236 GARDENING FOR BEGINNERS 



there is the pendulous form of Fraxinus excelsior, one of the best of trees 

 of weeping habit. Amongst Flowering Ashes, F. Ornus grows upwards 

 of twenty-five feet high, and is well adapted for planting on the lawn. 

 It carries immense clusters of cream-white flowers in early summer. F. 

 floribunda (Ornus floribunda) is perhaps more vigorous, and certainly one 

 of the best of Flowering Ashes. There is an uncommon Chinese species 

 named Mariesii, which is very beautiful and distinct, but not so free 

 in growth as those already referred to. Its pure white flowers appear 

 rather late. 



Fremontia californica. This Californian deciduous shrub is too 

 valuable to pass by notwithstanding its rather delicate constitution. 

 Only in specially favoured localities should it be planted in the open 

 shrubbery, as it is too tender for general use out of doors. It will give 

 satisfaction, trained against a wall if planted in sandy loam, taking care 

 not to choose a place exposed to east winds. It grows about twelve feet in 

 height, and bears bright yellow flowers two inches across in early summer. 



Garrya elliptica. Few evergreen shrubs are more ornamental in 

 winter than a large wall plant of this Californian Shrub when covered 

 with its elegant catkins, varying in length from six inches to eight inches, 

 and borne at the tips of the previous season's growth. When planted 

 in the ordinary shrubbery it seldom grows more than six feet high, but 

 given rich soil and copious supplies of water while growth is in pro- 

 gress, it develops more strongly. 



Gaultheria procumbens (Creeping Winter Berry). A neat ever- 

 green carpet shrub, introduced from North America ; delights in a cool, 

 moist, peaty soil, and partial shade. Towards midsummer it bears 

 masses of small white drooping flowers, and in autumn and winter its 

 small red berries are very bright. Its autumn-tinted foliage is another 

 bright feature. G. Shallon is quite distinct from the last named,, and grows 

 about three feet high ; it is a good evergreen for planting under trees, 

 and small white flowers precede the purplish berries. 



Genistas. These are hardy shrubs of simple culture. G. pilosa, 

 a procumbent British species, should be grown in the rock-garden and in 

 the ordinary shrubbery. The same remark applies to G. sagittalis and 

 G. prostata. All have bright flowers. The Spanish Broom (G. hispanica) 

 is a treasure for dry banks, also as marginal lines to the shrubbery. It 

 is a dense growing prickly shrub, and its rich yellow flowers appear in 

 July, a succession being maintained for several weeks. G. radiata, occas- 

 ionally met with as Spartium radiatum, a native of Southern Europe, grows 

 about eighteen inches high, and bears yellow flowers in terminal heads in 

 July. G. cetnensis, popularly known as Mount Etna Bloom, is an old garden 

 shrub, and in late summer, when bearing its wealth of golden-coloured Pea- 

 shaped flowers, produces a striking effect. It should be planted in groups, 

 as the effect in a mass is more telling than that produced by the wretched 

 " dot " system. G. virgata is the best of the taller growing species for 

 planting in poor, hungry soils. It is of free growth, and its bright yellow 

 flowers are not only borne abundantly, but they remain attractive for a 

 considerable period. 



