162 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
DECIDUOUS (LEAF-SHEDDING) SHRUBBEDY. 
Some of the Best for Small Gardens- 
We give here a list and brief description 
of some of the more choice summer shrubs 
from which a selection may be made, vary¬ 
ing in number with the amount of space at 
disposal. Unlike the Evergreens, their chief 
beauty consist in their flowers, rathers than 
their foliage. They all require to be planted 
early. 
Chinese Weigelia, (Weigelia rosea.) This 
fine shrub gives a great profusion of pretty 
rosy, pink flowers. It grows to a moderate 
size, and blooms in Spring. 
Green Forsytlria, (Forsythia Viridissima.) 
This is one of our earliest spring blooming 
plants. The flowers appear before the leaves. 
Every shoot is covered with flowers of a 
bright yellow color, making a conspicuous 
and beautiful object. 
Changeable Hydrangea, (Hydrangea Hor- 
tensis.) This plant is well adapted to a small 
garden or yard, growing as it will in almost 
any situation or soil. It gives noble heads 
of flowers, which appear on the tops of the 
shoots only. It requires some protection 
during the severe frosts of winter, in order to 
ensure a fine bloom. This is easily effected 
by placing a barrel over it when cold weath¬ 
er comes on. Its shoots should not be 
headed in or shortened, but simply thinned 
out when pruning is required. 
Spirea Bella. This is one of the prettiest 
of a numerous tribe of summer flowering 
shrubs. Its flowers are bright pink, and 
very showy, and the plant neat in habit and 
requiring little space. 
Deutzia Gracelis. A beautiful shrub, 
bearing a profusion of pure white flowers 
which resemble the orange blossom. It is 
a graceful plant, and should be in even the 
smallest garden. 
Chinese Syringa, or Lilac, (Syringa si¬ 
nensis.) Most persons are familiar with the 
large bunches of sweet scented flowers 
produced by this early blooming shrub. It 
is adapted to almost any situation or soil. 
Scarlet Flowering Currant, (Ribes Sangui- 
nea.) This is an extremely beautiful shrub, 
and should be more generally cultivated. It 
bears numerous bright flowers in the spring, 
and should be planted in a rich dry soil, and 
in a sheltered situation. 
Buddlea Lindleyana. A graceful plant, 
bearing large spikes of purple flowers in 
great abundance through the latt%r part of 
summer and autumn. It does best in a rath¬ 
er dry situation, well exposed, and is very 
ornamental. 
Syringo, (Philadelphus Coronarius.) A 
large free growing shrub, bearing white 
flowers of most delicious fragrance, very 
hardy, and will thrive in any soil or situa¬ 
tion. 
Japan Quince, (Pyrus Japonica.) A low 
growing shrub, with brilliant scarlet flowers, 
exceedingly showy in the spring. 
Spiraea Reevesii. A summer blooming 
plant, bearing pure white flowers in abund¬ 
ance, and one of the best white Spiraea’s. 
Snowball, or Guelder Rose, (Viburnum 
Gpulus.) A hardy, strong growing shrub, 
very ornamental with its round heads of 
white flowers, which are produced in early 
spring.—E d. 
DIELITRA SPECTAB1LIS—A NEW AND BEAU- 
TIEUL FLOWERING PLANT. 
\ 
PRACTICAL DIRECTIONS FOR ITS CULTIVATION. 
This charming plant, which has recently 
been introduced, is a native of China, 
and is one of the most elegant ever received 
from that extraordinary country. It has 
much the habit and the hardy character of 
the herbaceous Peonys, and like them de¬ 
lights in a rich, deep, loamy soil. It can be 
grown, however, in any common garden soil. 
It is also cultivated with facility, and will 
bloom very freely in a pot of two-quart size. 
For a vase we know of no plant equal to it. 
So also for the lawn, in solitary specimens, 
it is one of the finest. It maybe massed in 
small beds, but the number of plants should 
not exceed five to seven in a bed. 
When used for the vase, and a good show 
of bloom is desired through the summer, 
young plants of one year’s growth from the 
border should be selected, since from the na¬ 
ture of the plant, its vigor and blooming qual¬ 
ities will depend|upon the strength of its tu¬ 
ber or roots. A vase, or any ornamental ves¬ 
sel holding a gallon or more of earth can be 
used. 
