PREFACE xvii 



certain to exert a profound influence on public taste, as well as to extend the 

 knowledge of tJie subjects that they represent. 



Two years ago Professor Sargent, of the Arnold Arboretum, paid a visit to 

 Pekin for the purpose of securing various trees and shrubs either indigenous 

 to northern China or cultivated in the neighborhood of that city. Out of this 

 journey there are now growing in the Arboretum the true Catalpa Bungei, which 

 has long been sought by American and European dendrologists, the very fine 

 forms of Vitis vinifera cultivated at Pekin and almost hardy there, a new 

 wliite-flowered lilac, the hai'dy persimmon of northern China (a first-class 

 fruit tree), the flat peach of northern China, Diospyros Lotus, the wild form 

 of Juglans regia which it is thought will be hardy in the northern states, the 

 very fine edible chestnut of northern China, and a number of other plants 

 important from an economic and ornamental point of view. For the last two 

 or three years, also, an unusually large number of novelties have been received 

 from Manchuria. Many new plants have come to the Arboretum from western 

 China; and every effort is being made to increase the collections of Chinese 

 plants, which promise to prove more successful here than any other exotic trees 

 or shrubs. 



Probably the most striking horticultural discussion of the past few years 

 has been the exploiting of Luther Burbank in the periodical and other press. 

 The breeding work of Mr. Burbank is remarkable and significant; but it has 

 often been sensationalized and over-stated. The number of new forms that 

 Mr. Burbank has produced is very large and varied, and we may expect that 

 some of them will be of permanent value. He gives me the following run- 

 ning list of some of the old and new plants that he is now working with: 

 "There are a great number of new plants, trees, shrubs, vines, fruits, nuts, 

 grains, grasses, vegetables and flowers. The following may be mentioned: a 

 series of hybrids of Japanese and English walnuts, California black and English 

 walnuts, the American black and California black walnuts, many of which grow 

 with very great rapidity, some of them having very many curious kinds of 

 foliage; some strange hybrid forms of Fapaver orientale and P. somniferum, 

 the tulip poppy, meconopsis, Shirley poppy and P. pllosum, of very numerous 

 crosses and recrosses producing some wonderful results; some remarkable 

 crosses among solanums, especially the different species of potatoes; a double 

 Shasta daisy and some greatly improved forms of the Shasta daisy; improved 

 grasses; a great number of new stoneless plums having different qualities; a 

 number of new plumcots; some gigantic, improved multiplying amarjdlis and 

 crinums; some entirely new hybrids of hippeastrum and amaryllis; new forms 



