20 THE BOOK OF SHRUBS 



summer and well matured shoots in the autumn. The 

 former should be made three or four inches in length, 

 inserted in pots filled with sandy soil, and placed in a 

 pit or frame ; while the autumn cuttings should be six 

 or eight inches long, and be rooted in the open border. 

 They contribute most liberally to the attractions of 

 the flower garden when arranged in groups of three 

 plants in the first or second row of the shrubbery accord- 

 ing to their height. 



The species and varieties that can be specially recom- 

 mended for their distinctness and beauty are : Deutzia 

 corymbosa, a Himalayan species reaching a height of about 

 three feet, having large leaves and producing corymbose 

 panicles of pure white flowers. D. crenata, a surprisingly 

 beautiful species of Japanese origin, forming a large 

 compact bush ranging from four to seven feet in height 

 according to the soil and other conditions. The flowers 

 are white and produced in short racemes along the shoots 

 of the previous year or on the spurs formed on the older 

 wood. The finest varieties are Candidissima, a very 

 beautiful form, producing a profusion of double white 

 flowers ; flore plena has double flowers, white tinged 

 with rose-purple ; and purpurea plena an effective variety 

 with flowers deeper in colour than those of the variety 

 immediately preceding it. D. discolor, a distinct Chinese 

 species, reaching a height of about five feet and blossoming 

 freely, the flowers which are white being produced in 

 small corymbs at the ends of the main branches and 

 lateral growths ; the variety purpurascens has white 

 flowers suffused with rose-purple but is hardly so desir- 

 able as the specific form. D. gracilis so well known and 

 largely cultivated for flowering under glass early in the 

 year is seldom satisfactory in the shrubbery because 

 of the injury so frequently done to the growths of the 

 previous year by the frosts ; this species is still un- 

 surpassed for conservatory decoration and the plants 



