.November 9, 1889. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
149 
dryness and comfort in winter I prefer gravel walks, 
whether composed of beach, as I have stated, or binding 
gravel, to turf, which at this season is hardly ever dry, 
what with rain and dew, and rendered dirty by worm 
casts .—George Potts, Junr ., Elmside Gardens, Northiam, 
Sussex. 
-~>X<-- 
“CRACKJAW” PLANT NAMES. 
Doubtless the Mr. S. Girling, to whom a corre¬ 
spondent makes allusion in your last issue, as having 
given such a terrible name to a plant, was after all, 
somewhat of a musical wag. There is in music an old 
glee which creates some fun when properly sung, 
because of the odd names it contains, and which, 
doubtless, furnished the quaint and lengthy appellation 
to which exception is taken. “ Al-di-bo-ron-ti-phos- 
eo-phor-nio, where left you Chro-non-ho-ton-tho-lo-gus ? 
Deep within the tent, from the toils of war, on balmy 
couch reposing, Miss Dum-fren-ni-dos watching near 
him whilst the prince is dozing.” 
If, now that these “ crackjaw” names are syllableised, 
any reader will run over them, he will be surprised to 
find, after all, how very readily they are pronounced — 
far easier, in fact, than are the shorter names given to 
myriads of plants which still baffle novices and make 
the uninitiated believe that plant nomenclature is 
nothing less than meaningless jargon. 
Perhaps the Mr. Girling in question was even some¬ 
what of a sarcastic cynic, and was anxious, in his utterly 
intolerable nomenclature, to bring the ordinary names 
of plants into contempt. We owe our nomenclature 
chiefly to the Latin tongue, commonly termed a dead 
language, but terribly alive in horticulture. Like 
everything else, however, familiarity breeds contempt, 
and so it comes about that, with use, gardeners get 
glibly familiar with plant appellations even more hard 
to master than is the terrible Aldiborontiphoskiphor- 
jxiostikos,— A. D, 
AUTUMN TINTS. 
When the leaves unfold with the warmth of spring, 
there can be few observers who have not been charmed 
by the varied and ever changing tints which they dis¬ 
play. In numerous cases they consist of delicate tints of 
green, but so distinct are they when seen in the mass, 
that words can scarcely convey the impression made by 
different trees. Mixed with these are various shades 
of yellow, gold and red ; but in all cases they are of 
delicate aspect compared with the ruddy tints, the 
yellow, the golden, chestnut-brown, red, orange, and 
crimson glow of the falling leaf, whose mission has 
been fulfilled and its work completed. Most of this 
applies, though not exclusively, to deciduous trees ; 
and by the defoliation of the latter the evergreen kinds 
are brought most prominently into view. The colour 
of the young bark of many kinds must not be over¬ 
looked, in autumn and winter effects produced by 
several kinds. 
Trees. 
Although we'are largely indebted to exotic subjects for 
rich autumn tints, yet many of the commonest trees are 
simply gorgeous in the waning days of October. Striking 
amongst these is the common English Elm (Ulmus 
campestris), large branches of which in different parts 
of the tree often assume a bright golden yellow, while 
all the rest retain the summer garb of green for six or 
eight days longer. Hard by the Beech becomes clothed 
in yellow and ruddy-chestnut brown ; while yonder, 
perhaps, the Black, the Lombardy, and the Canadian 
Poplars glory in a uniform soft yellow. Very similar 
is the dying foliage of Gingko biloba (the Maidenhair 
Fern), and the Norway Maple. Our British species is 
less delicate, but generally characterised by the leaves 
being furnished with large black blotches, the result of 
a wide-spread fungus. The Neapolitan Maple assumes 
a deep yellow, more or less suffused with brown and 
red, while on chalky soils these tints are greatly in¬ 
tensified, and make their appearance somewhat earlier. 
Acer pictum varies with orange, red, and yellow tints, 
while there are varieties differing in the marbling or 
variegation of their summer foliage. The unfolding 
leaves and flowers of the Red Maple (A. rubrum) are of 
a charming red tint, but they pale before the brilliant 
crimson of the dying foliage. Those of A. rufinerve 
are crimson and yellow, large, and three-lobed. Most 
of the above Maples are frequently met with in this 
country, and might be more extensively planted for 
ornamental purposes. Many of them are, moreover, 
good timber trees. 
