GARDENS NEAR THE SEA 



they occur but seldom unless space is free and they 

 can be used as background shrubs, alive with color. 

 Almost invariably the dogwoods do well in shady 

 places. 



May is also the time when the lilacs perfume the 

 air with their subtle, indescribable scent. Indeed, 

 he who owns a veteran lilac bush has at least one 

 trusty, springtime friend. Of late, these bushes have 

 been planted rather sparingly, as they are subject to 

 a scale that causes their foliage to rust and turn un- 

 sightly. Some of the Persian and Chinese lilacs show 

 daintily formed foliage and exquisite blooms in great 

 profusion, and are thought to be less subject to disease 

 than the common purple lilac, Syringa vulgaris, guar- 

 dian of many modest gateways in America. 



A treelike shrub, not so well known as the lilacs, is 

 the silver bell, or snowdrop tree, Halesia tetraptera. 

 In early spring, it is fairly hung with silvery white 

 bells appearing like snowdrops turned upside down. 

 I have seen it at the back of a hardy border of 

 plants, its branches, laden with white bells, hanging 

 over azaleas, bursting peonies, and innumerable other 

 flowers. It stood possibly an eighth of a mile from 

 the water, snuggled in among much shrubbery having 

 for protection a high arbor vitse wind-break. The 

 quaintness of the bloom and its delicacy make the 

 shrub a marked individual even in a spot of pluri- 

 color. The leafage of the silver bell is not fine, although 

 the four-winged seed pods occurring later in the season 

 are interesting. 



At no time of the year are flowers more desired 



[60] 



