I04 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 368. 



ing period of summer so as to stimulate each nut tuljer and 

 seed to sprout. It is a waste of effort to attack Coco in winter, 

 either by digging or plowing, or turning hogs on it. The best 

 time for fighting it is between midsummer and frost time. 

 Although myriads of the sprigs will show themselves above 

 ground in a day or two after each working of the soil, even in 

 the spring months, yet no seed-stem will shoot up till late in 

 the season, and the secret of success, as before remarked, is 



^s9'~^~; ->y=;^^r' 









Fig. 16.— Sjjanisli Oak, Quercub di^it ita — Sec ]> 



merely to cut down every tall stem, while in the flowering 

 stage at the latest, and the sooner the better. The old method 

 for destroying Coco, by cutting it off under the surface of the 

 ground every time a sprig appears above the surface, is a use- 

 less expenditure of labor. The ground should be often stirred 

 with the plow or hoe, from April to frost, as before mentioned, 

 to make every nut and seed come up if possible, and as soon 

 as possible, but there is no urgent necessity, as far as eradicat- 

 ing the grass is concerned, to kill its sprigs until they begin to 

 shoot up seed-stalks. For this purpose it is only requisite to 

 plow or chop down the grass at the regular intervals of work- 

 ing Indian Corn, CoUards, or any other crop. Still it is advisa- 

 ble to plant the land in some tall-growing crop which shall 

 neither cover nor obscure the Coco seed-stems, and thus keep 

 them from being observed and destroyed. By the above 

 method two years are ample time in wdiich to rid any ground 

 of Coco. In fact, one season is sufficient to eradicate it, 

 except that a few scattering sprigs will show themselves in 

 subsequent years, which can easily be prevented from going 

 to seed by close attention. One cause that has enabled Coco 

 so long and so defiantly to hold its sway in the soutli is that we 

 have so few crops which are hoed or plowed in the fall of the 

 year. This, together with the popular error that Coco propa- 

 gates from the nut alone, explains the wdiole story of its uni- 

 versal triumph over the patience, sweat, curses and blows of 

 the millions who have warred on it. 



Vineland. N. J. JI/a/J'Tiea/. 



Plant Notes. 



Kerria Japonica. — A recent number of Tl/e Garden 

 speaks of the cheerful green tint of the long slender 

 branches of Kerria Japonica in the winter-time. We can 

 add that what is true of this plant in the soft climate of 



England is equally true here, where the yellowish green 

 stems of the Kerria, better known here as the old-fashioned 

 Corchorus of our gardens, rival the Willows and Cornels in 

 their pleasing effects, especially when they stand out in 

 contrast to the drab or dead brown of many other shrubs. 

 The double-flowered form of this Kerria, which is closely 

 allied to the Pearl Bush, or Exochorda, has long been a 

 favorite in country gardens because of its easy propaga- 

 tion, its ability to endure considerable shade and to the 

 fact that it bears a few scattered flowers occasionally all 

 summer long. A much more beautiful shrub is the rarer 

 single-flowered form, the flowers of which are nearly an 

 incli and a half across, and produced singly on slender 

 stalks, where their five bright yellow petals and numerous 

 long stamens are seen to first-rate advantage against the 

 light green foliage. This vi'as one of the first plants ever 

 introduced from Japan, and it is still among the very best. 

 As we have said, it is beautiful in winter, beautiful in early 

 June with its bright flowers, and in early November it is 

 one of the most distinct ornaments of the shrubbery, when 

 its foliage turns to a clear sunny yellow, which is unsur- 

 passed. In good ground the Kerria attains a height of six 

 feet or more, and it becomes as broad as it is high. It is 

 perfectly hardy in this latitude, although farther north the 

 ends of the branches are sometimes killed in winter. The 

 single-flowered kind is quite superior to the other, but, for 

 some reason, it is seldom seen in shrubberies, and, indeed, 

 until recently it could hardly be found in American nurseries. 



Symplocos crattegoides. — A. correspondent inquires the 

 name of the Japanese shrub vi'ith blue berries. There are 

 species of Viburnum, Vitis and other genera with fruits 

 more or less blue or purple, but perhaps the plant sought 

 for is Symplocos crataegoides, or, as it was formerly called, 

 Symplocos paniculatus, a hardy shrub sent to this country 

 from Japan nearly a quarter of a century ago and distributed 

 by Messrs. Parsons, of Flushing. Though it has been 

 known so long it is still by no means a common inhabitant 

 of our gardens, although its clean foliage, graceful flowers 

 and almost unique fruitage ought to command a place for 

 it in every considerable collection. It was figured in Gar- 

 den AND Forest, vol. v., page 89, vi'here the vi'hite flowers, 

 each less than half an inch across when expanded, and 

 borne in short loose panicles, and the racemes of fruit each 

 one being the size of a pea, and borne on the last year's 

 growth, are well shown in Mr. Faxon's drawing. But what 

 gives the plant its singular value is the deep ultramarine 

 blue color of its fruit, which is borne in great abundance. 

 It is a broad tree-like shrub with dark green leaves, softly 

 pubescent on the under side, and which have so far in this 

 country been free from the attacks of insects and fungi. 



DiPLARRHENA MoR^A. — This is an interesting Tasmanian 

 Iridaceous plant with curious habit, which bears very 

 pretty flowers. The plant has narrow leaves, which grow 

 in clusters, and increases by new shoots from its short 

 creeping rhizomes. It also throws out thin wiry stems 

 from the bases of the clusters, and on these flowers are 

 borne singly, but in frequent succession. These stems, 

 which are not larger than an oat-straw, keep growing in 

 length, and finally produce new plants. Mr. Endicott, in 

 an early number of Garden and Forest, spoke of a stem 

 that had grown to a length of ten feet in his greenhouse. 

 The flowers are charming in appearance, but very fuga- 

 cious, lasting at most only a few hours. They are Morrea- 

 like in form — nearly flat. The large segments are white, 

 with orange spots ; the small segments are v^'hite and nar- 

 row. The stigmas form a purplish central crown. The 

 flower is about two inches in diameter, and is followed by 

 seeds borne in long-pointed three-sided capsules, the planes 

 of which are concave. As will be seen, this plant is readily 

 increased. It offers no difficulties in cultivation, and there 

 are few greenhouse plants which will survive more neglect, 

 as it seems insensible to drought. 



Jatropha podagrica. — This is an interesting euphorbi- 

 aceous plant from New Guiana. Cassava and tapioca are 

 made from the roots of some species of Jatropha, but this 



