396 



AMPELOPSIS.^- VIRGINIAN CHEEPER. 



[From Greek words signifying a vine and resemblance.] 



Ampelopsis quinquefolia. Virginian Creeper, Ameri- 

 can Woodbine. u This is the most ornamental plant of 

 its genus. It recommends itself by its hardiness, the 

 rapidity of its growth, and the luxuriance and beauty of 

 its foliage. It is a native of our woods, and climbs rocks 

 and trees to a great height. In cultivation it is often 

 made to cover walls of houses, forty or fifty feet high, 

 clinging by suckers which proceed from its tendrils. The 

 flower is of a reddish-green, and not showy, and is suc- 

 ceeded by clusters of dark-blue, nearly black, berries 

 when mature. At the same period the fruit-stalks and 

 tendrils assume a rich crimson or red color. 



" The great variety of rich colors, shades of scarlet, 

 crimson, and purple, which the leaves and sterns of this 

 plant assume, and the situations in which we see it, climb- 

 ing up the trunks and spreading along the branches of 

 trees, covering walls and heaps of stones, forming natural 

 festoons from tree to tree, or trained on the sides and 

 along the piazzas of dwelling-houses, make it one of the 

 conspicuous ornaments of the autumnal months. Often, 

 in October, it may be seen mingling its scarlet and orange 

 leaves, thirty or forty feet from the ground, with the 

 green leaves of the still unchanged tree on which it climb- 

 ed." (Emerson.} 



This luxuriant climber is easily propagated by layers 

 and cuttings. It flourishes best in a rich, moist soil. 



AMYGDALTJS. ALMOND. PEACH. 



[The Greek name for the Almond.] 



AmygdaluS Iiail a. Dwarf Almond. The double vari- 

 ety of this, usually called Flowering Almond, when in 

 blossom, is not inferior to any other shrub. It is loaded 



