October i8, 1893.] 



Garden and Forest. 



437 



autumn, is the little southern tree known as the Franklinia, 

 Gordonia Altamaha, also found in trade catalogues under the 

 name of Gordonia pubescens. At Philadelphia or Washington 

 the climate allows this plant to attain to the stature of a small 

 tree ; but at the Arboretum, after growing in its present posi- 

 tion for about eight years, it is a several-stemmed shrub eight 

 or ten feet high. Moreover, it is necessary every autumn here 

 to bend its stems over, to as near the ground as possible, and 

 protect them from the rigors of winter with leaves, soil or 

 other protecting material. After pegging the branches down, 

 the best protection is afforded by putting dry leaves over and 

 among them, and then covering the whole with soil thrown up 

 in the form of a little mound, so as to shed the rains. It might 

 pass the winters without such protection if planted in the shel- 

 ter of some warm walls. In any case, it is well worth any ex- 

 tra care bestowed upon it. The large, dark, evergreen-look- 

 ing foliage is always handsome, but it is the large, globu- 

 lar or pear-shaped buds and blossoms which are the re- 

 ward of the painstaking cultivator. These are pure white. 

 and composed of five broad incurved petals, surrounding and 

 enclosing a great nurnberof yellow stamensandanthers. They 

 never open very widely, like a rose, but at full bloom maintain 

 a seemingly half-expanded position. The odor is delicate and 

 sweet and suggestive of tea, and, indeed, this Gordonia, or 

 Franklinia, is about the nearest American representative we 

 have of the Tea-plant of the Orient. The blossoms begin to 

 open in September, and are continuously produced, a few at a 

 time, until the growing, unripe twigs and buds are destroyed 

 by frosts. 



Although this is a distinctly American plant, having been 

 found near Fort Harrington, on the Altamaha River, in Georgia, 

 in the last century, it is not now known anywhere in a wild 

 state, and the plants in cultivation are the descendants of those 

 collected by early botanical explorers in the south. It may be 

 propagated readily by layers or cuttings. In common with the 

 Witch-hazel, the Franklinia has the unusual habit of not ma- 

 turing its fruit until the next autumn, wlienit is again in bloom. 



Although it is long since Caryopteris Mastacanthus was first 

 introduced into cultivation, this beautiful little plant is rarely 

 found in gardens. It is a smooth, branchy little shrub, having 

 much the habit of a Ceanothus or Callicarpa. to which latter 

 family it is allied. C. Mastacanthus does not appear to be truly 

 hardy in this latitude, although it has not been fairly tested out- 

 of-doors with a proper winter covering. But it blossoms so 

 late and so profusely, and is altogether so attractive, that it is 

 well worth the trouble to lift it in autumn and place it in a pit 

 or cold frame, and to replant it again in the spring. There are 

 dry, sunny, sheltered spots even about Boston where it might 

 possibly live and thrive without removal in winter. The flow- 

 ers, which are individually small, are borne in close corymb or 

 umbel-like clusters in the axils of the opposite leaves and on 

 all the branches. Blossoming begins in September, and as the 

 twigs continue to grow, new flower buds are produced with 

 each new pair of leaves, until further growth is checked by 

 cold weather and frosts. The blossoms are of a rich violet or 

 lavender-blue color, and have a slight aromatic fragrance. 

 The foliage, green above, is soft, downy and hoary white be- 

 neath, and when bruised it gives outa very powerful, pungent, 

 aromatic odor strongly suggestive of some plants of the Mint 

 family, although this plant is generally classed in the Verbena 

 family. It may be readily propagated by cuttings. 

 Jamaica Plain, Mass. J . G. Jack. 



Notes from a Northern Garden. 



Zephyranthes concolor, a Mexican species, which flowers 

 in July, is a shy bloomer here. Out of over a hundred ap- 

 parently strong, healthy bulbs only two flowered. It is a pity 

 if this is its general habit, for it is one of the most beautiful 

 species. The flower is of good size — an inch and a half wide — 

 of a delicate creamy yellow, shaded with green outside. Its 

 numerous leaves are a foot or more in length by half an inch 

 wide, slightly glaucous and nearly erect. 



OiNOTHERA MISSOURIENSIS, now in flower from seed sown 

 last May, is an attractive and free-blooming species with light 

 lemon-yellow flowers, quite conspicuous. The plant is low in 

 habit, about six inches high, and the flowers, not rarely four or 

 five inches wide, on stems about six inches in length. It likes 

 full sunlight, a sandy or gravelly soil and good drainage. 



