BIRCH 31 



and in several of the East End gardens, particularly 

 Stepney churchyard, though in the latter this tree 

 wears a different aspect from what it does under less 

 trying conditions of site and atmosphere. Nowhere, 

 however, does the Birch thrive so well as in Golder's 

 Green Park, where many specimens have quite as 

 healthy an appearance as those in the open country. 

 Where the soil is light or inclined to gravel, and the 

 position exposed and open, the Birch is most at home, 

 and these are the conditions under which it succeeds 

 best in London. 



For ornamental planting the Birch is one of our 

 most valuable trees, the silvery- white bark, slender 

 form, and comparative smallness of its leaves render- 

 ing it quite distinct from every other species. Some 

 of the varieties, particularly the Weeping (B. alba 

 penduld), have attained to a fair size, and look healthy 

 enough in the more open of the parks and gardens. 



The Paper Birch (Broussonetia papyri/era) has thriven 

 well in several of the London parks and in the Chelsea 

 Botanic Gardens, the rate of growth in special in- 

 stances being ahead of that of the common Birch. 

 In Greenwich Park the grcv/th on gravelly soil, as 

 also in the North of London on heavy loam, has been 

 rapid ; but older trees in ihe central parks point out 

 from their size and healthy condition that the Paper 

 Birch is to be recommended for planting in the more 

 open parts of the Metropolis. The doubly-serrated, 

 ovate leaves are hairy beneath, the flowers of a dull 

 greenish- white, and the fruit, which ripens in October, 

 is of a distinct shade of brown. For ornamental 

 purposes the Paper Birch is to be recommended, 

 the white bark offering a striking contrast to the dark- 

 green leaves, while it is easy of cultivation, and being 



