2\2 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYAIAN 
lories, lawns and llower beds. A talk witli Mr. Jones 
nj)sel a very fixed theory in regard to the treatment of 
hulhs. It is a generally aceepted idea that after a tulip 
hulh has been foreed in the greenhouse the best })laee for 
it is the dump and llial unless the foliage is allowed to 
die naturally after flowering so as to restore the })lant 
food to the hulh there is little ehance for a llower the sec¬ 
ond year, whether the hulhs have been foreed or not. 
Well, theories are theories and Mr. Jones’ practiee in 
handling his hulhs does not j)rove it. He ruthlessly 
mows off the tops with a siekle as soon as convenient af¬ 
ter the petals fall both from the beds outside as well as 
tho.se that have been forced in pots, allows the hulhs to 
dry a little before being taken from the soil to he stored 
and what as most surprising, gets splendid results from 
them a second and third year. 
Some of the varieties show a hulh perfectly matured 
and compare favorably w ith the Jiewly imported ones. 
As Mr. Jones pointed out, the hulh was re-formed 
and matured by the time the flower was over or very 
soon after. Practice versus theory. Theoiy loses un¬ 
der Mr. Jones’ management. 
California Privet hedges kill hack i)retty badly 
around Pittsburg. Well, that is not an unmixed evil, 
as one observer })ut it. Previous to the severe winter of 
about two years ago Pittsburg gardens were smothered 
by large overgrown, ill-kept hedges. They all got kill- 
(al hack to the ground with great advantage to the gen¬ 
eral ai)pearance of the suburbs. They broke freely from 
the bottom and everyone has nice new hedges now. 
Speaking of hedges, Berheris Thunhergii is the 
hedge of the future for this locality. It is hard to con¬ 
ceive that this ])lant will he a losing proposition for the 
nurseiyman. No danger of over production for a long 
time. “Plant Berheris Thunhergii” is a good motto to 
tie to. 
Fine Regel’s and Ihota Privet were seen at Sewick- 
ley, which stand the winter well. 
At Wheeling, West Virginia, a Pyriis Jayonica hedge 
was a glorious sight in full bloom. Of course ,it is not 
a hedge that is suitable to general ada})lation, owing to 
its susceptibility to San Jose scale, hut where it can he 
looked after and sprayed it can he made a feature. 
What a general admiration there is for the Bhodo- 
dendrons and wdiat a tremendous waste and failure in at- 
temj)ting to grow them. Even here where the Rhodo¬ 
dendron maxiinum is indigenous to the mountains, they 
arc largely a commercial fraud. There are few new 
])laces jdanted where the owner does not get stung on 
Rhododendrons and landscape men and nurserymen are 
to blame. The former often prescribe them for impos¬ 
sible positions for limestone and clayey soils. The lat¬ 
ter handles largely imported plants or those ruthlessly 
lorn from the woods. No wonder the dry goods stores 
are going into the business of handling them. They are 
as commercial as pig iron and yet they ought to he 
handled like blooded stock. 
Shades of departed Rhododendron specialists don’t 
come to America until the American nurseryman knows 
this |)lant better and treats it as well as he does his 
])eaches and apples or there w ill he no happiness even 
w ith Saint Peter’s 0. K. on past conduct. 
An occasional specimen of the Rlad Cypress, Tax- 
odium disikhum, si)eaks volumes for this wonderful 
tree. Native to the swamps of the South it adapts it- 
self to the conditions at Pittsburg and Wheeling. Why 
do jiot landscape men demand it and nurseryjnen grow 
it? 
Perhaps the former do not know" it’s distinctiveness 
and i)ossihilities and the nurserymen lind it uncertain 
and diincult to handle, besides there is more money in 
Poplars. 
Like many another southern tree, it is sidjjeet to 
w inter killing even in the vicinity of Philadelphia hut 
when the tree matures it is as hardy as trees much more 
often met w ith as is i)roved by large sj)ecimens in the coal 
regions. 
One fine suburban home had a row of them wdiere 
the average plantsman would use Lomhardies. They 
are two to three inches in calii)er and hid fair to he a 
superb feature of the place in lime. 
Choice Japanese Maples in sheltered places give a 
touch of color among the tender green of the other i)lants 
and looked thrifty and w ell, although they have a hard 
time of it and appeared stunted in exposed places. 
Many do not realize that these plants make their 
grow th for the entire year in about two w eeks in early 
sju’ing and if this is spoiled by late transi)lantijig, mar¬ 
red by late frosts or whipped by the w inds, the beauty of 
the })lant is spoiled for the entire summer. Last sum¬ 
mer there was a late frost wdiich caught the plants in 
many places and in a large block in the nurseries ol 
Thomas Meehan & Sons it only damaged the foliage in 
places, sometimes only a single tree w as nipped, while 
j)lants surrounding it w ere untouched. Most nursery¬ 
men have noticed the peculiar action of frost in this re¬ 
spect, due perhaps to air currents. 
A little later on the leaves that had been nipped turn¬ 
ed brown and the cause was unhesitatingly attributed to 
a fungous disease by many w ho noticed the damage later. 
Very recently an able German w riter explained the 
real cause of the so-called Chestnut disease as being the 
result of drought during excessively dry summers, w itii 
a good deal of reason and logic. 
Groves of Chestnut trees cleared of undergrowth 
w ith little if any humus or decaying vegetable that wall 
hold and conserve the moisture, were particularly sub¬ 
ject to it and wdiile tlie biologist may tlout the suggestion. 
