The following are tables of hardy flowering trees and shrubs, and comprise only species and varieties suitable, unless otherwise stated, for almost all parts of the British Isles. An asterisk (*) denotes those of the first importance. This way has been adopted to compress as much information as possible into a small space.
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Æsculus (Pavia), Horse Chestnut, Buck-eye | Sapindaceæ | | A well-known group represented most largely by the Horse Chestnut, which is the tallest of the species. The Æsculi generally are of medium size, and not very particular about soil or position. The smaller growers were at one time placed in a distinct genus, Pavia, but now placed with Æsculus. The more shrubby species are welcome in the garden, where the Horse Chestnut would be out of place. |
| *Æ. carnea | Hybrid between Æ. Hippocastanum and Æ. Pavia. Synonymous with Æ. rubicunda | Bright red; late May and early June | This is a handsome tree for the garden, and is generally about 15 feet high in Britain. Its chief charm is in the profusion and brilliant red colouring of the flower-spikes. It is not of quick growth, but flowers when very young. It will be found in many lists under the name of Æ. rubicunda, the red Horse Chestnut. Rosea is a good variety recommended by Mr. Anthony Waterer as a “tree for planting in smoky districts.” Another fine variety, peculiarly bright in flower colouring, is Æ. Brioti. |
| Æ. flava | A native of Carolina and Virginia, on mountain slopes; introduced in 1764. Sanguinea has red flowers. | Pale yellow | Those who want a tree in this family of distinct colour will find pleasure probably in this, but its colouring is dull, and the flowers are not plentiful. |
| *Æ. Hippocastanum (Common Horse Chestnut) | From the mountains of Greece. Gerard mentions the Horse Chestnut in his “Herbal” in 1579 as a rare foreign tree | White; late May or early June. There is considerable variation, as many of the trees in parks and gardens have been raised from seed | The common Horse Chestnut is too well known to describe. It is not a tree for very exposed places, as its large leaves offer considerable resistance to the wind, and get torn and unsightly. The double variety (flore-pleno) is very distinct, having quite double flowers. Foliis aureis variegatis is a variegated variety, as the name suggests, with blotches of yellow on the leaves; and laciniata has cut foliage. |
| Æ. indica | Nepaul, and other parts of Northern India. On the Himalaya the tree reaches a height of 70 feet, with a trunk 3 feet through | White, with yellow and red blotches at the base of the petals; Summer | This distinct and beautiful tree is perhaps the rarest of the Horse Chestnuts in cultivation, and is not so robust as the common species. It flowered in England as long ago as 1858 at Mildenhall in Suffolk, but has been little heard of. It is a tree doubtless for the Cornish and Devonshire and southern coast gardens where the Himalayan Rhododendrons thrive well. Sir Joseph Hooker, during his Himalaya travels fifty years ago, saw it loaded with its white racemes, and equal in beauty to the common Horse Chestnut of English parks. Its foliage is quite distinct from that of the other species, the leaflets numbering seven or nine, and being of a dark glossy green. In the other Horse Chestnuts the leaflets are usually only five to each leaf, and never more than seven. The racemes of this Indian species are about 8 inches long, the flowers being white, with blotches of yellow and red at the base of the petals. |
| *Æ. (Pavia) parviflora | North America. On river banks in Georgia. Introduced to England by Mr. John Fraser in 1786 | White fragrant flowers sometimes tinged with pink, and long stamens, and in long upright racemes | This is better known as P. macrostachya, and is a low, spreading shrub 8 to 10 feet high; the leaves consist of five to seven finely serrated leaflets, covered underneath with a whitish tomentum. Although introduced so long ago, this August flowering shrub is not common; it is a good shrub for a small garden, and is not fastidious about soil or even situation if not too shady. It is increased by suckers thrown up around the plant. These, when detached with a portion of root, soon form good plants. |
| Æ. californica | California. 40 feet in its native country, but not much more than a shrub here | Erect spikes of white or delicate rose; sweet-smelling flowers; May | This is not much known, but is a handsome shrub or tree. |
