2l8 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 327. 



unpruned to the very last. Florists who force hybrid Roses 

 are well aware that pruning starts their plants to grow. They 

 take advantage of this fact to get a succession of flowers by 

 pruning a part only of the plants at one time. This brings 

 them along, one lot after another. 



Referring to the loss of plants by late freezings, of which 

 Professor Massey speaks, I may say that, except the flowers of 

 Magnolia conspicua, which were ahead of others by a few 

 days, not a fruit-tree nor an ornamental tree of any kind was 

 injured here either by late frosts or the winter weather. 



Germantown, Pa. Josefi/l Median. 



Correspondence. 

 Transplanted Trees. 



To the Editor of Garden and Forest: 



Sir, — In the winter of 1891-92 I transplanted on my grounds 

 at Corn wall-on-the- Hudson a large Horse-chestnut-tree. During 

 the first summer the tree naturally did not show much vigor. 

 In the spring of 1893 the leaves and blossoms started well, but 

 soon commenced to blight, and their growth seemed to stop; 

 this spring the tree acted in much the same manner. 



The soil is heavy clay, with an underlay of rock. Everything 

 was done to make the transplanting successful, with the pos- 

 sible exception that the tree may not have been cut back suffi- 

 ciently. Will you advise me how the tree may be helped ? 



Young Horse-chestnuts planted in the spring of 1892 show 

 the same weakness evident in the larger tree, but in a less de- 

 gree, while young Maples and Lindens, also planted in the 

 spring of 1892, are doing well. 



Cornwall-on-the-Hudson, N. Y. D. G. 



[Large transplanted trees should not be allowed to be- 

 come dry at the roots until they are well established ; and 

 the vitality of this Horse-chestnut can probably be 

 strengthened by giving it an abundant supply of water 

 at the roots in dry weather. The best way to water 

 a large tree is to make a shallow dish about the trunk 

 extending out as far from the trunk as the ball of the 

 roots, and then fill the dish with water; after the water 

 has soaked away, the operation may be repeated until the 

 whole ball and the ground about the tree is thoroughly 

 saturated. The soil should then be replaced and a good 

 mulch of hay or freshly cut grass put over it to check 

 evaporation and keep the ground cool and moist. A 

 newly planted tree is often helped, if the lower part of the 

 trunk is bare of branches, by protecting this from the sun 

 by wrapping it with straw or cloth. Syringing the foliage 

 and branches late in the afternoon or early in the morning 

 is also beneficient to newly planted trees. — Ed.] 



Gardens in Wellesley, Massachusetts. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — A visit to Wellesley is always pleasurable, but at no 

 season of the year is it more so than toward the end of May. 

 The Rhododendrons and hardy Azaleas are now coming into 

 bloom and will soon make a magnificent display, when Mr. 

 H. H. Hunnewell's beautiful estate will be visited by thou- 

 sands, as in previous years at this season. Apart from these 

 special features there are endless objects of interest which 

 cannot fail to impress the visitor. The Italian garden is 

 always fresh and inviting, and the view from its summit over 

 Wellesley Lake, with its well-wooded banks and the beautiful 

 college on the opposite heights, is sufficient to repay one for 

 a visit at any season of the year. The more tender Rhodo- 

 dendrons, golden and silver Hollies, Irish Yews, Araucaria 

 imbricata and other shrubs and conifers are now all in their 

 summer quarters. The large circular tent devoted to 

 Azalea Indiea contains a fine assortment of specimens 

 which will be at their best toward the end of May. In the con- 

 servatory, in a good collection of fancy Pelargoniums, the 

 most striking are Duchess of Teck and Madame Thibaut, and 

 large quantities of Liliums, Deutzias, Spirseas, Polygalas, etc., 

 give this house a very cheerful appearance. In the division 

 chiefly devoted to Orchids is a rich showing of these plants 

 in flower. Cattleyas are the leading feature, and com- 

 prise quantities of C. Mossis in variety, superba being the 

 finest form, C. Mendelii, C. Warneri, C. Lawrenciana and C. 

