BROAD-LEAVED EVERGREEN SHRUBS FOR THE SOUTH 



103 



form known, Gardenia radicans, that is most useful where 

 a low plant is desirable. 



The Carolina cherry or the mock orange of the south, 

 especially of the Carolinas {Prunus caroliniana) is a small 

 evergreen tree with rather large dark green leaves. It 

 bears panicles of small white flowers in spring which are 

 followed by small black berries in the fall. It is adapted 

 to planting as single specimens, in clumps as screens or 

 hack grounds, and also as hedges as it responds to pruning 

 well. When permitted to grow as a tree it will attain a 

 height of more than twenty feet. In some of the towns 

 in South Carolina it is occasionally found as a street tree, 

 although it is too small a tree for this purpose. 



The Tea Olive, Sweet 

 Olive, or Fragrant Olive as 

 it is variously called (Os- 

 nmnthus fragrans or some 

 times Olea fragrans), is 

 valued for its very sweet 

 odor in connection with its 

 clusters of rather small 

 white flowers and dark 

 evergreen foliage. It should 

 be used where a plant un- 

 der six feet in height is 

 desired. A close relative 

 of this is the holly-leaved 

 olive that has leaves much 

 like the holly and whose 

 habit of growth is similar 

 to the English holly. This 

 plant bears fragrant small 

 white flowers in autumn. 

 It is hardy as far north as 

 Washington, while the tea 

 olive is not hardy much 

 north of Wilmington, 

 North Carolina. 



The Japanese laurel or 

 aucuba {Aucuba japonica) 

 is another low growing 

 plant that is useful for 

 home ground planting. This 

 also attains a height of 

 about six feet under favor- 

 able conditions. It pre- 

 fers partial shade and an abundance of moisture. There 

 is a variegated form that is probably better known than 

 the type or green form. This is beautifully marked with 

 yellow and when used sparingly either with the green- 

 leaved form or with masses of other evergreens attrac- 

 tive results can be obtained. It is well to plant the au- 

 cuba in groups so as to insure having both pistillate and 

 staminate plants in order that they may bear the showy 

 scarlet berries that hang on for a long time. This plant 

 seems to withstand city conditions remarkably well. There 

 is another species, Aucuba viridis, with narrow leaves and 

 more dwarf habit, which is hardy as far north as Wash- 

 ington. 



AUCUBA JAPONICA, OR JAPANESE LAUREL 

 There is also a variegated form of this lovely shrub, known by 



its striking yellow markings. A 

 bearing showy, scarlet berries. 



The English or cherry laurel (Laurocerasus) is known 

 by several species in the warmer parts of the south, all 

 of which are very attractive and are highly prized by 

 those who possess them. They will thrive in the eastern 

 part of North Carolina and half way or more across the 

 other states south of there that border on the Atlantic or 

 the Gulf, including a fringe of Texas. Some of the spe- 

 cies of English laurel are Laurocerasus Bertini with very 

 broad dark green foliage ; L. colchica, with foliage having 

 a dark green upper surface and a gray green beneath ; 

 L. caucasica, with large broad foliage of a light green ; 

 L. viridis, with short broad light green leaves. These 

 plants are of vigorous growth in any ordinarily good soil 



and are of easy culture. 

 The foliage is shiny and 

 they are well suited for 

 screens ten or twelve feet 

 high. 



The laurel of classic 

 countries is still another 

 plant and is also known as 

 Bay Tree (Launis nobilis). 

 This is perfectly hardy 

 over a good portion of the 

 South and makes a hand- 

 some small tree. It re- 

 sponds well to pruning, as 

 is shown by the way it is 

 used in formal gardening, 

 where sheared specimens 

 are required. Even in the 

 north, where it is neces- 

 sary to winter them under 

 glass, large numbers are 

 used for the sake of the 

 summer effect they will 

 produce. They are grown 

 largely in tubs in the north, 

 but in the south this is not 

 necessary, as they can be 

 wintered in the open 

 ground without protection. 

 Another laurel that is of 

 great value in all parts of 

 the south but the warmest 

 portions and the limestone 

 regions is the Mountain laurel {Kalmia latifolia) a native 

 of many parts of the south and as handsome a plant as 

 any that have been mentioned in this article. The foliage 

 is good size and of a deep glossy green, not as large nor 

 as dark as many of the plants described. In late spring or 

 two or three weeks after the oaks come into leaf the 

 bushes are covered with little cluster cups, pink outside 

 and white inside. The plants will grow well in dense 

 shade, but bloom best where they receive an abundance of 

 sunlight. 



The photinia (PhoHnia serulata) is a dense shrub or 

 small tree with large leaves of unusual texture or surface, 

 which give it a sort of velvety appearance with a mix- 



fine plant for the home grounds 



