BULLETIN NO. 13. 
A visit to the Arboretum at this time should be valuable to persons 
interested in seeing the plants best suited for the autumnal decoration of 
American gardens, for now many little known trees and shrubs here 
show the brilliant tints of their fading leaves and the beauty of their 
ripening fruit. 
The contrast in the appearance of the trees and shrubs of eastern 
North America and eastern Asia with those of Europe at this time of 
year is interesting. The leaves of the former are now for the most part 
brilliantly colored or have already colored and fallen, while the leaves of 
the trees and shrubs of Europe are still green, and in the case of many of 
these plants the leaves finally wither and fall with little or no change of 
color. This interesting fact is best seen in the species of the same 
genus. The American Beech now lightens the woods with the light 
yellow tints of its leaves, while the leaves of the European Beech are 
still almost as green as they were at midsummer. The leaves of the 
American Elm have already shriveled or fallen except in the case of vig- 
orous trees which still show the yellow tints of autumn, while the leaves 
of all the forms of the European Elms are still fresh and green. 
This habit of European plants to retain their foliage late into the 
autumn is well illustrated by the Viburnums. The leaves of Viburnum 
Lantana, the Wayfaring-tree of Europe, are still either dark green or 
only slightly tinged with red along the margins, while the North Ameri- 
can Viburnum Lentago, Viburnum prunifolium and Viburnum cassi- 
noides are splendid in their autumn dress, which is set of by their abund- 
ant dark blue fruits. The contrast is even more marked in the Viburnums 
of the Opulus group. In this group the leaves of the European Viburnum 
Opulus are still dark green and as fresh as in July; those of Viburnum 
americanum , the native High-bush Cranberry, so-called, have turned to 
shades of yellow and red and are falling fast, while those of Viburnum 
Sargentii from northeastern Asia, which were bright orange-red two 
weeks ago, have now almost disappeared. 
The slender branches of a Japanese Cherry, Prunus Maximowiczii , are 
already leafless, and the leaves of another Japanese Cherry, Prunus Sar- 
gentii , having turned deep orange-red, are now slowly falling, while all 
the European Cherries are still green. The leaves of all the forms of the 
Common Lilac derived from a species native to the mountains of Bul- 
garia drop without change of color, as do those of the large bush Honey- 
suckles which are mostly European and Siberian. Of the Lilacs, although 
the leaves of the Chinese Syringa villosa turn dull yellow in the autumn, 
only the Chinese Syringa oblata has real value for the autumn color of 
its leaves. These are large, thick, leathery and lustrous, and in the 
autumn turn to beautiful shades of dark red or old leather color, a habit 
which adds greatly to the value of this fine plant as an ornament of 
gardens. 
