524 FRITZ BAHR'S COMMERCIAL FLORICULTURE 



a mass of graceful branches thickly set with flowers, or during the 

 balance of the season with its dense, dark green foUage. It is es- 

 pecially fine when grown as a single specimen and pruned each year 

 directly after it is through flowering. If left alone, it will soon be- 

 come top-heavy and bare below, to be broken down by the first 

 heavy snow. 



Spirxa Vanhouttei is the easiest of all shrubs to handle; it seUs as 

 well as any; it can stand a sunny or a shady position, wet or dry; it 

 will get along with but little attention and flower each year; when 

 once or twice transplanted, it can be lifted with a ball of soil at 

 any time of the year; it will grow quickly into a large, showy plant; 

 it is good to look at whether in flower, in foliage or during the Winter 

 months in a dormant state with its mass of upright yet graceful 

 branches; it flowers freely the first season no matter how small the 

 plant; it is hardly ever infested with insects or disease; and it is 

 just as good as a single plant in the lawn or border as when planted 



in masses. What other shrub 

 has aU those qualifications? 



You can also hft 3- to 4-ft. 

 plants which have been trans- 

 planted several times, plant 

 them in large pots in Novem- 

 ber, carry them in a frame up 

 to January, move to a 40-deg. 

 house and later on into one 

 of 50 deg., and gently force 

 them for Easter You may 

 not sell many of such plants, 

 but they wiU come in handy 

 for decorative purposes, or 

 the sprays can be cut. 



Any florist, whether he seUs 

 nursery stock or not, who has 

 a few feet of ground, should 

 plant a few rows of this splen- 

 did shrub. If you have no 

 other place, plant a hedge of 

 it around your home. 



There is a long list of desir- 

 able Spiraeas. One is 5. pruni- 

 folia. In some localities this 

 also is called Bridal Wreath,' 

 but I think Vanhouttei is 

 more entitled to that name. 

 S. prunifolia has smaU, button- 



Fig. 269.— A Potted Norway Spruce. 

 Always carry a good number of Norway 

 Spruces in pots during December. Well- 

 shaped plants lend themselves nicely for 

 Christmas decorations and with just a little 

 trimming can be made still more attractive. 

 (See page 476) 



