New Mockoranges With Large Flowers john dunbar 



An Account of Some of the Remarkable Recent Improvements in These Highly Esteemed Flowering Shrubs. Another Debt that 



America Owes to the Work of Lemoine 



[Editor's Note: Mr. Dunbar is Assistant Superintendent of Parks at Rochester, New York, where, under his direction has been gathered together 

 a remarkable collection of newer important trees and shrubs worthy of general cultivation. Mr. Dunbar's selections are based on long experience and 

 a thorough acquaintance :titli trees and shrjibs.] 



THE Philadelphuses, or Mockoranges, are 

 commonly known under the erroneous 

 name of Syringa, which however is 

 the proper generic name of the Lilacs. 

 They are very hardy, easily grown and one or 

 two are among the best known garden shrubs. 

 Modern introductions, however, offer us greatly 

 improved flowers of large size and diverse forms. 

 The chief value of the Mockoranges lies in 

 their showv white blossoms, which in many 

 -species, forms, and hybrids are strongly fragrant, 

 and they flower mostly in June to the first of 

 July. There is no particularly ornamental value 

 in the branching habits of the plants when not 

 in bloom. The different species and forms that 

 have been commonly sold in nurseries for many 

 years are excellent shrubs for border plantations, 

 as they grow rapidly, and form an important 

 screen in a short time. Philadelphuses are not 

 particular about soil conditions — any well- 

 drained soil, heavy or light, suits them. They 

 should be pruned on the same principles as 

 Deutzias, i. e. cut out the old flowering sprays and 

 old wood any time during the dormant season. 

 Like Deutzias and the Lilacs the Philadel- 

 phuses have been much improved by the Le- 

 moines (of Nancy, France), through hybridizing. 

 The first important cross to attract attention 

 was between Philadelphus coronarius, an old 

 inhabitant of gardens — probably the best known 

 of all — a native of the Caucasus, and P. micro- 

 phyllus a small leaved shrub, a native of the 

 Rocky Mountain region. This form was named 

 Lemoinei and has been growing in our parks for 

 twenty-six years. A large number of hybrid pro- 

 geny followed this break, and many of them are 

 indeed lovely garden plants. Several showy 

 hybrid forms, the parentage of which is extremely 

 doubtful, have appeared during recent years. 

 The Lemoines, as far as I am aware, have not 

 stated the parentage of a number of these. It 

 seems that some species other than P. coronarius 

 and P. microphyllus must have been employed, 

 as the foliage characters in some of these new 

 hybrids do not agree with either of the species. 

 In addition to these hybrids the two following 

 species are excellent garden plants: 



Philadelphus purpurascens, a new species 

 from Western China introduced by E. H. Wilson. 

 Our plants have been raised from seeds received 

 from Dr. C. S. Sargent about eight or nine years 

 ' since, and they are now about six feet in height. 

 The branches are spreading and somewhat arch- 

 ing, and from them are produced numerous 

 branchlets about four inches long, which bear 

 terminal racemes of five or six pure white, fra- 

 grant, almost bell-shaped blossoms. In this 

 feature it is distinct from most Philadelphuses 

 as the flowers are generally flat or flattish. The 

 calyx surrounding the blossoms is dark purplish 

 red. It blossoms about June 2ist. This is 

 worthy of a place in all gardens. 



Philadelphus microphyllus, which has been 

 mentioned previously as a hybrid parent, is a 

 native of the Rocky Mountains. It has been 

 in cultivation for a good many years, but is 

 still rare in gardens. With us, after seventeen 

 years, it does not exceed four to four and one 

 half feet in height. It forms a dense bush with 

 the slender branches partly spreading but mostly 

 upright. The young branches have a decidedly 

 deep brownish red color in winter. The light 

 green colored leaves are very small, and hardly 

 ever exceed three fourths of an inch long, and a 

 quarter of an inch wide. The profuse small white 

 fragrant blossoms are borne on fragile branch- 

 lets. It is usually in bloom about June 25th. 



This is certainly a neat and most desirable garden 

 shrub. 



Some of the Choice Hybrids 



ALBATRE has slender branches, and judg- 

 ing by present appearances will not grow 

 more than four to five feet tall in time. The pure 

 white double flowers sometimes inclined to be 

 semi-double are borne in large panicled clusters, 

 and are produced in great profusion. It flowers 

 about June 29th. 



Avalanche is a most graceful shrub attaining 

 a height of five to six feet with whip-like slender 

 branches and mostly erect. It has smallish 

 lanceolate leaves, and the parentage of Philadel- 

 phus microphyllus can readily be detected. It 

 has numerous small clusters of handsome single 

 fragrant flowers about June 26th. A most 

 beautiful garden plant. (See illustration p. 191) 



Dame Blanche is a neat, compact low growing 

 form with erect branches and smallish leaves. 

 It has semi-double very fragrant flowers, the 

 petals somewhat fimbriated. After a good many 

 years' growth it does not attain over three to four 

 feet tall. It flowers about June 29th. 



Manteau d' h ermine does not grow more than 

 two to two and one half feet in ten or twelve years. 

