Apbil 27, 1912.] 



THE GARDENERS CHRONICLE. 



277 



FORESTRY. 



EXOTIC FOREST TREES. 



About thirty years ago a great many foresters 

 were suddenly stricken with a strange disease, 

 which evinced itself in a desire to plant any- 

 thing but indigenous trees, without any regard 

 to their probable behaviour under strange con- 

 ditions, and indeed often without first ascer- 

 taining whether they were of any value, even 

 in their native land. There are still many 

 such people left, but on the whole the mania 

 has gradually died out, and given place to a 

 relapse in the opposite direction. There is cer- 

 tainly a good deal to be said for the private 

 owner, intent on the beauty of his woods, 

 who is glad to add something here and 

 there in the shape of some exotic tree, 

 whose chief value lies in the colour of its 



leaves or the curve of its branches, rather than 

 in its timber-producing properties. Such a 

 procedure can only be commended, and it is 

 as well to look at the forest from the point of 

 view of beauty, as from the commercial side, 

 even when it is the property of the State, and 

 a mere source of revenue ; but w T hen large areas 

 are covered with a tree that can never be ex- 

 pected to grow into anything more than fire- 

 wood, it is time for somebody to step in and 

 Btop the mischief. The following trees were 

 planted for demonstration and experimental 

 purposes in the teaching forests round Ebers-" 

 walde, near Berlin, the soil being on the whole 

 sandy, with loam and marl here and there, and 

 covered almost exclusively with Scotch Pine and 

 Beech. Pinus Banksiana was introduced into 

 the forest some years ago, and was said to be 

 an excellent tree for growing in dry, sandy soils. 

 It does not seem to have occurred to anybody 

 to make enquiries as to its growth in its native 

 country, and in consequence large areas were 

 planted with it. American foresters visiting 

 the Continent are always amused at finding such 

 plantations, and cannot understand that a tree 

 which is worthless in its own countrv, should 

 be expected to do better in another. Added to 

 this is the fact that it is not less particular 

 with regard to soil than the indigenous Scotch 

 Pine. Pinus rigida is an example of an enor- 

 mous mistake, caused by the mixing up of 

 names. It was looked upon as the true Pitch 

 Pine, and was extensively planted in conse- 

 quence, and, as it was often given the most 

 favourable soils and situations, great things were 

 expected of it. The results were, to say the 

 least of it, disappointing, and the tangled masses 

 of low, crooked, spreading trees now to be seen 

 all over the country are a warning to future 

 experimenters. In spite of this, Pinus rigida 

 still has a few friends who recommend its use 

 mixed with the common Pine, the idea being to 

 force the height growth of the latter, and to fur- 

 nish humus from the luxuriant needles of the 

 former. The development of such plantations 

 is, however, uneven, owing to the light and 

 root competition, and practical foresters all 

 agree in condemning this Pine. Pinus Strobus 

 has, on the whole, justified its introduction, 

 as it is easily satisfied, hardy, stands more 

 shade than the common Pine, and numerous 

 healthy and clean-stemmed plantations in 

 various parts of the country bear witness to its 

 suitability as a timber tree. It is, however, 

 inferior to the Scotch Pine from the point of 

 view of the timber merchant, and its use is 

 only justified under exceptional circumstances. 

 Picea sitehensis looks like making good timber, 

 but it is difficult to say whether it has any 

 advantage over the common Spruce. Picea 

 pungens, Abies concolor, A. grandis and A. 

