18G4] 
AMEIUCAN AGKICCLTUIUS'I'. 
The Ornamental Varieties of Kale. 
One would hardly suppose that any variety 
of the cabbage could be classed with the orna- 
mental plants. Yet bucIi is the fact: some of the 
Fig. 1.— SHALL LEAF OF GREEN A>"« WHITE KALE. 
new kales are really beautiful. In England, the 
common red kale has been used for a long time 
for the winter ornamentation of the gardens it 
being planted with low evergreens and other 
plants which will endure their mild winters, to 
produce pleasing effects of color when seen at 
a distance. Mr. T. S. OolfJ, of Litchfield Co., 
Fig. & — SHALL LEAi ui' GREEN ANO PUBPLB KALL. 
Ct., sent to our table specimens of variegated 
kale wbicb are beautiful not only for then- form 
but for tbeir elegant coloring. It is almost im- 
possible to represent in black and white those 
plants whicb depend upon color for their beauty, 
yet we have attempted to give in the engravings 
two specimens of this kale. Kg. 
11b a small leaf of the variety which p 
iii" most marked contrasts of color, having a 
pure white not- work running through a leal ol 
era. In the engraving the green por- 
tion of the leaf is represented by the shading. 
The variety shown in tig. 2, is mure beautiful 
in ah ipe. The leaves present a most delicately^ 
(rilled green edge, while the central portion is 
of a One rose purple, and the two colors blend 
into one another in the most pleasing manner. 
What is most striking about this specimen is 
the fact, which we have attempted to show in 
niving, that. some of the leaves have 
leaf bearing branches Btarting from their mid- 
ribs. In the - it for October an illus- 
tration was given of young plants starting from 
a leaf, and now we have the curious phenom- 
enon of the brunch growing upon a leaf. This 
lasl ease is explained by supposing that what 
would have otherwise been distinct; uprighi 
stalks, have in the developement of the leaf be- 
come so united with, and so to speak, grafted 
into it, that they were carried along with the 
leaf and appear to be produced by it. The 
seeds of these varieties are sold by seedsmen un- 
der the name of " Improved Garnishing Kale." 
The Meadow Saffron. — C lehiewn autumnaU.) 
This la one of (ho old-fashioned dowers that 
nearly disappeared Iron but which 
presents so many points of Interest, and is with- 
al so pretty, that we think it deserves to retain 
a place. It tlowcrs In September and <»c ■;■ 
and its fresh ai like flowers are in 
The Honey Locust for Hedges. 
This tree, which is frequently called the 
Threc-thorned Acacia, is the Gledislscliia triacan- 
thos of botanists, and though a native of the 
South, is found growing wild as far north as 
Pennsylvania and Illinois. In favorable situa- 
tions it forms a large tree, and is frequently cul- 
tivated for ornament, on account of its graceful 
outline and its light feather-like foliage. The 
flowers are not conspicuous, but the fruit is very 
much so. This consists of long thin wavy pods, 
which have been aptly described as looking 
like apple parings. It produces upon the trunk 
and branches clusters of strong, large and sharp 
branching thorns. As a hedge plant it has 
been in use for a long time, with a variable rep- 
utation, but the general verdict is now in its 
favor. Former failures are attributable to the 
want of proper treatment of the hedge during its 
early growth. The plants are readily raised 
from seed, which may be collected from fruiting 
trees, or be bad at the seed stores. It is usually 
advised to expose the seeds mixed with earth to 
winter freezing, or to scald them and keep 
ithem in a warm place, before sowing. This may 
be a safe precaution with old seeds, but we have 
seen a plantation made last spring with seeds 
sown without any preparation, and they seem 
to have come up as regularly as beans. The 
young plants may be set from two to three feet 
apart in the hedge row, and after growing a 
year they should be cut back within two inches 
of the ground! This will cause a dense shrubby 
growth, which will need to be brought, into 
shape in the same manner as with other decid- 
uous hedges. The clipping is done in June and 
September, but any shoot tending to make a 
strong growth must be removed whenever it 
appears. A few years' severe cutting will bring 
this tree into a most excellent hedge. We are 
not able to state the precise northern limit at 
which the Honey Locust proves hardy, but all 
through central New York and Massachusetts 
it flourishes and stands the winter quite well. 
■ i « i» •-• 
Show may easily be purchased ; but happi- 
ness is a home-made article which all may have. 
For every vice or virtue a man exhibits, he gen- 
erallv gets credit or discredit for a whole brood 
MEADOW SAFFRON. 
marked contrast with the languishing condition 
of most other plants at that season. The flow- 
ers appear without leaves. The figure shows 
one of the bulbs at flowering time. The pistil 
extends down into the bulb, and the ovary, the 
part which will become the seed pod, is conceal- 
ed there several inches below the surface. After 
flowering, all above-ground traces of the plant 
are lost sight of until the following spring, when 
the leaves appear and with them the seed vessels. 
