pyramidal forms, dwarf pyramidal and otlier 
dwarf forms, which again have lapsed into a 
weeping variety. Crisped-and curled-leaved 
kinds may be seen. There are cut-leaved and 
dissected kinds, the last cut into mere shreds 
of leaf tissue. They are all very curious, cer¬ 
tainly, and quite distinct when we come to ex¬ 
amine them more closely. 
/Esculus Memmingeiii deserves special men¬ 
tion for its fine foliage distinctly dotted with 
white spots, and there is also a maculated kind, 
more or less marked with golden spots. This 
coloring changes in other varieties, as in /Esc. 
varicgata and marginata. while either form or 
color again differs in the beautiful /Esc. albo- 
flore pleuo, serotma. pavioides, fruetu-ednli, 
epectabilifl, nigra aud procera. But I must 
stop. Our array of names is already over¬ 
whelming. Sometimes the names themselves 
arc sufficiently descriptive, us in pyramidalis. 
Generally, though, the kinds 1 pass over thus 
rapidly are not specially distinct or striking. 
/Esculus rubieunda, however, is a species pos¬ 
sessing distinguished qualities. I have only to 
look at a certain specimen standing in a prom¬ 
inent place in Flushing, to feel ready to use 
strong expressions in its favor. In late spring 
and early summer this tree is a great globe of 
rich green, heavy foliage, literally studded with 
large clusters—bouquets, 1 might say—of bright 
pink flowers. Good authorities term it a cross 
between /Esculus Hippocastamnn, and some 
Pavia or Buckeye. It is certainly of lower 
growth than many of its immediate relatives, 
and has much of the glowing color of Pavia 
rubra, etc. 1 do not think I am exaggerating 
when I say that /Eculus rubieunda is the de¬ 
cided favorite among Horse Chestnuts em¬ 
ployed on the lawn. It grows very slowly, and 
hence is usually grafted on the more rapid 
/Esc. Hippocastanum. 
When we turn to the Pavias or Buckeyes, we 
find a tolerably distinct class, except for the 
hybrids that shade in to the so-called Horse 
Ghestnut type after the fashion of /Esc. rubi- 
cunda. Pavia rubra has, perhaps, the most 
value for the lawn planter, aud this, again, is 
called/Esculus Pavia, from its resemblance to 
the common Jlorse Chestnut. Its flowers are 
a brownish-scarlet and the branches slender. 
The tree is not large. 
Besides these, there are Pavia rubra atro- 
sanguinea and Pavia rubra Whettleyana, with 
small, brilliant red flowers and rich foliage. 
The trailiug, P. humilis is also an interesting 
variety and when grafted high on the Hippo¬ 
castanum it is an elegant, curious tree, espe¬ 
cially xvhen it assumes a weeping form 
picturesque small trees by grafting on strong 
stocks. Pavia macrocarpa is an ornamental 
tree, open-headed, and graceful, not merely 
round and somewhat formal, like the /Escu- 
indeed, of all trees from which large limbs are 
to be removed. It is usually so much easier to 
cut off large limbs some distance from the 
trunk—as the tools can be more conveniently 
handled than when cut close to the body of the 
tree—that the average workman, who has no 
interest in the appearance and well being of 
the trees afterwards, is very apt to leave a 
long, unsightly stump for each large branch 
lopped off. Fig. 2 shows how a tree appears 
when pruned iu this style. The rugged ap¬ 
pearance. however, is not the only objection, 
nor, in the case or forest trees, is it the most im¬ 
portant one. The remaining stumps will event¬ 
ually decay aud form holes in the trunk. In 
these the rain will collect, and the decay will 
speedily lie carried into the heart of the tree, 
thus destroying its value for timber. 
The stumps at and above A are one year old 
after pruning. The vitality lias lefttheni; they 
are but dead wood and have begun to crack 
open from the influence of the. weather. The 
new layer of wood that yearly enlarges the 
tree cannot, in this case, cover the wounds 
while the wood is yet sound. At B is shown 
the appearance of such stumps several years 
after pruning. They have here wholly or in 
part decayed, hut the wounds are still unclosed 
and the decay is rapidly working inward. In 
Fig. 8 is a better illustration of the same case. 
Thu old branch is slowly disappearing, the 
many cracks furnishing lodging-places for the 
atmospheric moisture, and the new wood is 
bulging out in a gnarled growth in the unsuc¬ 
cessful attempt to cover the wound. Fig. 4 
shows such a wound when the stnmp lias final¬ 
ly decayed, B. B. being the lips of the new 
wood gradually approaching each other, and 
C. the still intervening opening. In the same 
figure is shown a section of a similar wound, 
iu which the wood of some 12 or 14 years’ 
growth is destroyed. Fig. 5 is a good illustra¬ 
tion of a wouud as it appears a eonploof years 
after the branch has been properly cut off. The 
stump is here so short that the forming layers 
of uew wood can cover it before any damage 
has been doue by its decaying. The timber 
will be unharmed, and the tree, for ornamental 
purposes, present a much neater appearance. 
