VARIETY IN TREES 101 



Mr. Clarence Fowler, in the Garden Magazine for October 1922, 

 has a delightful article on this matter. Mr. Fowler first advo- 

 cates the growing of dwarf apples and pears in the little garden; 

 he has a word of approval too for the Japanese plums. Abun- 

 dance and Burbank. Abundance is a tall straight-growing tree, 

 while the Burbank plum, which I know well, makes after fifteen 

 years a little bower in itself. There is something enticing about 

 the habit of growth of this tree; its low spreading branches create 

 a natural sitting-place which cannot be passed by in summer. 

 It is certainly one of the most beautiful of all trees in spring and 

 summer both; indeed, it has three periods of special interest, 

 flower in spring, shade in summer, and fruit in autumn. 



With regard to the apple — as early as 1252, says Lady 

 Alicia Amherst in her great book, A History of Gardening in 

 England, apples and pears were grown in monkish gardens; in 

 Tudor gardens always much fruit was grown. From 1252 to 

 1922 — what an array of years! As for the dwarf apple among 

 flowers, it happens that in our upper or trial garden we have 

 four Stark's Delicious apples set where the gravel walks cross. 

 Their branches now are touching each other and I plan to 

 pleach these over the walk-intersection, to weave them together 

 so as to form a little arbor, a small concave roof of green, which 

 will add interest to this part of the garden. 



Pear trees set along a narrow walk of brick in a Southampton 

 garden are shown by Mr. Fowler in an illustration to accompany 

 his writing, and below these (which are perhaps twelve feet 

 apart in the rows and opposite each other with as many feet 

 between) are borders of late flowers of dazzling beauty — mari- 

 golds, salvia, zinnias, ageratum, and Boltonias trained on fan- 

 shaped supports: a new idea to me when I once walked there, 

 and one which should be tried for its effect, both original and 

 gay. The scarlet sage is entirely in place in such a rich medley of 



