I 
1884 .] 
AMEEIGAE AGKICULTURIST. 
218 
' for which use it is cultivated in parts of England, 
and occasionally in this country. The seeds are 
sown in a seed-hed in spring, and when large 
enough, the plants are transplanted to rows fifteen 
inches apart, and set every ten inches in the row. 
The leaves are tit for use the following spring, and 
I are cut as soon as large enough. It is also called 
in England, Perennial Spinach,, i^ll Good, Tota 
Bona and Mercury. The last name is in parts of 
this country applied to the Poison Ivy. The origin 
of the common names of plants is puzzling! 
Some Useful Ornamental Shrubs. 
The value of ornamental shrubs is not generally 
appreeiated, perhaps beeause the better kinds are 
not popularly known. Lilacs, Snow-balls and a 
few others, are found all over the country, but the 
which should be cut back to keep them within 
bounds, or they may be trained like those of Golden 
Bell, against a fence or a low trellis. The light 
orange-colored flowers are produced all summer. 
The Mock Okange {PhiladelpTius), often called 
Syringa. There are several of these, which pro¬ 
duce an abundance of their pure white orange-like 
blossoms in summer. Some are pleasantly scented, 
but those with the largest and whitest flowers are 
not so. One of the finest is Gordon’s Mock Orange 
{P. Oordoinanm), figure 3, a native of Oregon. It 
blooms ten days later than the others, and its large 
flowers, of a very pure white, are slightly frai^rant. 
The Weigelas. —When Mr. Fortune introduced 
these plants from China and Japan, he did a great 
thing for our gardens. They were first called Wei¬ 
gelas, and later were placed in an older genus. Bier- 
coming into bloom, to enable one to make a selec¬ 
tion, that would ailord a wealth of beauty every 
week in the North from April to October, and for 
some months longer at the South'. Then the 
variety that is afforded by different forms, habits, 
and sizes of such plants, the colors and shapes of 
the leaves, branches, and the ornamental fruits of 
some, is very great, and adds to their beauty and in¬ 
terest. The evergreen trees and shrubs must also be 
mentioned for the peculiar attractions they contrib¬ 
ute throughout the entire year. Then there are the 
hardy climbers—a most useful and easily managed 
class of ornamental plants, and the aquatic, bog, 
and rock-flowering plants and ferns, all of which 
possess value for special uses. Besides the hardy 
kinds, possessing permanent value, there is an end¬ 
less assortment of annual and perennial plants,raised 
each year from seeds, bulbs, cuttings, or in a green- 
Fig. 3 .—gokhon’s mock-orange. 
Fig. 4. —HOSE OF SHARON. 
newer sorts are slow in making their way. Many 
an owner of a city or village lot, and many a farmer 
with a neglected front yard, would be glad to 
beautify them and make them attractive, if it were 
not so much trouble to keep them in order. The 
first requisite in a village or country front yard is 
grass. A good turf being provided, a few clumps 
of shrubs will be all the ornamentation needed. 
If flower-beds can be taken care of, all the better, 
have them by all means, but grass and shrubs will 
make the place satisfactory to the owner, and a 
delight to the passer by. Our swamps, thickets, 
and woods, will furnish those who search for them 
an abundance of fine shrubs for planting in the 
grounds. But every one can not spend time in 
collecting these, and must obtain their material 
from the nurseries, where there is a great variety 
from which to select. We point out a few really 
good and useful kinds that may be readily obtained, 
and which ought to be more generally known. 
The Golden Bell {Forsythia ).—Very early in 
spring, before the leaves appear, these Japanese 
shrubs hang out their golden yellow bells. The 
two most cultivated are the dark-green (W. viridis- 
. Hma), and the Hanging Golden-bell {F. su^e7isa), 
1 figure 1. Both have long slender branches which 
j hend gracefully, and in the latter especially, touch 
I the ground. They may be kept in the shrub-form, 
by close pruning, or be trained against a building. 
! The Japan-Globe-Flower {Kerria Japonica ).— 
The flower of this in its single state, looks like a 
large yellow blackberry-flower; that form is rare. 
The kind that has long been in gardens is double, 
and more common. The flowers are so double that 
they look like little golden balls or globes, figure 3. 
These are borne upon long, slender, green stems. 
I ^'^Wa, but they may well retain Weigela as a garden 
I name. The first introduced was W. rosea, but now 
I the catalogues offer over twenty species and varie- 
j ties, with flowers from pure white to the deepest 
purple, and some have handsomely variegated 
leaves. They bloom in June and July, and con¬ 
tinue long. A clump of different kinds is a grand 
sight. They are improved by severe praning. 
The Rose op Sharon, also called shrubby Al- 
i thaja, is one of the oldest of garden shrubs, yet has 
j in recent years been so greatly improved, as to be 
j more valuable than some novelties. Its blooming 
j in August and September, gives it a special value. 
! The proper botanical name is Hibiscus iSyriacus. 
j The flowers, as large as Hollyhocks, are single (fig. 
4), and double, from pure white to dark-red and 
j purple. It must be severely pruned. A variety of 
! this is one of the best shrubs with variegated fo- 
I liage in cuitivation. This small collection of shrubs 
j covers the season from earliest spring until frost, 
j Other selections could be made to do the same, but 
these are chosen beeause they are effective, easily 
cultivated, and cost but little at the nurseries. 
Variety in Ornamental Planting. 
ELIAS A. LONG. 
There are no good reasons for the prevailing lack 
of variety in the trees, shrubs, and other materials 
employed in making American homes attractive. 
Among the many hundreds of trees, shrubs, and 
flowers, that are hardy in nearly every part of this 
country, and which are now kept for sale in the 
leading nurseries, there is in the matter of flowers 
alone, for example, a wonderful variety. There is 
' enough difference among these in their season of 
house or window-garden, that are easily grown, and 
which serve to render the garden gay for months 
in the summer, with their characteristically bright 
flowers. Now all these things are so easily and 
cheaply procured in the nursery and seed establish¬ 
ments, that no one who has a plot of land surround¬ 
ing the house should put off for any length of time, 
the setting out of a sufficient assortment to amply 
embellish the place throughout the entire year. 
To make the surroundings of one’s home attractive, 
will pay in dollars and cents, besides contributing 
to the enjoyment. The writer but recently attend¬ 
ed the appraisement of some ornamental trees, 
twelve years planted, that had to come away on 
account of the widening of a street. The amount 
allowed the owner as a remuneration for individual 
trees was as high as seventy-five dollars each. The 
same trees when planted perhaps cost one dollar 
each, and the labor of setting, say one-half as 
I much more. It was their worth for shade and or- 
I nainent that governed the price. There are few 
! places where the presence or absence of fine trees 
j and shrubs would not similarly effect their valua¬ 
tion if sold. If there are children, judicious in¬ 
vestments in beautifying the surroundings, will 
afford invalu.able returns in cultivating in them a 
I love for and an interest in natural objects ; inspir- 
I ing in them a desire for the study of botany and 
j natural sciences, than which nothing is more pure 
! and satisfying for young minds. There is much 
j complaint of the inclination of the young to leave 
rural homes for town life. Nothing would be 
more potent to arrest this tendency, than to spend 
some money and time in rendering the home at¬ 
tractive by the means that have been suggested. 
Resolve to set out and properly attend to a 
suitable selection of trees, shrubs, and flowers. 
