September i, 1897.] 



Garden and Forest. 



347 



is taken to plant them in somewhat shaded situations, other- 

 wise they neither grow nor flower quile so freely. The plants 

 make such a host of underground tubercles that it is only 

 necessary to lift a few of them in the fall by inserting a trowel 

 under the middle portion of the plant, and transfer them with 

 the soil to a box. The kinds should be kept separate, and the 

 boxes stand in a moderately warm dry place during winter. 



Papaver rupifragum is almost past its second blooming 

 since the plants were put out in the spring. The seed capsules 

 were cut off after the first flowering, the stems cut rather 

 close, and they soon branched out again, producing hundreds 

 of rather small flowers on each plant. The flowers are dull 

 red, the leaves grayish green. Salvia Pitched is only coming 

 into flower. This lovely species needs renewing every now 

 and then to have it at its btst. 



Potentilla fruticosa, the native shrubby Cinque-foil, now in 

 full flower, makes a desirable shrub for use among rocks. It 

 can be trimmed to any shape or cut down annually if need be. 

 Spiraea Anthony Waterer, after two years' trial, has fulfilled all 

 the claims made for it. Since early spring it has never been 

 out of bloom, and the bushes are not a toot high yet. Plants 

 started into growth indoors early in the season will give a 

 cutting from nearly every bud. They are as easy to root as 

 Coleus. 



Hydrolea spinosa being a blue flower and a very prelty one 

 should have a place in every large garden. It is apt to run to 

 seed 111 a short time it it is not watched. If planted in clumps 

 it is well to nip off half the shoots when they get to a certain 

 height and let the other halt bloom. By the time the first lot 

 are done flowering the others will take their places, when 

 those which flowered first should be divested of their seed 

 vessels. These shoots will bloom again later on. 



Anoda aceritolia, a malvaceous plant from Mexico, is 

 evidently closely allied to Calhrhoe. The flowers are about 

 the same size and color as those of the well-known C. invo- 

 lucrata. Instead of a few straggling stems, as is the case with 

 the Callirhoe, ihe Anoda will cover several square feet with 

 a dense mass of creeping shoots. It is just coming into bloom 

 now, and until checked by cold weather it will be an attractive 

 object. It is not hardy with us, but it ripens seeds in abun- 

 dance. 



Lilium lancifolium roseum and L. album are among the 

 most satisfactory of the genus with us, coming up regularly 

 every year and producing six and eight blooms to the stalk. 

 A top-dressing of manure each fall seems to suit them. L. 

 Michauxii does fairly well, and L. auratum succeeds only the 

 first year after planting, dwindling each season afterwards 

 until it dies. 



Plumbago Larpentse, or as it is now called, Ceratostigma 

 plumbaginoides, is, perhaps, the prettiest of our blue flowered 

 hardy perennials. It is well adapted for rock-work, as it grows 

 only a tew inches high, and in favorable situations it blooms 

 from midsummer until frost. This species was grown as a 

 stove plant tor a long time after its introduction. Although 

 perfectly hardy it does best in countries having a high summer 

 temperature. 



Chtoria ternatea has flowers quite as large as the native C. 

 Mariana; the color is blue or white. It is best treated as an 

 annual, and if sown earlv it will cover an astonishing amount of 



space. 



Botanic Garden, Washington, D. C. 



G. IV. Oliver. 



Correspondence. 



The Green Scale of Coffee. 



To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir,— It seems desirable to record the fact that the green 

 Coffee scale of Ceylon, so destructive in that country, has been 

 found on Coffee in Sao Paulo, Brazil, by Dr. von Ihering. The 

 specimens, just received from the S. Paulo Museum, agree 

 excellently with others sent from Ceylon by Mr. E. E. Green. 

 The insect is a species of Lecanium (L. viride, Green) very 

 similar to our common L. hesperidum, but considerably 

 smaller, and of a green color. 



Mesilla, N. M. 



T. D. A. Cockerel/. 



Hardiness of the Montbretias. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — I read with interest in your issue for August 1 8th the 

 note on Crocosmia aurea imperialis by Mr. Gerard, whose 

 articles I have greatly enjoyed and profited by. Mr. Gerard 

 states that " the Montbretias only have been tried here, but 



have never survived in the open." In New Hampshire we 

 have a severe climate, occasionally twenty degrees below 

 zero, and no protecting snow, perhaps, at the time, and the 

 ground freezes to the depth of from two and a half to four feet. 

