37o 



FLORA AND SYLVA, 



such trees as the Wistaria rewards his 

 children and his children's children yet 

 more richly than himself. 



As to culture, this plant needs only 

 a fair start, in warm light soil if possible, 

 and as much sunlight as may be had. 

 Though often left alone, in many gar- 

 dens pruningis necessary to good effect, 

 but this must vary with the end in view. 

 Plants growingas standards or in a small 

 space, require close spur-pruning as for 

 fruit trees. The best flowers grow upon 

 short spurs coming at the base of the 

 shoots,and to develop these all the young 

 growths are cut well back in July, more 

 or less closely according to circum- 

 stances and as soon as the lower wood 

 has hardened . On starting again from 

 the buds nearestthe cut, these secondary 

 shoots are again stopped after growing a 

 few inches, throwing back the sap and 

 forcing flowering spurs from the base of 

 the shoot first shortened; in early spring 

 the final touch consists in cutting back 

 this flowerless wood to within a few 

 eyes of the main stem, while reserving 

 the short flower-spurs upon which the 

 whole energy is thu s concentrated . Stan- 

 dards and close-trained trees so treated 

 will be a mass of flower in May and June, 

 but there are no autumn flowers, which 

 come in longer, looser bunches, only at 

 the ends of the summer's growth . Where 

 this second bloom is valued, and there is 

 space to cover, pruning is only necessary 

 to regulate and equalise the growth,with 

 new shoots retained and laid in wher- 

 ever required. When trained to trees 

 the plant may be left alone, the one care 

 being to prevent the spiral twist around 

 the trunk, which is natural to the Wis- 



taria but quickly fatal to young conifers 

 or other trees of rapid growth. A good 

 way of starting the Wistaria upon a tree 

 is by sinking in the ground a bottomless 

 tub of good soil, which is thus kept for 

 its roots alone until they are strong 

 enough to hold their own. Where old 

 plants exist, increase is easy by layers ; 

 seedlings are not good, being slow to 

 flower though growing fast. Root-cut- 

 tings (a plan not often followed) are said 

 to give the best plants of all, vigorous, 

 as well as free in flower; cuttings of the 

 shoots will also root, with care and pa- 

 tience, but so slowly that this is not worth 

 trying where other ways are possible. 

 Though free of insect pests, the flowers 

 are sometimes spoiled by sparrows, and 

 I have known rats to nibble off the wool- 

 ly buds by hundreds with no apparent 

 object. 



Short Clustered Wistaria (Wistaria 

 brachybotrys). — Though known to botanists 

 for many years this is a rare kind, represented 

 in Europe only by small plants, and even at 

 Kew it has not yet flowered. It is a low shrub 

 of only a few feet, with flowers like the blue 

 Wistaria in colour, but in short clusters of 

 about 6 inches, which come later and are held 

 erect or loosely spreading. The leaves are heart- 

 shaped at the base and silky on both sides. 

 Japan. Two colour varieties, rosea and alba, 

 are grown in the United States, but do not 

 seem to have reached this country. The main 

 value of this kind seems to be for dwarf bush- 

 plants, which are often trained in a spiral. 



The Chinese Wistaria (W. chinensis). — 

 In its best-known form this needs no descrip- 

 tion, but there are many garden varieties,some 

 of value, though many are yet untried in this 

 country. Thepretty white-flowered k'md,a/ba, 

 is still far from common, and though the clus- 

 ters are pure white and often large, they are 

 fewer than in the blue kind and the plant is 

 less hardy and vigorous. It is often grafted but 

 is best raised from root-cuttings and grown 



