Gardening for Amateurs 



Ornamental Flowering Trees 



EVERYONE is familiar with the in- 

 different placing of trees in suburban 

 gardens. Trees such as Cypresses, 

 Cedars, Monkey Puzzles, and Wellingtonias, 

 which only thrive successfully where the 

 atmosphere is pure and soil and climatic 

 conditions are fairly moist, are planted 

 in town gardens, exposed to the drying 

 influences of over-drained ground and 

 considerable sun-heat, with the additional 

 disadvantage of an impure atmosphere, 

 simplv because young specimens look nice 

 when growing in a nursery border. If they 

 live, it is, in many cases, only for a few years, 

 and during most of that time they look 

 unhappy, whereas were trees suitable for 

 towns selected they would continue to im- 

 prove for generations. 



Large-growing trees ought not to be planted 

 in positions where space is restricted, es- 

 pecially as there are plenty of small trees 

 suitable for such places. A mistake is 

 sometimes made by planting variegated- 

 leaved trees amidst British and other trees 

 incidental to plantations and park land. 

 This ought to be avoided ; such trees must 

 be kept to the garden proper or grouped in 

 such a manner that they will not interfere 

 with the natural effect of park or woodland. 



The ground which trees and shrubs are to 

 occupy should be well worked before the 

 plants are obtained. As a rule borders are 

 c[uite satisfactory if trenched 1 feet deep 

 and the bottom forked up. Beds may be 

 treated in the same manner, whereas, when 

 trees are to be planted in isolated positions, 

 circular holes from 5 to 8 feet in diameter 

 and 18 inches deep should be prepared. 

 While trenching is being carried out an 

 opportunity should be taken of introducing 

 better soil or well -decayed manure if the 

 natural soil is poor, but in the event of 

 manure being added, care must be taken 

 so to place it that it will not come in con- 

 tact with the roots at planting time. If 

 leaf-mould can be obtained it will be found 

 to be excellent material for adding to the 

 soil, and does no harm if placed near the 

 roots. Loamy soil is most suitable for the 



greater number of trees and shrubs, but 

 some require peat. Plants belonging to 

 the Heath family, such as Rhododendron, 

 Kalmia, Arbutus, Erica, etc., must not be 

 planted in ground that contains lime to any 

 appreciable extent. They thrive in peat, 

 but also grow well in loam where there is 

 little or no lime. 



The application of a mulch of well-decayed 

 manure or leaves, in spring, to the ground 

 immediately above the roots of trees and 

 shrubs is an attention greatly appreciated 

 by the plants ; not only does it provide 

 extra food material for the surface roots, 

 but it checks undue evaporation from the 

 soil during dry weather. 



A point deserving every consideration is 

 the depth of planting. The advice is some- 

 times given to plant a tree deep in order that 

 it may withstand the effect of violent storms, 

 but it is the greatest mistake possible to 

 plant either trees or shrubs deeply. In no 

 case should the top roots of a tree be covered 

 by more than one inch of soil. Those planted 

 deeply are far more susceptible to attacks 

 by root-rot and collar-rot fungus than others 

 of which the roots are quite close to the 

 surface. For the same reason it is advisable 

 to allow prepared ground to settle for a 

 month or two previous to planting, for plant- 

 ing in newly trenched ground sometimes 

 results in the shrubs sinking with the ground 

 and the stems gradually becoming buried, 

 especially when the ground sinks unevenly 

 and holes have to be filled up. 



When trees or shrubs are obtained from 

 a nursery care should be taken to ascer- 

 tain whether they have a sufficiently well- 

 developed root system ; if the roots are good 

 and the branch system comparatively small 

 there is every probability of the plant doing 

 well, whereas if the branch system is vigorous 

 and the root system small there is little chance 

 of ultimate success. For this reason it is 

 advisable to beware of large shrubs of very 

 vigorous growth, and before purchasing such 

 to ask for a warranty that they will trans- 

 plant satisfactorily. Evergreens, such as 

 Portugal Laurel, Pine, Evergreen Oak, and 



