GOOD TREES AND SHRUBS 249 



foliage is very bright and distinct. It seldom grows more than five feet 

 or six feet high. The well-known Laurustinus ( V. Tinus) is an ever- 

 green shrub of bushy habit, with small pleasing green leaves ; and in 

 winter, when bearing its wealth of pinkish-white flowers, is welcome in 

 the border. Plants lifted in autumn and put into pots flower naturally 

 towards Christmas, on which account they are most useful for the 

 greenhouse. The variety lucidum, which bears large clusters of pure 

 white flowers, and purpureum, with its dark leaves, are worthy of men- 

 tion. The wild Guelder Rose or Water Elder (F. Opulus) is one of 

 the most beautiful of all shrubs, native or otherwise. Though the Guelder 

 Rose is more showy than the Water Elder when it is in flower, it lacks 

 the autumn beauty of the wild plant when it is loaded with the bunches 

 of brilliant red berries. The native plant grows by the sides of streams 

 and ditches in a strong alluvial soil, where it is often a shrub of rather 

 rank growth and straggling habit ; transplanted into drier garden ground 

 it becomes a neater bush, and most seasons its wealth of berry makes it 

 one of the best things in the September garden. It is a bush to plant 

 by the lake side. The leaf begins to colour at the same time as the 

 berry, and by the end of the month is a glory of rich crimson. 



Vincas. The Periwinkles are trailing evergreen shrubs, and succeed 

 in dry as well as in moist soil. For planting under the shade and drip 

 of large trees they are used largely with considerable success. They can 

 also be relied upon for clothing sandy banks and rooteries. V. major 

 spreads quickly, its polished green leaves are pretty, and in May and 

 June its rich blue flowers are borne freely. Of this there is a variegated 

 form with showy leaves, and quite as hardy as the type. The small- 

 leaved Periwinkle (V. minor and its varieties) are not so vigorous as 

 either of the last-named; they are, however, attractive, neat-growing 

 trailers. Propagation may be carried on by division or by cuttings. 



Xanthoceras SOrbifolia is a Chinese shrub with deciduous pin- 

 nate, bright-green leaves ; it grows about fifteen feet high when suitably 

 placed. Its cream-white flowers, stained with red in the centre, appear 

 in profusion in racemes just as the leaves are beginning to unfold. A 

 sheltered position and fairly rich soil encourage the best growths. In 

 cold localities it should be grown against a wall. 



Yuccas. These are amongst the most handsome of ornamental 

 evergreen hardy shrubs for general outdoor planting. They are quite 

 at home in the shrubbery border, and add colour and effect to the 

 flower-garden, and for planting on the outskirts of the lawn, as well as 

 for sunny banks and the rock-garden, few evergreen things create more 

 beautiful effects. For winter bedding, too, they are a success. They 

 do not require special culture, ordinary well-drained soil suiting them 

 admirably. They are not, however, partial to wind-swept positions. 

 Y. gloriosa (Adam's Needle) is of strong growth, hardy, with broad, 

 long, sharply-pointed stiff leaves and whitish bell-shaped flowers, borne 

 on large stout spikes. Y. recurvifolia, sometimes met with as Y. pen- 

 dula, is of distinct habit. It is free in growth, with broad deep green 

 arching leaves ; an excellent plant for winter bedding. Y. flamentosa, 

 the North American Silk Grass, is a beautiful species, nearly stemless, 



