LAND AND WATER. 
February lo, 1916. 
WINTER FLOWERING SHRUBS. 
By Eden Phillpotts. 
THIS vxar some of the flowering shrubs of autumn 
were belated, for that fine evergreen Hoherea 
pupulnca. tlie laee bark, from New Zealand, only 
opened its snow-white flower clusters in late 
T'Jovember ; Collctia cruciala, a singular Chilian, whose 
flowers I expect during October, is blooming now, in mid- 
January, with tiny white bells clustering among its thorny 
anchors ; and Pitlosporum Tohira was in full splendour at 
Christmas. But to atone for such delay one seldom remem- 
bers so interesting an exhibition as this which opens the 
new year in many a West Country garden. E\cn fax oured 
Sou h Devon remembers no such a genial January, and 
abundance of early blossom. 
Of rhododendrons, R. Nobleanum is gay with unusually 
fine pink trusses, and the little deciduous hybrid, R. prcecox 
has covered its naked limbs with pale purple blossoms. Too 
often an unforeseen frost will destroy these beauties in a 
night, for though all rhododendrons, save, of course, the Java- 
nese and some from low Himalayan levels, are hardy, their 
blossoms are not, and when the bud grows pale green and the 
first glimmer of colour shows, then, unless the weather be 
above suspicion, they should, where possible, be screened to 
break frcst. A hue hybrid between R. arborea and R. Shilsoni, 
is at this fascinating stage of swelling bud in a snug corner, 
and one watches the evening sky sharply for its sake. 
I'ei.mus citriudora frt>m ChiU, is not a generous flowerer. 
Last spring I found the first promise of inflorescence and now 
after many months of slow development, the cymes of little 
cream-coloured stars with orange eyes have opened amid the 
shining, ever-green foliage. Peumus loves a shady spot and 
abundant moisture. The fruit is a Chilian delicacy, which 
wc are not likely to sec in the open here, but there is nothing 
finer and richer in the garden than the aromatic fragrance 
of the yruslied leaf. 
Evergreen Barberries. 
Berberis japonica is already in full flower, with clusters 
of sweet lemon blossoms ; but a' daintier shrub having 
larger leaves and most graceful pendulous tresses of bloom 
is B. Bealii, now at its best. The flower-scent is that of lily- 
of-the-valley. These e\ ergreen barberries love half shade and a 
cool, moist soil ; but that kinsman of the daphnes, Edgivorthia 
:hrysantha, from China, will thank you for full sunshine 
above and a light loam to live in. The flower buttons are 
annually formed at the ends of the new growth and, when 
the leaf falls, they shine there silver bright. This year they 
have already opened and Edgworthia is now covered with 
rosettes of fragrant orange-coloured flower clusters as great 
as lalf-crowns. The Mezcreiitn daphnes are also out-r-pale 
])urple, dark purjile and pure white. They stud the naked 
raniage with countless flowers ; and the white mezereum 
furnishes sunmier beauty also, for its sparkling fruit is 
orange yellow and makes the shrub gay again in August. 
Daphne indica, which dwells just outside my Stove and enjoys 
that comfort in wintertime, is just about to open its pink 
blo;som- and shed its oriental fragrance on the winter air. 
Dcndromecon rigida, the great tree poppy from California, 
is seldom without a flower, and despite harsh treatment under 
our winter storms, which have robbed it of many a branch, 
still flaunts five orange cups to-day, though itself a miserable 
object until a new crop of leaves opens to hide the skeleton. 
Against a wall it grows twelve feet high in the West Country 
and must be very nearly hardy. A dainty little plant is 
Sarcocca mscijolia, from China. This evergreen resembles 
a ruscus and is now bright with crimson fruit and sweet 
with little sprays of snow-white blossoms. It likes a shady 
corner in jjeat and, if happy, soon makes a specimen. Cliimon- 
anihtis jragrans, the winter-sweet, was in full splendour at 
Christmas, and its strange, pale, transparent stars clustering 
on their leafless branches made welcome decoration and 
b-( ug'it rare fragrance to the dwelling-rooms. No garden 
should lack this great treasure from Japan, yet it is surjirising 
how rare it continues to be, though as a matter of fact it is 
of ancient introduction. 
