BERBERIS. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



BERCHEMIA. 



B. NEPALENSIS (Nepal Barberry) is dis- 

 tinct from the last, and, being much rarer, 

 one cannot be sure of its hardiness for 

 northern districts. It is a very fine plant 

 in foliage, but seems a bit tender in the 

 south ; if tried in woods, might have a 

 better chance. It is a noble evergreen, 

 best tried in half-shaded spots. 



B. PINNATA. A very handsome upright 

 ^evergreen bush, profuse in flower, and 

 growing well in most soils. A great plant 

 for garden or covert. I am not quite sure 

 if this ought to be accepted as a distinct 

 species or as a variety of the Rocky 

 Mountain one, but in my own garden it 

 has proved a very handsome and vigorous 

 evergreen, full of flower in the spring. It 

 is a good plant for the copse and the wild 

 garden anywhere. N.W. America. 



B. POLYANTHA. This grows from 5 to 

 10 feet high, erect and much branched ; 

 the flowers rich, clear yellow, freely pro- 

 duced iii pendulous lax panicles each 6 

 inches to 9 inches long. The fruits oblong, 

 dull salmon-red, with a pale glaucous 

 bloom. Native of Szechuan, W. China. 



B. SARGENTIANA (Sargent's Barberry). 

 A hardy evergreen kind with yellow 

 flowers and black fruit, as yet not" much 

 known, but well deserves a trial. 



B. STAPFIANA. This is somewhat sug- 

 gestive of the charming Berberis Wilsonts, 

 but is quite distinct therefrom. The 

 specimen shown was a dense bush, some 

 4 feet high and more through, the shoots, 

 from which the greater number of leaves 

 had fallen, being freely furnished with 

 roundish berries of a bright red translu- 

 cence. 



B. STENOPHYLLA. A garden hybrid 

 between B. Darwini and B. empetri folia. 

 The long slender branches droop gracefully 

 on all sides, the bush being profusely laden 

 with yellow blossoms. It is much hardier 

 than B. Darwini, and seldom suffers from 

 severe frosts, and grows freely in ordinary 

 soils. 



B. *THUNBERGI. A Japanese Berberis 

 well worth planting for the sake of its 

 coral-red berries and the brilliant tints 

 of the leaves previous to falling in autumn. 

 The leaves are small, and turn to a bright 

 orange-scarlet towards the end of Sep- 

 tember. It is an easy flowerer, and the 

 blossoms are usually at their best about 

 mid-May. The fruits are smaller than 

 those of the common Barberry, and a 

 little deeper in colour. It thrives in any 

 ordinary garden soil. China. 



B. VERRUCULOSA is a dwarf-growing 

 plant i foot to 2 feet high ; semi-prostrate 

 in habit, with ornate prickly leaves, 

 shining above and glaucous below, the 

 golden yellow flowers being followed by 

 violet-black fruits, 



B. VIRESCENS. A handsome upright 

 shrub with showy leaves that take on 

 fine colour in autumn. The young bark 

 is also a good colour, which makes it an 

 excellent plant for grouping. It grows 

 very well in any soil. Is a native of the 

 mountains of India. 



B. VULGARIS (Common Barberry) is, 

 when in fruit, very attractive, the long, 

 drooping racemes of bright scarlet berries 

 being produced very abundantly. There 

 are several named varieties of it. A selec- 

 tion should include the white and violet- 

 berried kinds, sanguinolenta, and the 

 purple-leaved kind, a very ornamental 

 shrub, the foliage of which is of a purple 

 hue. It is a very effective shrub when 

 grouped. It is the only native kind of 

 our country, and is found wild over a 

 large part of Europe, N. Africa, and C. 

 Asia also. It is an interesting shrub in 

 any position, but its full beauty is never 

 seen unless it is grouped in the full sun. 



B WALLICHIANA. Has glossy evergreen 

 foliage, with which the clear yellow 

 flowers contrast finely. It is hardy, 

 though liable to be injured by very severe 

 frost. It thrives in ordinary soil and in 

 any position. 



B. WILSON^E (Wilson's B.). This came 

 to us from China in recent years, and is 

 one of the most brilliant shrubs we have 

 ever had for the rock or choice shrub 

 garden, flowering and fruiting early, and 

 very graceful in form. 



BERCHEMIA. A small group of 

 shrubby climbing plants or low trees, 

 of the Buckthorn order, found in parts 

 of Asia, Africa, and N. America, and 

 for the most part too tender for our 

 gardens, though the following are 

 worth growing : 



B. VOLUBILIS (Supple Jack) from Caro- 

 lina. A vigorous and graceful summer- 

 leafing climber of 10 to 20 feet, with bright 

 glossy green oval leaves, sharply pointed 

 and slightly waved. Inconspicuous green 

 and white flowers appear from the leaf- 

 axils and the tips of the shoots, in June, 

 and these are followed by oval fleshy fruits 

 of a bluish-black colour. This species is 

 hardy almost anywhere in Britain. 



A nearly allied plant, B. racemosa, from 

 Japan, is less freely climbing in habit, 

 with more rounded leaves, greenish flowers 

 and showy fruits turning from bright red 

 to black. There is a form of this kind in 

 which the leaves are heavily variegated, 

 but this is tender and needs partial shade. 



The Berchemias grow in any good 

 garden soil, and may be used to cover 

 tree-stumps and roots, arbours, trellis, 

 and the like. Increase by seeds, root- 

 cuttings, layers, or cuttings of the 

 ripened shoots, rooted under glass in 

 the autumn, 



