December 20 , 1889. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
561 
nitrogen determination used should be subjected to rigorous investiga¬ 
tion and control, as also the methods of taking the samples used in 
analysis, which in the case of a complicated body like a soil presents 
great difficulty in obtaining a perfectly homogeneous mixture. The 
exact limits of experimental error in the various determinations want 
investigation. The subject, from its important practical bearings, is 
worthy the attention of a scientific commission who could give undis¬ 
tracted attention to it. 
ROCK ROSES. 
Many species and varieties of the large genus Helianthemum possess 
sufficient attractions to render them worthy of more attention than they 
generally receive for planting in a variety of positions in the garden. 
The fugaciousness of their flowers is their chief failing, and doubtless 
that to a great extent prevents their being more appreciated ; but 
although the flowers are of short duration individually, they are pro¬ 
duced in abundance, and the colours are bright and varied. Most of 
the species are dwarf, erect, or trailing shrubs, and require a somewhat 
sandy or light soil. They succeed well on an ordinary rockery in nooks 
where more delicate plants would not thrive. They may also be planted 
in the mixed border or on banks, or in fact in any position where the 
soil is not too heavy. The popular name Rock Roses has been bestowed 
upon them because, owing to their five petals and numerous stamens, 
they bear some resemblance to the single wild Roses. 
The best of the varieties and species are the following :—H. vulgare 
venustum, flowers small, of a peculiar bright crimson-scarlet colour, 
stamens yellow; very effective in dense masses. H. v. macranthum, 
flowers white with a yellowish tinge, very abundant. H. v. serpylli- 
folium, leaves small, bright green and smootl , flowers pale yellow. 
H. v. roseum, a compact little plant with numerous pretty rose-coloured 
flowers. H. v. sulphureum, flowers most profusely produced of a fine 
pale sulphur colour. H. v. Lucy, leaves dark green ; flowers semi¬ 
double, purplish pink. II. libanotis, long linear dark green leaves, 
flowers small, yellow ; a very distinct and old species. H. rugosum, a 
small trailing shrub, flowers bright yellow with a dark maroon centre ; 
attractive and pretty. H. polifolium, downy leaves, white flowers, and 
yellow stamens, very pretty ; this is a British species. There are, in 
addition to those enumerated, several very good double forms of 
H. vulgare that are bright and rather more durable than the single 
varieties.—C. 
BULLFINCHES. 
I have been much interested by the correspondence on bullfinches, 
but I certainly cannot agree with Miss Ormerod’s theory concerning the 
insects in buds. If every bud which these destructive birds pick out 
contained an insect we should have no fruit in this garden, for they 
simply begin at the top of the bush and take every bud out to the 
bottom ; therefore if each bud contained an insect the birds may as well 
have them as leave them, for in either case we should have no fruit. 
Have any of your correspondents observed any increase in the 
numbers of this beautiful bird ? We have seen more in this garden 
this season than for many years past. They began on our Currant 
bushes with a vengeance as soon as the leaf was off, consequently we 
were obliged to apply our winter dressing much earlier than usual, 
which has proved effectual without exception “ against all kinds of 
birds.” It consists of soot, lime, Gishurst compound, and softsoap 
mixed with warm water, strained through a fine sieve, and applied to 
every part of the trees with a syringe. It sticks well to the trees, 
and since its application I have not seen where a single bud has 
been picked out. We are in the midst of birds of every kind. On the 
north side of the kitchen garden is a thickly wooded park and 
shrubberies literally swarming with birds. On the east we are 
sheltered by a town, just the home for the house sparrow, so it will be 
readily understood how we are situated. But I am a friend of birds, 
and can say truthfully that I have not allowed a single bird to be 
destroyed in these gardens this year, and the few fruits they have 
eaten have not been missed. I must confess they try my patience to 
the uttermost just as the Pears begin to ripen, for then they spoil 
many of the finest fruits, and it is impossible to protect all the trees 
from the daring sparrow and the impertinent little tomtit.—T. A. C. 
ASCLEPIAS CURASSAYICA. 
This species is one of the most attractive of the peculiar and 
interesting genus Asclepias, and its bright flowers very pleasantly 
enliven the appearance of a stove or intermediate house at the present 
time. As the cultivation of the plant is by no means difficult and the 
flowers are produced freely, it is not surprising that it should have early 
received the attention of cultivators ; but even now, although introduced 
in 1818, it is not nearly so generally grown as it deserves. This is a South 
American species, and it bears numerous umbels of flowers the petals of 
which are reflexed and deep orange in colour, while the small cup-like 
appendages that form the staminal corona are bright yellow. The 
contrast is a very pleasing one. and the brightness of the colours is 
relieved by the dark green simple leaves that clothe the stems. There 
is also a white-flowered variety that is well adapted for a companion 
to the ordinary form. 
In the treatment of these plants no especial skill is requisite, and 
few plants, considering the little attention they demand, produce moie 
gratifying results. Propagation may be effected by cuttings, seeds, or 
division of the plants, but the former method of increase is the most 
satisfactory. Cuttings should be prepared in the usual way early in 
spring and inserted in light sandy soil, the pots being placed in an 
ordinary propagating frame. When the cuttings are well rooted they 
should be carefully turned out of their pots and separated, injuring the 
young tender roots as little as possible. They may then be placed in 
60-sized pots, employing a compost of loam, well-decayed manure, peat 
or leaf soil, and sand. As they fill the pots with roots shift the plants 
into larger pots and place them in the stove, supplying water freely. 
