curious and dangerous-looking awl-shaped spines make 

 it interesting to all who see the plant. It and its allied 

 species, C. cruciata, which is scarcely so hardy, can be 

 cultivated in loamy soil and propagated by cuttings. 

 For low walls there may be used the pretty Abelias 

 chinensis and triflora, though the latter may require 

 some shelter in winter. The former, which is deciduous, 

 is often known in gardens as A. rupestris, and has 

 pink flowers ; while triflora, which is evergreen, has 



