to make way for the builder. Fortunately, we 

 came across the splendid specimen shown in our 

 photograph, in the grounds at Syon, when taking 

 the remarkable hazel tree there. 



The Holm oak, Q. ilex. — Of the evergreen 

 seftion, the common ilex is the only one that it 

 has been found possible to cultivate to any extent. 

 A native of the Mediterranean region, it appears 

 to have been introduced into England about the 

 middle of the Sixteenth Century. It is generally 

 met with in ornamental grounds, is of great 

 duration, and, although it only attains the size 

 of a tree of the second magnitude, its abundant 

 foliage renders it a handsome evergreen. In ex- 

 posed situations, the ilex is exceedingly useful, 

 being very hardy when once established; on quite 

 a sandy soil or bv the sea-coast it will form a 

 compadf dwarf tree. 