| *Æ. Pavia (P. rubra) | North America | Red; early summer | This is the Red Buck-eye, and will grow 15 feet high, but is more often simply a big shrub. The flowers are very bright red in colour, and in loose clusters, unlike the dense spikes of the common Horse Chestnut. The varieties are even dwarfer. Humilis, for instance, is only 4 feet. Atrosanguinea has very dark red flowers, and those of whitleyana are brighter than the type. |
| Æ. turbinata | Japan (introduced by Messrs. Veitch & Sons) | Yellowish white, not so large as those of the common Horse Chestnut | As this has not yet flowered in this country, as far as we are aware, but will probably become popular here, the following account of it by Professor Sargent in his “Forest Flora of Japan” will be interesting:—“This, however, is a noble tree—one of the largest and stateliest of all the horse chestnuts. In the forests of the interior mountain regions of Central Hondo, at elevations between 2000 and 3000 feet, horse chestnuts 80 to 100 feet tall, with trunks 3 or 4 feet in diameter, are not uncommon. These were, perhaps, the largest deciduous trees on the main island growing naturally in the forest—that is, which had not been planted by men—and their escape from destruction was probably due to their inaccessible position, and to the fact that the wood of the horse chestnut is not particularly valued by the Japanese. In habit, and in the form, venation, and colouring of the leaves, the Japanese horse chestnut resembles the horse chestnut of our gardens, the Grecian Æsculus Hippocastanum, and at first sight it might easily be mistaken for that tree, but the thyrsus of flowers of the Japanese species, which is 10 or 12 inches long, and only 2½ to 3 inches broad, is more slender; the flowers are smaller, and pale yellow, with short, nearly equal, petals, ciliate on the margins; and the fruit is that of the Pavias, being smooth, and showing no trace of the prickles which distinguish the true horse chestnuts. The Japanese horse chestnut reaches Southern Yezo, finding its most northern home near Mororan, on the shores of Volcano Bay, at the level of the ocean; it is generally distributed through the mountainous parts of the three southern islands, sometimes ascending in the south to an elevation of 4000 or 5000 feet. There seems no reason why this tree, which has already produced fruit in France, should not flourish in our northern states, where, as well as in Europe, it is still little known. In Northern Japan the fruits are exposed for sale in the shops, although they are probably used only as playthings for the children.” |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Amelanchier | Rosaceæ | | A charming family of spring-flowering trees, graceful in growth, and of moderate stature. There are four species, but dozens of names in catalogues; in fact, the genus is much mixed up in many books and lists. |
| *A. alnifolia | North-West America | White; Spring | This is usually about 8 feet high; it is very beautiful with its wealth of white flowers in compact clusters or racemes, followed by purple berries. In the Kew “Arboretum” Hand-list no less than ten synonyms are given. |
| *A. canadensis | Canada | White; April | This flowers about a month before A. alnifolia, and is one of the first trees to greet us with its wealth of snow-white blossom in spring. It should be planted in a free group. Juneberry and Snowy Mespilus are its popular names. Eighteen synonyms are given in the list referred to, the most usual being A. Botryapium. No small garden should be without this lovely small tree; it is between 6 and 8 feet high, spreading, and has purplish fruits, whilst the leaves die off deep golden yellow, so that the Snowy Mespilus has many beautiful phases. There are several varieties, but the species is as beautiful as any. |
| A. oligocarpa | Northern United States, and found in bogs and swamps | White; April and May | This is quite a dwarf shrub, 3 feet to 4 feet, and the individual flowers are ¾ inch across. As it is found in moist places it should be tried in such positions in Britain. |
| A. vulgaris | Europe | White; April | This has been in English gardens about 300 years. It is like the Canadian Juneberry or Snowy Mespilus, but not so beautiful. If only one Amelanchier is required, choose A. canadensis. |