The abovu cuts which we have re-drawn, wore 
originally published In the London Garden. 
No large branches should ever be cut from 
any tree unless they are dead, or they, for simi¬ 
lar urgent reasons, must be removed. But 
when they must be cut off, the cut should be 
made close to the trunk, and the wound covered 
with grafting-wax, tar, claj, or a similar sub¬ 
stance that can prevent the moisture from 
taking effect. In the laying out of new places, 
as well as in the improvement of old oucs, it is 
often desirable to retain a few giant Oaks, 
Ghestnnts or Tulip Trees, hut to lessen the 
power of the wind in their crowns, or for other 
considerations, it is sometimes necessary to 
remove part of their tops. This may be done 
to good purpose, hut it should be borne in mind 
that long stumps are not ouly an eye-sore, hut 
they will eventually interfere with the health 
of the tree and reduce its value for timber. 
THE LONG-RACEMED BUCKEYE, 
(Pavia macrostachya.) 
Our first-page engraving is a very accurate 
picture of the leaflets and flower racemes of 
this fiDe hardy shrub, drawu during the paBt 
summer from a specimen plant at the Rural 
Grounds. We have often alluded to it before and 
never, perhaps, without expressions oi regret 
or surprise that it is so rarely seen iu our gar¬ 
dens and lawns. This is simply because it is 
not well-known, for nurserymen's catalogues 
offer it at the usual price of such shrubs, aud 
it can scarcely faii to please those who give it 
a fair trial. It is very distinct aud possesses 
features belonging to no other shrub that we 
have ever seen. The five leaflets droop almost 
as much as those of Mandrake (Podophyllum 
peltatum). The long, vertical spikes of buds, 
at an early stage bring to mind the spikes of 
Plantain. They grow until they become a foot or 
more in length, the flowers meanwhile unfold¬ 
ing until all are in bloom. Broader than high, 
the outside stems of the plant hug the ground 
for some little distance aud then grow up form¬ 
ing a hemisphere of foliage. Adorned with its 
many racemes of fragrant, hyacinth-looking 
flowers aud blooming iu July and continu¬ 
ing to bloom for a long time when most 
other hardy plants have ceased, few plauts will 
give more pleasure. 
We kuow of specimens which arc 50 feet in 
circumference aud eight feet high. Our 
argest specimen is four feet in bight and 15 
feet in eircnmferencc. It bore last August 50 
racemes of flowers and is now five years old— 
that is, it is five years since it was taken from 
the nursery. We could quote many of on r best 
horticultural authorities toprove thatitsbould 
be found in every collection whether large or 
small, aud we hope our readers will place it in 
their lists to be ordered next spring. It is a 
native of South Carolina and Georgia. 
Fro. 4. 
Inses generally. It is said to be a hybrid be¬ 
tween /Esc. Hippocastanum and Pavia rubra. 
Pavia Californiea is much admired as a low 
spreading hush with rose-colored flowers 
blooming at midsummer. There is also an in¬ 
teresting /Esculus Chineusis. Pavia parviflora 
is a low-growing tree or bush, a real Buckeye 
of the West. All the Pavias are used with ef¬ 
fect upon the lawn, but, as a whole, they have 
not the ornamental value of the /Escnluses. 
I except, however, from this statement Pavia 
niacrostaehya which Spach, Lavallee and 
others class in a distinct genus, Macrothyrsns, 
so different is it from other Pavias (See en¬ 
graving). It is a low bush, broader than it is 
high, because the slender shoots, as they 
spread, root at any joint that may happen to 
rest on the ground. The foliage is large, that 
of a common Horse-Chestnut to all intents 
and purposes, but the flowers are in pure white 
spikes aud fragrant. The stamens project 
much and are very ornamental, and the bloom¬ 
ing occurs iu midsummer. In tact, its late 
period of blooming, a broad vigorous bush 
form and immense spikes of beautiful flowers 
make it one of our best ornamental plants. 
This is truly a cursory view of so noteworthy 
HORSE CHESTNUTS. 
SAMUEL PARSONS JR. 
There are truly Horse Chestnuts and Ilorse 
Chestnuts. The number of distinct species and 
varieties may he estimated at scores. Most 
common of all on lawns is the well known 
Horse Chestnut, zEsculus Hippocastanum, so 
called, some say. because the form of a horse¬ 
shoe may be conjured out of tbe shading of 
the nut. At any rate, common peculiarities 
mark nearly every species and variety of 
Horse Chestnut, whether the horse-6hoe be 
there or not. All have large, light-green, 
shadowy foliage; are more or less round- 
headed and have massive spikes of solid-look¬ 
ing flowers. Flowers, indeed, make the chief 
attraction of the tree. All Horse Chestnuts, 
moreover, put forth leaves early in spring, 
yet before autumn, if not before August, 
many of these leaves fade and become dis¬ 
colored. None of the varieties like a sandy or 
dry soil, and all especially need liberal feed¬ 
ing, that is, fertilizing. All are worthy of 
distinguished, isolated positions on the lawn, 
and group finely together iu considerable 
masses. This is especially true when the eye 
looks down from above on the leaves parted 
on every Hand by splendid clusters of flowers. 