 Two years ago this fall I set in the open a lot of Montbretia 

 crocosmia flora, and gave them a covering of leaves only. 

 They have passed through two severe winters, have greatly 

 increased in numbers, and to-day are in full bloom. Again, 

 the year before I caused to be planted in a cemetery in which 

 I am interested a lot of M. Pottsii, giving them the same treat- 

 ment, and with about the same results, though a few never 

 came to the surface. Mr. J. Woodward Manning, of Reading, 

 Massachusetts, when visiting the cemetery with me spoke of 

 M. Pottsii as being very tender, and was surprised to see it 

 thriving here grown in this way. The soil in each case is a 

 sandy loam with good drainage, with full exposure and no 

 protecting trees or fences. This winter I propose trying a few 

 plants wholly unprotected, to test the results of this treatment. 



Nashua, N. H. C. IV. Hoitt. 



Japan Plums. 



To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — This new race of garden Plums has been regarded with 

 much interest recently, principally, perhaps, because of the 

 claim made that the Japan Plums do not become a prey 

 to the black-knot fungus that has made it practically impossi- 

 ble of late years to grow the older race of garden Plums. 



We have an almost complete set of these Plums under trial 

 so far as they are now in commerce, and this year have been able 

 to judge what the fruit is like. Prunus Simoni is the progenitor 

 of this race, and while that species is a rather poor truit it is 

 very distinct, both in shape, flavor and habit of growth. There 

 is an unpleasant astringency in the skin of the fruit that affects 

 preserves even, and it is necessary to peel the fruit to avoid 

 this unpleasant flavor. But the value of P. Simoni is as a fruit 

 for hybridists to work with. 



The best Japan Plum we have found thus far is the Burbank, 

 so named after its raiser, and which seems to be a cross be- 

 tween Prunus Simoni and one of our native Plums. There is 

 certainly no finer plum in cultivation to-day if we take into 

 consideration its hardiness, free growth and the large size and 

 excellent flavor of its fruit. The tree was in full bloom this 

 spring when a severe frost occurred that ruined most other 

 trees in bloom, but the Burbank Plum came through well and 

 did not seem hurt in the least. The growth made in the first 

 two years after planting was phenomenal, about six feet all 

 over the tree, and no signs of winter-killing were visible. The 

 fruit is as large as a moderate-sized peach, with yellow flesh 

 and a very small stone. We have decided to gra't all the older 

 kinds of Plum with the Burbank next spring. This will have 

 the effect of modifying the growth somewhat, and may event- 

 ually be an unequal union of stock and scion. This resulted 

 when P. Simoni was worked on the common sorts that had 

 been subject to black-knot, but otherwise the effect was good. 



Another Plum we have fruited to a limited extent this year 

 is the Kelsey. It is a much smaller fruit than the Burbank, 

 greenish yellow in color, somewhat like the Green Gage, but 

 not so good in flavor, and it is not a very vigorous grower. It 

 will need another year's trial before we can tell of its value 

 with certainty. 



The Abundance Plum is said to excel the Burbank in all 

 respects. I shall be surprised to find this a fact, and it does 

 not now seem impossible. It is highly recommended for 

 planting for market, and a great many of the trees have been 

 set out in this district. We have not fruited it yet, but hope to 

 next year. Among others that are on trial are the Wickson 

 and Satsuma, of Japanese origin. All have proved hardy, free 

 from disease and not subject to any insect attacks. The only 

 objection to be brought against them is their spreading habit, 

 but if this characteristic had been known earlier it could have 

 been corrected by pruning. The knife should be used freely 

 on young trees to bring them into shape and keep them com- 

 pact, so as to prevent breakage to the trees hereafter by heavy 

 crops of fruit. 



To those who wish to grow Plums in the garden I advise the 

 trying of a set of these Japan Plums, as there seems to be good 

 reason to believe that they will be the Plums of the future 

 when the black-knot has wiped the older race out of existence. 

 This pest is hard to control when the hedgerows are full of 

 native species of Prunus, and these trees serve for its propa- 

 gation. Fruit growers have considered it hopeless to be able 

 to fight the fungus, and are planting the Japanese Plums in 

 place of the native kinds. In planting it should be borne in 

 mind that a much greater distance is needed between the trees 



