OENAMENTAL SHRUBS AND TREPIS. 
5 
istrung with thousands of pendent yellow flowers, are quite unique. Those 
I have named are worthy of a conspicuous position, while they also form 
i)eautiful hedges. ]>. dulcis is a very light and airy grower with small 
foliage and very prickly stems, and its globular yellow and orange flowers 
tire very sweet-scented. B. dulcis nana is a pretty pincushion shrub. 
The snowy Mespilus and its varieties (Amelanchiers) are very effective 
either as bushes or as standards : their creamy white flowers are produced 
freely, and in autumn the golden crimson foliage is much admired. When 
the tree attains timber size it is a most lovely subject. The Bird Cherry 
with its white racemes is very effective. Throughout April the tribe of 
Malus (Pyrus, Apples) give a charm to the garden, starting the procession 
•with M. spectabilis var. ' Kaido,' a new Japanese plant, with semi-double 
pale-rose flowers. We next get M. floribunda, with its profusion of white 
flowers, shaded on the outsides with red and crimson ; then the Siberian 
-Crabs put in an appearance ; the yellow, red, and the newer Cheal's Scarlet ; 
while the best of all, perhaps, is M. spectabilis fl. pi., with its semi- 
double globular flowers, produced in bunches, lovely and distinct. 
The newer M. angustifolia is very distinct : its foliage resembles the 
^Mountain Ash, and it has very large pale blush rose flowers, pleasantly 
scented. Other good varieties for flower are M. fl. atrosanguinea, M. fl. 
Packmanni, or Halleana, with ruby foliage, and Scheideckerii, the richest 
■coloured variety. Of the Crabs better known for their fruit are Fairy, John 
Bownie, Dartmouth, Transparent, Transcendent, Orange, &c. The allied 
Pyrus (Cydonia) japonicaand its varieties are not less beautiful either as 
wall plants or shrubs. The best are the species, P. japonica atrosan- 
guinea, the mottled Moerloosi, and the deep cerise umbilicata rosea, while 
the white nivalis major is an exquisite gem. The creamy Candida 
is distinct ; the dwarf species Maulei, with its profusion of salmon 
and rose blooms, and of this we now have a variety, of a pale prim- 
rose colour. In the cool pleasant evenings we can now drink in the 
•overpowering scent of Daphne pontica, with its numerous green flowers, 
which are only scented at night. This is a fine sub-shrub for a shady 
spot, and does grandly on chalk. 
Scarcely less conspicuous than the Apple tribe are the Japanese Cherries. 
The umbrella-like weeper Cerasus japonica rosea pendula, although a 
little formal on stems, is welcome for its early and profuse flowering ; 
while the glorious Cerasus Watererii, with its clusters of pale blush 
ilowers, is grand either as a bush or standard, and a fine subject for forcing. 
The newer crimson-flowered ' J. H. Veitch ' is a great gain. Amygdalus 
nana (sometimes called Prunus) is a charming dwarf shrub, coming this 
month with its lovely blossoms of rich pink, A. Georgica is not worth 
<?ulture. In white flowers the feathery arching Spinea multiflora arguta 
is most lovely, and as a dwarf plant very commendable. Khcdora 
canadensis is now conspicuous in the peat beds and has a purplish rose 
shade of colour — rather unusual. The Cytisus are in full glory too, but I 
.am not botanical enough to separate C. biflorus, elegans, and elongatus. 
Any way they are all very pretty low shrubs, crowded with yellow Clover- 
like flowers. Late in April the double Ribes sanguinea is very pretty, 
:and the variety grandiflora is also later than the old red variety. The 
Hawthorns, although generally grown as standard trees, make very 
