BERRY-BEARING PLANTS 



763 



location. In addition to the American holly there is the 

 English holly {Ilex aquifolium) that is also primarily 

 a southern plant, but that is hardy as far north as Wash- 

 ington. It is not as hardy as the American holly. There 

 are several varieties of the English holly with varia- 

 tions in habit of branching and especially in shape and 

 texture of leaves, all of which are more glossy than the 

 American holly. 



Another showy holly is the black alder, a deciduous 

 plant that has its stems almost completely covered with 

 bright scarlet berries that turn by the middle or last of 

 October and hold on well toward spring. In some com- 

 munities it is spoken of as the Christmas berry. It, too, 

 must have plants of both sexes in order to insure fruiting. 



gins of the leaves. There are many other species that 

 are good and hosts of others that have been described, 

 that in any other genus of plants would be classed as 

 horticultural varieties if they were recognized at all. 

 The Washington thorn {Crataegus cordata) holds its 

 fruit longer than many of the others. For most of the 

 country the native thorns are better suited for orna- 

 mental planting than the European kinds, as the foliage 

 keeps in better condition through our hot dry summers. 

 There are also some evergreen species that are often 

 planted. 



Another group of small trees and shrubs that are 

 showy in late fall and early winter is the euonymus. Here 

 again there is a native species that is most useful and 



BL.ACK ALDER, OR WINTER-BERRY 



(/. verticitlata) 



This is the familiar red berry so often, tied 

 into Holly wreaths for the Christmas trade. 

 The plant is occasionally found on Long 

 Island, in upland hedge-rows and swamps. 



JAPANESE BARBERRY 

 (B. Thunbergii) 



This is a valuable shrub for edging 

 down taller groups, because its thick 

 growth holds the blowing leaves. It is 

 used very extensively for hedges. 



GRAY ALDER 

 (Ilex laevigata) 



A member of the Holly family, this is 

 covered with orange-red berries in the 

 early fall. Popular for house decoration 

 combined with evergreen leaves. 



The flowers of all the hollies are inconspicuous. 



For the south the yaupon {Ilex cassine) is an attrac- 

 tive shrub or small tree of rather upright growth. It 

 fruits freely and is a useful plant for hedges as well as 

 for more free growing effects. Its berries are also scarlet. 

 It is native as far north as Wilmington, North Carolina. 



Another large group of red fruited small trees are the 

 thorns, among which the common cockspur thorn {Cra- 

 taegus crus-gali) is one of the most satisfactory. It is 

 beautiful in spring with its clusters of white and bluish 

 flowers as well as in fall with its berries. Its foliage is 

 also attractive throughout the summer, as it is of a good 

 clean green made more attractive by the irregular mar- 



ornamental that has been neglected in the past for a Eu- 

 ropean species that is not as well adapted to our climate. 

 The showy fruits of these plants consists of a purplish 

 angular seed pod that ultimately splits open, exposing 

 the orange or scarlet berry seed that hangs in the pod 

 for quite a long time. On some of the species these 

 fruits hang on well into the winter, especially in the 

 north. The common burning bush or wahoo of our west- 

 ern states {Euonymus atropurpureus) is one of the good 

 species, the berries being orange. The foliage turns pink 

 and .red in autumn and hides the berries until the foliage 

 drops, but the fruits hang on well into the winter. The 

 most common form in nurseries is the spindle tree {Eu- 



