3H 



FLORA AND SYLVA. 



ences in habit may be seen in almost every 

 species of Cypress. Anyone approaching the 

 Mediterranean region for the first time cannot 

 fail to be impressed by the form of the Cypress, 

 towering in dark distinctness above the lower 

 vegetation, its sharp outline often seen to ad- 

 vantageon risingground. Upon the sunny side 

 of the Alps it becomes a common tree around 

 the graveyards and cemeteries, guarding the 

 approach to village churches and wayside 

 shrines, and forming stately avenues in gardens 

 of the fine old houses of the south. Its stout 

 stem, straight as an arrow, shoots up rapidly 

 when young, frequently making a growth of 

 several feet in a season. Its favourite spot is 

 the sunny slope of a hillside, safe from the stag- 

 nant moisture of the valley and with assured 

 drainage ; it prefers a limestone soil, free and 

 fresh, but when mature is uninjured by long 

 drought. As a protection from cold or heat 

 there is nothing better than a double rank of 

 Cypress, their height and dense growth giving 

 shelterwhich neitherwind nor snow can pene- 

 trate ; gardens enclosed upon the wintry side by 

 such a living wall, often 60 or more feet high, 

 enjoy a climate of their own and shaded walks, 

 when all outside is one intolerable glare. Yet 

 to some the tree is unwelcome on account of 

 its associations, or on the ground of its severe- 

 ly formal outline, while others would banish 

 it because mosquitoes often hide in its dense 

 cover. Still, an avenue of these trees is singu- 

 larly beautiful, their regularity of growth and 

 outline making a good result certain with 

 little or no care, whilst isolated trees in their 

 quaint distinctness stand out as landmarks of 

 the most picturesque character; and if there be 

 mosquitoes there are also the fire-flies flitting 

 like myriad animated sparks in their shadow 

 so soon as night falls. Though mergingthrough 

 intermediate forms, the spreading and upright 

 kinds are very distinct in appearance, the pyra- 

 midal by far the more common, though in some 

 places, as around Montpellier, where it forms 

 fine avenues, the cone shape prevails ; hence 

 horvzontalis is often called the " tree of Montpel- 

 lier." The peasants invariably refer to this 

 spreading and more handsome form as the male, 

 and the slender, narrow form as the. female 

 Cypress, but the distinction is purely fanciful. 

 Their wood, which is hard, finely grained, fra- 

 grant, and red or rose colour, is highly valued 



and very lasting. The ancient gates of Con- 

 stantinople made of this tree are said to have 

 stood for more than a thousand years. 



A COMMON FAULT IN GAR- 

 DEN MAKING. 



There is a practice in the London parks 

 and elsewhere of raising mounds with 

 the idea of getting better landscape 

 effect, but as generally carried out it is 

 against all good work in landscape gar- 

 dening. It is assumed by the mound- 

 makers that the ground is not right for 

 their purpose, and so heaps of earth are 

 thrown up here and there to change the 

 natural form of the ground. Anyone go- 

 ing through St. James's Park will be able 

 to judge for themselves whether any- 

 thing is gained by this distortion of the 

 surface. It will be clear to any observer 

 that at least two things are lost. In the 

 first place, those who made these mounds 

 have rarely any eye for natural gradation, 

 and therefore false lines and stiff banks 

 occur here and there and are very un- 

 sightly. Secondly ,pilingmounds of earth 

 around trees is a sure way of destroying 

 one of the most beautiful aspects of tree 

 life, and that is the way in which the stem 

 arises from the earth, often with a wide 

 spreading bole, or with a broad but- 

 tressed effect such as that shown in our 

 illustration. In St. James's Park and the 

 other places where this needless work 

 has been done, the bottom of the tree is 

 often hidden, so that it comes out of the 

 ground like a stick. There is scarcely 

 any place where trees grow naturally 

 in which one cannot see the beautiful 

 way in which their stems are built, — a 

 form of beauty which should never be 

 concealed by needless earthwork. Such 



