DECIDUOUS FLOWERING SHRUBS 19 
shoots of the current year have become firm and 
moderately ripe. 
The Japanese species, Daphne Gwenka, forms a com- 
pact shrub, ranging from two to three feet in height, 
has lanceolate leaves and fragrant lilac flowers, which 
are produced in clusters in March and April in advance 
of the leaves. Common Mezereon (D. mezereum) is neat 
in growth, attains a height of three or four feet, and 
blooms in February and March, or March and April, 
according to the weather experienced early in the year. 
The flowers are produced along the growths of the 
previous year, and are rose-red and pleasantly fragrant ; 
they are followed by a crop of berries which assume a 
brilliant red colour when they attain maturity. There 
are several varieties of the Mezereon, and the most note- 
worthy are atropurpureum, rich purple; autumnale, rose 
red, flowering during the autumn; and fore albo, the 
flowers white, followed by yellow fruits. 
Devurzias.—All the deutzias are remarkable for their 
elegant habit and freedom of flowering, but they differ 
materially in their value for the embellishment of the 
flower garden. They will thrive in any good garden 
soil; but the best soil is a sandy loam, to which a dressing 
of stable manure or leaf mould is applied every second 
or third year, as may appear necessary, to maintain the 
plants in a vigorous state without promoting an unduly 
vigorous growth. Judicious pruning is necessary because 
of the tendency of the plants to become so crowded with 
old wood as to prevent the new growths attaining their 
full development and flowering so freely as they should 
do. The best course of procedure is to examine the 
shrubs towards the end of the autumn, and then cut 
away the weakly spray and exhausted wood with which 
they invariably become crowded, but leave the young 
growths untouched. Deutzias can be readily increased 
by means of cuttings of the partly ripened shoots in 
