396 



TREES AND SHRUBS 



Name. 



Country or 



Origin and 



Natural Order. 



Colour 



and 

 Season. 



General Remarks. 



Prunus triloba 



China 



Pink; 

 March and 

 early April 



Prunus 

 (the Plums) 



P. cerasifera 

 mirobalana) 



(P. 



Uncertain, but 



probably of 



Caucasian origin 



P. communis 

 (Wild Plum) 



The origin of this 

 plum is uncertain ; 

 it is stated in some 



works to be a 



native of Britain, 



Europe, and a part 



of Asia 



Small, pure 

 white ; 

 Spring 



White; 



April and 



March 



For a wall it is invaluable, 

 but in this position it should 

 only be pruned immediately 

 after flowering, the summer 

 growths being allowed to 

 develop at will, as this is 

 the wood that will pro- 

 duce flowers the following 

 season. 



There are several species of 

 Prunus, but those mentioned 

 are the most important for 

 gardens. The Plums are best 

 grown from seeds, but if 

 these cannot be got then they 

 must be worked upon the 

 Wild, Mussel, and Myro- 

 bella or Myrobalan Plum. 

 Plum stocks should be raised 

 from seed. If got from layers 

 or suckers they are liable to 

 throw up suckers from the 

 base, and ruin the plants 

 worked on them. 



This is the well-known Myro- 

 balan Plum, and the seedlings 

 are used as stocks. Its hardi- 

 ness and vigour in almost all 

 soils and climates make it a 

 good small shrub, and its 

 white flower - clusters are 

 delightful in early spring. 

 The fruits are popular on 

 the Continent, and are red 

 in colour. It is used as a 

 hedge in some places. There 

 are two varieties, viz. .angusti- 

 folia pendula, which is half 

 pendulous in growth, and the 

 well - known atropurpurea, 

 more often called *P. Pissardi , 

 which is a native of Persia, 

 and has warm purple leaves, 

 which get darker with age. 

 The flowers are rose-tinted. 

 It is a good shrub for colour, 

 but must not be too freely 

 planted. 



The wild plum is mentioned 

 because a well-known tree, 

 but its varieties are more 

 beautiful. *Pruneauliana is 

 very handsome; its fruit is 

 the prune imported from 

 abroad. It is of upright 

 growth, with downy leaves, 

 and large, pure white flowers. 

 *P. fl. pi. is extremely hand- 

 some ; it has double flowers. 

 The wild plum is the same as 

 P. domestica. 



