August i, 1894.] 



Garden and Forest. 



305 



more, that they are not greatly missed in outdoor cultiva- 

 tion. The flowers of these species are all so distinct that 

 they offer great inducements to experimenters in hybrid- 

 ization. 



Cephalanthus occidentals. — The Button Bush is a native 

 shrub which is found throughout the entire width of the 

 continent and in eastern Asia, too, in marshy places, or 

 often where its roots are constantly under water. When 

 planted, however, on dry ground, like many other plants 

 that are naturally found in wet places, it seems to thrive 

 almost or quite as well. No one, when gathering a wild 

 bouquet, would pass it by without taking some of its sprays, 

 for its pointed leaves are clean and bright, and its perfectly 

 spherical heads of white and fragrant flowers, from which 



as the blossoms of our native Chestnuts are fading, and its 

 upright panicles of bladdery fruit are already making it 

 conspicuous in another way. It is a perfectly hardy tree, 

 but for some reason single limbs occasionally die back to 

 the trunk in a hard winter. So far as our observation goes, 

 this disaster has always come upon trees planted in very 

 rich ground. Still, this may not be the cause. The spread- 

 ing branches of the tree and its large compound dark green 

 leaves make it interesting during the entire season. There 

 is considerable variation in the color of its flowers, which are 

 borne in large panicles, the best of them being a rich yellow. 

 The fruit also varies in color, some of it being a bright green, 

 others tinged with dull red, and others still a deep purplish 

 bronze. The tree comes from northern China, but the 



Fig. 50. — Spiraea bracteata. — See page 304. 



the slender styles stand out like rays in every direction, 

 poise gracefully at the ends of the branchlels. Neverthe- 

 less, for some reason this has never been classed among 

 ornamental shrubs. We have been so accustomed to see 

 it running wild, perhaps, that it may seem out of place in 

 cultivated grounds, but it certainly would look at home on 

 low ground, and especially on the margins of pools or 

 brooks in company with Dwarf Willows and Alders. It 

 makes a stout shrub eight or ten feet high, and the fragrant 

 flowers, which are much sought for by bees, remain 

 open for a long time. 



Kolreuteria paniculata. — This tree has a decided value 

 for ornamental planting because it flowers in midsummer 

 after most other trees are out of bloom. It begins to flower 



seeds readily germinate where they fall on the ground in 

 this country, so that it is becoming naturalized in some 

 places. 



Odontoglossum crispum mirabile. — This plant, which 

 originated in the famous collection of Baron Schrceder, 

 and was certificated by the Royal Horticultural Society 

 something more than a month ago, is, without doubt, a 

 natural hybrid between O. crispum and O. Lindleyanum. 

 According to the Orchid Reviav, the shape of the lip and 

 crest, as well as of the wings of the column and arrange- 

 ment of the blotches, all show unmistakably the influence 

 of O. Lindleyanum and the characters of O. crispum. The 

 flower is three inches across, the petals of an ivory-white 

 color when first opening, and afterward of a pure white, while 



