i6 



Ornamental Shrubs. 





our own times, but the good qualities are still recognized 

 in many directions. In extreme cases the European el- 

 der grows to a height of from twenty to twenty-five feet, 

 with a well-rounded, bushy head half as broad. The 

 flowers are small, white, and in flat cymes five or six inches 

 across, followed by small, black, berry-like fruit, in great 

 abundance. 



There are several varieties of this species which are 

 especially ornamental in European as well as in American 



gardens. One of these, 6". n. 

 aurea, golden elder, is one 

 of the very best yellow-foli- 

 age plants in use for decora- 

 tive purposes. The color is 

 solid and far more perma- 

 nent than with many others 

 which start out well and 

 then fade away. For best 

 effects it must occupy a 

 sunny position, and be well 

 pinched back, so as to com- 

 pel a dwarfish habit. Thus 

 planted and maintained, when grown in masses it is un- 

 excelled. Another sort, S. n. laciniata, or parsley-leaved 

 elder, has its leaflets curiously and finely cut into segments, 

 which retain their natural color, and produce a good 

 effect. It, too, is a fine shrub for massing or edging. S. n. 

 variegata has its foliage in the typical formj but marked 

 with white, the contrasts being so sharp as to render the 

 plant a decided curiosity as well as a thing of beauty. 



CUT-LEAVED ELDER. 



