EVERGREEN TREES AND SHRUBS. 585 



The Madrona of the Mexicans, or Arbutus menziesii, is 

 described in the report of the Pacific Raih'oad survey as follows : 

 " A small tree twenty-five to thirty feet high, twelve inches diameter 

 at the base. Found on the Willamette, Oregon, and ranges north of 

 the Columbia, and is there called the laurel. The large, thick, and 

 shining leaves, the smooth and colored bark, give this tree a tropical 

 look, recalling the Magnolia grandifiora in its general aspect. The 

 berries are red and resemble morello cherries. When ripe they are 

 quite ornamental, and, together with the rich foliage, flowers, and 

 colored bark, renders it one of the handsomest trees I saw." It 

 seems as if this ought to be hardy in our middle States, but we 

 have not heard that it has been acclimated on this side the Rocky 

 Mountains. It is described by a recent writer as the most beauti- 

 ful small tree of the Pacific slope. 



THE BOXWOOD. Buxus. 



This beautiful family of evergreens includes small trees as well 

 as shrubs, but is best known by the shrubby boxwood used in old 

 gardens to form borders for walks. There is no other evergreen so 

 dwarfish, delicate, and beautiful, and which is so facile under the 

 shears or the pruning-knife to shape into any desired form of ver- 

 dant sculpture, for which its size adapts it. The dwarf-box is used 

 for edgings, and the larger sorts, called tree-box, are only varieties 

 of the same species, distinguished as follows : 



The Evergreen Tree-box, Buxus sempervirens, is a native of 

 many parts of Europe, found in a natural state as an under-growth 

 among other trees. It becomes a tree from twelve to twenty feet 

 in height, growing very slowly, and attaining great age. When 

 grown without clipping, it does not form so dense a surface of 

 foliage as the dwarf-box exhibits, and the greatest beauty is there- 

 fore obtained by keeping it within less than the maximum dimen- 

 sions. Grown in open, sunny situations, the foliage is a warm, 

 yellowish-green color ; but in partial shade, and in the cool, deep 

 soils, which are most congenial to the species, the color is a deep, 

 glossy green. 