| *Andromeda polifolia (Moorwort) | Ericaceæ; widely distributed. | Pink; Summer | A small shrub about a foot high, with pretty pink wax-like flowers in summer. Moist, peaty soil. See Cassandra, Leucothoë, Cassiope, Lyonia, Oxydendron, Pieris, and Zenobia. |
| *Berberis acuminata | Berberideæ; China | Bronzy yellow | Evergreen shrub with red young wood. Introduced by Messrs. Veitch. |
| *B. Aquifolium (Ash Barberry, Syn. Mahonia Aquifolium) | Introduced 1823. Spread widely over the western side of North America from Nootka Sound southwards. | Yellow; early Spring, dark green leaves of Summer have a purplish tinge after frost | A common, but handsome evergreen shrub, reaching a clothed height of 3 to 5 feet, and with dark green pinnate and leathery leaves. The flowers are bright golden; they are succeeded by berries, purple when ripe, which add to the ornamental features of the plant. It is one of the best shrubs for growing under trees, and in many places is planted for game cover. Distinct varieties are fascicularis, which is usually 2 feet to 4 feet high and has narrower leaflets of a duller green than the type. |
| *B. buxifolia (Box-leaved Barberry, Syn. B. dulcis) | Chili | Yellow; April and early May | An upright evergreen bush 5 feet high, clothed with small box-like leaves, and bearing drooping blossoms borne on unusually long stalks. It is not so handsome as B. Darwinii or B. stenophylla, but flowering before them is on that account valuable. A dwarf variety (nana) is a pretty rock-work plant. |
| B. concinna | Himalaya | Pale yellow | A little deciduous shrub not more than 18 inches high, and with silvery undersides to the leaves. It needs a sheltered spot in good soil. |
| B. congestiflora var. hakeoides | Chili | Bright yellow | A large interesting bush, with masses of flowers. Rare. |
| B. aristata | Himalaya | Yellow | A strong-growing deciduous shrub, somewhat after the style of the common Barberry, but chiefly remarkable from the bright red of the young bark, which thus forms a fine winter feature. |
| *B. Darwinii (Darwin’s Barberry) | Chili | Orange yellow; May | This ranks with B. stenophylla as the most handsome of all Barberries; and, indeed, it is in the very front rank of flowering shrubs. It is of bold, wide-spreading growth 6 to 8 feet high, and the masses of dark evergreen leaves serve admirably as a setting to the clusters of orange-coloured blossoms which are at their best in May. The purple berries are very attractive towards the end of the summer. This Barberry forms a delightful lawn shrub, particularly in a fairly moist soil. |
| B. empetrifolia | Chili | Yellow; Spring | A little evergreen bush less than 2 feet high, and flowering about the same time as B. Darwinii. With this just-named species it shares the parentage of B. stenophylla, which is unsurpassed in the entire genus. |
| B. nepalensis, Syn. Mahonia nepalensis | Nepaul | Yellow | The stateliest of the Ash Barberries, forming a specimen 6 feet high, and regularly furnished with long compound leaves. It is, however, tender, except in the West of England and Ireland, where, in a moist, fairly open soil, it does well. Even there a sheltered spot should be chosen for it. |
| B. repens, Syn. Mahonia repens | North America | ,, | Related to B. Aquifolium, and, like that, will do well in shady spots. It is dwarfer than the other just mentioned. |
| *B. stenophylla | Garden form | Yellow; Spring | This is a hybrid between B. Darwinii and B. empetrifolia, and a shrub of rare beauty. The slender arching shoots are very graceful, and during the flowering period are completely wreathed with golden blossoms. Standing singly on a lawn, or near water, it is delightful. It should be in the smallest collection of flowering shrubs. |
| *B. Thunbergi | China and Japan | Pale yellow and red; Spring | A spreading shrub 3 or 4 feet high, with flowers not particularly showy, and borne on the undersides of the shoots just as the young leaves are expanding. The bright-red berries are very showy, but they are surpassed by the brilliant scarlet of the decaying leaves. |
| *B. vulgaris (Common Barberry) | Europe | Yellow; Spring | The common Barberry is an ornamental deciduous shrub 8 to 10 feet high, and is valuable from the fact that it will thrive in dry, stony soils. Apart from the pale-yellow flowers in spring, the scarlet berries are very showy, and by some are used for preserves. There are many varieties, the best being the purple-leaved (purpurea) and white-fruited (fructu albo). |
