EVERGREEN TREES AND SHRUBS. 543 



the side branches fall directly downwards, and Fig. 172. 



with their rich covering of foliage drape the 

 stem as a robe falls around the person. The 

 growth is vigorous, and the leaves are longer, 

 larger, and of a brighter green than the aver- 

 age of the spruces. This, and Wales' new 

 drooping Norway spruce, and the Picea pedi- 

 nata pendula, their counterpart in another fam- 

 ily, are the three most charming novelties 

 among the hardy evergreens suited to the ~ 



decoration of small places. As the leading stem should be tied in 

 a vertical position while it is growing and succulent, it must be 

 handled carefully to avoid breaking it off; the jointure to the pre- 

 ceding year's wood being very weak at that season. 



Wales' Drooping Norway Spruce Fir. A. e. .? — This 



is a new variety, recently brought into notice by William Wales, of 

 Dorchester, Mass., which has the same habit of growth as the A. e. 

 inverta. Judging by a photograph of a single specimen, it seems 

 to maintain a more erect leader than that variety, and to have the 

 same draping of branches drooping closely around the central stem. 

 Whether its foliage is so fine in color we do not know. It will 

 probably be adapted to all the positions where the former is appro- 

 priate. Having been brought to notice since the body of this work 

 was written, no allusion has been made to it in descriptions of 

 plans in Part I ; but it may be considered a candidate for any 

 place where the weeping Norway spruce (inverta), or the weeping 

 silver fir ( Picea p. pendida), have been recommended. When quite 

 young it does not give an indication of its final form, and must 

 have its leader kept in a vertical position to give an early devel- 

 opment of its peculiarity. It will probably grow to the full height 

 of the species. 



The Weeping N. Spruce Fir. A. e. pefidula. — This is a vari- 

 ety longer known, but not so curious as the preceding. Its branches 

 droop in a graceful curve, rather than by direct inversion. It is 

 not, by any means, a dwarf variety, but its form is such that it takes 

 less room laterally than the common sort ; but it is less remarkable 

 in its drooping habit than the two preceding sorts. 