Lepachys columnaris has been in flower for more than a 

 month from seed sown in May. It is a desirable plant. The 

 typical species, with plain yellow rays, is pretty enough, but the 

 variety Pulcherrima is by far the most striking. It grows 

 about two feet high, branchingfrom the bottom. The columnar 

 disk is often over an inch in length by half as thick at the base. 



The large drooping rays, five in number, are from one to one 

 and a half inches in length and nearly as wide. The inner 

 portion of each ray is brown-purple, with a yellow space out- 

 side. The flowers are very durable and the stems of good 

 length for cutting. 

 Charlolte, Vt. F. H. H. 



Roses. 



'T'HE outdoor Rose season is now almost at an end, except- 

 -*■ ing in some favored localities where the plants have been 

 protected from the early frost. Prominent among the varie- 

 ties that have added to their established reputation is the old 

 favorite, La France, which is decidedly one of the best sum- 

 mer Roses we have, either under glass or outdoors. While it 

 sometimes loses a portion of its wood during severe winters, 

 even in the latitude of Philadelphia, yet it is usually satisfac- 

 tory, and I have seen good flowers on La France outdoors 

 within two weeks (October 9th), and on plants that have been 

 flowering freely through nearly the whole season. 



Marie Guillot is another well-known sort that gives satisfac- 

 tion in this locality, its firm and full flowers being admirable 

 for cutting, and it is also a continuous bloomer. Papa Gontier 

 also does well, making stronggrowth with peculiarly attractive 

 foliage and very highly colored buds outdoors in the full sun- 

 shine. But this Rose, having but few petals, is necessarily 

 best in the bud state, and should be cut early in the morning 

 before the flowers expand too niuch. 



Hermosa is another general favorite in this locality, for al- 

 though its blooms are not large, the color is pleasing, and it 

 probably deserves thedesignation of ever-blooming more than 

 many other varieties to which it has been applied. That pretty 

 little Polyantha, Clothilde Soupert, is about the best of its class 

 at present. It shows much power to withstand drought and 

 other disadvantages, and can scarcely be found without flow- 

 ers. I have noted this variety during the past summer, both 

 in this locality and also in the parks and gardens of Chicago 

 and St. Louis, and while the latter cities are both quite trying 

 to outdoor Roses, it comes through hardships in better condi- 

 tion than most other varieties, and gives a good effect when 

 massed in a bed. 



Dinsmore is also a good bedding Rose, free in growth and 

 bearing abundant flowers of very bright color. Marie Van 

 Houtte should not be omitted in the list of outdoor Roses, as 

 it is one of the finest Teas for this purpose, giving an abun- 

 dance of good-sized flowers all through the season, the yellow- 

 ish white of its flowers being pleasantly relieved by the pink 

 tinting of the outer petals. Perle des Jardins endured a tem- 

 perature of twelve degrees below zero here last winter, and 

 though somewhat crippled by the loss of a considerable por- 

 tion of its wood, it recovered sufficiently to produce a few 

 fairly good flowers during the summer. It is quite probable, 

 however, that this variety would be entirely winter-killed a few 

 degrees further north than this, and it cannot, therefore, be 

 safely recommended as a hardy Rose. 



Among the hybrid Perpetuals, General Jacqueminot con- 

 tinues a favorite in this locality, being of such an excellent 

 constitution that a crop of flowers can generally be depended 

 on, and frequently another, though lighter, crop in the fall. 

 Paul Meyron is another reliable sort, and though its very large 

 flowers are not so gracefully formed as those of some other 

 varieties, yet their color is pleasing, and they add much to the 

 beauty of the garden. Mrs. John Laing and Mademoiselle 

 Gabrielle Luizet are as satisfactory for outdoor use in most lo- 

 calities as they are for indoor forcing, thus proving their gen- 

 eral value, and Ulrich Brunner and John Hopper arealso tirst- 

 class sorts for the garden, the latter being less common than 

 it merits of late years. ,-, ,, „, , 



Holmesburg, Pa. iV. H. laplttl. 



The Vegetable-garden. 



TT ARD frost may be expected now, and with it will come the 

 -*■ ■*■ work of cleaning up the vegetable-garden of the plants of 

 Tomatoes, Beans, Corn and other tender vegetables. Root 

 crops and vegetables generally of the Brassica family will 

 stand much longer, often making the best part of their growth 

 during the cool autumn. Raspberry-canes out of bearing may 

 be cut away, and enough of this year's canes selected for next 

 season. Although some varieties, notably the Cuthbert and 

 almost all the black-fruited sorts, will generally endure the 

 winter unprotected, they are occasionally injured, and it is 

 safer to lay them down and give them some protection. 



Batches of Lettuce and Endive may be stored in frames 

 where they can be protected with sashes, an abundance of 

 sunlight and air being given them on every fine day. With 



