November  28,  1901.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
481 
Conifer®. 
There  are  several  species  and  varieties  of  Araucaria  im- 
bricata,  but  the  Monkey’s  Puzzle,  as  it  is  called,  is  the  only 
one  sufficiently  hardy  for  the  climate  of  England.  It  has 
been  known  in  this  country  since  the  end  of  the  last  century. 
In  1795  Captain  Vancouver  touched  at  the  coast  of  Chili, 
and  Mr.  Menzies,  who  accompanied  the  expedition,  pro¬ 
cured  cones,  seeds  from  which  he  sowed  on  board  ship,  and 
brought  home  living  plants,  which  he  presented  to  Sir 
Joseph  Banks,  who  planted  one  of  them  in  his  own  garden, 
and  sent  the  others  to  Kew.  From  this  circumstance  the 
•tree  was  called  at  first  in  England  Sir  Joseph  Banks’  Pine. 
The  branches  are  produced  in  whorls  of  six,  seven,  and 
sometimes  eight,  the  greatest  number  being  nearest  the 
ground  ;  but  these  do  not  indicate  the  age  of  the  tree,  as  the 
number  of  the  whorls  do  that  of  the  Pines.  I  have  read 
that  to  ascertain  the  age  of  a  growing  Araucaria,  count  the 
tiers  of  branches,  and  add  one-half  of  the  number,  making 
allowance  for  the  unbranched  terminal  shoot,  if  any.  This 
will  give  nearly  the  age  of  the  tree.  The  leaves  of  the 
Araucaria  are  quite  different  to  any  other  Conifer  named 
in  these  notes.  They  are  ovate-lanceolate,  thickened  at  the 
base,  very  stiff,  leathery,  and  sharply  pointed,  bright  green 
on  both  sides,  and  spirally  arranged  around  the  branches. 
This  tree  retains  its  leaves  for  many  years. 
The  Araucaria,  although  rather  a  formal  tree,  makes  a 
beautiful  specimen,  and  should  be  included  in  all  collections 
•of  Conifers.  It  is  not  particular  as  to  the  kind  of  soil,  but  it 
must  be  well  drained,  and  should  be  planted  in  full  exposure 
to  sun  and  air,  if  in  an  elevated  situation  so  much  the  better, 
a  free,  open  space  being  more  suitable  than  a  confined  and 
sheltered  one.  On  account  of  its  prickly  leaves,  it  is  said 
never  to  be  touched  by  cattle. 
Ginkgo  blloba. 
The  Maidenhair  Tree,  also  known  as  Salisburia  adianti- 
"folia,  is  not  so  much  grown  as  many  of  the  Conifers,  but  it  is 
a  very  distinct  and  beautiful  tree.  The  leaves  resemble  in 
form  those  of  the  Maidenhair  Fern,  being  somewhat  fan¬ 
shaped,  green  on  both  sides,  and  deciduous.  It  thrives 
(thoroughly  well  in  almost  any  garden  soil  in  the  South  of 
England,  but  in  the  North  requires  the  shelter  of  a  wall. 
In  China  and  Japan  it  is  cultivated  for  the  sake  of  its  fruit, 
the  nuts  being  much  esteemed. 
Cephalotaxus  Fortunei. 
This  is  a  low-growing  shrub,  attaining  a  height  of  from 
•6  to  8ft,  and,  as  its  name  implies,  is  closely  allied  to  the  Yew. 
There  are  three  or  four  species,  but  only  this  one  is  known 
To  me.  The  leaves  resemble  those  of  the  Yew,  but  are 
longer,  dark  green  above,  lighter  beneath,  and  sharply 
.pointed.  The  plant  is  dioecious.  The  leaves  of  the  fruit¬ 
bearing  plant  are  almost  whorled  on  the  primary  branches, 
and  many  of  the  latter  are  erect.  In  the  male  plant  they  are 
.  distinctly  arranged  in  two  rows  like  the  common  Yew,  but 
instead  of  being  flat  they  are  turned  upwards.  The  whole 
plant  is  rather  lighter  in  colour  than  the  fertile  form.  It  is 
a  very  slow-growing  shrub.  I  do  not  think  it  is  much  grown 
in  this  country  ;  it  does  not  lend  itself  for  decorative  pur¬ 
poses  as  do  many  other  of  the  Coniferse.  Cephalotaxus  is 
quite  hardy.  I  recently  saw  a  number  of  plants  that  had 
come  through  the  severe  winter  unharmed.  They  were 
growing  in  a  very  exposed  and  cold  situation,  and  had  been 
planted  many  years,  but  wrere  only  small  specimens.  It  is  a 
native  of  North  China. 
Taxui  baocata. 
This  tree,  the  common  Yew,  is  so  well  known  that  very 
little  need  be  said  about  it.  When  standing  alone  in  a  suit¬ 
able  situation  it  makes  a  beautiful  specimen,  but  it  can  be 
employed  for  a  variety  of  purposes,  and  pruned  into  any 
shape  that  may  be  required.  There  are  many  varieties. 
Aurea  is  a  form  having  yellow  foliage.  Fastigiata,  the  Irish 
Yew,  is  a  very  desirable  variety,  readily  distinguished  from 
the  common  Yew  by  its  upright  mode  of  growth  and  deep 
green  leaves,  which  are  not  distichously  arranged  like  those 
of  the  common  form,  but  are  scattered  around  the  branch- 
lets.  There  is  also  a  yellow  form  of  the  Irish  Yew,  and  a 
variety  of  the  common  species  bearing  bright  golden  fruit. 
The  Yew  is  a  most  interesting  tree,  and  its  association  with 
•early  English  history  and  with  religion  and  places  of  worship 
is  well  known. 
Taxus  adpressa. 
