ON THE JASMINE 235 



There are variegated-leaved forms of the white 

 Jasmine, which may be grown instead of the green- 

 leaved if desired. 



Town gardeners should not overlook this sweet 

 flower, for it will thrive in their gardens quite as well 

 as the Mountain Clematis if it is treated liberally. In 

 dry seasons the flowers, which are generally borne in 

 July, are often followed by a crop of round dark 

 berries, about as large as Peas. 



Two hardy Jasmines which are not grown frequently 

 -axe fruticans and humile. Both are of shrubby habit, and 

 grow about three feet high. They are not without 

 interest, but I would not urge them on the attention 

 of flower-lovers whose gardens are too small to accom- 

 modate a large collection of plants certainly not if 

 their culture meant the exclusion of the yellow winter 

 bloomer nudiflorum. This cheap, easily grown, and most 

 useful plant was introduced from China in 1844. Jt 

 was sent home by the celebrated plant collector, Robert 

 Fortune, who travelled for the Royal Horticultural 

 Society from 1843 to 1846. It is illustrated in the 

 Botanical Magazine, t. 4649. We can speak of it as the 

 winter Jasmine correctly, for it always blooms in the 

 winter. The amount of shelter which it receives affects 

 the flowering to some extent, naturally, but the amateur 

 need not, because of this, despair because he cannot find 

 a snug corner or a warm aspect, for in mild spells it 

 will flower almost anywhere. It will, indeed, bloom in 

 bursts from week to week, and a hard spell of frost will 

 be needed to keep it out of flower for long. 



The winter Jasmine is semi-shrubby, but although in 

 no sense a " climber," a "creeper," or even a rambler, 

 it does best against some kind of support. It may be 

 grown against a pillar, an arch, or a wall. In good soil 



