October 24, 1894.] 



Garden and Forest. 



429 



able for the drier portions of the Mississippi valley, on account 

 of its great hardiness. I do not think it would be considered 

 of great value where Blueberries are abundant, as the latter 

 would probably be preferred by most people. In the northern 

 part of this state there is a Juneberry which makes a small 

 tree, and is called Suscutan by the Indians. It has not yet fruited 

 with us. 



Experiment Station, St. Anthony Park, Minn. 



Samuel B. Greene. 



Tricyrtis hit ta.— The rusty appearance of the leaves of this 

 plant, spoken of on page 418, is not always caused by frost, 

 since the plant is often disfigured before frost has touched it. 

 It will seldom be found with perfect leaves when grown in 

 established clumps. It is to be hoped that some of our vege- 

 table pathologists will try to discover the cause of this unfor- 

 tunate failing of a quaintly flowered plant. 



Elizabeth, N.J. f.-JV. Cr. 



Correspondence. 



Aquatics in Central Park. 



To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — In the Loch in Central Park, at about One Hundred 

 and Second Street, West, is probably the largest mass of 

 Nelumbium speciosum in the country. These plants are in 

 very vigorous health, and occupy a space of not less than an 

 acre. They are so well naturalized that it has become neces- 

 sary to repress their further spreading if any clear space of 

 this water is to be reserved. It is unfortunate that this water 

 is so masked by trees and shrubs that it is only seen by stray 

 visitors, and it is impossible from any point of view to enjoy 

 the full effect of the multitude of striking flowers borne over 

 the beautiful foliage. All the waters of Central Park, except 

 the aqueduct, are at a low level, and the full expanse of none 

 of them can be enjoyed except from the foot-paths. In driving, 

 one seldom gets more than a glimpse of water, even where 

 handsome aquatic plants are freely used. 



Much use of Nymphseas and other water-plants is made by 

 the New York Park Department in available spaces. Many of 

 these are familiar in the various city basins and to the pedes- 

 trians in Central Park. Plantings of hardy Nymphaeas are also 

 almost hidden in the Loch. There is a fine lot of Nelumbium 

 speciosum in the Harlem Mere, which is also nearly planted 

 out from the main upper drive. The N>mphasas, Devomen- 

 sis, chromatella and dentata, have been excellent this season 

 in the fountain-basin on the terrace by the Lake ; they were 

 especially effective, as they were not crowded, and there wasat 

 all times the ample water-space about them which adds so 

 much to the effectiveness of these plants. 



Elizabeth, N.J. f.JV.ls. 



The Buck Bush. 



To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — It had long been a mystery to me why Symphoricarpos 

 vulgaris, the Indian Currant or Cdral Berry, is called Buck 

 Bush or Buckberry Bush in Kentucky, and, in fact, generally 

 throughout the southern states, wherever the shrub is com- 

 mon. One day, on a botanical excursion, my comrade, a six-year 

 old boy, exclaimed as we were passing through a field or open 

 wood where this shrub grew abundantly, "See the Buck 

 Bushes ! Grandpa says that the deers used to feed on them a 

 long time ago." If deer do feed on this shrub, or its berries, 

 or if it was ever popularly supposed they did, this would ac- 

 count for the name. It would be interesting to hear further 

 from the readers of Garden and Forest, if any of them have 

 any knowledge on this point. . 



Bowling Green, Ky. Sadie M. Price. 



Our Native Elders. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — Will you permit me to say a word for the beauty of our 

 native Elders, which seem to deserve a place in your " Plant 

 Notes"? Sambucus racemosa, the Red-berried Elder, is sel- 

 dom met with except as a wild shrub, while S. Canadensis, the 

 common Elder, althoughsometimesseen in cultivated grounds, 

 is not often left on account of its beauty, but sometimes for its 

 useful properties, and generally because the owner has not 

 found time to cut it down with other " brush." The two spe- 

 cies side by side make a really fine show, as the scarlet fruit 

 of S. racemosa is in perfection when S. Canadensis opens its 

 creamy cymes. I have been struck with their united beauty 

 when riding among the hills in Schuyler County, New York, 

 where it is sometimes displayed against a background of 



bleached and weather-beaten Pine roots that have been set up 

 for road-fences in the early settlement of Ihe country. These 

 "stump-fences," as they are called, have not an attractive 

 name, but their involved and tangled roots are always curious, 

 and when partially draped and garlanded with vines, while 

 flowering plants grow in crevices and pockets full of soil, they 

 become really picturesque features of this charming region. 

