Plum Trees as Ornamental Plants 361 



The Domestica plums are not usually very orna- 

 mental, as compared with the American species, but 

 occasionally one finds a cluster of blossoms which will 

 make a fine bouquet for almost any critic. The blos- 

 soms are much more sparsely produced on the stems, 

 but they are larger and individually more effective. 



The Japanese plums are profuse bloomers, and 

 make a very fine effect in the orchard rows at flower- 

 ing time. The foliage is usually good, too. Yet for 

 purely ornamental planting, they seem to be inferior 

 to the natives. 



Some of the dwarf species, like the beach plum, 

 Primus maritima, and the western sand plum, Prunus 

 angustifolia ivatsoni, are good planted in shrubbery 

 borders. The sand cherries, Prunus pumila and P. 

 pionila bcsscyi, are effective used in the same way. 



Probably the plum which is most planted by the 

 landscape gardeners of this country is Pissard. It 

 has beautiful pink flowers, but its chief value is in its 

 rich red foliage. A well-grown tree of Pissard is a 

 specimen for any tree collector to be proud of. This 

 variety might well be planted oftener, though a single 

 specimen is usually all that any one place will require. 

 Mr. J. S. Breece of North Carolina has grown some 

 new varieties within the last few years which are pos- 

 sibly mixed with the blood of Pissard, and which cer- 

 tainly have better foliage than that well-known 

 variety. The leaves are larger, better in texture, and 

 a great deal richer in color. The most promising 

 of these varieties are Coleus and Garnet, especially 

 the former. 



The black knot has usually been urged as an 

 objection to the use of plum and cherry trees in orna- 

 mental planting. If the plantings are to be neglected, 

 this objection becomes of some importance; but if they 

 are to have good care the black knot is no more of a 



