A Descent into Particulars 79 
deep crimson. The rose-bug infests the sumach and some- 
times strips the bloom to the naked stems. Care should be 
taken lest it spread from the root. 
The tall cosmos makes a beautiful background for colored 
flowers and, though it is so tardy in coming into bloom that it 
seldom flowers in the North before the frosts come, its fluffy 
green fur is lovely to look upon if one can spare the room to 
grow it. A single plant often grows six to eight feet high and 
three feet in diameter. I have seen the tall cosmos lifted, 
when in full bloom, just before frost, and planted in tubs for 
house use. If transplanted carefully, it continues to bloom 
until Christmas, a truly wonderful sight. 
I find the maidenhair tree (Salisburia adiantifolia, also 
sold as Ginkgo biloba) to be entirely hardy. It is from China 
and has interesting foliage that resembles the leaves of maid- 
enhair fern, triangular and notched at the outer margin. The 
fruit is a drupe, and both the fleshy part and the nut are eaten 
in China. As the male and female flowers grow on separate 
trees, the Chinese plant the two close together so that they are 
practically one tree, producing male and female flowers. My 
specimen remains a low shrub, though in some portions of the 
United States it grows to the size of a large tree. 
Brilliant autumn effects, that brighten a garden after a 
sharp frost has killed the flowers, are secured through the use 
of certain perennials and shrubs. Among the former I note 
that the foliage of meadow-rue turns a deep yellow; that of the 
Aster Novi-Belgii, which bears a heavy terminal cluster of 
rosy lilac flowers with bronze yellow centers, turns a rich pur- 
plish rose. Spirea tomentosa becomes orange, orange red and 
bronze; Kochia scoparia, a brilliant red; sundrops (Gnothera 
fruiticosa, var. splendens) also become a velvety red, as does 
Lythrum salicaria. 
Among shrubs that turn a fine color are Spirea prunifolia, 
