EVERGREENS FOR HEDGES. 69 



"We come now to the Retinosporas (Japan 

 cypresses), choicest, I was about to say, of all ever- 

 greens; certainly the choicest, as a class, of all 

 recently introduced evergreens. To Robert Fortune, 

 the great English collector of plants in Japan, we 

 owe probably the real introduction of the leading 

 species of Retinosporas namely, R. plumosa aurea, 

 R. pisifem and R. obtusa and a greater benefit 

 could hardly have been done the lawn planter than 

 the introduction of these evergreens. They are 

 hardy, of slow growth and of most varied beauty in 

 individual specimens, the latter being a quality 

 greatly wanting among some evergreens commonly 

 used throughout the country, arbor-vitses for in- 

 stance. And, apropos of arbor-vitses, let me say 

 that the Retinosporas bear a much more close rela- 

 tion to that species than they do to cypresses, not- 

 withstanding the latter has been adopted as the Eng- 

 lish name. The Retinosporas graft readily on the 

 Thujas or arbor-vitaes and bear a certain resem- 

 blance to them, but the resemblance only that 

 can exist between a beautiful plant and one 

 much less attractive. Let us look at a group 

 of the new and rare Retinosporas, although 

 unfortunately all Retinosporas are comparatively 

 rare on our lawns. In asking you to look 

 first at filicoidcs, I am selecting one of the 

 very choicest and most curious green species 

 or varieties. If it were not for a peculiarly thick- 

 curled border along the leaf of this Retino- 

 spora, it might be readily taken while young for an 

 evergreen fern. It is a spreading plant, of slow 

 growth and great hardiness. Indeed, I might say, 



