October 3, 1894.] 



Garden and Forest. 



395 



cles of sterile flowers are so conspicuous as to attract the 

 attention of every one, and as it is easily propagated one 

 or more specimens can often be seen on every lawn 

 in a long village street. Under such circumstances the 

 plant grows somewhat tiresome, although, of course, there 

 are many situations where a shrub of such bold aspect is 

 specially useful. The species of which this is a variety is 

 quite different ill appearance, since the terminal flowers 

 only of the branches of the long panicles are neutral. 

 These, however, with the perfect flowers, make a long plume- 

 like, leafy inflorescence which is very graceful. It flowers 

 about the same time as the variety grandifiora. Another 

 plant has been sent out as Hydrangea paniculata, and has 

 been considered an early-flowering form of this species. 

 Whether closer investigation will confirm this view or not, 

 the two plants are quite distinct from a horticultural stand- 

 point. This early-flowering form begins to bloom in this 

 vicinity early in July, and lasts for a full month. Indeed, 



tiful, and it remains in good form for at least seven weeks. 

 To reach its best proportions it must, of course, have room 

 and food, but this is true of all plants of its class. It is a 

 more attractive plant here than Boltonia asteroides, which 

 is rather smaller and bears white flowers. The plant was 

 figured for the first time in vol. v. of Garden and Forest, 

 page 271, and we repeat the statement there made that it is 

 one of the best of the tall perennial herbs which flower at 

 this season. 



Clematis graveolens. — This unpretentious, but pretty and 

 attractive, Clematis must still be regarded as an uncom- 

 mon, or almost rare, plant in American gardens, where C. 

 Jackmanni and other showy types and the native Vir- 

 gin's Bower are quite familiar. Yet C. graveolens is quite 

 as hardy as any of these, will grow luxuriantly on a trellis, 

 against a wall or in any other suitable place, and will pro- 

 duce flowers during a longer season. It will form stout 

 perennial woody stems which will resist the winter cold 



Fig. 63. — A specimen plant of Todea barbara. — See page 394. 



its season of bloom is quite over before the late-flowering 

 form begins to show a flower. Those who plant both these 

 forms will have two months of bloom instead of one. 



Boltonia latisquama. — Although this plant was discov- 

 ered near the mouth of the Kansas River more than thirty 

 years ago by Dr. Parry, who sent it to the Botanic Garden, 

 Cambridge, from which place it was distributed, it is not 

 yet common in cultivation. In their horticultural charac- 

 teristics the Boltonias, of which there are two other 

 species, resemble our tall Asters, this particular one having 

 large lilac or pink-purple flower-heads an inch and a 

 half in diameter. When properly cultivated it attains a 

 height of six feet, and a mass of it now in bloom on the 

 grounds of N. T. Kidder, Esq., of Milton, Massachusetts, 

 is seven feet in diameter and completely covered with 

 bloom. Even in so large a collection of autumn flowering 

 plants as Mr. Kidder's, this Boltonia is conspicuously beau- 



without artificial protection, but will do better if some shel- 

 ter is given. While not a showy species, it stands almost 

 unique among the hardier members of its own genus be- 

 cause of the pale greenish yellow color of its flowers. 

 These are composed of four ovate, pointed, thick sepals, 

 silky hairy on the inner side, and each about three-quarters 

 of an inch or more in length. The anthers appear of a 

 pale yellowish white color as they shed their pollen, and 

 when the stamens and sepals fall away after maturity the 

 remaining pistils become conspicuous with their covering 

 of silky white hair. These pistils develop rapidly and soon 

 form handsome heads of silky-tailed fruits almost as attrac- 

 tive as the flowers, and more conspicuous. The pinnated 

 leaves are of a peculiar bluish or glaucous-green color. 

 This Clematis was originally introduced from very high 

 altitudes in Chinese Tartary, and described as heavy- 

 scented, a term which does not seem to apply to the 