| B. wallichiana (Syn. B. Jamesoni, B. Hookerii) | Himalaya and China | Sulphur Yellow; June | A dense evergreen bush, with dark green spiny leaves and pale yellow blossoms. It grows 4 or 5 feet high. |
| *B. Wilsonæ | China | Rich golden colour | A fine shrub, the leaves changing to an intense crimson colour in autumn. Spines an inch long. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| *Buddleia Colvillei | Himalaya; Loganiaceæ | Rosy crimson; June | A beautiful tree, reaching a height of 30 feet in its native country, but it is hardy only in the extreme West. |
| *B. globosa (Orange Ball tree) | Chili | Orange yellow; Midsummer | A deciduous shrub, 10 to 12 feet high, with long, willow-like hoary leaves, and flowers borne in globular clusters about midsummer. It is perfectly hardy in warm soils in the South of England, and is much admired. |
| B. japonica, Syn. B. curviflora | Japan | Lilac; August | This has several well-marked features, forming as it does a deciduous shrub about 4 feet high, with curiously winged stems and long curved spikes of blossoms. |
| B. variabilis | China | Rosy purple, Yellowish throat; Midsummer | A free-growing shrub, 6 to 8 feet high. The variety Magnifica was introduced by Messrs. Veitch from Central China; rich rose purple. Prune well back each autumn. Veitchiana is lighter in colour and flowers a fortnight sooner. |
| Cæsalpinia japonica | Japan; Leguminosæ | Canary yellow; Summer | A very interesting shrub, rambling and with long flexible shoots with red prickles. The leaves are a foot long, and of a pleasing green; the flowers, which are in partially erect racemes, are about 1 inch across, and bright canary yellow in colour, against which the reddish anthers are conspicuous. It must not be planted where it is likely to get smothered. It has stood out unharmed for many years in the Coombewood Nursery (Kingston). |
| *Calycanthus floridus (American Allspice) | North America; Calycanthaceæ | Purplish red; July | A deciduous, much-branched shrub from 5 to 6 feet high, well worth growing for its highly fragrant flowers, about a couple of inches in diameter. It needs a fairly cool, moist soil. |
| C. occidentalis (Californian Allspice) | California | Crimson | Much like the preceding, but of more vigorous growth with larger flowers. |
| Cassandra calyculata (Syn. Andromeda calyculata) | North America | White; April and May | An evergreen under-shrub, growing from 1 to 2 feet high. The shoots are arching, and the waxy Lily-of-the-Valley-like flowers are suspended from the undersides in considerable numbers. It is a pretty but by no means showy shrub, and needs moist, peaty soil. |
| Cassiope fastigiata | Himalaya; Ericaceæ | Pink; Summer | A pretty little erect growing shrub about a foot high, suggesting a Club Moss or a small Conifer, with tiny bell-shaped blossoms. It is suitable only as a rock-work shrub in moist, peaty soil. |
| C. hypnoides | Siberia | White | Even smaller than the preceding, and needs the same treatment. |
| C. tetragona | North America and Northern Europe | White | The tiny scale-like leave of this are arranged in four rows, thus giving the branches a curious square appearance. Succeeds under the same conditions as the others. The Cassiopes are difficult to grow. |
| Catalpa | Bignoniaceæ | | This genus of large deciduous trees is represented in both the eastern and western hemispheres, and contains about a dozen species. Only five of these are at present in cultivation in Britain or are known to be hardy, two being natives of North America and three of China. The Catalpas are some of the most striking and beautiful of all hardy trees, both in regard to foliage and to flower. The leaves are large and bold in outline, and the flowers borne in large terminal panicles towards the end of summer. Catalpas love a rich soil and abundant moisture. They are particularly well adapted for planting on the margins of ponds and water-courses. All the species have this peculiarity: they never form a terminal winter bud. In consequence of this, every shoot branches at its apex into two or three every spring, with the result that the trees naturally acquire a broad, spreading habit. This is especially apparent in the case of isolated trees growing on lawns—a position, it may be mentioned, in which Catalpas are seen to exceptional advantage. In the forests of North America, where they are drawn up by other trees, the Catalpas occasionally attain to heights of 50 feet to 100 feet. In gardens it may sometimes be advisable to help them to reach a moderate height, by keeping them to a single lead when young. All the species can be increased by cuttings of the roots, or of the fairly matured leafy growths. |
