12 
Amelanchier laevis and A. oblongifolia form part of the native flora 
of the Arboretum and flower a few days later than A, canadensis. The 
former is a tree which grows naturally on dry upland wooded slopes 
and under favorable conditions becomes 40 feet high and forms a 
trunk from 12 to 18 inches in diameter. This tree is easily recog¬ 
nized, when it is in flower by the dark red-brown color of the leaves. 
There are native trees of this Amelanchier on the wooded slope on the 
left hand side of Forest Hills Road back of the Crabapple collection. 
Amelanchier oblongifolia is a large shrub, rather than a tree, and is 
an inhabitant of the borders of swamps where it grows usually in moist, 
only partly drained soil. This plant is conspicuous as the leaves unfold 
as they are thickly covered with silvery white hairs. The many large 
specimens of this shrub which can be seen from the drives make the 
early days of May an attractive time to visit the Arboretum. 
Prlnsepia sinensis is again covered with clusters of bright yellow 
flowers which spring from the axils of the half-grown leaves. This 
Prinsepia is a tall broad shrub with long spreading and arching branches 
and stems armed with many spines. It is perfectly hardy and the 
handsomest shrub Manchuria has yet contributed to western gardens. 
There are only two specimens in the Arboretum and these came here 
from Petrograd in 1903 and 1906, and it has been found difficult to prop¬ 
agate them by cuttings. Fortunately last year one of the plants pro¬ 
duced for the first time a few seeds and these have germinated, so 
there is reason to hope if the Arboretum plants become more fruitful 
that this species will be a common ornament in northern gardens. It 
has much to recommend it as a hedge plant. The species from north¬ 
ern China, P. uniflora, is a spiny shrub with small white flowers, and 
although it has little beauty, its value for forming impenetrable hedges 
may prove considerable. 
Some Japanese Cherries. In the last issue of this Bulletin a few of 
the Japanese Cherry-trees growing in the Arboretum including Prunus 
serrulata var. sachalinensis were described. Two varieties of this tree 
which blossom later are now in flower — the vars. spontanea and pub- 
escens. The former is a widely distributed tree in central and south¬ 
ern Japan, Korea and western China. The flowers are rather smaller 
and of a paler pink in color than those of the var. sachalinensis; the 
var. pubescens differs from it in the pale under surface of the leaves 
which are more or less thickly covered with hairs. Although the flow¬ 
ers are smaller than those of var. sachalinensis these trees are valu¬ 
able because they prolong the season of bloom of the pink flowered 
tree Cherries. They can be seen on the southern slope of Bussey Hill 
and in the Peter’s Hill Nursery. 
For the next few weeks a guide will meet visitors to the Arboretum 
on Sunday afternoons at three o’clock, starting from the Forest Hills 
gate. 
