158 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 321. 



to Max Leichtlin, appears above ground in November, and has 

 not been injured by freezing. It is either a very shy-flowering 

 or deliberate plant, as it now flowers for the first time, having 

 been planted three years ago, at which time the bulb was ap- 

 parently a strong one. I. orchioides, which is of the same 

 family, is also in flower, and is similar in habit and foliage to 

 the first-named species. It has bright yellow flowers, with a 

 small blotch of brown on the fall. Unlike those of I. Sindja- 

 rensis, the flowers spring from the axils of the leaves. 



Elizabeth, N.J. J.N.G. 



Petunias. — A new strain of Petunias, said to have been origi- 

 nated in California, has proved very satisfactory with me. 

 The seedsmen are selling them under different names, Giant 

 of California being the name under which I bought them. I 

 know of nothing among our more familiar flowers that better 

 illustrates the power of selection. These flowers are four to 

 five inches across, and of the most intense and brilliant hues. 

 They are so far from coarseness that I think them decidedly 

 more delicate in appearance than the older sorts. The plant 

 is more woody and the foliage is not as fine. The flowers are 

 often fringed and ruffled on the edges, some of them self- 

 colored, but usually veined or splashed or striped with vivid 

 markings. The substance of the petal is very heavy and 

 thick, and the flowers emit a delightful perfume. 



Clinton, N. Y. E. P. P. 



The Chinese Wistaria. — This is a rampant grower, and will 

 easily cover a thousand square feet in a few years. It has a 

 decided tendency to produce an overplus of long, smooth, 

 flowerless canes. In young specimens these should be se- 

 lected with care, with a view to the proper distribution of the 

 plant's energies in later years. Flowering wood may always 

 be known by its short-jointed, stag-horn-like growth, absence 

 of climbing spines, a conspicuous development of flower-buds 

 and darker-colored bark. I am particular to make this dis- 

 tinction, as several amateur acquaintances of mine have been 

 cutting away each year the "scrubby" growth and leaving the 

 "good strong shoots," and then wondering why their vines do 

 not bloom. 



Wellesley. Mass. T. D. Hatfield. 



Correspondence. 



Hedges for Cold Climates. 



To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — I wish to make some inquiries about plants for an 

 ornamental hedge about a formal flower-garden in Berkshire, 

 Massachusetts. We have tried California Privet, which, so far 

 as appearance goes, is very desirable, but on our exposed ter- 

 race it was winter-killed after three seasons. Is the Japanese 

 Privet hardy ? Is not Hemlock too coarse for a hedge about 

 a garden within a garden, so to speak ? Would you advise (he 

 Siberian Thuya, which is yellowish-green in color ? Many 

 plants which pass the winter here in safety seem to be over- 

 come by the freezing nights and hot noon-day sun of March. 



New York. C. o. C. 



[Several species of Privet, or Ligustrum, can be grown to 

 form first-rate hedges, but in a climate like that of Berk- 

 shire, Massachusetts, probably the common Privet, Ligus- 

 trum vulgare, would be the most reliable in point of hardi- 

 ness. Ligustrum Ibota, from northern Asia, would doubt- 

 less be hardy, and it will probably prove useful for hedges, 

 but its adaptability for this purpose has not as yet been 

 tested. The Chinese and Japanese Ligustrum ovalifolium 

 is hardy in the vicinity of Boston, and is very largely used 

 for hedges about Newport and other places, but it is prob- 

 ably not hardy enough to make a reliable hedge-plant in 

 the Berkshire region. It is a much handsomer species than 

 the common Privet, and is commonly sold by nurserymen 

 under the name of Californian Privet. All the Privets have 

 white flowers, but when clipped as hedges few blossoms 

 are produced. They make excellent hedges, bear pruning 

 or clipping remarkably well, and in this climate they have 

 the merit of holding their leaves until very late in the 

 autumn. 



For stronger deciduous hedges Beech, Honey Locust or 

 Buckthorn will be found to answer well, and be quite 

 hardy in western Massachusetts. Barberry will make a 

 very pretty, though not very tall, hedge, and several other 

 deciduous shrubs may be used. The Japan Quince serves 



the purpose admirably in the latitude of New York, but it 

 can hardly be trusted to endure the winters of western 

 Massachusetts. Spireea Thunbergii would probably serve 

 as a low hedge. 