| *C. bignonioides (Syn. C. syringæfolia) | Introduced from North America in 1726 | Creamy white blotched with yellow, and spotted with purple in the throat; July and August | This species is by far the commonest and best known of the Catalpas in Britain. It does not often attain a stature of more than 30 feet, although in its native woods it is met with twice as high. The broadly ovate leaves are in healthy trees of mature age about 6 inches long and 4 inches to five inches wide. The flower panicles are erect, branching, and pyramidal, frequently 1 foot in diameter at the base. The flower is 1½ inches across, with a broad bell-shaped base, the reflexed limb being elaborately frilled. The thin, kidney-bean-like fruits are 9 inches to 12 inches long, but in most parts of the country are only produced after exceptionally sunny seasons. The following varieties are in cultivation: Aurea, with rich yellow foliage; nana, a remarkable low shrub, 2 feet to 3 feet high, which never flowers, and can only be regarded as a curiosity; purpurea, with purple-tinged leaves and shoots. |
| C. Bungei | Northern China | White, spotted with purple; they, as well as the panicles, are larger than in Kæmpfer’s Catalpa | Whether the true C. Bungei is in cultivation at the present time is very doubtful. Certainly the plants supplied by some nurserymen under this name are only the dwarf variety (nana) of C. bignonioides. In any case the true C. Bungei has not flowered in Britain. It is a tree 30 feet high, with either entire or lobed leaves; they are 4 inches to 8 inches long, and about three-fourths as wide. |
| C. cordifolia (Syn.species) | United States. It inhabits a more western region than C. bignonioides, and is found in the States of Kentucky, Louisiana, Tennessee, Missouri, Texas, &c. | White, with yellow blotches in the throat; but the purple spots are not so abundant in C. bignonioides, whilst the panicles are large, and appear about a fortnight before. | This is probably the finest species of Catalpa, but is not yet well known in Britain. In the United States it is often 50 feet high, and in exceptional cases over 100 feet. Owing to its having been for a long time confounded with C. bignonioides, this species was probably introduced unknowingly, and it may exist in some gardens under the other name. It is said to be somewhat the hardier of the two. |
| C. Fargesii | China. Introduced to France by M. Maurice de Vilmorin, and sent by him to Kew in 1899 | ...... | Little known of this species yet. |
| C. hybrida | A hybrid between C. cordifolia and C. Kæmpferi. Raised nearly thirty years ago by Mr. John C. Teas in Indiana, U.S.A. | White, with yellow and purple markings on the throat | In the United States this appears likely to prove the finest of all the Catalpas, exceeding even C. cordifolia in the vigour of its growth and the size of its panicles. Four hundred flowers have been borne on a single panicle. Generally, the plant is intermediate between the two species that share its parentage. |
| C. Kæmpferi | China; introduced by Siebold in 1849 | Flowers 1 inch across; reddish-brown and purple markings | Whilst this species—named in honour of Engelbert Kæmpfer, who visited Japan in the seventeenth century—bears a strong resemblance to the American C. bignonioides, it is neither so fine nor so ornamental a tree. It has naturally the same rounded habit, but is never so large. The leaves differ in frequently being more or less lobed. Kæmpfer noted this tree in Japan, and until a recent date it was regarded as indigenous to that country. Recent travellers have, however, concluded it to be (like many other popular trees in Japan) of Chinese origin solely. It is frequent in the grounds surrounding Buddhist temples in Japan. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| *Ceanothus americanus (New Jersey Tea) | Eastern United States; Rhamneæ | Whitish; July and August | A deciduous shrub, 3 to 4 feet high, that dies partially back during the winter. The flowers, which are borne in good-sized racemes, are at their best in July and August, and on that account are very valuable. It is one of the hardiest of the Ceanothuses, and in the South of England it will flower as a shrub in the open ground. |