Flowers will be produced the first season, and a stock of these small 
plants is always useful for decorative purposes. As the plants go out of 
flower late in autumn remove them to a cool position, partially with¬ 
holding water during the winter. In March turn the plants out of 
their old pots and remove some of the soil from their roots, repotting 
in the compost previously recommended. To obtain a succession 
pot batches of plants in March, April, and May, and by this means 
a supply of flowering plants can be maintained from June till 
October.—L. 
NORTH AMERICAN SHRUBS. 
(Continued from page 402.) 
The Choke Cherry, Cerasus virginica, with its panicles of white 
flowers, is one of the prettiest of our May flowering shrubs ; its odour is 
rather agreeable, and its sour, red berries are eagerly eaten by the 
birds, and a single bush by a quiet roadside will frequently contain a- 
dozen species of birds in a late August afternoon. A smaller shrub, 
called Choke Berry, Pyrus arbutifolia, has remarkably pretty clusters 
of white flowers with dark red anthers and very glossy leaves, and is 
usually found growing on the borders of open woods or moist roadsides. 
Not a hedge, or sloping rocky hillside, or neglected field in all New 
England, but one can find, in June or July, the rosy pink buds and 
blossoms of one or more species of the single wild Rose. Rosa lucida, 
with few scattered prickles ; Rosa nitida, with dense red ones ; Rosa 
blanda, with few prickles, but no shine in the leaves ; Rosa Carolina, 
with recurved prickles ; and the Sweet Briar, with its smaller and 
fragrant leaves, and its great, stout, thorny branches. Blackberry Vines 
are not generally looked upon as ornamental, but they are a pretty sight 
when growing by the roadside, overtopping all other shrubby growths 
with their masses of bee-haunted, snowy flowers, with occasionally the 
golden-yellow, black-spotted Turner’s butterfly hovering above them. 
The Crataegus, or Hawthorn family, blooms the latter part of May 
in New England. The flowers of all species are very fragrant, and the. 
shrubs, which are almost trees, are all armed with sharp thorns, and the 
leaves are lobed and crenate. The calyx remains on the scarlet fruit, 
which turns brown after frost, but hangs on until eaten off by birds ia 
the late winter. The flowers of C. Crus-galli are larger than C. punc¬ 
tata or C. coccinea, and none of these are as pleasantly fragrant as 
C. oxycantha, or the English Hawthorn, with is already naturalised in 
many parts of New England, and whose clusters of flowers wreathe the 
thorny branches so densely as to hide the small shining leaves which 
are about half grown at the time of flowering. The petals of all these 
take a pinkish tint before they turn an ochreous brown and fall off. 
The climbing shrubs that are called Honeysuckles are somewhat rare 
in New England, with the exception of Lonicera parviflora, which is 
commonly known as Woodbine. Its whorls of yellow, red tinged, tube¬ 
like flowers are succeeded by orange-scarlet, soft, pulpy berries. It is a 
slow grower, but is hardy, never troubled with insects, and blossoms 
profusely in May and June. One of our few yellow-flowering shrubs is 
the Diervilla, or Yellow Honeysuckle. It is common in thickets and 
bush lands, and is well known by its opposite, deeply notched leaves 
and its clusters of faint-scented yellow flowers, which appear in June. 
One of the handsomest of all our native shrubs is the Elder, Sam- 
bucus canadensis. Its glossy pinnate leaves and great flat cymes of 
creamy white fragrant flowers make it a very desirable addition to our 
list of shrubs that should be cultivated. A basket of Elder flowers and 
Roses is “ a thing of beauty ” that will be “ a joy for ever ” in the 
memory. The Viburnum family supplies us with many flowering shrubs, 
of which the best known is the Cranberry Tree, V. 0 pul us, whose 
white radiate cymes are succeeded by large scarlet berries, which re¬ 
semble the Cranberry in appearance and taste, and are used as a sub 
stitute for it in many places. V. Lentago, or Sweet Viburnum, has 
spreading cymes of white flowers in June, and black sweet berries in 
late autumn. The berries of V. nudum are bright blue covered with a. 
bloom, and are dainty bites for the birds preparing to migrate. 
A shrub that always attracts attention in the swamps is the Cepha- 
lanthus occidentalis, or Button Bush. It is easily found by its round 
ball-like heads of white flowers, which remind one of the seed-balls of 
the Buttonwood or Sycamore. It is in bloom in August. The greater 
number of our shrubs flower in May and June, and this is particularly 
true of the Heath family, the colours of whose flowers are in tones of 
white or red, no yellow or any suggestion of blue. The Huckleberries 
and Blueberries are so pretty, with their clusters of pearly white or 
pink bells in the open woods or the rocky pastures, but they will not 
bear transplanting. _ , , 
The beautiful Laurel, Kalmia latifolia, is the queen of New England 
shrubs, with its magnificent cymes of flowers in all shades from white 
to deep rose. Its glossy evergreen leaves are said to be poisonous to 
cattle. Here and there in low woods, and especially in burnt-over 
lands, we step over the little bush called Sheep Laurel, Kalmia angusti- 
folia. Its small clusters of purplish-pink flowers would be thought 
pretty if it did not suffer by comparison <vith its lovely relative. 
