428 THE CENTURY BOOK OF GARDENING. 



foliage is of beautiful golden hue. The species is quite 

 as pleasing as any of the varieties, and the little shrubs 

 are happy in dry, poor soils and quite sunny places. 

 Such information need hardly be given. 

 Hedera {Ivy). — Most of these come under the head of 

 climbing plants, but there are a few known as Tree Ivies, 

 which are quite bushes, and show no tendency to climb. 

 They are very ornamental evergreens, and consist of 

 arborescens, a variety of the common Ivv, with a gold 

 and silver variegated form. Hedera canadensis arborea 

 and H. Rtegneriana are two kinds with large heart- 

 shaped leaves. Cuttings, which should be put in a 

 frame in early autumn, do not root so readily as climbing 

 Ivies. The tree Ivies are well adapted to lorm groups 

 upon the lawn or its outskirts. There is a leafiness about 

 these shrubs that compels attention, and their rich green 

 tints are beautiful at all limes, especially in the winter 

 months. 



Ilex [Holly). — The common Holly (Ilex Aquifolium) is 

 undoubtedly our most beautiful native evergreen, and is 

 unsurpassed as a hedge plant, while immense quantities 

 are used for decorations at Christmas. The common 

 kind is known to everyone, but there is a host of varieties 

 not so often met with. The ordinary Holly is readi y 

 raised from seeds, which are obtained by gathering the 

 berries when ripe and burving them in soil or sand till 

 the spring or summer. They must then be sown in beds 

 in the open ground, and many of the young plants will 

 make their appearance in the following spring, while 

 others will not appear till the second year. They grow 

 slowly, hence they may stand two years before trans- 

 planting. The yarielies are increased by grafting or 

 budding on to seedling plants of the common kind. 

 Grafting is done in March, while budding, which is 

 generally adopted, is carried out in July and August, (he 

 operation being similar to tint employed for Roses. 



KALM1A. 



A few strongly marked varieties are — with green 

 leaves : Bessoni, without spines ; crassifolia, very thick 

 leaves; ferox, Hedgehog Holly; Hendersoni, broad 

 spineless leaves ; Hodginsi, broad deep green leaves, 

 strong spines ; mvrtifolia, small leaves : recurva, spines 

 arranged backwards; tortuosa, twisted leaves. With 

 variegated leaves : Argentea marginala, silver margined ; 

 argenieo picta, while blotched ; aurea, golden leaved ; 



ferox argentea, variegated Hedgehog; Golden Queen, 

 Milkmaid, and Waterer's Golden. There is also a 

 coun erpart of the common Holly, except that the berries 

 are bright yellow when ripe. Three distinct weeping 

 kinds are pendula, argentea pendula, and aurea pendula, 

 with green, white, variegated, and yellow variegated 

 leaves respectively. Other species are : 

 I. COmuta. — A very distinct bush, native of Northerr, 

 China ; it has the terminal spines arranged like horns, 

 hence its name. 



I. CPenata. - This is a dense twiggy bush, its spineless 

 oval-shaped leaves being not more than lin. long. The 

 variety aurea, which has the loliage tinged with gold, is a 

 charming 1 tile shrub. Native of Japan. 



I. latifolia. — The leaves of this are as large as those of 

 the Laurel, and the plant itself is of tree-like habit. It 

 is rather tender. 



Kalmia. — The few species of this genus are all pretty 

 flowering shrubs, natives of North America, and succeeding 

 under the same conditions as the Rhododendrons, that is, 

 in a fairly moist situation, and a soil composed principally 

 of peat, or good open loam mixed with leaf mould. They 

 are increased by seeds, which ripen freely, and should be 

 sown as soon as ripe in pans ol peaty soil. The seedsare 

 very minute, and must be sown thinly on the surface of 

 the soil, and just covered with a sprinkling of sand. If a 

 pane of glass be laid over the pan, and the whole placed 

 in a frame shaded from the sun, the young plants will soon 

 make their appearance, and the following spring may be 

 pricked off into other pans of sandy peat, pressed down 

 very firmly. They do not grow fast, ami will take four or 

 five years to reach flowering size. The principal species 

 are : 



K. a'.lg"UStifolia. — A neat-growing upright bush from 2ft. 

 to 3 ( t . high, with oblong-shaped leaves, little more than 

 lin. long, and clusters of bright rosy red, salver-shaped 



blossoms, at 

 their best 



, j " about the 



end of May. 

 There are 

 several 

 varieties, 

 such as 

 1 u c i d a , 

 nana, ovata, 

 rosea, and 

 rubra. 



K. glauea. 



— T his is 

 s e 1 d o m 

 .'. * more than 

 t 1 1. high, 

 and readily 



MMft- i s t i n - 



^ u ; s h e d 



from the 

 others by 

 the whitish 

 under -sides 

 to the 

 leaves. The 

 flowers, 

 which are 

 borne in 

 great pro- 

 fusion, are 

 of a pretty 

 purplish 

 pink tint. 



It is one of the most charming of flowering shrubs in the 

 early days of May. 

 K. latifolia.--The giant of the family, forming a shrub 

 6ft. to f>ft. high, and as much through, clothed with 

 shining deep green leaves, and clusters of pink blossoms 

 in June and July. Irrespective of flowers it is a very 

 handsome shrub, and is frequently grown as a standard. 

 Myrlifolia and polypetala are forms. 