| *C. azureus | Mexico | Light blue; July and August | This is not quite so hardy as the preceding, and it cannot be regarded as a shrub for the open ground, except in particularly favoured districts. It is, however, a delightful wall shrub. There are many garden varieties of this, mostly of Continental origin, of which may be especially mentioned Gloire de Versailles, blue; Marie Simon, pink; and Indigo, deep blue, very beautiful. |
| C. divaricatus | California | Pale blue; May and June | Suitable only for a wall. With this amount of protection it will reach a height of 10 feet. |
| C. papillosus | California | Blue; May and June | Like the last, it is, except in the extreme west, essentially a wall plant; it is one of the best. |
| C. rigidus | California | Purplish blue; Spring and early Summer | The leaves of this are small and neat, and its charming blossoms are on a wall borne sometimes as soon as April, and are kept up through May to June. It will reach a height of 6 to 8 feet. |
| C. thyrsiflorus | California | Bright blue; Summer | In its native country this attains to the dimensions of a small tree, but here it is essentially a wall plant. The flowers are in large racemes. |
| *C. veitchianus | California | Bright blue; May and June | A species with neat dark-green leaves. It forms a delightful wall plant. |
| *Cercis Siliquastrum (Judas Tree) | South Europe and West Asia; Leguminosæ | Rose purple, but varies; May and June | Throughout May and early June the Judas Tree is very beautiful, being smothered with pretty pear-shaped red blossoms. At Kew it flowers well in numerous places. It grows to a height of 20 feet or more in the Mediterranean region, though in gardens here it is more often represented by bushes of less than half that height. It thrives in sandy loam, and likes plenty of sun and air. The flowers are produced from all parts of the stems, much of the old wood being often smothered with flowering spurs. A variety with white flowers is in cultivation, and this may also be seen in flower at Kew. It is very free, and the flowers are of the purest white. A beautiful variety. In addition to this species, C. canadensis, from North America, and C. chinensis, a native of China and Japan, are also grown, whilst a fourth species, C. reniformis, from Western China, has lately put in an appearance. |
| *Chionanthus retusus (Fringe Tree) | Japan; Oleaceæ | Pure white; Early Summer | This Chionanthus furnishes one of the many illustrations of the close affinity that exists between the flora of the United States and that of Japan, for it is very nearly related to the American Fringe Tree (Chionanthus virginicus), from which, however, it differs in being a smaller and more slender plant, while the clusters of flowers are rather less dense. When in bloom there is no danger of confounding these Chionanthuses with any other tree or shrub, as the pure white drooping fringe-like inflorescence is totally distinct from anything else. They are quite hardy, and not particular as to soil, though a fairly deep loam suits them best. |
| C. virginica (American Fringe Tree) | North America | White, narrow, fringe-like petals; hence the name | An interesting bush, but taller in its native country. |
| *Choisya ternata (Mexican Orange Flower) | Mexico; Rutaceæ | White; Summer, but much depends upon position | This is a shrub for warm soils and sunny position, when it makes a big, leafy, glossy-leaved bush, smothered with clusters of white flowers that, from their appearance and fragrance, have earned the shrub the name of Orange Flower. At Munstead in Surrey it grows so rampantly that it has to be cut away to keep it within reasonable bounds. In “Wood and Garden,” p. 63, it is mentioned, the month is May; “The Mexican Orange Flower (Choisya ternata) has been smothered in its white bloom, so closely resembling orange blossom. With a slight winter protection of fir boughs it seems quite at home on hot dry soil, grows fast, and is very easy to propagate by layers. When cut it lasts for more than a week in winter.” |
| Cistus albidus | South-West Europe; Cistineæ | Bright rose; June and July | A shrub 4 to 5 feet high, with whitish leaves (hence the name of albidus) and a profusion of blossoms 2 inches across. It needs a dry, warm soil, hence will succeed on sloping banks, but even then, in the South of England, it is apt to be killed by a very severe winter. This last paragraph will apply to the genus Cistus in general. |
