462 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



in all sorts of positions north and south, 

 we have not lost so much by neglecting 

 the American species, and it would be 

 difficult to expect, however, any of them to 

 show anything finer in effect than such 

 woods as we see in northern and central 

 Europe, of Birch alone, the silvery stems 

 rising out of heath or ferns. Among the 

 greater, or tree, Birches after our own (in- 

 cluding its varieties or allies, verrucosa and 

 pubescens) are the Canoe Birch (B. papyri- 

 fera) or Paper Birch, a forest tree of 

 Northern America, which is hardy in 

 Britain ; the River Birch (B. nigra), also 

 a tall tree of Northern America ; the 

 Cherry or Sweet Birch (B. lenta\ which is 

 sometimes 80 ft. high and also of northern 

 distribution (Canada, Newfoundland) ; the 

 Yellow Birch (B. luted), sometimes 100 

 ft. high ; the Western Birch (B. occiden- 

 talis), a medium-sized tree of Western 

 America and British Columbia, and the 

 White Birch (B. populifolia), also a 

 slender tree of Canada and the Northern 

 States with tremulous leaves like some of 

 the Aspens. Among the dwarf or shrubby 

 kinds are B. nana, pumila, humilis and 

 fruticosa ; but the Birches of any real value 

 for our home landscapes are the tree 

 kinds. From a garden point of view, 

 perhaps the most important trees of the 

 genus are the varieties of our common 

 Birch and its allies, such as the weeping 

 and cut-leaved forms, also those with 

 purple leaves, and the nettle-leaved Birch. 

 B. maximowiczi is a distinct and fine 

 Japanese kind which grows very high and 

 with a trunk 2 to 3 ft. in diameter, the 

 bark orange-coloured, the leaves very 

 large. B. ermani is also a common kind 

 in Japan. 



An incident in my own planting of 

 Birches may be worth recording here. 

 Having got a collection from America, I 

 planted them by some ponds where I 

 thought they might have a better chance, 

 as they often grow well near water in their 

 native country. I lost a good many of 

 them, not knowing the cause until I hap- 

 pened to pull up some of the dead young 

 trees, when I found the main roots were 

 all barked round by the common water- 

 rat, working below the line of the snow 

 during a hard winter. 



As regards the positions of Birches in a 

 pleasure-ground, there is is not a more 

 graceful lawn tree than the cut-leaved and 

 weeping kinds, the more so where trees 

 of light shade are desired. 



The American tree kindsmight take their 

 places in the mixed woodlands of a country 

 place, or by streams or pools. W. R. 

 Bignonia. See TECOMA. 



BILLIARDIERA LONGIFLOEA 



(Purple Apple-Berry). An elegant climb- 

 ing plant, hardy in the southern counties. 

 Its narrow oblong leaves show its purple 

 blue berries to advantage as they dangle 

 in profusion in autumn. The flowers are 

 of a greenish white colour and are not so 

 showy as are the berries. The Tasmanian 

 apple-berry is a charming shrub for a 

 low wall, or it may be grown in pots 

 plunged outside and trained on old bam- 

 boo stems, so as to be taken indoors 

 when the fruits are coloured. It is 

 readily increased either by cuttings or 

 layers, or by seeds sown as soon as the 

 berries shrivel on the stems. B. cymosa 

 is also in cultivation. Australia. 

 Blechnum. See LOMARIA. 

 BLETIA. B. hyacintha is a beautiful 

 Chinese Orchid, having ribbed leaves, and 

 slender flower-stems i ft. or more high, 

 bearing about half a dozen showy flowers 

 of a deep rosy pink. It is hardy, and 

 thrives in sheltered and shaded situations 

 in peat borders in winter. In cold districts 

 it would be well to cover the roots. It is 

 very interesting for the bog garden or a 

 bed of hardy Orchids. 

 Blitum. See CHENOPODIUM. 

 BLUMENBACHIA. B. coronata is 

 an interesting annual flower, showy, the 

 foliage elegant, and the growth dwarf, 

 the structure of the flowers singular. Its 

 culture is that of a hardy annual, but it is 

 better sown in spring than in autumn. It 

 flowers from July to September in warm 

 light soils. The other species in cultiva- 

 tion are B. insignis and B. multifida. 

 South America. (Loasa order.) 



BOCCONIA (Plume Poppy}. B. car- 

 data is a handsome and vigorous perennial 

 of the Poppy order, growing in erect tufts 

 5 to over 8 ft. high, with numerous flowers 

 in very large panicles, not showy, but the 

 inflorescence, when the plant is well grown, 

 has a fine effect. It is best in the shrub- 

 bery in ordinary garden soil, and is excel- 

 lent in bold groups, the leaves, too, being 

 fine in form. Division. China. Syn. B. 

 japonica. B. frutescens. A vigorous 

 Mexican shrub, 3^ to nearly 6 ft. high, 

 with few and very brittle branches, large, 

 seagreen, handsome leaves, and greenish 

 flowers. Very effective on Grass plats, 

 in groups or as isolated specimens. It 

 requires a somewhat warmer climate than 

 ours, but may be placed out from June 

 to the end of September. It is difficult 

 to propagate by cuttings, easier from seed. 

 Boltonia. See Aster. 

 BOMAREA. Curious and handsome 

 plants of the Amaryllis order allied to 

 Alstroemeria, requiring greenhouse tern- 



