148 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



December, 1915 



Blue Retinispora (Chamaecyparis pisifera squarrosa) is 

 irregular in outline and densely and intricately branched 



planting this tree for permanent effect will do well 

 to bear these facts in mind. 



Another tree that has been very extensively 

 planted is the Norway Spruce (P. Abies or P. ex- 

 celsa). This has proved both accommodating and 

 quick growing, but in New England, where exposed 

 to the winds, the tops of the trees become thin and 

 bare. Most of the older trees exhibit this failing 

 and there seems little likelihood of it being a long- 

 lived subject on this side of the Atlantic. How- 

 ever, up to thirty or forty years of age it thrives. 

 The branches are wide-spreading, with the lower 

 ones bending downwards and sweeping the ground 

 and the uppermost slightly inclined upward; and 

 all have pendant whip-like branchlets. The leaves 

 are dark green and the aspect of the tree, though 

 decidedly sombre, is graceful. 



For the colder parts of this country one of the 

 best of all Spruces is the Canadian or White Spruce 

 (P. canadensis). This is one of the hardiest of all 

 trees and is useful in ornamental and landscape 

 planting generally, but is especially so in situations 

 where other and less hardy coniferous trees will not 

 grow. It is a rather small tree and in the open it is 

 conical in outline and well furnished with branches 

 from the ground upwards. The leaves are short, 

 green and slightly glaucous. 



Another valuable species is Engelmann's Spruce 

 (P. Engelmannii) , which hails from Colorado and 

 has somewhat the appearance of the common Blue 

 Spruce but the branches are shorter and flatter and 

 the leaves smaller and less glaucous. Specimens in 

 the Arnold Arboretum 35 years old are narrow, 

 compact, symmetrical pyramids, but unfortunately 

 they are beginning to lose their lower branches. 

 The Serbian Spruce (P. omorika), which was only 

 discovered in 1872, has taken kindly to cultivation 

 here and elsewhere. It grows rapidly and the habit 

 is pleasing; but, unfortunately, it is addicted to 

 borers. The leaves are flat, lustrous green above 

 and white beneath. 



Lastly, mention must be made of the Oriental 

 Spruce (P. orientalis) which is native of the Cau- 

 casus and does very well in many parts of this 

 seaboard. It is a tree of medium size with hori- 

 zontal spreading branches, the uppermost being 

 slightly ascending. The outline is pyramidal, 

 broken by projecting branches. The leaves at 

 maturity are dark lustrous green. In spring the 

 young shoots are bright yellow and, as they lengthen, 

 the leaves become a soft delicate green, forming 

 a beautiful contrast to the rich coloring of the mature 

 foliage. 



In this climate most of the Spruces have weak 

 points, a great many of them lose their lower 

 branches at a comparatively early age, and a number 



of them suffer from gall-insects. On the whole, 

 they are less satisfactory for ornamental planting 

 than their close allies the Firs. 



The Hemlocks 



The common Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) is 

 certainly one of the finest Conifers for general plant- 

 ing. There are several varieties; the best of these 

 are Sargentiana which forms a remarkable dense, 

 flat-topped bush with pendant branches and 

 branchlets; compacta, a densely branched bush, 

 ovoid in outline; microphylla, with loose ascending 

 branches; and pendula, with dense spreading 

 branches pendant at the extremities. 



The Carolina Hemlock (T. caroliniana) is native 

 of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North and South 

 Carolina, and of the southern Alleghanies where it 

 was discovered in 1850, by Professor L. R. Gibbes. 

 It was introduced to the Arnold Arboretum in 

 1 881, where it grows freely and gives every promise 

 of being a most desirable and ornamental Conifer. 

 It is a smaller but a more graceful and beautiful 

 tree than its northern confrere. 



The Pines 



No trees make a better windbreak than do the 

 Pines, and on lawns and for avenues they are most 

 effective. The native White Pine (Pinits Strobus) 

 is one of the noblest of all Pines and needs neither 

 introduction nor eulogy here. Its confrere, P. 

 monticola from western North America, is also 

 perfectly hardy and grows freely here. So also 

 does the Foxtail Pine (P. fiexilis), native of Mon- 

 tana, Nevada and other parts of western North 

 America. The White Pine of the Balkan peninsula 

 (P. peuke), which was discovered in 1839, but was 

 not introduced until 1864, is also quite hardy and 

 grows well in this country. It forms a narrow 

 pyramidal tree densely branched and heavily 

 clothed with bright green leaves. 



