6 
MAHONIA AQUIFOLIUM. 
character may be seen in the nursery of Messrs. Young, Epsom, nearly five feet in 
height, and of the most striking beauty. The Epsom Nursery is, indeed, 
notoriously rich in all kinds of Mahonia and Berberis, many thousands being 
raised annually from seed. It was from this establishment that our drawing was 
procured. 
If M. aquifolium be cultivated as a border or lawn shrub, or in any open 
position where it is required to display itself prominently, it is important that the 
quantity of fruit it is allowed to ripen be limited, by thinning and removing a 
large portion of it. Where this is not done, the branches bearing the berries, 
become naked and bare, and spoil the symmetry of the bush. In order, however, 
to enjoy the beauty of the fruit, a small proportion may be left till it reaches 
maturity ; when, as it begins to wither, it can either be gathered and thrown 
away, or employed for propagation. The seeds are sown in the spring on a bed 
of light soil prepared for the purpose, and the young plants pricked out in the 
early autumn, or retained in the seed-bed till the following spring. When about 
two or three years old, they are in the fittest state for final transplantation. 
Mr. Nuttall, an American botanist and traveller, detached this genus from 
Berberis, in honour of Bernard M'Mahon, a lover of botany in North America. 
