Poinciana Gilliesii (South America), classified in the last 
edition of Bailey's Encyclopedia as Caesalpinia Gilliesii, is most 
worthy of extensive planting because of its great beauty when in 
full flower. It is a shrub or small tree bearing many tiny leaves 
scarcely one-half inch long. The flowers are yellow with brilliant 
red stamens protruding three to five inches. It bears the popular 
name of ''Bird of Paradise" as does Strelitzia Reginae and is 
said to stand a temperature as low as twenty degrees F. My 
plants are in full sun in a porous soil. I have seen the plant in 
bloom in many parts of California and always rejoiced in its 
beauty. 
Finally I recommend two shrubs or trees closely related to the 
Acacia. The one, AVbizzia fulibrissin, and the other, Calliandra 
porioricensis. In both cases the corolla is obscured by the one- 
inch long stamens (about twenty -five) which are apparently 
stuck into a tiny, round ovary, resembling the device sometimes 
used instead of a pin cushion, a ball set upon a slender upright 
filled with a bristling array of pins. AVbizzia fulibrissin is pink 
and thrives well in Santa Barbara. Calliandra (Greek for 
beautiful stamens) porioricensis is of special charm, the white 
blossoms appearing about sunset, seen at a distance make the 
shrub look as if it were covered with fairy lanterns. By morning, 
these have lost their glistening white freshness and look like 
bedraggled little mops. The evening beauty is sufficient to make 
them worthy of enthusiasm. As dinner table decorations they 
are charming. The leaves close at evening just as the flowers 
are opening. It is a native of the West Indies and will endure 
a temperature as low as twenty-four degrees in California. 
Ednah Wickson Kelly. 
Santa Barbara, California. 
Dr. Wherry's Garden 
In a small suburban lot, in rock bordered plots of 3 to 4 f aet 
in diameter are growing plants of great variety. Many of which 
here-to-fore having been considered hostile to the climate of 
Washington. We know now that climate is not all, but soil 
everything. His most interesting plants were those usually 
found only in peaty woods, like Rhododendrons, Arbutus, Part- 
ridge-berries, etc. Dr. Wherry has assembled them here, under 
a Pine tree whose needles in decaying make the soil condition 
necessary for these plants. He also adds a boAvl of sawdust each 
year and with only that, the occupants of the plot are as happy 
as one could wish. Here he also has Shoriia, that whimsical 
little plant that lost itself a couple of hundred years ago to be 
found in the United States, in Georgia, some years back. It 
grows as the Galax grows, a lovely leaf-rosette, and the flowers 
small, delicate and bell shaped, are both white and pink. Dr. 
Wherry tells us it is not difficult to grow. 
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