THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



increasing trees than is usual in nurseries, as those raised from seed 

 have a chance of interesting variations, whereas grafting from the 

 same identical form shuts out all chance of it. It is curious that a 

 tree so effective in bloom, and so distinct in habit as the Judas Tree is, 

 should be so little planted with us, and, when planted, so often left to 

 the scant mercy of the shrubbery border. All such trees have their 

 o\vn ways and wants, and should not be jumbled up in the common 

 crowded and ignorant way of planting. 



I have never seen anything with greater pleasure than a bush of 

 Citrus Trifoliata which I saw in the School Garden at Versailles 

 a sheet of large and beautiful flowers on April 19. I had previously 

 no idea that any Citrus could have borne such a beautiful and distinct 

 bloom in the open air, and yet this was borne by a hardy shrub 

 standing for years among Crabs, Almonds, and trees of that degree of 

 hardiness. 



Of Indian Azaleas in the open air Mr. C. R. Scrase-Dickens 

 writes : " The hardy Azaleas of the American races are very popular, 

 but few know the value of the white Indian Azalea for the open 

 garden in the south of England. Few plants give so little trouble 

 when once established, even though the late frosts may now and 

 again spoil the beauty of the flowers. When planted out and left 

 alone, it is not much more than three or four feet in height, dense 

 and spreading. The engraving shows a bush over ten feet across 

 with a shadow thrown over the upper part by a tree of Magnolia 

 which grows at the side. It gets shelter from cold winds and 

 from too fierce a sun on the flowers. Any one who intends 

 to plant this Azalea should remember that it flowers naturally 

 at a time when there may still be late frosts and cold winds 

 hovering about, and that it would be a mistaken kindness to 

 choose any place, such as under a south wall, which would 

 tend to make the blossoms open earlier in the season. We 

 have some plants under a north wall which do admirably, but 

 they seem to like association with other things. The variety 

 which does best here is the old typical white. Overgrown plants of 

 other colours from the greenhouse have been turned out sometimes, 

 but they do not seem so happy or produce so good an effect." 



If one-tenth the trouble wasted on "carpet-bedding" plants and 

 other fleeting and costly rubbish had been spent on flowering shrubs, 

 our gardens would be all the better for it. There are no plants so 

 much neglected as flowering shrubs, and even when planted they are 

 rarely well grown, owing to the " traditions " of what is called the 

 shrubbery. The common way is to dig the shrubbery every winter, 

 and this is often carried out as a matter of form without giving the 

 soil any manure, while much harm is done by mutilating the roots of 



