GAYLUSSACIA GENISTA 585 



G. URSINA, Torrey. BEAR HUCKLEBERRY. 



(Vaccinium ursinum, Curtis^) 



A deciduous shrub of loose branching habit, 2 to 5 ft- high ; young twigs 

 slightly downy. Leaves obovate or oval, pointed, tapering or rounded at the 

 base ; i^ to 4 ins. long, to i^ ins. wide ; green and more or less downy on 

 both sides, thin. Flowers produced during June in racemes I to 2 ins. long, 

 each of the six to ten flowers being borne on a slender stalk about ^ in. long. 

 Corolla roundish, bell-shaped, dull white or reddish, in. long, lobes recurved. 

 Berry shining black, globose, ^ to J in. diameter. 



Native of the south-eastern United States, and especially on the mountains 

 of N. Carolina, whence it was introduced to Kew in 1891. It is most nearly 

 allied to G. frondosa, differing in the pointed, thinner leaves, green on both 

 sides, and in having a black fruit, but resembling that species in the loose 

 sparsely flowered racemes. The fruit is described as insipid. 



GENISTA. BROOM. LEGUMINOS^:. 



A large genus of shrubs, mostly deciduous, but sometimes acquiring 

 the character of an evergreen from the colour of the young branches. 

 They vary from dwarf and prostrate plants a few inches high to tall ones 

 with a stature of over 20 ft. In a wild state they are found almost 

 exclusively in Europe, but a few reach the western borders of Asia and 

 the southern shores of the Mediterranean. With but one exception 

 among cultivated hardy species (G. monosperma, with white flowers), the 

 blossom is of some shade of yellow, and all have the pea-flower 

 (or papilionaceous) form. The leaves are simple or trifoliolate, often so 

 small and few as to be negligible ; in these cases the work usually done 

 by leaves is performed by green branches. 



As garden shrubs some of the Genistas, such as aetnensis, hispanica, 

 cinerea, glabrescens, pilosa, and virgata, are in the very front rank, and 

 are all worth growing. They are easily accommodated and do not require 

 a rich or manured soil. A sunny position (for most of them are essen- 

 tially sun-lovers) and a well-drained, light loam suits them best. Whenever 

 possible, Genistas should be raised from seed, as plants so obtained are 

 usually healthier and longer-lived than cuttings. Still cuttings are 

 frequently employed. They are taken in late July or August, and dibbled 

 in very sandy soil in frames, usually pushing roots the following spring. 

 The taller species are all improved by shortening back several times in 

 the young state to induce a bushy habit. They transplant badly after a 

 few years,- and should be given permanent quarters early, or else grown 

 in pots. (See also CYTISUS.) 



A considerable number of tender or half-hardy species have been, 

 and continue to be, introduced from the south of Europe and the islands 

 of the Mediterranean. Many of them can be cultivated in the Scilly 

 Isles, but they are of no use for the ordinary climate of Great Britain. 

 The species dealt with in the following pages include all in cultivation 