 Nordmanniana are often to be found in batches 

 in the forest, but their use can only be justified 

 tor decorative purposes. Thuya occidentalis, 

 1 i?a £*S ar itea an< i Cupressus Lawsoniana were 



t v? on upon as T)roniisin g timber trees, until 

 uie ^0 years' eld plantations came to be thinned, 



I* ft m ° St ° f th * ni ™ 6re * oun(1 t° be unsound 

 at the heart, and consequently useless. They 

 always suffer badly from heavy falls of snow, 

 ana, although their growth at* the start is ex- 



an r^ ldf tWy cannot be expected to do 



y gocrf i n Europe. Juniperus virginiana is 



not present in plantation form in this district, 



■SLVTi e - 1S a , SmaU forest of [t worked on com- 

 mercial lines by the famous pencil makers A, W 



woof ; an 1 BoM > and ifc ~ is said that 

 wood is of good quality. It is quite possible 



that the wood is of good quality, and that plant- 

 ing may be worth while in such a special 

 case, but on the whole it may be looked 

 upon as useless for the forest. Larix leptolepis 

 is too well known to need any description, but 

 its immunity from canker and" its rapid growth 

 have not proved so startling as its early be- 

 haviour led people to believe. At the age of 

 12 or 14 years it is caught up again and passed 

 by the European species. Pseudotsuga Douglasii 

 is probably the most promising of all foreign 

 trees introduced into Europe, and although it 

 cannot here be expected to attain anything like 

 the dimensions that it reaches in its native 

 country, there seems every reason to believe 

 that it will yield more timber per acre than any 

 indigenous tree. The wood is of good quality 

 but generally knotty, owing to the toughness of 

 the dead branches, which remain for years on the 

 stem. Broad-leaved trees have not been planted 

 so freely as Conifers, and there is only one of 

 any account which is indeed so widely distri- 

 buted as to be looked upon as a native. We 

 refer to Robinia Pseud acacia, which is most 

 useful on account of its soil-improving pro- 

 perties and the excellence of its timber, 

 which is indeed seldom to be found in 



best and 



any great size, but which is 



the 



most durable wood for fences, 

 thing else exposed to moisture 

 lans nigra, Populus canadensis 

 americana are to be found here 



any- 



Jug- 



posts, or 

 and air. 

 and Fraxinus 

 and there, but 

 mostly isolated. The latter is sometimes planted 

 instead of the common Aih, but as its timber is 

 inferior and its growth probably slower, such 

 plantings are not to be recommended. There 

 are, of course, many other plants which have 

 been tried at one time or another, but the above- 

 mentioned are all that have been planted in 

 any quantity, under what may be termed forest 

 conditions. The folly of planting large areas 

 with strange trees on the strength of their rapid 

 owth in the first few years, cannot be too 

 ighly condemned, as their behaviour at that 

 stage is by no means a proof that they will con- 

 tinue to thrive, and mistakes once made cannot 

 so easily be rectified. G. W. 



THE ALPINE GARDEN. 



the 



THE EDINBURGH ROCK-GARDEN. 



The rock-garden at the Edinburgh Royal 

 Botanical Gardens is interesting and beautiful at 

 all seasons of the year, and amongst much that 

 was attractive on the occasion of a visit re- 

 cently, notes of the following plants may prove of 

 interest. 



I had never realised that Primula marginata 

 was so hardy and effective until I saw it in a 

 great splash of pale mauve colour clothing a 

 broad, shady ledge in a cold and somewhat 

 draughty spot; it was a lovely and remarkable 

 sight. Primulas, of course, were in great force 

 throughout the rock-garden, and for vividness of 

 colouring it would be hard to beat the brilliant 

 flame-pink of P. rosea. It w r as flowering 

 profusely in two large patches, one in the 

 bog — where, for some reason or other the 

 leaves seemed badly withered — and one in a 

 low-lying, damp corner at the foot of a miniature 

 mountain-range. Two other species with habit 

 and leaves resembling P. marginata, only smaller 

 in every way, were P. Salomonii and P. viscosa ; 

 the former has large flowers of a most wonderful 

 bright violet-purple, those of the latter being rich 

 lilac-red in colour. P. Palinuri, of Italian origin, 

 was quite different in appearance and habit, 

 bearing yellow Cowslip-like blossoms on stems 

 about 10 inches high. P. Allionii is a peculiar 

 little species, with large, pale lilac flowers, 

 which appear to be stemless. It was growing 

 underneath an overhanging rock, which effectu- 

 ally protected it from wind and rain. P. den- 

 ticulata and its variety cashmeriana are too well 

 known to need description. I must not forget, 

 however, P. erosa, which is of similar appear- 

 ance, but handsomer, with larger flowers dis- 

 posed in looser heads ; if possible, it is even more 

 free-blooming, for, at the foot of some boulders, 

 the plants were each carrying from five to seven 



flowering stems. 



Primulas erosa and Salomonii were growing 

 together with P. leucophylla in the new part of 

 the rock-garden, which has been extended 

 very considerably during the last 12 months. A 

 valley has been formed and new mountain-ranges 



are springing up on two sides of the rockery. 

