453 THE IVY. 



portion of it, on account of the resistance which it meets from the 

 western blast. But it will grow well, when placed on the western 

 side itself; for in this position the west wind presses it to the bark 

 of the tree, and thus becomes its friend. I have a fair example of 

 this in my own park. On a bleak brow there stands the hollow 

 remnantx)f an oak, which, in the days of its prosperity, measured 

 jfull twenty feet in circumference. Fourteen years ago I planted ivy 

 on its eastern side. But, to this day, that portion of the bole facing 

 the west remains uncovered by the ivy, which, in its annual attempt 

 to surmount the difficulty, is arrested in its course, and ultimately 

 driven back by the fury of the western gales. 



If we wish to see ivy growing in all the luxuriance of health and 

 beauty, we must plant it at the root of some tall Scotch fir, in a low 

 and sheltered situation. Nothing can be more charming or lovely 

 to the sight, than the widely-extending mass of verdure with which it 

 will clothe the bole of the tree. I have a Scotch fir here with ivy 

 round it quite worthy the inspection of poor Charlie Stuart himself, 

 were he still amongst us. The ivy sends its horizontal branches out 

 from the bole to a distance of six or seven feet in vast profusion, and 

 its verdure is so perfectly in unison with the foliage of the fir, that, 

 when you are standing at a little distance, you will be charmed with 

 the additional beauty which it confers upon its stately supporter. 



He who may chance to read these essays will see that I have cul- 

 tivated with great success my three favourite evergreens, the yew, 

 the holly, and the ivy. They give food and shelter to many species 

 of British birds, which are so sadly persecuted by gardeners and 

 gamekeepers throughout the whole extent of the land. I consider 

 the ivy more serviceable than the other two, as its berries ripen at a 

 season of the year when the ordinary food of the fields is far from 

 being plentiful. The berries of the holly are abundant at the same 

 time, but the birds are not nearly so fond of them. 



Without these ever-verdant auxiliaries close at hand, I should have 

 but a poor chance of observing the habits of our birds with satisfac- 

 tion to myself. Writers on ornithology may consult volume after 

 volume of other writers on ornithology who have gone before them ; 

 and they may extract from the pages that which in their judgment 

 may appear the best ; but unless they themselves have spent years 



