THE HAWTHORN. 



Among all the variety of beautiful trees and shrubs which 

 adorn the landscape none can claim a more prominent place 

 than the hawthorn, in its numerous species and varieties. 

 " Of all the genera of hardy, ligneous plants in cultivation in 

 British gardens," says Loudon, " there is not one, which, tak- 

 ing it altogether, can be compared with the genus Cratse^gus. 

 All the species may be trained either as small, handsome, ex- 

 ceedingly picturesque trees, or as beautiful and picturesque 

 shrubs, at the pleasure of the cultivator. They have all a 

 characteristic, neat, orderly manner of growth ; neither so 

 slow as to convey the idea of want of vigor, nor so rapid and 

 robust as to be considered coarse and rambling. Their leaves 

 are remarkably neatly cupped and finely tufted ; their flowers 

 appear in masses, so abundant, in some species, as almost to 

 cover the plant in the flowering season ; and their fruit is pro- 

 duced in as great abundance as their flowers. The color of 

 the flowers is generally white, and they are mostly more or 

 less fragrant ; some of them, as the common hawthorn, being 

 particularly so ; their color, though white at first, yet in some 

 cases, as in that of the common double-flowered hawthorn, 

 die off" of a very fine pink ; and there are several pink-flow- 

 ered varieties of the common hawthorn which are strikingly 

 ornamental. The fruit varies in size, from that of C. spath- 

 ulata, which is not much larger than a mustard seed, to that 

 of C, mexicana, which is about as large as a golden pippin 

 apple. The color of the fruit, as already mentioned, is red, 

 yellow, black or green, and includes many varieties of shade." 

 " Finally," observes this author, " if a man were exiled to an 

 estate without a single tree or shrub on it, with permission to 

 choose only one genus of ligneous plants to form all his plan- 

 tations, shrubberries, orchards and flower gardens, where 

 would he find a genera that would aff"ord him so many re- 

 sources as that of the Cratas'gus." 



VOL. XXI. NO. VI. 33 