Among evergreens, Hemlock, Norway and White Spruce 

 and Arbor-vita; make excellent hedges, and prove quite 

 hardy in regions where the winters are very rigorous. 

 Hemlock makes the more beautiful, Norway Spruce the 

 more rigid and impassable hedge. The American Arbor- 

 vita; is now cultivated in many forms, produced by selec- 

 tion and artificial propagation. They vary in coloration, in 

 compactness and density of foliage and branches and in 

 the size and habit of the plants. These so-called varieties 

 are adapted for hedges or borders a foot or two high, or 

 for hedges or screens up to ten feet or more in height The 

 evergreen sold by nurserymen as Siberian Thuja, or Sibe- 

 rian Arbor-vita;, also as Thuja Tatarica and Thuja Sibirica, 

 generally proves to be simply a fine form of our common 

 Arbor-vita;, Thuja occidentalis, which was originally 

 sold as T. occidentalis, Wareana. It has darker foliage, 

 and in some other respects it is considered superior to 

 many of the forms on the lists for making hedges and 

 screens. 



In trimming or clipping hedges of Hemlock, Spruce or 

 Arbor-vita; into formal shape they should be cut with the 

 sides sloping up to the apex, so as to be wider at the bot- 

 tom than the top. Thus the lower branches will get more 

 light and air than they would if the sides of the hedge were 

 perpendicular, and they will not be so likely to lose their 

 leaves and die. — Ed.] 



Late Frosts in the South-west. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — Spring in the southern Ozarks is a particularly exaspe- 

 rating season. Apparently it is early, and so seductive 

 are the south-land zephyrs and genial sunshine that each 

 year we disregard our former experiences and believe that 

 summer has come. Then the northern gales sweep down 

 upon us with frosts, and possibly sleet in their train, and all 

 our flowers are seared and ruined. Too often our flattering 

 prospects of an abundant fruit-crop are swept away in a 

 night. Each year has these trying fluctuations, but this spring 

 has presented the most marked extremes ever known to the 

 oldest inhabitant. After a month of almost summer weather, 

 March went out in snow, hail, sleet and severe freezing. The 

 damage done to fruit alone is incalculable, many trees being 

 killed outright. 



Our shade and fruit trees, ornamental shrubbery and mis- 

 cellaneous planting suffered severely. Yet, now that fair, sunny, 

 weather is once more here, we find the damage to our orna- 

 mental planting much less than we had supposed, and in less 

 than a week after the great storm our grounds are bright with 

 bud and bloom. This is the result of precaution, not of 

 chance. In view of our uncertain springs, we have long since 

 settled on a course of action, which, in brief, is this : (1) Early 

 blooming shrubs and vines, whose large size makes all outer 

 covering inexpedient, are planted at the north and east part of 

 our grounds, so as to be sheltered from the south wind by build- 

 ings as much as possible. This makes the flower-buds swell 

 at least two weeks later than they otherwise would, and, in 

 most seasons, insures safety from injury by late frosts. 

 (2) Early spring bulbs and perennials are given the advantage 

 ot every sunny slope or southern exposure, to facilitate early 

 maturity. The earlier sorts are generally well out of the way 

 lie fore the reactionary equinoctial and Easter storms make their 

 appearance, while the medium and later spring sorts can be 

 covered, even if in full bloom, should a cold wave be upon 

 us, and so escape destruction. We always keep on hand a 

 liberal supply of old carpets, gunny sacks, etc., ready to cover 

 our flower-beds at a moment's notice. Besides this, our beds 

 are always given a heavy mulching in the late fall, and, blank- 

 eted both at root and top, are able to endure severe cold. 



We who live in an intermediate latitude, between north and 

 south, must expect many rapid alternations of heat and cold. 

 To escape injury to our spring and early summer display of 

 flowers, we must retard premature vegetation in the spring, 

 or else afford ample protection during severe weather. I can 

 illustrate (he value of this advice from our own experience. 



First as to retardation : For seven years we had in our south 