Take up the plants in October, being care¬ 
ful not to break off the buds, which are very 
prominent and brittle, and easily broken. A 
portion of its roots, if necessary, in order to 
fit it in the vase, can be cut off without det¬ 
riment to the plant. Fill in with good, rich 
earth—if a good strong loam so much the 
better—have it well packed in and then wa¬ 
ter to settle the earth around the roots.— 
They may be left out of doors or placed in 
a cold frame, until it is desired to start them 
into growth. 
If wanted for winter blooming in the green¬ 
house, leave them out of doors until the first 
week in December, and they can be had in 
bloom in the early part of January. 
If wanted for ornamental purposes through 
the summer, the best plan will be to plunge 
them to the rim of the vase in the ground, 
providing the frost will not injure the vessel 
used. If the vessel will not stand the frost, 
they can be placed in any cool place or cel¬ 
lar, until spring opens, when.they should 'be 
brought out as early as practicable. 
When planted on the lawn, protect them 
through the winter with a little brush, to 
prevent the buds being broken off or injured. 
The plants may be taken up and divided the 
third year, and the soil enriched or renewed. 
Those plants used for vases should be 
changed every third year, as they will become 
weakened from the limited amount of nour¬ 
ishment received from the small quantity of 
soil around them. Young plants must be 
provided for that purpose, and the old plants 
can be turned out upon the border. There 
are few plants cultivated with the same fa¬ 
cility, and adapted to so many ornamental 
purposes as this, and we cannot too highly 
recommend it to have a place in every gar¬ 
den, however small.— Ed. 
For the American Agrlcultuiret. 
WINTER FLOWERS. 
A lady’s experience. 
Flowers shouldhave aplace in everyone’s 
yard. I know there are some surly, selfish 
persons, devoid of true taste who consider 
that the space occupied by them would be 
much more appropriately filled by potatoes 
and cabbage, yet I trust that this race is 
fast becoming extinct. I have often heard a 
friend remark that he always judged of a 
man’s character by the size and arrange¬ 
ment of his door-yard, providing he had the 
arrangement of it himself. This I consider 
to be an excellent criterion. If a yard is 
broad and ample, abounding in shrubberry 
and trees, with the appropriate places for 
flowers filled with choice and elegant varie¬ 
ties of annual and perennial plants, you may 
be assured that the owner is a person of 
taste and refinement, whose heart is some¬ 
thing larger than a nut-shell, and capable of 
deriving enjoyment from something besides 
dollars and cents. If on the other hand, but 
a narrow, sterile strip of land intervenes be¬ 
tween the house and road, with no orna¬ 
ment save a neglected sunflower or holly¬ 
hock, and perhaps not that, it strongly be¬ 
tokens the man of narrow, sordid mind and 
dull inactive intellect, whose highest aspira¬ 
tion in life would scarcely exceed that of a 
moderately ambitious animal of the porcu¬ 
pine breed. I think the relationship between 
him and the one who said that “ the yard 
would look tolerable decent if the old wom¬ 
en would keep them posey beds out,” is too 
evident to be disputed. 
With but comparatively little care and at¬ 
tention one may have a continual succession 
of beautiful and fragrant flowers, from the 
Crocus and Snowdrop of early spring~to the 
richly-hued Dahlia of the late autumnal days. 
That they pay exactly “ in dollars and 
cents,” as we Yankees are too apt to wish, 
no one will assume, but that they do repay 
us by awakening a love of the beautiful in 
Nature, by creating and increasing an attach¬ 
ment for home, and by inspiring richer feel¬ 
ings and emotions, higher than those who 
do not cultivate them can feel, none but the 
most incorrigible misanthrope will deny. 
With the cold breath of winter all these 
beauties vanish ; the earth is no longer 
decked with their varying hues, but it is 
strown with their dying and withered leaves. 
This leads me back to the idea which promt- 
ed me to take up my pen—that of the satis¬ 
faction of having flowers in winter. It does 
certainly engender a pleasurable feeling to 
see a rich Petunia^ or velvet rose hang side 
by side with an icicle, with but a thickness 
of glass between them. 
To possess these sources of gratification, 
no hot-house or conservatory is necessary, 
nothing being required but a warm room, and 
a window accessible to sunlight. Ohr living- 
room has two large windows fronting to the 
south. On the sill of each is nailed a plain 
shelf large enough to hold four or five pots. 
Out of eight varieties, six are in full bloom, 
and the seventh is budding. I have no cost¬ 
ly exotics, no Pelargoniums, Japonicas or 
Camellias, but simple Petunias, Verbenas, 
Roses, Pinks, and also the modest Polyan- 