 I always feel that Elders and Sumachs are neat enough in habit 

 for the trimmest of dressed lawns ; but, perhaps, they are too 

 common for small places, where only select shrubs are ad- 

 mitted, still they are always useful in parks and extensive 

 grounds; and I always feel hurt when they are cut down along 

 the highways. Here, at least, they should be allowed to 

 remain as roadside ornaments. 



Klinger Lake, Mich. Dorcas E. Collins. 



The Persimmon. 

 To the Editor of Garden and Forest : 



Sir, — Some Persimmon-trees growing in great luxuriance 

 before my windows are so attractive that I am induced to urge 

 the more general planting of this' tree in the northern states. 

 It has, to my surprise, proved entirely hardy through the 

 severest winters ; so also have grafts of varieties from Vir- 

 ginia and Indiana and Missouri proved thoroughly able to 

 endure twenty degrees below zero. The fruit is a great acqui- 

 sition for our northern tables, coming in in November and 

 December. It is said that there are varieties which ripen their 

 fruit before frost, but, so far as my observation extends, the 

 fruit is only agreeable after sharp frost, and then some varie- 

 ties are first-rate dessert fruits. But the tree itself is beautiful 

 in form and habit. The shade is dense and the color of the 

 foliage is rich dark green. I did not find seedlings from fruit 

 procured in St. Louis to be fertile. The flowers seem to be 

 perfect, but, for some reason I am not yet able to discover, 

 no fruit is set. It will be advisable to grow seedlings, and 

 graft them from specially fine sorts. The Persimmon is 

 inclined to sucker, but not in a troublesome way. The suckers 

 coming at a distance from the tree can be utilized as stock 

 plants if needed. I find the foliage of different sorts varies in 

 color and shade and size of leaf, but in all cases it is dense and 

 beautiful. The fruit, if picked before thorough freezing, can be 

 kept in cold storage for several weeks. The foliage appears 

 as late as that of the Butternut or later, and it is retained as late as 

 that of the Apple. It is the only tree I know which puts out 

 foliage late in spring and does not drop it early in autumn. 

 The Ash, the Butternut, the Judas-tree, the Catalpas, all come 

 late into leaf and the leaves fall early. 



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



Recent Publications. 



Flore Coloriee de Poche a I' Usage du Tourisle dans les 

 Montagues de la Suisse, de la Savoie, du Dauphine, des 

 Pyrenees, du Jura, des Vosges, etc. Par H. Correvon, Direc- 

 teurdu Jardin Alpin d'Acclimatation a Geneve. Paris: Paul 

 Klincksieck. 1894. 



This convenient little manual of one hundred and sixty 

 pages gives brief descriptions of 560 of the plants which 

 the tourist is likely to encounter on the mountains of 

 southern and south-western Europe. Of course, the 

 descriptions are brief, but they are accurate, and they 

 give such prominent and distinctive characters as will be 

 most readily noticed by persons not far advanced in 

 botanical knowledge. Besides the descriptions there are 

 figures of 180 of the species described, figures fairly well 

 drawn, and colored as accurately as one could expect in a 

 cheap work of this sort ; at least, the colors really help to 

 identify the plants. These figures are generally reduced 

 about one-third from the natural size of the plants. Besides 

 the botanical and French, the German and English names 

 of the figured plants are given, and all these names are 

 very properly put in the index. Of course, this little hand- 

 book is not meant for the experienced botanist, and it 

 makes no pretense of being a complete flora ; but the ordi- 

 nary tourist who cares to make a closer acquaintance with 

 these mountain wild flowers will make no mistake if he 

 puts it in his pocket. He may be disappointed if he 

 attempts to identify some of the Ferns he finds, for this 

 family is not so fully treated as most of the others, but the 

 mountain Ferns are worth a book by themselves. 



