1006 ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM. PART III. 



The ivy is considered symbolical of friendship, from the closeness of its 

 adherence to the tree on which it has once fixed itself. " Nothing," says St. 

 Pierre, in his Studies of Nature, " can separate it from the tree which it has 

 once embraced : it clothes it with its own leaves in that inclement season 

 when its dark boughs are covered with hoarfrost. The faithful companion of 

 its destiny, it falls when the tree is cut down : death itself does not relax its 

 grasp ; and it continues to adorn with its verdure the dry trunk that once sup- 

 ported it." The constancy of the ivy has rendered it a favourite device for 

 seals ; some of the best of which are, a sprig of ivy, with the motto, " I die 

 where I attach myself;" and a fallen tree, still covered with ivy, with the 

 words, " Even ruin cannot separate us." Ivy is the badge of the clan Gordon. 



Soil, Situation, Propagation, Sfc. We have already observed that the ivy, to 

 attain a large size, requires a good soil ; and, also, that it grows naturally in 

 the shade, and in a northern rather than in a southern exposure. Smoke, 

 there can be no doubt, is injurious to the ivy ; but still it endures it better than 

 most evergreens, particularly when it is kept moist at the root. Ivy is propa- 

 gated by cuttings, planted, in autumn, in a sandy soil, and a shady border ; but 

 these must be well rooted before they are put out in the situation where they 

 are finally to remain, or disappointment to the planter will ensue. It is very 

 natural to suppose, that, with a plant rooting so readily as the ivy, it would be 

 quite sufficient to put in a cutting where a plant was wanted; but, nevertheless, 

 it is a fact, that, unless the soil be kept in a uniform state of moisture, and 

 shaded, like most other evergreens, it will not root readily. The largest plants 

 of ivy which we have heard of in England are at Brockley Hall, in Somer- 

 setshire, attached to old trees : one of these plants has the stem lOf in., and 

 the other 1 1-i in. in diameter, at 1 ft. from the ground. In the town of 

 Morpeth, in Northumberland, the front of a cottage is covered with ivy, 

 which proceeds from a single stem, that comes out of a crevice in the rough 

 stone wall by the cottage, at about a foot from the ground. The stem where 

 it comes out is about 4 in. in diameter, but it gradually increases till at the 

 height of 5 ft. it is 6§in. in diameter; and at the height of 9 ft., at the point 

 from which the branches proceed, it is no less that I 9a in. in diameter! 

 About 40 years ago, this cottage was occupied as a public house, and called 

 the Ivy Tree, so that the plant is, doubless, above half a century old. A view 

 of the cottage, the ivy plant, and the remarkable weeping ash trees, which stand 

 on a bank overhanging it, has been kindly forwarded to us by M. J. F. Sid- 

 ney, Esq., of Cowpen. (See the article JFYaxinus, in a future page.) Plants, 

 in the London nurseries, cost from 6d. to 2s. 6d. each, according to their size ; 

 at Boll wy Her, from 50 cents to 1| franc; and at New York, from 37 a cents 

 to 1 dollar each. Plants of the varieties, and especially of the yellow-fruited, 

 are somewhat dearer. 



Fifty other species of the ivy are described in Don's Miller ; but they are chiefly tropical plants, 

 and al'most all of them are trees ; which, probably, when they come to be farther examined, will be 

 referred to Aralia, or other genera. 



CHAP. LX. 



OF THE HARDY LIGNEOUS PLANTS OF THE ORDER 

 //AMAMELIDA V CE^E. 



The characteristics of this order, as far as the hardy species in British 

 gardens are concerned, will be found in the following distinctive characters of 

 the only two hardy genera. 

 7/amamf/lis L. Calyx 4-lobed, furnished with 3 — 4 scales on the outside. 



Ovarium ending in 2 — 3 styles at the apex. Capsule coriaceous, 2-celled ; 



J -seeded, opening by 2 elastic valves above. Seed oblong, shining, with a 



