beauty of its dark green leaves and its bright lustrous bark, make 
it a perfect joy. Prunus subhirtella, the spring cherry of Japan, was 
a very large tree, spreading from many trunks with lovely pink 
blossoms whose petals dropped, leaving the red sepals to carry on 
the color scheme. Prunus Americana Alleghensis was a mass of 
white blossoms resembHng hawthorne. 
Among the pears were two specially lovely varieties, — Pyrus 
beyulaefolia, a tree of straggling growth with sage-green foHage cov- 
ered with clusters of white flowers. And P. Phaeocarpa, — so full of 
bloom that you could not see space for another blossom, — there were 
seven or eight in each cluster and their red anthers made a bright note. 
Malus Bacata showed one week fine tight red buds like holly, and 
the next, pale rose buds with a glossy green fohage; then they opened 
to a wide mock-orange bloom on long stems, very fragrant, the fruit 
red or yellow and no larger than a pea. M. Zuni has a long period 
of bloom, a stragghng habit of growth and its small pink buds burst 
into white blossoms like the Bacata. M. Florihunda was a truly large 
tree covered with fragrant flowers. M. Arnoldiana is a hybrid of it 
and the most beautiful of all, with long stemmed clusters that have 
the charm of pink buds and white flowers at the same time. 
Much excited by this novel beauty we turned for information to 
a sturdy Pilgrim (bicycle type) who, notebook in hand, was directing 
some pruning of nearby Deutzias. At once started by our eager 
questions he fairly exuded horticulture. I looked at the syringas 
lining the paths with lovely purple trusses down to the base and 
asked how it was done. In planting young lilacs let them alone for 
three years, and then prune severely from the tops, so the dormant 
buds will develop below; by sharp pruning and keeping out suckers, 
the sap is sent to the root-buds at a time when they can use it, for 
when the plant is too old, Hfe leaves the dormant buds and no amount 
of pruning will force the lower growth. 
We parted on the Lilac Walk, and cHmbed to the heights where 
the Elect Syringas grow. In form, size of truss, and individual 
flower as well as color, these hybrids were wonderful, whether a deep 
wine color like Congo Negro, Marceau or Philemon; pale lavender, 
like Rene Jarry Desloges or Viviani Morel; or bluish mauve, Hke the 
old Lemoine, Leon Simon or Marie Legraye, — old friends. 
Winter had taken its full toll on that hill top and many of the new 
bushes were trimmed back to a stump and a few shoots, — one care- 
fully spaded circle held a ten-inch stump with one tiny shoot and a 
heavy zinc label "L'Oncle Tom," — evidently the French take our 
"classics" more seriously than we do. Paul Herriot and President 
Louhet were large in growth with heavy trusses of wine-purple open- 
ing into a Hghter bluish tone that was very deep and soft; and 
another tall bush with great full blossoms of dehcious pink-lavender 
was called Fiirst Liechtenstein. 
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