The Hamamelis folk are in full flower ; indeed, H. mollis, 
the handsomest of afl witch-hazels, is almosfsped. Its bright 
yellow spiders with purple bodies covered the shrub, and their 
tender scent reminds one of the bluebell and the coming of 
spring. //. ziiccarina and H. arborea are now flowering 
abundantly. The brown, dead leaves of the latter cling to 
thiyr boughs and make a beautiful harmony with the little 
yeUow stars of the inflorescence. Buddleia axialica has 
opened fresh racemes of creamy bloom ever since the autumn 
and is still flowering freely. It lacks the rare purple and gold 
of the great summer buddleias, but has an incomparable 
sweetness— the very soul of ripe fruit. Parrotia persica is 
in flower also, with strange little pale pink clusters of blossom 
after the fashion of an elm tree. This hamamelid comes 
from Northern Persia and its kinsman, Parrotia Jacijue- 
montiana, from Kashmir, has a more showy and developed 
blossom ; but its flower belongs to summer. 
Tree Peonies. 
The C)'</o«/rts— pink and scarlet and cream — are all 
bursting their buds and the tree peonies are breaking, so that 
we may see the promise of bloom long before we wish to do so. 
In the west these noble plants will bud too soon for their 
comfort and ours, and incur much danger as a result. 
Camellia on the other hand is safe enough and its tight 
buds will not open their scarlet and snowy blossoms until all 
danger be past. Too often one sees camellia planted in full 
sunshine, which is more than it can stand ; but given half shade 
and cool soil these e\crgreens will prove hardier than most 
gardeners imagine. The queen of the group : Camellia 
relictdaia. however, should have the support of a wall facing 
westerly, and if the bud is far advanced in early spring this 
glorious shrub is worthy of a little protection. All the 
species revel in peat. 
Azara microphylla is in full bloom, though the tiny 
inflorescence does not appear ; but lift the bright green 
sprays and beneath them you will find the gold dust of the 
flower and smell its strong perfume of vanilla. Corn' s 
mas, the Cornel an cherry, has also covered its naked limbs 
with gold. This is the variegated fo:m and it generally sits 
a go id jprinkling of red autumn fruits ; but the-:e are ah stone 
and of no value even to the birds. 
In these favoured scenes, that grand climber, Stauntonia 
lafitoiia, from the Himalayas, is as hardy as ivy and makes enor- 
mous plants. It will cover the side of your house, or cUmb up an 
elm tree with equal industry. The i)ale green, fragrant 
blossom is just about to open in sheltered gardens, and the 
double crimson fruits hang still on the branches. Ercilla 
spicata from Peru — another climber — is late and its buds have 
not yet broken into ])ale pink trusses ; but the winter flowering 
Clematis cirrliosa, from Southern Europe, is in full bloom, witli 
clusters of little pendant butter- coloured bells, crimson 
spattered in the cup. The wands of the familiar Kcrria 
japonica are also breaking into bright yellow stars, and the 
purple prune, whose dark foliage masses and light habit are 
so precious in a shrubbery landscape, is wliite with blossom. 
I have never seen this shrub flowering so richly ; but its dark 
cherry-shaped fruits, that make such beautiful house decora- 
tions in Italy, are seldom set in this country. 
Devastating Bullfinches. 
The bullfinches devastate Prunus Pissardii ; beneath the 
branches one finds a sad litter of the pink, unopened blossom 
bud. Forsythia suspensa is another of their favourites and 
my heart sinks as 1 hear their soft rail and see the faithful 
pair arrive together, with gentle undulation of flight. C)ften 
they bring last year's family also, for the young of the bull- 
finch IS p one to stop wi.h its elders till pairing time. All 
birds are welcome here, save the " bud-hawks," but they are 
the deadly enemy of deciduous shrubs as well as pear and plum. 
To them therefore one extends a frosty welcome — or 
even a fiery one. Forsythia would be in full bloom now, 
with the yellow jasmine, but the birds have marred its per- 
formance as usual, and the lemon coloured blossoms that have 
escaped are scattered but thinly on the drooping boughs. 
Spring has indeed over-run winter for the moment, though 
we must be prepared for winter to catch her sister again, 
albeit there are many signs that no great severity of cold 
need now be anticipated. I am disposed to trust my missel- 
thrush. He has arrived with his bride and certainly intends to 
nest once more in a great poplar here. Already he sings 
full-throated— a song that lacks the quaUty and variety of the 
song-thrush, or the mellow charm of the blackbird and ring- 
ousel ; but his music of live or six fine notes rings pleasantly 
from his perch aloft upon the poplar. He sits there in the 
winter sunlight like a little star entangled on the tree top. 
The Log of H.M.S. Bristol, by William Buchan (West- 
minster Press, 4s. net) is the first published naval record of the 
war from the participator's point of view, and the book 
provides a good account of the hunt for the Dresden and 
Karlsruhe and the Bristol's share in the battle of the Falk- 
1 ands. As leading signalman on the Bristol, the author was able 
to keep an accurate log of events in which his ship took part. 
