January 6, 1912.] 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



3 



Cotoxeaster HARROViAXAt bears some resem- 

 blance to C. pannosa, but is a stronger-growing 

 and altogether more vigorous plant, with larger, 

 more coriaceous, shining, green leaves, ultimately 

 glabrescent below (not permanently tomentose as 

 in C. pannosa), and larger, more numerously- 

 flowered cymes. There are also important floral 

 distinctions between the two species. C. Harro- 

 vians forms a laxly-branched shrub, 6 feet to 

 7 feet high, with spreading, pendent branchlets. 

 Everv branch and short lateral branchlet ter- 



THE MARKET FRUIT GARDEN. 



For persistence of rain the last quarter of 1911 

 has been almost, if not quite, unequalled in my 

 xperience. Consultation of the barometer has 

 been useless during nearly all the time, as 

 the wind has kept shifting about, falsifying 

 all the indications of the mercury. Time after 



time the barometer has risen 



through 



two 



or more days of unsettled weather only to lead 



minates in a large corymb of pure-white, flat to disappointment. In frequency of rainfall 



December has proved even worse than Novem- 

 ber or October, as well as in total quantity. 



flowers, opening almost simultaneously. The 

 flowers are followed by rather small, ovoid, bril- 

 iiantly-red fruits. Altogether, this new-comer is 



one of the very finest of its family, and I have 6.11 inches for October, 18 rainy days and a 

 great pleasure in associating its name with Mr. total of 5.89 inches for November, and 25 rainy- 

 George Harrow, the courteous and efficient days and a total of 6.22 inches for December, 

 manager of Messrs. Veitch's Coombe Wood nur- Thus, out of 92 days, 57 have been rainy, and the 

 sery. To this gentleman's enthusiasm, care, and total fall 18.22 inches, which may be compared 

 skill recent plant introductions from China owe with 12 18 inches for the first t ]/ree -quarters of 

 much. b. II. H ilson, Arnold Arboretum, 

 U.S.A. 



on to the land when frost occurs, or the flood 

 of rain has come to an end. In my younger plan- 

 tations there are roadways at intervals among 

 the trees for carting manure on and fruit off; 

 but they have been in far too sodden a condition 



for a month or more to allow of carting over 

 them. 



Perverse Habits of Growth. 



In pruning young Apple trees of some varieties 

 one cannot fail to be struck with their perverse 

 habits of growth. One of the worst is that 

 of great differences in the size and vigour 

 of the branches which are to form the frame- 

 work of the trees, as it is a serious hindrance to 





My registers are 14 rainy days and a total of «„ T ™™.«4.„:„„i u« • at ,, , 



cii . i , r\ *. . ifl . i i symmetrical shaping. Moreover, the strongest 



branches are commonly those growing in the 

 middle of a tree, which it is desirable to keep 

 open to sun and air. These should be cut out 

 cleanly, or the tree will never be a satisfactory 

 one, and the earlier in the growth of the tree 

 this is done, the better it is. A similar fault is 



STREET TREES IN CANADA. 



Some time ago (see Gardeners 9 Chronicle, vol. 

 xlix., p. 324), I remarked upon the effects of 

 electric shocks upon street trees, and called at- 

 tention to the growing danger in England from 

 the ever-increasing number of power wires 

 placed close to avenue trees. During the last few 

 weeks, I have been making a tour of the large 

 towns in the North American continent, and 

 have seen terrible effects in the street trees of 

 many of the towns, especially in the Dominion 

 of Canada near to the great power centre at 



Along some of the roads here, there is 

 a voltage of 250,000, and practically one tree in 

 three is more or less damaged, especially in 

 Montreal, where the effects of the tussock moth 

 also to be noted. Out in the beautiful 



In lagara 



are 



Cote de Nieges district one finds whole rows of 

 trees damaged by burning and shocks. Trees 

 thus injured fall an easy prey to the ravages 

 of the tussock moth larvae, and as this insect has 

 two broods in a year, the second hatching 

 just as the tree recovers from its first defolia- 

 tion, the trees are often killed outright in one 

 season. The female moth does not fly, and sel- 

 dom moves from the cocoon which produced her, 

 but on this cocoon she lays her eggs ; conse- 

 quently, a tree that suffers from a spring attack 

 invariably suffers from the autumn broods unless 

 steps are taken to prevent such injury. In the 

 States, and especially in Massachusetts, the tree 

 wardens are making a desperate effort to save 

 the trees, and in addition to hand-picking of the 

 cocoons, the school children are paid 10 cents a 

 quart for all the cocoons they collect. Trees that 

 are free from the pest are kept clean by banding 



the trunks with a grease band, 

 there are no tree 



But in Canada 



FlG. 2. — STREET TREES IN WINNIPEG 



wardens ; the power com- 

 panies cut and mutilate the trees just how they 

 see fit, and there is no regulation apparently 

 about the insulation of guy wires. The one town 

 that I have found the exception is the great 



Winnip 



the 



The 



i I 



>> 



of 



m w Winnipeg will be- 

 come a second Paris, for even the small trees 

 are being planted and laid out with shrubbery 

 and grass margins. It is only natural that in this 

 town of wide areas the streets should be wide 



year. ine expression " rainy days, 

 course, means days of 24 hours on which rain 

 was measurable. 



Hindrance to Work. 



that of trees forming the strongest branches in 

 the direction away from the prevailing wind, 

 particularly in exposed plantations, while the 

 branches on the windward side are compara- 

 tively w r eak. Nor is this all the harm done by 



As stated last month, the work of fruit plant- wind to young trees, for as great a difficulty in 



ing was practical under passable conditions at 

 times up to the end of November, but aft£r 

 December began the land was kept in a per- away from the' direction whence the prevailing 



obtaining a well-balanced and symmetrical tree 

 arises from the persistent curving of the branches 



and capable of carrying the traffic of the future. petually water-logged condition, unfit for any wind blows, which, in my case, is the south-west. 



As the population of the town is increasing at kind of work upon it. Consequently planting, The only corrective, which, however, is not per- 



the rate of 10,000 a year, the traffic will be enor- where much of it had to be done, is now in arrear, feet, is that of pruning nearly every main shoot 



mous, for already^ the population is 200,000. The and the chances are^that but little more of it will to a bud pointing more or less directly to the 



windward quarter or upwards. 



Varieties which have made the longest new 

 growths are most troublesome in the way men- 

 tioned. Among these are Beauty of Bath and 

 Gaseoyne's Scarlet. The former is a particularly 

 awkward growler, even in sheltered situations, 

 and is difficult to shape properly. The latter 

 with me is one of the most robust of growers, 

 and is no trouble to shape when its form is not 

 distorted by wind, although the extra strong 



illustration (fig. 2) gives a good idea of the lay- be effected before February, as the land is corn- 

 out of the streets in this town, and its parks are monly either too wet or hard with frost during 



the first month of the year. Digging in fruit 

 plantations is also much in arrear, and many 

 employers have found it difficult to provide w^ork 

 for their men. As the greater part of the rain 



just as promising. In no town have I met a more 

 promising park area. When one considers the 

 rigorous winter with 80° of frost, the trees are 

 wonderful. The inhabitants of Winnipeg are 



justly proud of what they have achieved, and has fallen between sunset and sunrise, pruning 

 are very ambitious for the future. Pern. 



No. ^3 1 g ARR0VIANA --E- H. Wilson, 1. c, Hort. Veitch, 



has been less interrupted than work on the land. 

 Where manure has been carted into orchards it 

 has had to be left in big heaps, to be harrowed 