So persistent are these peculiarities that I 
question whether they do or not, to a great 
extent, in the several species aud varieties 
overshadow other differences. There are 
tew genera of trees whose respective species 
and varieties look so much alike, to the casual 
glance, as do those ol the/Esculus. Yet, on ex¬ 
amining the flowers, fruit aud even foliage, 
the different species and varieties are notably 
distinct. 
There are two sections or subgenera of 
Horse Chestnuts according to many botanical 
works, although the best an thorities speak of 
/Esculus hh an all-embracing genus. The 
Pavias, as a genus or snhgenus, have proved 
distinct enough to gaiu a decided foot-hold in 
the minds of the general public. Yet their 
distinctions from the /Escnluses. we must ac- 
knowlege, are not very sure. Most, not all, 
of them have smooth husks on the nut, while 
the shell of the /Esculus is always prickly. 
Generally, the Pavias arc low trees or husiies. 
Propagators also say they cau most surely 
tell the Pavia from the /Esculus by the smooth, 
dry buds of the former and the gummy, sticky 
buds of the latter. They say this tost never 
fails. The largest, tallest tree of the /Escu¬ 
lus section is the common form of /Esculus 
Hippocastanum, with the typical light-green 
foliage of norse Chestnuts, so lovely during 
tbe time of putting forth. Like those of most 
Horse Chestnuts, the flowers are early and ouly 
peculiar from their white color. The stamens 
are prominent and purplish or yellow. Per¬ 
haps, as a whole, we appreciate this Horse 
Chestnut as much as any. True, as every one 
has noticed, the leaves do fade earl y iu Augtist; 
but what will you have ? Nothing is perfect. 
We have many varieties of the /Esc. Hippo¬ 
castanum more or less distinct. There are 
Pavia 
glabra, the Ohio Buckeye, is of good size, with 
paie-yellow flowers. It docs not coii|(Rre in 
OHIO STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
A Progenitive Organization nnd Meeting. 
The thirteenth annual meeting of our State 
Horticultural Society occupied three days the 
past week, and was fully up to the usual stand¬ 
ard in attendance and interest, although rain 
aud mud kept many from being present, and 
the location (Canton) is in the midst of the 
oldest wheuGgrowiug district, where most of 
the residents or their parents, came from Penn¬ 
sylvania or Virginia, aud are not noted for 
their interest in horticultural or modern im- 
provemeu ts generally. But, through the efforts 
of a few enterprising farmers, a county Horti¬ 
cultural Society was formed here the past 
spring, which has held anutnber of good meet¬ 
ings, with exhibitions of summer fruits, aud 
already awakened considerable interest, the 
effects of which were manifest at this meeting 
of the State Society, which was appointed there 
on the invitatiou of the local Society; as it is 
the practice to change the place of the annual 
meeting each year, so as to reach aud benefit 
all quarters of the State. 
There was quite a good show of fruits at the 
meeting, considering that this is the “off year” 
for our apple orchards, and all kinds of late 
fxuit ripened so early in the fall that but few 
remaiu sound at this time. 
The first business of the meeting, after the 
appointment of committees, was to hear a 
report from the secretary of the doings of the 
Society aud its Executive Committee for the 
past season. 
The difficulties and failures of the old or¬ 
chards constituted the first topic of the pro¬ 
gramme for discussion the next morning j the 
question being. “How can Lhe old orchards 
best be renovated, and is it not belter in most 
cases to cut them down and plant new ones.'' 
The writer of this and one or two others took 
the ground that apple trees cannot be expected 
Fig .2. jputrvntG foresttrees. Fig. 5. 
beauty, however, with /Esc. Hippocastanum. a group as the Horse Chestnuts, but their re- 
Pavia pallida is a variety of glabra. Pavia semblance to each other has induced me to 
flava and flava purpuresceus are still other give the consideration of many species aud 
Buckeyes with flowers more or less yellow. varieties less space than I should have done 
Then there is the interesting Micbauxii and had they been Maples or Oaks, 
many more distinct species and varieties. Lou¬ 
don speaks of P. neglecta with pale yellow 
flowers veined with red, and makes it a hybrid 
between P. rubra and P. discolor. P. discolor 
is a straggling bush rather than tree and, 
though early flowering, remains in bloom a 
considerable time. It is well fitted to make 
PRUNING FOREST TREES 
At this season of the year, when the work of 
removing and,trimming large trees is generally 
done, it will not be amiss to give a few hints 
in regard to the pruning of forest trees, aud, 