| C. crispus | Southern Europe | Reddish purple; Summer | Reaches a height of a couple of feet, and bears its saucer-shaped blossoms in great profusion. The individual flowers are about 2½ inches in diameter. |
| *C. ladaniferus (Gum Cistus) | South-West Europe | White; Summer | A bush 4 to 5 feet high, with large, white, solitary flowers. The variety maculatus has a crimson blotch at the base of each petal. |
| *C. laurifolius (Laurel-leaved Cistus) | South of Europe | White; July and August | A sub-evergreen shrub 5 to 6 feet high, and the hardiest of all the Cistus. Of this there is also a variety maculatus blotched at the base with purple crimson, which forms a delightful shrub. |
| C. monspeliensis | South of Europe | White; Summer | A compact bush 4 feet high, with flowers about an inch across. |
| C. populifolius (Poplar-leaved Cistus) | Levant | White; Summer | The leaves of this are very distinct, being heart-shaped and long-stalked, whilst the plant itself will attain a height of 6 feet. |
| C. purpureus | South-East Europe | Reddish purple with a maroon blotch | This is only suitable for planting in the West of England, but where not injured by frost it is a delightful shrub, a little over a yard high. |
| *C. villosus | Mediterranean region | Reddish purple | A compact shrub, whose reddish-purple blossoms are about 2½ inches across. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Cladrastis amurensis (Amoor Yellow Wood) | Amoorland; Leguminosæ | Whitish; July | A very distinct shrub or small tree, which is perfectly hardy, and has peculiarly greyish-green leaves. The dense spikes of small, pea-shaped blossoms are showy when at their best. This has deep descending roots, and holds its own in sandy soils better than most shrubs. |
| *C. tinctoria (Virginian Yellow Wood. Syn. Virgilia lutea) | North America | White | A tree, 30 feet high, clothed with large ornamental pinnate leaves, which die off a rich yellow. The flowers are white, and in dense drooping racemes. A fairly moist soil is necessary for this. |
| Clethra alnifolia | United States of America; Ericaceæ | White; August and early September | In the United States of America the White Alder or Pepper Bush, as Clethra alnifolia is called, occurs as a native over a considerable area; hence several forms exist, but do not possess any strongly marked features, unless it be the variety tomentosa, which is certainly the most widely removed of all from the typical kind. As a rule the flowering period of the common White Alder extends throughout August and a little way into September, at which last-named period the variety tomentosa is just unfolding its earliest blossoms. As the number of flowering shrubs that are at their best during the latter part of September is very limited, the blooming of this variety of the Clethra at that time makes it valuable. The varietal name of tomentosa is derived from the whitish down on the undersides of the leaves, which serves to readily distinguish it from the other forms. The flower-spikes, too, are rather larger, while the blossoms are as in the others—white. The Clethras all form rather loose-growing bushes from 3 feet to 5 feet high, and delight in a moist soil of a peaty nature, such as that in which Rhododendrons, Azaleas, and others of that class flourish. |
| C. canescens (Syn. C. barbinervis) | Japan | Milky white; Summer | A very handsome species with dark-green leaves and panicles of blossom. Well worth attention, but is yet rare. |
| Colutea arborescens (Bladder Senna) | Mediterranean region; Leguminosæ | Yellow; May and June | A perfectly hardy, free growing, deciduous shrub, reaching a height of 8 to 12 feet, clothed with pretty divided leaves, and with a profusion of pea-shaped flowers, succeeded by large inflated seed-pods, which form a very noticeable feature. These pods are green, tinged with red. The Coluteas are very useful, as they will thrive in dry sandy soils where many shrubs would perish. |
| *C. cruenta, Syn. C. orientalis, and C. sanguinea. | Orient | Reddish | After the manner of the last, from which it differs in its glaucous leaves, reddish flowers, and deeper-tinted seed-pods. It is also somewhat dwarfer. |
