SPRING-FLOWERING TREES AND SHRUBS 187 



in New England, but south of Washington, D. C, 

 it thrives. Like many other plants cultivated in 

 Chinese and Japanese gardens, this shrub is a native 

 of central China where it grows naturally on cliffs and 

 in rocky places. 



For gardens south of Philadelphia the rambling 

 Jasminum nudiflorum, with c ear yellow flowers 

 on naked shoots, is a lovely old plant. It is a native 

 of northern China where also it is frequently culti- 

 vated, and is one of the plants we owe to the labors of 

 Robert Fortune, who sent it to the Royal Horticul- 

 tural Society in 1844. 



In China and Japan, except the colder parts, 

 the first flowers to open on deciduous trees are 

 those of the Ume (Prunus mume), generally known 

 as the Japanese Apricot, and those familiar with the 

 porcelains of the Far East will appreciate it as the 

 Plum Blossom so often employed in design. This 

 plant is wild in central and western China, but it 

 has been cultivated in all but the colder parts of that 

 land from time immemorial and was from China in- 

 troduced to Japan by Buddhist priests more than one 

 thousand years ago. 



In Tokyo and many other places in Japan there 

 are famous "Plum Gardens" which are a source of 

 great attraction when the trees are in blossom. 



