THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



11 



Three types oi " habit " Mnong conifers — i.e., characteristic shapes of tree growth 



7. The spherical type, assumed or approximated 

 by many conifers when young and by a few at matu- 

 rity. Taxas cuspidata, the best hardy yew 



8. The columnar or cylindrical type, of which the 

 Irish yew is the most familiar example. The Siberian 

 arborvitae {Thuya Occident a'.is, var. Wareana) 



9. The pyramidal type which most coniiers assume 

 in the juvenile stage. Firs and spruces usually make the 

 most perfect pyramids. The Cilician fir [Abies Cilicica) 



root and top, and the thing may grow for you, 

 although you don't deserve it. But you don't 

 want to cut back an evergreen. You can't cut 

 it back enough to restore a decent balance 

 without ruining its beauty. About all you can 

 do is to cut out the leader, not the branches. 



3. Evergreens are far more sensitive titan 

 deciduous trees to drying out of the roots. 



This is because they have so much resinous 

 sap in their roots, which quickly hardens 

 on exposure to the air. Therefore, the ball 

 of roots ought to be carefully wrapped in a 

 bag until the moment of planting. Nursery- 

 men always pack evergreens in bags with 

 sphagnum moss to supply moisture to the 



roots. Even if you are transplanting ever- 

 greens from the woods, or from a short 

 distance on the home grounds, it will pay to 

 "puddle" the roots or to put them in a wet 

 canvas bag. Don't let the roots be exposed 

 a second longer than is absolutely necessary. 

 It is a crime to let a young evergreen He 

 around in the sun. 



4. The roots of evergreens must be trimmed 

 with more care than those of a deciduous tree. 



Every good-sized root that is broken or 

 ragged should have its end cut off square and 

 clean. A ragged root is as dangerous as a 

 ragged wound on your hand. It is bound to 

 °;et full of dirt and germs. 



Always mulch a conifer. — Put six or eight 

 inches of straw or other litter at the foot of 

 the tree, so as to keep all the moisture in the 

 ground. Sun and wind evaporate it. 



Never prune an evergreen. — There ought to 

 be a law against the barbaric practice of 

 trimming off the lower branches of evergreens 

 so that they stand up like so many half-grown 

 roosters. It is just as cruel to the tree to do 

 this as to dock a horse's tail — and just as 

 beautiful. Some nice people have horses 

 with docked tails; only vulgar and ignor- 

 ant people ''trim up" trees. Besides, you 

 lose the best part of the tree's value as 

 a windbreak. 



' 



Three famous types of conifers which are not evergreen. They shed their leaves in the fall 



10. The larch (Larix). Deciduous conifers have 11. The bald cypress (Taxodiam disticbum) , also called 12. The ginKgo {Ginkgo iiloba), the only tree of any- 



less value for windbreaks than evergreens, but their deciduous, or swamp cypress. The "cypress" of 

 beauty in spring and fall is exceptional lumber trade to-day. A Southern species, but hardy 



kind that has a leaf like a maidenhair fern. It has 

 edible fruits, too, though nothing to brag of 