 The branches have a spreading habit. It has 

 small leaves and shows the parentage strongly, 

 in the foliage, of P. microphyllus. It bears 

 double to semi-double pure white flowers in 

 great profusion from all the stems. It blossoms 

 about June 13th. This is such a neat small shrub 

 that it should appeal strongly to many people. 



Mont Blanc is a free branching form with 

 slender ascending stems and attains a height of 

 five feet. It bears most profusely a wealth of 

 pure white fragrant blossoms and flowers about 

 June 13th. This is an excellent garden shrub. 



Pavillon Blanc, which signifies "white tent" 

 or "white bell," is a beautiful form. It grows 

 about five feet high and produces clusters of 

 pure white single flowers in great abundance 

 spaced well apart. It blossoms about June 20 

 to 25th, and is a little later than some other 

 hybrids of the same parentage. 



Virginal is perhaps w r hat a Frenchman would 

 call '7a piece de resistance" amongst all Mock- 

 oranges. It certainly is a cynosure when in full 

 bloom. It has attained a height of seven feet 

 with us, and the stems are stout and vigorous. 

 The white fragrant flowers are borne in rich 

 luxurious clusters, and so profusely that the 

 branches bend under their weight of 'bloom. 

 The flowers are described as double in the original 

 description, but the flowers on our plants are 

 mostly semi-double and occasional blossoms are 

 inclined to be almost single. It was in full 

 bloom here on June 29th in 1916. 



Voie Lactee is a showy distinct form. The 

 French meaning of the name is "Milky Way." 

 It grows five to six feet tall with erect stems. 

 The branches are thickly covered with racemes 

 of four to five clustered blossoms, pure white, 

 two inches across. The petals are distinctly 

 rounded and very fragrant. It blooms about 

 June 21st. This is said to be a hybrid between 

 Philadelphus nepalensis and P. microphyllus. 

 It does not show, however, any of the parentage 

 of Philadelphus microphyllus. 



Insignis was the first known hybrid amongst 

 Philadelphuses. It was raised in France possibly 

 in the sixties of the last century by Monsieur 

 A. Billard. It is a large growing plant and has 



198 



showy single flowers. It is important because 

 it is one of the latest to bloom. It was in fkwer 

 in 1915 on July 12th. 



Argentine is a most singular form and dis- 

 tinct from all other hybrids. It has erect 

 branches, and has the appearance of being a 

 medium sized shrub. The large double white 

 blossoms which are about two inches in diameter 

 are produced in immense clusters suggesting 

 snowballs. It would seem to recommend itself 

 to the florists for cut flower purposes. It is in 

 full bloom about June 29th. 



Banniere sends up long stout branches on 

 which are borne numerous clusters of three to 

 four large pure white semi-double flowers, which 

 are two and two fifths inches across. This is a 

 remarkably showy form and blossoms about 

 June 20th. 



Glacier is a form that will appeal to many 

 people. It has erect stout stems and it appears 

 as if it might remain a medium sized bush. The 

 flowers are double, and are in dense clusters on 

 thickly set panicles. The flowers are so thickly 

 packed together that they present a snowball 

 effect. It is in full bloom about July 12th. 



Rosace is a singularly handsome flowering 

 form. It sends up slender flexible stems six to 

 seven feet tall, on which are borne numerous 

 clusters of pure white fragrant flowers, two and 

 four fifths inches across, suggesting somewhat 

 the appearance of a rose. It was in full flower 

 with us on June 29th in 1916. This is a hybrid 

 with much artistic beauty when in bloom. 



A Group With Reddish Color, But Tender 



A FEW years ago an interesting group of 

 small-sized hybrid Philadelphuses which 

 showed purplish red, or rosy red, in greater or 

 less degrees toward the lower parts of the petals 

 was introduced by the Lemoines. The begin- 

 ning of this group of hybrids was obtained 

 through crossing Philadelphus Coulteri, a Mexican 

 species having a purplish-red spot at the base of 

 the flower, with Philadelphus microphyllus al- 

 ready described. P. Coulteri does not grow 

 naturally north of Mexico, and probably would 

 not stand our winters. 



The first hybrid thus obtained was named 

 Fantasie and showed a pale rose tinge at the 

 base of the petals. This was followed by a much 

 more beautiful form (the result of crossing 

 Fantasie with Coulteri) named P. purpureo- 

 maculatus. The lower parts of the petals 

 showed prominent rosy red markings and it 

 made a distinct impression in some nursery 

 circles in this country when it first appeared. 

 I remember how enthusiastic the late John 

 Charlton, in his day a well known Rochester 

 nurseryman and a great lover of plants, was 

 in describing this new plant to me some time 

 before I saw it. We now have in our collection 

 P. purpureo-maculatus, Etoile Rose, Sirene, 

 Romeo, and Sybille. These forms show vary- 

 ing degrees of pinkish red, rosy red, and purplish 

 red in greater or less extent toward the base of 

 the blossoms, which are borne in one to three 

 at the ends of fragile branchlets, but they are 

 frequently solitary. The branches in the differ- 

 ent hybrids are slender and none of them at the 

 present time exceed two and one half feet in 

 height. There is no doubt that these forms are a 

 little tender, and require to be planted in sheltered 

 conditions. They are doing nicely with us, and we 

 regard them as very dainty choice garden plants. 

 They flower usually about the first week in July. 



