168 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



January, 1919 



suggests. A solitary shrub 

 or even two of larger size 

 and a group of smaller ones 

 will be all the woody plants 

 used, and there will probably 

 be no herbs at all — but we 

 shall see! Not in the mid- 

 dle of the rectangular grass 

 plots, but in the corners next 

 the street; near the house 

 walls, unless there are vines 

 upon it; or one on either 

 side of the»walk symmetri. 

 cally spaced as to location 

 in reference to street, walk 

 and house will in general be 

 the spot chosen, but I am 

 suggesting kinds, for ar- 

 rangement would vary with 

 every site. A mathematical 

 precision in spacing is nec- 

 essary for practical and es- 

 thetic reasons, and to help 

 this effect I want to nomi- 

 nate only such plants as 

 have a reserved way of ar- 

 ranging their roots and 

 branches, and have no bad 

 habits or constitutional dis- 

 orders. 



An evergreen shrub is 

 eminently appropriate, and 

 Box (Buxus sempervirens) 

 has been used by us since 

 the Cavaliers landed at 

 Jamestown. In the North, 



where Box is not hardy, I suggest the com- 

 pact forms of Arborvitae (Thuya occidentalis) 

 as pryamidalis, sibirica, or Wareana, Vervae- 

 neana, ericoides, etc., and no colored ones. If 

 you try Rhododendrons or other Heaths you are 

 in for failures. And Dwarf Box and dwarf 

 Arborvitaes, as Tom Thumb and Little Gem, 

 will give the evergreen edging that some front 

 gardens favor. When these have become utterly 

 common all along the street we shall have dis- 

 covered others to use. 



t*OR large shrubs, say ten feet high and 

 *■ as wide, for bloom I suggest, first of all for 

 early spring Fortune's Golden-bell (Forsythia 

 suspensa Fortunei) or Hybrid Golden-bell (F. 

 intermedia), for neither you nor the nurseryman 

 can tell them apart. You don't want Weeping 

 Golden-bell (F. suspensa) for it falls upon the 

 lawn; you want a plant that is very erect. When 

 Golden-bell is about ten times as common in 

 city lots as it is now we shall urge for variety 

 in early spring the use of Flowering Currant 

 (Ribes aureum) for its spicy fragrance, or Loni- 

 cera Standishii or L. fragrantissima, for though 

 the pale yellow flowers are not as brilliant they 

 have a delicate fragrance. 



If the Magnolias are too big for the front yard perhaps they can be used as slreet trees, as at Rochester, New York 



TN JUNE, if I can have but one shrub in my 

 ■*- little lot, I look from Weigela (Diervilla 

 hybrida) in white and all shades of red and rose, 

 to Mock-orange (Philadelphus coronarius) with 

 its fragrant creamy white flowers, and I think 

 of Van Houtte's Spirea (Spiraea Vanhouttei) 

 whose wreaths of white have just passed. Either 

 of the three will satisfy me and require no atten- 

 tion from me, but I hope they will not grow to 







^s^-. .y 





w 



** . .ml ^% 



Then for bloom in Sep- 

 tember we would prefer the 

 old-fashioned Althea (Hibis- 

 cus syriacus) in white or 

 clear pink, single or double. 

 With the thought of bright 

 winter berries I'd like a 

 Barberry, not the Common 

 Barberry (Berberis vulgaris) 

 for it gets too large and the 

 fruit has no bright color in 

 winter, but B. Regeliana, 

 which is a tall Japanese 

 Barberry and keeps its coral 

 berries until spring; or I'll 

 have a High-bush Cran- 

 berry, not the common sort 

 from Europe that everynur- 

 seryman has (Viburnum 

 Opulus), for its fruit is not 

 plentiful and the leaves curl 

 with green lice, but the 

 American species (V. ameri- 

 canum) which is loaded with 

 coral beads from October 

 to March. 



Of all these large shrubs 



remember that you can have 



but one or two, so you must 



decide whether you want 



the' show in April, June, 



September, or December. 



Each is as permanent as the 



house furniture, requires no 



repairs, and slowly enlarges 



from year to year. But you 



mayhaveroomforahalf-dozensmallershrubs,'some 



that never exceed five feet in height. We might 



pick from the following — Spiraea Thunbergii, 



Philadelphus Avalanche, etc., Deutzia Lemoinei, 



Spiraea Douglasii, Hypericum Kalmianum, and 



Japanese Barberry (Berberis Thunbergii) or 



better some of the new ones, as B. stenophylla, 



B. sinensis, B. dictophylla, B. koreana, etc., if 



only you can buy them. 



T70R low edging to the beds, or the edges of 

 " the walks, we can use Dwarf High-bush 

 Cranberry (Viburnum Opulus nanum) or Dwarf 

 Mountain Currant (Ribes alpinum nahum), 

 but as they are deciduous and nearly off duty in 

 winter, some of the stiff herbs will do fully as well 

 and furnish flowers also. 



NOW the herbs that we shall use will not be 

 many; we do not want a whole flower 

 garden, but merely the suggestion of one. Plan 

 so that the shrubs and the few herbs by their 

 flowers shall assist one another; your Forsythia 

 should have summer-blooming herbs near it; 

 the Hydrangea was preceded by a group of 

 Peonies. But, after all, the flowers on the herbs 

 are only incidental, the foliage and tidy habits 

 of growth, as well as great length of life, are the 



Weigela gives its pink, red or white flowers even in t he shade 

 of big trees, but does far better in the open 



Spiraea Vanhouttei is a wonderfully useful shrub as speci- 

 men or hedge in shade or sun 



be too large for their place. On account of size 

 I must omit Lilacs, but I might arrange with 

 my neighbor to set one on the property line 

 where we both could enjoy it. 



IF THE family is away in midsummer we might 

 as well omit the customary Hydrangea, or if 

 you must have it, substitute the type form 

 (Hydrangea paniculata) that has more graceful 

 open spires of flowers. 



The old fragrant Mock -orange (Philadelphus) is not sur- 

 passed as a shrub for lawn or mass planting 



