GARDENS NEAR THE SEA 



to edge beds of rhododendrons or other shrubs, or, 

 since it works in well among stones, to become an 

 inhabitant of rockeries. The light quality of the foliage 

 makes it appear, in truth, a child of the sea. 



Leucothoe Catesbcei, for which there is no common 

 name of more sentiment than dog hobble, is a native 

 of the southern states and possessed of much beauty. 

 It is well suited to live near the sea. It is, however, 

 a shrub scarcely seen at all under cultivation. In the 

 spring its little, waxlike flowers are very numerous and 

 effective, and in the autumn the flower buds, already 

 developed for the following year, turn to a vivid 

 shade of rich red, quite in keeping with the bright 

 leaves of the upper stem. The foliage of the main 

 body of the shrub remains green throughout the 

 winter, forming thus a most striking contrast to 

 the remaining parts of the plant. 



L. racemosa, a relative of Catesby's leucothoe, is 

 found in wild, swampy places along the coast. Near 

 the great South Bay it gives in June a gay, undisputed 

 charm to jungles of wild growth, including lambkill and 

 many shy orchids. From the woods it might be taken 

 advantageously to the outskirts of the garden in antici- 

 pation of its early summer beauty. But it is not an 

 evergreen as the Catesbsei, and therefore less replete 

 with charm. 



When broad-leaved evergreens are chosen for the 

 garden it is time to turn to the yuccas, or Adam's 

 needles. Usually they make their appeal simply as 

 perennials, because of their high stalks of distinctive 

 flowers. Nevertheless the winter is not severe enough 



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