Rich and varied hues are also met with in other and 
widely distinct genera. The Oaks abound in a wealth 
of colour, though the prevailing tints of our native 
species are brown. The large leaves of Quercus ruber 
are red fading to brown, while those of Q. coccinea and 
Q. palustris are generally described as scarlet, although 
a brilliant red would be more precise. Then, again, 
those of Q. salicifolia laurifulia are bronzy green and 
red. Contrast with these the sombre dark olive-green 
of the Holly Oak (Q. ilex), the Cork Oak (Q. suber), 
and the sub-evergreen Lucombe Oak (Q. Cerris sub- 
perennis), and the rich painting of the landscape in 
autumn seems as endless as pleasing. The Cucumber 
Tree (Magnolia acuminata) assumes a deep brown hue ; 
whereas the allied Tulip Tree fades to a soft yellow, 
netted all over with green. Similar in colour to the 
last, although the kinship is distant, are Catalpa 
syringiefolia and C. s. aurea. The Cockspur Thom 
(Crataegus Crus-galli) dies off of a deep metallic red. 
Parottia persica is not common, but its handsome leaves 
become flushed with golden brown and red, and this 
more especially if grown in a rather dry well-exposed 
place. None of the above, however, excel in brilliancy 
Liquidambar styraciflua, the five lobed Maple-like 
leaves of which assume orange, bronzy red, and brilliant 
crimson hues. 
ruo.owj . J Shrubs. 
The Japan Maples furnish endless hues of colour at all 
times while in leaf, including Acer palmatum san- 
guineum, brilliant red ; A. p. atropurpureum, deep 
bronzy red ; and the variegated kinds. Now, 
however, the leaves of A. p. palmatifidum are red and 
yellow ; A. p. decompositum, green, scarlet, red and 
yellow. The different species of Sumach afford rich 
and varied hues, including Rhus Cotinus, orange and 
crimson ; R. typliina, long, feather-like, pinnate, 
crimson leaves ; and R. glabra laciniata, deep crimson, 
and a little yellow. The uniform soft yellow of 
Philadelplius grandiflorus reminds us of the Poplars 
and some of the Maples above mentioned. The 
crimson, red and yellow of the Guelder Rose (Viburnum 
Opulus), is not to be despised, especially while its 
corymbs of red berries are yet unmolested by the birds. 
The foliage of V. tomentosum becomes crimson, while 
the under-surface still maintains its cottony-white 
appearance. Euonymus alata assumes a bronzy red 
hue, difficult of description, while close by, perhaps, 
the pinkish red fruits of E. europreus and E. latifolius 
are bursting, disclosing their attractive orange-coloured 
seeds. The evergreen Japan Spindle Tree, with its 
numerous finely variegated varieties, are as bright, or 
even more so, than in the midst of summer. The 
bright red foliage of Cornus sanguinea is now giving 
place to naked red-barked branches, the effect of 
which in winter is not to be overlooked. Compare 
with this the yellow bark of Salix vitellina. The long, 
pinnate leaves of Rhus Osbeckii japonica assume a 
bronzy red and a bronzy green, while the winged 
midrib and petioles give them an unfamiliarappearauce. 
The dwarf, shrub-like Amelanchier arbutifolia has 
shining, crimson, red and yellow foliage. Then we 
must not overlook the splendour of Vitis japonica, 
V. tricuspidata, and V. hederacea, which render the 
walls of houses so gay with their crimson, orange, 
bronzy, and yellow foliage. Amongst Conifers the 
rich brown of Taxodium distichum, and the bronzy 
hue of the still living foliage of Cryptomeria elegans, 
and various Thuias must be taken into account. 
-- 
LANDSCAPE GARDENING* 
Landscape gardening is an art of no mean order. No 
person can be successful in its profession unless possessed 
of artistic feeling and skill. Broadly understood, it is 
the application of art to nature. Nature in itself is an 
exemplifier of progress, always changing, developing, 
and like the sky, presenting scenes like an ever- 
* From a paper read at the meeting of the Preston and Ful- 
wood Horticultural Society, by Councillor Harding, C.E.. Nov. 
2nd,1S89. 
Chrysanthemum, Macaulay. (See p. 153.) 
