s 



THE MISSION OF THE VINE 



upon a house, and especially if it be a frame house, because 

 of dampness and the consequent damage to the building, 

 the same objection will hardly hold good in this country 

 where there is so little danger of mold or unwholesome 

 conditions. 



On the contrary, because we have long, dry seasons, 

 damage is sometimes done to frame houses by the pushing 

 little vines penetrating the cracks and crevices produced by 

 the summer-time warping. I have, however, seen but one 

 serious case, and that was because the wire-vine was used 

 and allowed to run directly on the building itself. On the 

 whole, in spite of the prejudice of many builders, the vine- 

 clad cottage or house in California is to be encouraged, and 

 no garden is complete — if it can ever be truly said to be 

 complete — without many vines and flowering climbers. In 

 California we have innumerable evergreen varieties, and in 

 landscape effects the eye turns with satisfaction from the 

 perpetual blue of sky and the brilliancy of sunlight to the 

 restfulness of green foliage on the house or in the fence 

 corner, or trailing over a wall or an uneven slope of ground. 



Perhaps in no detail of the garden, however, should the 

 matter of choice of varieties be more carefully exercised 

 than in the selection of vines and climbing plants. 



Where a dense mass of foliage is desired in a vine the 

 Ampelopsis quinquefolia and Ampelopsis tricuspidala are 

 most attractive, while Ampelopsis veitchii is a very strong 

 grower whose foliage in the fall takes on delightful red and 

 copper-colored hues. 



[69] 