 citrina. Some very fine baskets of Dendrobium crassinode 

 and D. Wardianum are suspended from the roof. C. nobile 

 nobilius and others of the nobile family are on the wane, but 



D. Dalhousianum is in fine bloom. Among the Cypripedi- 

 ums C. grande is now in fine condition, also C. Swanianum 

 and C. /Enanthum superbum. The charming pure white 

 Angnecum Sanderiana is represented by some well-flowered 

 specimens. Lselia cinnabarina is in excellent condition, and 

 there are capital specimens of Chysis aurea, Cymbidium 

 eburneum, Trichopilia suavis, and Odontoglossums in vari- 

 ety. Considerable skill is required to check the Orchids so 

 that they shall flower along with the Rhododendrons, for the 

 natural blooming season of many of the species is much 

 earlier, and many plants suffer somewhat from the retarding 

 process. In another plant-house a nice batch of /Erides in 

 variety are bristling with flower-spikes. Dendrobium sua- 

 vissimum is just opening, while in a cold house Odonto- 

 glossum (Miltoma) vexillarium gives promise of a good harvest 

 of bloom a little later on. 



In the fruit-houses, several divisions devoted to Nectarines 

 and Peaches are carrying fine crops of fruit, while the vineries 

 look equally promising. The first glass erected on the 

 place was being taken down at the time of my visit a few 

 days ago. Mr. Harris informed me that it had stood nearly 

 fifty years. 



On the estate of Mr. Walter Hunnewell a batch of well-flow- 

 ered Gloxinias in one house is noteworthy. Mr. Hatfield had just 

 finished putting Chrysanthemums into their blooming-pots, 

 and these are highly promising. In the vegetable-house, 

 which is used as a house for single-stem Chrysanthemums 

 later in the season, there is now a good variety of crops, com- 

 prising Cauliflower, Carrot, Beet, Lettuce, etc. The most 

 interesting object at this season of the year on this place is the 

 rock-garden, which is to the north of Mr. Hunnewell's man- 

 sion, and descends rather precipitously almost to the shores of 

 the lake. Mr. Hatfield has converted a considerable portion 

 of what was previously a thicket into a most picturesque and 

 attractive rock-garden. The paths are arranged in skillful de- 

 tours, and ascent and descent are quite easy. Most of the 

 plants have now become thoroughly established, and many 

 are seeding and coming up in quantity. Masses of Phlox, 

 Papaver nudicaule, Trillium, Mertensia and other perennials 

 make a beautiful display, and a large variety of other plants 

 give promise of a succession of bloom for months to come. 

 While rock-gardens are a feature in almost every good private 

 place in Great Britain, and are always interesting, in this coun- 

 try they are comparatively rare as yet. Considering the enjoy- 

 ment to be derived from rustic gardens such as these, it is 

 surprising how few there are, especially in this section, where 

 suitable rocks may readily be had. 



Taunton, Mass. W. N. Craig. 



The Forest. 



Mixed Oak and Beech Forests of the Spessart.— I. 



THE vivid sketch of the magnificent hardwood reserves 

 still remaining in the states south of the Ohio River, 

 by Dr. Charles Mohr, of Mobile, which appeared in Garden 

 axd Forest, vol. vi. , p. 21, has called to my mind the wealth 

 of old-standing Oak timber in the Spessart, one of the most 

 interesting mountain-ranges of central Germany. North 

 American forests contain a great variety of species, whereas 

 the forests of which I am speaking consist of two kinds 

 only, the Beech, Fagus sylvatica, and the Oak, Quercus 

 sessiliflora, the former being replaced in valleys and on 

 low ground, exposed to night frosts, by the Hornbeam, 

 Carpinus Betulus. The Birch, Maple, Lime-tree, Ash and 

 Wild Cherry are very rare, and besides these there are only 

 a few soft-wooded trees here and there, like the Aspen and 

 Willow. Conifers have, it is true, been introduced on a 

 large scale during the present century, and the groups of 

 Larch, the woods of Scotch Pine and Spruce give a greater 

 variety to the forests, but they are not indigenous in the 

 Spessart. Again, forest-trees in this portion of Germany 

 are considerably smaller than in most of your forests. 

 The rich soil of the valleys in the Alleghanies is said to 

 produce Yellow Poplar-trees 200 feet high, with a trunk-di- 

 ameter of over ten feet, whereas the tallest Oak in the Spes- 

 sart does not exceed 150 feet with a diameter of five feet. 

 But, however different the aspect of forests on the two sides 

 of the Atlantic may be, they have a point in common, the 

 more valuable hard woods are associated with other species 

 of little or no commercial value. In both cases, therefore, 

 the forester has to address himself to the same difficult 



