QUERCUS. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



QUERCUS. 



665 



colour in autumn. No trees have been i 

 more talked of, yet why are they so i 

 rare in our gardens ? The answer is, j 

 I think, because of our ways of pro- | 

 curing them, by plants too old, from 

 nurseries, and, most of all, by the 

 habit of grafting exotic kinds on the 

 common Oak, and neglecting the natural ; 

 modes of increase, which, in the case of 

 Oaks, is certainly by seed. If we were 

 dealing with plants of a tender nature, 

 for which some hardy stock would be 

 necessary, there might be some reason ' 

 for this, but it is not so, because these 

 lovely American Oaks inhabit colder 

 regions than our own country, and they 

 are absolutely different in character 

 from ours, some of them living on dry, 

 warm soils, whereas our Oak is usually 

 best, and certainly the timber is best, 

 on soils of a heavy nature. Therefore 

 those who wish to have the American 

 Oaks in their beauty should work from 

 seed sown in the place where we wish 

 the trees to grow, or raised in nurseries 

 and transplanted early, or purchase 

 young and healthy plants from forest 

 tree nurseries, and in that way secure 

 the vigorous growth of the seedling 

 tree. There should be no trouble in 

 our nurserymen raising good stock from 

 seed of all the more essential and well- 

 known kinds, but acorns from America 

 or other countries should be sown as 

 soon as possible after coming to hand, 

 and it is best to have them packed 

 tightly in moist earth. 



As a rule hybrids in this family are 

 not nearly so important as the wild 

 trees, if we except such varieties as 

 occur naturally when we raise the tree 

 from seed. The common European 

 evergreen Oak gives a pretty variety 

 from seed, as, indeed, our wild Oak 

 does, evidence of which we may see 

 in any good Oak district where the 

 trees show a dozen different states of 

 leaf and colour. 



It is well that some of the favoured 

 shores and valleys of the world have 

 evergreen Oaks which we may grow 

 in our country, the best known of 

 these being the Ilex of Italy, happily, 

 hardy in our country. It is at home 

 most in seashore districts, and many 

 places both in England and Ireland 

 have fine trees. Old trees give ex- 

 cellent shade and shelter for the 

 flower garden. 



With such a great shore-line, the 

 opportunities for growing the evergreen 

 Oaks well are vastly greater than in a 

 Continental country of like tempera- 

 ture. Thickly planted, they are lovely 



shelter trees for gardens swept by sea 

 winds, as we may see at St Ann's, near 

 Dublin, Holkar, in Norfolk, and 

 Tregothnan, and they are just as 

 good in inland places wanting shelter. 

 Sometimes after very hard winters 

 the trees look as if they were killed, 

 but afterwards throw off the injured 

 leaves and grow happily again. They 

 should be transplanted with the 

 greatest care when young, and the 

 best way is often to raise plants from 

 acorns gathered where the tree grows 

 well, and sown as soon as possible after 

 ripening. 



The following list excludes kinds not 

 likely, from their inhabiting warmer 

 regions or other reasons, to be hardy 

 and vigorous in our country : 



SUMMER-LEAFING OAKS. 



Q. ACUMINATA (Chestnut Oak). A tall 

 tree with a maximum height of over 150 

 feet, with grey flaky bark and chestnut- 

 like leaves, shiny on the upper surface and 

 greyish beneath. This should be a very 

 useful Oak in certain soils in Britain 

 supposed to be inimical to our own Oak. 

 Eastern States and Canada, and west- 

 wards, in dry limestone soil. 



Q. ALBA (White Oak). A fine forest 

 tree, sometimes 150 feet high, with deeply- 

 lobed but not sharp-pointed leaves, and 

 grey bark scaling off in plates. A native 

 of Canada and the more northern United 

 States, its hardiness need not be doubted, 

 and the wood is hard and tough and 

 good. 



Q. CERRIS (Turkey Oak). This is a valu- 

 able tree -for garden and park. Though 

 not unlike the common Oak in growth and 

 branching, it is readily distinguished by 

 its deeper green and finely cut foliage, and 

 by its mossy -cupped acorns. It is also 

 much more rapid in growth, and will 

 flourish in light and varied soils. It 

 retains its foliage longer than most other 

 trees, and some of its varieties are almost 

 evergreen. The chief of these is the 

 Lucombe Oak, a tree of graceful growth, 

 which rapidly ascends into a tall cone of 

 foliage and retains its leaves through mild 

 winters. The Fulham Oak is a similar 

 tree of hybrid origin. It is also partially 

 evergreen, and differs from the Lucombe 

 Oak chiefly in its habit of growth being 

 more spreading. The variety known 

 as Q. austnaca sempervirens is a form of the 

 Turkey Oak sub-evergreen in character and 

 of medium growth, and useful for small 

 gardens. These varieties rarely equal 

 the wild tree in beauty or character, 

 and have the disadvantage of being 

 increased by grafting, which bars them 

 from ever attaining the stature arjcj 

 dignity of the wild tree. 