This  is  termed  the  Flat-headed  Yew  on  account  of  its 
spreading  habit  and  want  of  a  leader.  The  leaves,  which  are 
very  dark  green  and  short,  are  arranged  in  double  rows, 
slightly  inclined  upwards  and  forwards.  It  is  a  very  slow- 
growing  shrub,  and  is,  I  believe,  sometimes  grafted  on 
stronger  growing  varieties. 
There  is  one  more  tree  I  should  like  to  name,  and  that  is 
the  common  Larch,  Larix  europtea.  Where  there  is  room 
this  should  be  included,  as  it  is  so  distinct  from  other  Coni¬ 
fers,  especially  in  spring,  when  it  breaks  into  life.  The 
leaves  are  a  beautiful  yellowish  green  tint,  which  makes  it 
a  desirable  example  to  mix  with  other  trees.  The  red  cat¬ 
kins  also  enhance  its  charm.  It  grows  best  in  rather  a  light 
loam.  I  have  frequently  measured  the  season’s  growth  on 
young  healthy  trees,  and  have  found  many  that  have 
measured  4ft. — Pinus. 
Pears  as  Pyramids. 
The  pyramid  possesses  these  advantages  over  the  bush  : 
the  trees  occupy  less  space,  they  are  more  handsome,  and 
the  fruit  gets  more  sun,  which  latter  means  finer  specimen 
fruit  and  better  ripened  wood  for  the  next  season,  as  impor¬ 
tant  a  factor  in  determining  the  fruit  crop  as  the  spring 
frosts.  The  beauty,  too,  of  pyramid  Pears  is  not  to  be  de¬ 
spised,  for  taking  into  consideration  their  graceful  shape, 
their  lovely  blossom,  the  Camellia-like  foliage  of  some  sorts, 
and  the  charm  of  the  drooping  fruit,  many  worse  trees  and 
shrubs  might  be  planted  along  the  edge  of  the  lawn.  Where 
Pears  are  grown  for  private  consumption  only,  this  system 
has  a  great  recommendation  over  that  of  standard  trees,  in 
that  half  a  dozen  or  more  pyramids  can  be  grown  in  the 
space  which  would  be  occupied  by  one  moderate-sized  stan¬ 
dard,  and  although  the  latter  might  produce  bushels  of 
fruit  once  in  two  or  three  years,  all  of  which  must  be  con¬ 
sumed  or  disposed  of  in  twTo  or  three  weeks,  a  half-dozen 
pyramids,  though  never  producing  so  much  fruit  in  a  season, 
nevertheless  with  proper  treatment  may  be  expected  to 
produce  some  every  year,  and,  in  addition  to  this  advantage, 
they  might  be  of  half  a  dozen  different  sorts,  maturing  in 
as  many  different  months,  whose  fruit  would  thus  form  a 
more  lasting  pleasure,  and  be  much  more  valuable  for  des¬ 
sert  purposes.  In  growing  for  the  market,  the  matter  is 
naturally  looked  at  in  a  different  light. 
The  varieties  of  Pears  are  extremely  numerous,  perhaps 
more  so  than  those  of  any  other  fruit,  a  book  twenty  years 
~  old  putting  the  number  at  upwards  of  500,  and  they  have 
increased  considerably  since  then.  Many  of  these  are  very 
delicate,  and  many  have  been  much  improved  upon,  but  if 
we  take  the  number  of  desirable  varieties  as  100,  it  will  still 
leave  us  a  wide  choice.  Everyone  has  his  favourite  sorts, 
but  there  is  one  very  important  fact  to  be  borne  in  mind 
when  choosing  Pears,  and  that  is,  that  all  Pears  do  not  thrive 
on  the  same  soil.  Before  buying  any  trees  it  would  be  well 
to  visit  a  few  gardens  in  the  neighbourhood,  or  a  nursery, 
or  a  market  garden,  and  see  which  sorts  do  well.  If  this 
were  always  done,  it  would  save  a  good  many  disappoint¬ 
ments,  for  not  only  are  some  soils  fatal  to  some.  Pears — 
that  lovely  December  Pear,  Thompson’s,  for  instance, 
almost  refusing  to  grow  in  a  soil  not  rich  in  lime— but  some 
climates  and  situations  are  fatal  also.  In  addition  to  this, 
there  are  some  sorts  which  are  almost  a  failure  as  pyramids, 
which  do  well  as  dwarf  bushes  or  wall  trained  espaliers, 
while  others,  which  make  excellent  standards,  do  not  make 
good  restricted  trees  of  any  sort.  The  best  way  would  be  to 
make  out  a  list  of  those  Pears  which  are  favourites,  with  the 
addition  of  a  few  which  some  catalogue  or  fruit-growing 
book  makes  appear  specially  desirable,  and  then,  when  visit¬ 
ing  other  gardens  in  the  locality,  to  eliminate  any  which  are 
found  not  to  do  well.  Some  catalogues,  too,  are  helpful  in 
pointing  out  those  which  are  most  suitable  for  growing  in 
pyramidal  form. 
Another  very  important  thing  to  be  looked  to  is  the 
stocks  on  which  the  trees  are  worked.  Pears  grafted  on  the 
Quince  stock,  which  is  never  used  for  a’  --  but  restricted 
trees,  are  only  suitable  for  deep  or  heavy  sods,  as  the  Quince, 
being  shallow  rooting,  suffers  very  much  on  a  dry,  sandy 
soil,  and  the  trees  go  back  after  two  or  three  years.  They 
come  into  bearing  more  quickly,  and  are  more  fruitful  than 
those  on  the  Pear  stock,  hence  the  temptation  to  get  them 
on  the  Quince  ;  but  this  temptation  should  only  be  yielded 
to  if  the  soil  is  a  suitable  one  for  surface  rooting  trees.  On 