Another very satisfactory hardy and highly 

 ornamental tree is the Japanese White Pine (P. 

 parviflora). This species is widely spread in Japan 

 where it grows naturally in steep, rocky country. 

 It is also a favorite tree in Japanese gardens, where 

 it is kept dwarf and trimmed and is also often 

 trained into grotesque shapes. The Japanese 

 graft this tree on their Black Pine (P. Thunbergii), 

 whose remote relationship undoubtedly aids in 

 checking the growth of its leaves and branches. 

 Under cultivation in New England seedling trees 

 and others grafted on the native White Pine are 

 densely branched, and the branches are very 

 long, horizontally 

 spreading, slightly up- 

 turned at the ends and 

 abundantly clothed with 

 gray-green leaves. Its 

 habit is different from 

 that of any other Pine. 



The Korean Nut Pine 

 (P. koraiensis) also 

 grows well and promises 

 to be a more satisfac- 

 tory tree here than its 

 ally, the Swiss P. cem- 

 bra. 



The Scots Pine (P. 

 sylvestris) and the Aust- 

 rian Pine (P. nigra) in 

 the past have been ex- 

 tensively planted in this 

 country. The first- 

 named has, unfortu- 

 nately, proved unsatis- 

 factory and the Austrian 

 Pine is inferior to the 

 native Red Pine (P. 

 resinosa). The latter is 

 one of the best of all 

 Pines in this climate, 

 where it ranks among 

 the first half-dozen of 

 all Conifers and where it 

 ought to be planted in 

 preference to any of its 

 allies. It grows rapidly 

 and in effect is dark and 



The Jack Pine (P. Banksiana) and the Scrub Pine 

 (P. virginiana) are low-growing species very satis- 

 factory in cold regions. For sea-shore planting the 

 Japanese Black Pine (P. Thunbergii) is to be re- 

 commended. This Pine is very variable in habit 

 and naturally assumes weird and picturesque 

 shapes. It is the Pine so commonly depicted on 

 Japanese embroideries, paintings, porcelains and 

 other objects of Japanese art. 



Cedars True and Hardy 



Those familiar with gardens in England and 

 other countries of Europe will have noted, probably 

 with envy, the majestic Cedars of Lebanon (Cedrus 

 libani). No tree is more impressive in appearance 

 and no other gives quite the same effect as this 

 Cedar with its thick trunk, massive spreading and 

 flattened or tabular branches and deep green 

 foliage. The originals of these trees were brought 

 from the famous groves on Mt. Lebanon in Syria, 

 and the oldest in England were planted between 

 1662 and 1670. The younger trees and those 

 offered for sale by European nurserymen are 

 descendants of these original introductions. Un- 

 fortunately, this Cedar is not hardy in New England 

 but odd examples may be seen growing in the 

 neighborhood of New York city and Philadelphia. 



Now the Cedar of Lebanon also grows on the 

 Anti-Taurus Mountains in Asia Minor, a region 

 more northern and colder than that of the Lebanon 

 Mountains; and in 1901, the Director of the Arnold 

 Arboretum had seeds collected there and these 

 seeds were sown in 1902. None of the plants raised 

 from these seeds, although planted in exposed situa- 

 tions, has ever suffered and some of them are now 

 18 to 20 feet tall. The experiment promises com- 

 plete success and there seems every possibility of 

 our enjoying a thriving race of Cedar of Lebanon 

 which will withstand the winter frosts and summer 

 droughts of New England. If this be consummated 

 the boon conferred on our parks and gardens will 

 be inestimable. 



Neither the Atlas Cedar (C. atlantica) nor the 

 Deodar (C. deodara) are quite hardy in New Eng- 

 land. 



The Japan Umbrella Pine 



The Japanese Umbrella Pine (Sciadopitys verli- 

 cillata), with long, dark glossy green leaves arranged 

 in whorls, is perhaps the most distinct of all Conifers. 

 It is perfectly hardy, delighting in a cool, moist 

 situation, and thrives better here than it does in 

 England. Young trees vary from narrowly to 



Firs and Spruces delight in a cool soil and climate and resent the presence of smoke and 

 soot in the atmosphere 



