16 
The eastern form of Malus haccata (var. mandshiirica), a native of 
Manchuria, Korea and northern Japan, is again the first plant in the 
collection to open its flowers. This as it grows in the Arboretum is 
a bush-like tree about fifteen feet tall and broad; the flowers are 
white, an inch in diameter, and more fragrant than those of any 
other Apple-tree in the collection. The fruit is yellow or red and not 
much larger than a pea. The delightful fragrance of its flowers is the 
chief attraction of this variety and makes it well worth a place in gar- 
dens. Almost as early to flower is Malus micromalas. It was first sent 
to Europe from Japan in 1856 under the name of “Kaido, ” a name which 
in J apan has been given to another plant, and owing perhaps to this con- 
fusion of names very little has ever been heard of it in Europe or the 
United States. In Japan it has been seen only in gardens, and Japan- 
ese botanists have considered it a hybrid brought to their country from 
China. From other Crabapples it differs in its upright growing 
branches which make the tree conspicuous by its pyramidal habit. The 
flowers open from deep rose-colored buds and are pale pink and hardly 
more than half an inch in diameter, and are followed by small yellow 
fruits. The large specimens in the Peter’s Hill Group are not flowering 
this year, but a small specimen recently planted on the left hand side 
of the Forest Hills Road is covered with flowers. Another early flow- 
ering species, the Parkman Crab {Malus Halliana var. Parkmanii) is, 
as usual, blooming well this year. It is a small, vase-shaped tree with 
dark bark, dark green leaves tinged with purple as they unfold and 
rose-red semi-double flowers unlike’ in color those of any other Crab- 
apple. This little tree is considered by some persons the most beauti- 
ful of the Crabapples, but although it reached Boston in 1862, in the first 
consignment of plants which came to the United States direct from 
Japan it is not often seen in gardens, even in those of Japan to which 
it was originally brought from China. During the next two or three 
weeks Crabapples, first the Asiatic and then the American species, will 
be in bloom in the Arboretum. As their flower-buds enlarge attention 
will be called to some of the other species in later issues of these Bul- 
letins. 
Unfolding Leaves. A careful examination of unfolding leaves is rec- 
ommended to students and lovers of trees. They are often beautiful 
and always interesting; in some of the large difficult genera like Quer- 
cus they afford characters by which many of the species can be readily 
recognized in early spring. On the Japanese Cercidiphyllum and on the 
native tree Shad-bush the young leaves are deep red bronze color; on 
many trees the young leaves are more or less thickly covered with 
silvery white hairs and on others entirely destitute of a hairy covering. 
Among Beech-trees the winter-buds of the European species are still 
closed when the young leaves of our native Beech are unfolding, and 
those of one of the Japanese species are nearly fully grown. In the 
Arboretum there are now Maples with fully grown leaves close to spe- 
cies whose bud-scales are only just beginning to open. These few ex- 
amples of variation serve to show that there is something of interest 
to learn about every tree and shrub from its leaf-buds and unfolding 
leaves during the month of May. 