 In the valley-like region, already well filled with 

 new tenants, I found Tulipa siuiveolcns, brilliant 

 orange-scarlet, 8 inches to 12 inches ; Draba 

 cuspidata and D. Aizoon, with their tiny 

 lemon-yellow flowers; Skimmia Fortunei, 

 with its masses of scarlet berries drooping 

 over the crest of a high rock; a sheet of white, 

 where Arabis albida and its double variety flung 

 themselves down a sloping bank; Anenume 

 hepatica, still blooming gaily in crevices in deep 

 shade. On a bank higher up, leading away from 

 the valley, was a colony of Rhododendron Metter- 

 nichii, of Japanese origin, one of the most lovely 

 as surely it is one of the most free flowering of 

 this extensive genus. The handsome trusses 

 of large, clear-pink blossoms, with buds of 

 fiery, intense pink, are borne on sturdy, bushy 

 little plants about 2 feet, and produce a most 

 attractive effect. Epigaea repens was bloom- 

 ing freely in a damp nook, and, return- 

 ing to the older parts of the rock-garden, 

 I noticed some patches of that lovely little 

 plant, Shortia uniflora, with quantities of 

 its white, bell like flowers. Writing of damp 

 places reminds me that I was interested to note 

 what plants thrived in such localities, for all 

 rockeries must have their shaded and less-favour- 

 able spots. The following all seemed at home 

 in such places :— Saxifraga crassifolia and S. 

 lingulata, both nearly over; Ranunculus ficaria 

 var. alba, which is exactly like a pale coloured 

 "Celandine"; Ornithogalum Hausknechtii was 

 pushing up spikes of starry, green-and-white 

 flowers; Pulmonaria angustifolia was in full 

 bloom ; Draba Loiseleurii, D. hispanica, and D. 

 aizoides var. montana, all very similar. Arenaria 

 caespitosa, from Spain and Portugal, had its 

 mossy, green carpet covered with fat buds, of 

 which a few were open, while Anemone vernalis 

 was bearing numerous white, hairy bell-flowers. 

 In the most shaded part of all, along a ridge over- 

 hung by trees and exposed to much wind, I was 

 much struck to find a thriving colony of Iris 

 reticulata — a refreshing sight indeed in this 

 rather bleak and gloomy position. Close by were 

 several plants of Corydalis bulbosa, and a little 

 further on, among Ferns, were Anemone nemo- 

 rosa and A. Pulsatilla, the latter just opening, 

 the former^ fully out. Here, too, clothing 

 a neighbouring rock, was Berberis Darwinii, 

 covered with orange-tinted, drooping flowers. 

 Passing on to more genial aspects, I saw a most 

 gay and prolific little plant, Lathyrus ver- 

 nalis var. azureus, compact in habit, with count- 

 less upright spikes of bluish-lilac flowers, and 

 about 15 inches high. This species is also valu- 

 able for naturalising, and when walking through 

 a shady miniature pine-wood in another part of 

 the Botanical Gardens, I noticed several plants 

 blooming just as profusely as in the more- 

 favoured and sunny position in the rockery. Many 

 Heaths were out in great form, especially Erica 

 carnea and its white variety, E. mediterranea 

 hybrida was also fine, the type being somewhat 

 shabby-looking. Close by was a large stretch of 

 Bryanthus empetriformis opening its pink buds 

 to the sun, while a small patch of B. taxifolius 

 was not so far advanced. Daphne Blagayana was 

 blooming very freely on a sloping ledge. 



I have onlv mentioned two members of the 

 Saxifrage family, but others were to be met at 

 almost every turn. The specie^ that was at its 

 highest perfection on the day of my visit, pre- 

 senting a sheet of large, white flowers, was S. 

 Petraschii, while three showy and well-known 

 species — although just past their prime — were 

 S. sancta, S. apiculata and S. Elizabethae. S. 

 Burseriana and its varieties crenata, speciosa, 

 and multiflora were nearly over, as also was the 

 hybrid S. Salomonii. Three very similar-looking 

 species were present in S. Rocheliana, S. scardica 

 (from Greece), and S. dalmatica, while, like them 

 in habit, were S. Haagii, but which bore bright- 



?ellow flowers, and S. eudoxiana, with pale-yel- 

 ow blossoms. A very distinct little Saxifrage 

 was S. pseudo-sancta, bearing several bright 

 lemon-yellow flowers. 



The whole rock-garden was full of bulbous 

 plants peeping out from numberless nooks and 

 crannies. Here it might be Narcissus cycla- 

 mineus or N. bulbocodium; there Erythronium 

 Dens-canis or Puschkinia scilloides compacta; 

 while Scillas of different species and varieties 

 abounded on every side, and made gay many 

 bare corners with their bright and cheerful littla 

 blue or white flowers. M. E. Stebhivg. 



