129 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
same holder. A perfect rose; a perfect 
branch of blossoms have as strong and re¬ 
freshing an individuality as have our 
human friends, and they repay us as 
gracefully for respecting it, as they do. 
Next to bloom is the pink Azalea, or Wild 
Honeysuckle, as it is called all along the 
Atlantic States—simply delightful in a 
great mass—grown ten or twelve feet in 
low land, but with care, a thrifty bush 
on high land. The same can be said of 
the Dogwood Lily of the Valley tree, 
Spirea, or Bridal Wreath, the Oleander, 
Cape Jessamine, Crape Myrtle, and the 
Sweet Myrtle. These are all fragrant, 
hardy and close at hand. We find 
December planting most satisfactory for 
trees and shrubbery. We have had the 
best success in planting .Oleanders, by 
getting a stake about two feet long, stiff 
enough to drive, sharpen it at one end 
and drive into the ground just where you 
want it to grow, leaving out two or three 
eyes or buds, they will put out from them 
and you have a tree at once. 
I want to recall Mr. Taber’s paper of 
last year, to your mind. It is well worth 
another reading. It was about the joys 
of a thicket, he called it, “A Message 
from the Woods.” I saw the thicket be¬ 
fore I read the message, and I felt then, 
that every Nature-lover had just some 
such spot—I have. It is a human instinct 
to keep a bit of nature’s work close at 
hand, from whence can be drawn inspir¬ 
ation, strength and hope. 
It may be a bit of pond, full of gleam¬ 
ing white lilies, or a bit of virgin forest 
in its strength and grandure, or a thicket 
full of the riotous profusion of trees, 
shrub and vine, that in its blending of 
shape and shade, is the despair of all our 
timid efforts. Let me suggest the 
greater planting of the Wistaria, both 
white and purple, there again the Japan¬ 
ese have produced wonderful effects, their 
arbors are simply dreams. You do not 
realize you are looking at anything man 
has done, it looks like magic. Some of 
the flower stems are three feet long, and 
hang above the head like a purple and 
white sky. It will grow rampant here, 
even with little care—of course it is not 
as early as the plum, or as evergreen as 
the Yellow Jassamine, which I heartily 
recommend—the Wistaria blooms in 
early April and the Jessamine in early 
February, both are valuable for wiring 
to scrawny tall trees, and for covering 
unsightly objects. But chief among vines 
in this land of “Creepers,"” is the wild 
Smilax, or Bamboo Briar, as it is called 
here. I spoke of this vine last year, and 
wish to call your attention to it again. 
I have found four varieties, a plain green 
one, and a variegated one without thorns 
and mostly roots, they are worthless, 
never grow more than six or eight feet, 
then there is a strong rampant growing 
one with briars, and covered with black¬ 
berries in the fall, ornamental, but cruel. 
But the bamboo, or Wild Smilax, that 
is shipped from the entire South, for 
decorating along with Holly, Palm 
leaves, gray moss, long leaf pine, etc., is 
a most beautiful and satisfactory plant— 
grows just like cultivated Smilax, but is 
hardy, evergreen and a smooth vine, no 
berries, latter part of April has small, 
greenish blossoms, very fragrant, much 
like the Mignonette—if the roots are 
planted in December the vine will grow 
from thirty to sixty feet in a season. 
It comes up in the spring with a 
head like Asparagus and is edible, 
rather a good substitute for that 
vegetable, the vine runs along with this 
head and gets Hs growth before putting 
H—9 
