on most of the trees make a visit to the Arboretum in July interesting 
and important. 
Among the shrubs now in bloom the most showy are perhaps the Hy- 
drangeas, and of the species cultivated in the Arboretum Hydrangea 
paniculata is now the most conspicuous. The most generally planted of 
the forms of this plant is the one in which all the flowers are sterile, 
known as Hydrangea paniculata grandifiora. This plant produces large 
conical clusters of white flowers which turn rose color in fading; it will 
not be in bloom for several weeks. There are two other forms in which 
only a few of the flowers are sterile and are called ray flowers because 
they surround the clusters of small fertile flowers. These are the wild 
plants from which the form grandifiora , with all the flowers neutral, has 
been developed probably by long cultivation and selection in Chinese and 
Japanese gardens. There are two forms of this Hydrangea with per- 
fect and ray flowers and one of these, variety praecox , is just coming 
into flower and the other, variety tardiva, will not be in flower for several 
weeks. There are three plants of the variety praecox in the collection, 
differing in the size of the flower-clusters and in the size of the ray flow- 
ers. The handsomest and the earliest of these was raised from seeds 
collected by Professor Sargent in Hokkaido where it grows into a small 
tree sometimes twenty or thirty feet tall. Individuals of two of the 
American species of Hydrangea have been found with sterile flowers 
only. The handsomest of these is the variety of Hydrangea arbores- 
cens, known as grandifiora. This plant was found a few years ago 
growing wild in one of the western states and has been largely distribu- 
ted in this country and in Europe. It is a handsome hardy plant, of good 
habit, and it produces its large clusters of white flowers in great profu- 
sion. It is just coming into flower a few days before Hydrangea 
arborescens growing next to it. Of Hydrangea cinerea of the southern 
states there is also a form with all sterile flowers, the variety sterilis. 
This is also a good garden plant, blooming rather later than Hydrangea 
arborescens grandifiora. 
Several shrubs of the Pea Family with yellow flowers are in bloom. 
Most interesting, perhaps, are the Coluteas, or Bladder Sennas, inhabit- 
ants of southern Europe, the Caucasus and Asia Minor. Colutea arbor- 
escens and Colutea cilicica are in full flower now, but Colutea orientalis 
is already covered with its large thin-walled inflated pods which are now 
tinged with pink and are more ornamental even than the flowers. 
Three small yellow-flowered European shrubs are also in flower, 
Cytisus nigricans, Cytisus capitatus and Genista elata. These are 
all good garden plants not often seen in American collections. Holodiscus 
discolor , a near relative of the Spiraeas, is covered with its long droop- 
ing clusters of white flowers. This is a common shrub in the region west 
of the southern Rocky Mountains and one of the few shrubs of that part 
of the country which is perfectly at home in New England. 
Of the Sorbarias, which are also of the Spiraea relationship, Sorbaria 
sorbifolia of eastern Siberia and Japan, and Sorbaria stellipila of Japan 
are in flower. These, like the other species of this Old World genus, are 
handsome shrubs with dark divided leaves and large erect clusters of 
small white flowers which remain for a long time in good condition. 
Some of the Deutzias are still in flower. The handsomest of them now 
is perhaps the plant known as the Pride of Rochester, with flowers 
slightly tinged with pink. This is a form of Deutzia scabra , and other 
garden forms of this species now in bloom are the varieties Watereri 
and Wellsii. 
The Arboretum will be grateful for any publicity 
given these Bulletins. 
