471 
PARK AND CE;M£.TE:RY 
»Veasonable Stig^g^estions. 
— Silk worm culture is claiming a great deal of at- 
tention of late. jNIorus alba is the chief mulberry used 
for feeding the worms. Seeds sown early in spring 
will give seedlings one foot high by fall. 
— If Clematis paniculata seed has not been gath- 
ered yet it should be done at once, sowing the seed 
in greenhouse in boxes. It will germinate in spring. 
If deferred later it will often remain in the ground a 
year before growing. 
— This is the time to fight the San Jose and other 
scale on trees that are bare of foliage. Common 
whitewash is just as good as anything that can be 
used, put on thick enough. Even for spraying it is 
verv good. This baneful scale, the San Jose, is spread- 
ing very fast. 
— A note should be made of such trees and shrubs 
that push into leaf early, that their planting may be 
among the very first. There comes to mind larch, 
weeping willow, bush honeysuckles, Pyrus Japonica, 
Japanese Snowball, Ribes fioridum and other species. 
As soon as frost is out of the ground the buds start. 
— The spreading apart of evergreens b\' snow 
causes injury which often proves irreparable. Pass 
a string around such as are likely to require it. After 
a snowstorm it is a profitable operation to shake oft' 
the snow from evergreens. Weighted down branches 
often never recover their proper position. 
— Keep in mind the desirability of the Douglas 
Spruce for ornamental planting. The Colorado form 
is entirely hardy. It is also a fast grower, and of 
handsome habit. 
— In the South Mburnum Sieboldi ought to be a 
valuable evergreen. In the North there is no sign 
of change in the leaves when frosts come. They are 
as green as at any time in summer. And it is not a 
shrub, as many nurserymen class it, but a good-sized 
tree, when trained to a single stem. 
■ — Quercus aquatica, the southern water oak, lives 
out doors as far north as Philadelphia, and it is nearly 
evergreen. Further south it holds its leaves almost 
till spring. The laurifolia is quite evergreen in North 
Carolina. This one is on trial here. So far little 
plants raised from seed ha^■e lived through the win- 
ter, but have been a little hurt by cold. 
— One of the sights in the gardens about Philadel- 
phia in November last was the free blooming of a 
variety of Pyrus Japonica, the rosy, flesh-colored one 
known as rosea. Many bushes were as full of bloom 
as they ordinarily are in May. The common scarlet 
one showed no sign of flowering as this one did. 
— The common red cedar when nursery grown 
transplants very well and makes as pretty a lawn speci- 
men as could be desired. Especially is this the case 
where it is grown in good soil. The variation in char- 
acter in a lot of seedlings is very marked, a dozen 
plants showing almost as many distinct appearing 
kinds. 
— When practicable a forking up of the ground, 
exposing it to the winter’s changes, is an excellent 
preparation of it for spring planting. Where herba- 
ceous plants are to go it aids their growth verv much. 
— \Try many shrubs can be propagated from cut- 
tings ; and many cuttings can be had from bushes in 
the winter season without lessening too much the flow- 
ering shoots. ]\Iake one foot lengths of them, tie in 
bundles and bury up in earth in a cool cellar until time 
to plant in spring. 
— Cypripedium insigne, the floweiT of which are so 
noticeable in the large florists’ establishments at 
Christmas and Easter, is not nearly so difficult to raise 
as many suppose. Plant it in a pot and give it char- 
coal and moss to grow in. Set it outdoors in a half 
shady warm place in summer. House it before the 
weather gets cold, and it will flower as a rule. 
— Where A.belia rupestris is hardy it is a good shrub 
to have, being almost a perpetual bloomer from mid- 
summer till frost. It stands well as far north as New 
York City. It is common in the parks of Washing- 
ton. What a lot of nice things there are almost un- 
known in collections which are hardy in many a place 
where not known ! • 
— The Red Berried Snowberry carries its bright col- 
ored berries in good shape quite to New Year’s with 
us, no matter how great the cold. Florists are recom- 
mended to try it as a pot shrub for selling as a decora- 
tive plant for the holidays. The white berried one as 
well makes a good pot plant, but is not so lasting out- 
doors. 
— Among late flowering fall shrubs Elseagnus Si- 
moni ranks high. It is in flower the very last thing 
in autumn, is sweet scented, and almost evergreen. 
The flowers are white. It is scarcely hardy enough 
for the far North. 
— A'Yry many Californian privet hedges get too tall, 
making the trimming of them a difficult matter. As 
soon as winter is over cut them down to about six- 
inches above ground. Such strong plants cut down 
in this way make a growth of five to six feet by fall, 
and will then be green from base to summit. 
— It is true that cow manure brings a good many 
weeds to a lawn on which it is used, but it is not the 
case with horse manure, or to but a limited extent. 
The applications of bone dust, wood ashes, etc., are 
often all that are needed, but there comes a time when 
nothing does like manure. Put it on towards spring, 
in time that it gets into the ground before growth 
starts. 
Joseph Meehan. 
