168 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



Jui 



HORTICULTURAL DEPARTMENT, 



EDITED BY P. BARRY. 



HARDY FLOWERING- TREES AND SHRUBS. 



This is the season of the Flowers' Triumph. No 

 matter how indifferent man may profess to be to their 

 influence; he may wish to banish them from the world 

 as useless, and substitute in their place what he calls 

 useful. He may boast his want of taste and refine- 

 ment—his insensibility to the charms of grace and 

 beauty— he may proclaim his own ignorance, and 

 glory in his own shame; — yet that man remains to be 

 found whose feelings are not touched, and his heart 

 captivated by the lily and the rose, and their compan- 

 ions in beauty. He has not traveled far on his jour- 

 ney through life, who has not stopped to do homage 

 to the flowers. 



.This is not only the season of the Flowers' Tri- 

 umph, but it is the season that awards the diligent 

 cultivator a hundred fold for all his toils. Many who 

 had resolved on better things, have now bitterly to 

 lament that the spring is gone, the season of flowers 

 come, and their grounds present the same unsightly 

 appearance as in former years, while those of their 

 neighbors literally " bud and blossom as the rose." 



The following are a, few select Trees and Shrubs 

 that have bloomed during the month of June: 



The White flowering Horse Chestnut, is a noble 

 tree, considered in all respects— form, foliage and 

 flowers — entirely free from disease of any sort, and 

 flourishing in all soils and situations. It is becoming 

 more and more a favorite for street, park and door- 

 yard planting. It is fast taking the place of the 

 Button-wood, which is rapidly dying off from some 

 disease that has been preying on it for a few years 

 past. Nothing surpasses the beauty of a fine Horse 

 chestnut in bloom. The dense and luxuriant mass 

 of foilage form a rich back ground for the flowers 

 which rise up in spikes a foot or so in length. There 

 are red and yellow flowering species, and several rare 

 varieties, but whilst all are desirable for large collec- 

 tions, none of them equal the common or white flow- 

 ering for general planting. Propagated from seeds 

 planted either fall or spring ; the rare ones are 

 budded or grafted on the common. 



The Mountain Ash is another beautiful tree of a 

 habit similar to the preceding — that is, with a round 

 or regular shaped head. The foliage is small but 

 dense. The flowers .appear in umbels, like those of 

 the carrot or parsnip, and are succeeded by clusters 

 of reddish yellow berries, that coustitute the peculiar 

 beauty of this tree, in the Autumn. There are two 

 species commonly cultivated, the one European and 

 the other American. The European has the most 

 compact and regular habit ; small, but greater density 

 of foilage, and smaller and deeper colored fruit. The 

 American is more spreading or irregular in habit — 

 large foilage and fruit. Each has a beauty of its own, 

 suited to different tastes and positions in a different 

 landscape. We like thr b^th. They grow rapid! y 

 enough to suit any o\- ol moderate patience. The 

 berries are gathere' 1 t n the Autumn, the pulp washed 

 off, and the seeds buried in a dry soil or sand for a 

 year before planting. Most of the seeds of the 

 American species will grow the first year, if scalded. 

 It is usually said of this tree, and truly, that u it needs 

 no pruning and is never out of shape." 



The Flowering Ash, (Ornus europasus.) — This 

 tree, although long cultivated, is by no means com- 

 mon — yet it well deserves a place among select trees. 

 It grows vigorously and with moderate rapidity. It 

 forms a round dense head — foilage, deep green and 

 glossy — and the flowers, which are of greenish white, 

 are produced in large clusters about the middle of June. 

 It is usually grafted on the common species of Ash. 



The Laburnum, or Golden Chain, is one of the 

 most elegant trees. It has a spreading, irregular 

 habit, rich deep green foilage, and pendulous racemes 

 six to twelve inches long, of golden yellow blossoms. 

 There are two species, the common and the Scotch, 

 that resemble each other ; the latter flowers a week 

 or so later. There is also a purple variety, with 

 pendulos flower spikes like the others, but of a reddish 

 purple eolor, with a yellow tinge. These three make 

 trees twenty to thirty feet high. Of the same genus 

 (cytussus,) there are many dwarf and pendulous 

 growing species, with white, yellow and purple 

 flowers, that make very pretty border shrubs, and 

 when grafted on the common sorts, four to six feet 

 high, make charming little trees for a lawn. Of these 

 we have now before us the purpureus, with slender 

 branches and delicate, pretty blossoms; iriflorus, three 

 flowered — yellow flowers in great profusion; falcatus, 

 or sickle podded, also yellow. The common sort, 

 first named, is propagated from seeds, as the locust; 

 the others are increased by grafting, budding or lay- 

 ering. While speaking of these we may mention 

 another fine plant akin to them, the common or Scotch 

 Broom — a shrub that grows six or eight feet high, 

 small leaves, and bright golden yellow flowers, now, 

 (June 16,) in full bloom. Raised from seeds, also, 

 or layers, as may be convenient. 



Floivering Thorns. — These rank among the finest 

 spring or June flowering trees and shrubs. The 

 Double White has its flowers in large clusters of 

 charming little double, pure white blossoms, changing 

 to pink as they decay. The Double Scarlet, is quite 

 rare, only different in color from the preceding. Then 

 there is the single pink, and single scarlet; the centre 

 of the flowers of both is white, and adds much to their 

 beauty. They have the delicious fragrance of the 

 English Harwthorn. We hold all these to be indis- 

 pensable in a nice collection of flowering trees and 

 shrubs. They are increased, like fruit trees, by graft- 

 ing or budding on the common thorns. We see no 

 difficulty in the way of making hedges of these beau- 

 tiful thorns. They can be propagated by budding 

 rapidly, and at one year from the bud will be fit for 

 hedge rows; and, if mixed with Privet, to fill up spa- 

 ces, we think that, for the enclosure of lawns, &c, 

 where beauty would be desirable, these would be just 

 the thing. We can imagine nothing more beautiful 

 than a hedge of these Doable White and Scarlet 

 thorns, in full blossom, enclosing a brig-lit green lawn. 

 The White Fringe, (Chionanthus virginica,) now 

 (June 18) in full bloom — a distinct and beautiful 

 shrub or small tree, ten or fifteen feet high, with very 

 large, glossy foliage, and pure white, delicate flowers, 

 resembling cut paper. It is increased from seeds, 

 but they will lie a year in the ground before they 

 grow. It may be grafted on the common ash. It 

 loves a moist soil. In its own class of trees it Has 

 to rival. 



The Spiraeas are a fine class of shrubs, ranging 

 from about two or three to twelve feet in height, and 

 bearing immense numbers of beautiful clusters of 

 white flowers. The Spinea lanceolata is the most 