| Coronilla Emerus (the Scorpion Senna Coronilla) | Southern Europe; Leguminosæ | Yellow-tinged red; May and June | A free-growing bush 6 feet high, with a profusion of pea-shaped blossoms. It needs a well-drained, warm soil. |
| C. juncea (the Rush-like Coronilla) | South of France | Bright yellow | An erect shrub less than a yard high, with rush-like shoots, suggesting those of the Spanish Broom, and also almost devoid of leaves. When in full bloom it is decidedly pretty. |
| *Corylopsis pauciflora | Japan; Hamamelideæ | Primrose; Spring, before the leaves | This delightful little shrub, when fully grown, makes a dense bush, with branches 6 feet high. The leaves are small, thin in texture, prettily tinted when young, and again in autumn. The flowers are primrose-yellow in colour and fragrant. They are arranged from two to four together in drooping catkins from every node on the previous season’s wood. Though it is quite hardy in other respects the flowers are easily damaged by frost. |
| C. spicata | Japan | Also cowslip-coloured and scented | A shrub between 3 and 4 feet high, and better known than C. pauciflora. It flowers in spring before the leaves appear. |
| *Cratægus (Thorns). See p. 376. | | | |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| *Cytisus albus (White Spanish or Portuguese Broom) | Spain and Portugal; introduced in 1752; Leguminosæ | White; May | A beautiful and popular Broom. It grows with great rapidity, and flowers bountifully and regularly. A bush 6 or 7 feet high, in full flower is a delightful picture, and one never seems to tire of it. Group it with the common Broom. It is very cheap and easily raised from seed. Loudon says: “In good soil it is of very rapid growth, attaining the height of 5 feet or 6 feet in three or four years, and in six or eight years growing as high as 15 feet or even 20 feet if in a sheltered situation. Placed by itself on a lawn it forms a singularly ornamental plant, even when not in flower, by the varied disposition and tufting of its twiggy thread-like branches. When in flower it is one of the finest ornaments of the garden.” Loudon also says that bees are fond of the flowers. |
| C. albus incarnatus | Variety | Pinkish | Rare, and not so beautiful as the parent. |
| *C. Ardoini | Maritime Alps | Pure yellow; April and May | Quite a dwarf Broom, a few inches high. It is a charming Broom for the rock garden, placing it where it can spread out its shoots on all sides. It is happiest in sun and dry soil as the other Brooms. |
| *C. austriacus (Austrian Broom) | Native of Austrian woods, also of Italy and Siberia. Introduced in 1741 | Yellow; July and August | C. banaticus and C. serotinus are synonyms. The chief value of this Broom is in its late flowering, when its yellow flower clusters are very welcome. |
| C. a. leucanthus | Variety | Very pale yellow, sometimes almost white | Not important. |
| C. biflorus | Hungary | Bright yellow; May | This is not so important as the Moonlight Broom, Andreanus, and some others. It grows about 3 feet high, but even in a group it is not imposing. |
| C. capitatus | Found on wood edges in Austria and introduced in 1774 | Yellow; June | This is also a dwarf and not important Broom. |
| C. hirsutus | Asia Minor and South of Europe. Introduced in 1739 | Yellow; June | This is another dwarf and unimportant shrub. |
| *C. kewensis | Hybrid between C. albus and C. Ardoini | Creamy white; May | A most interesting and beautiful Broom, which, as it becomes better known, will be popular in gardens. It was raised in the Royal Gardens, Kew; hence the name, C. Ardoini being the seed parent. It is only suitable for the rock garden, where its slender shoots can spread out and form a mantle of soft colouring, or to make a spreading group on the grass. There is little trace in it of C. albus, except in the flower colouring. This is a Broom for all good gardens. |
| *C. nigricans | Austria | Bright yellow; July and August | This is also a lovely Broom, so named because it turns black when dried. It should be in the smallest list of beautiful flowering shrubs, and it is singular that it is so seldom seen. The growth is bushy and smothered with flowers in July and August, sometimes before, and lasts a long while in beauty. Sunshine and poor soil bring out its finest qualities. One can scarcely say too much in its praise, especially as it blooms at a time few trees and shrubs are in flower. |
| *C. præcox | Hybrid between C. purgans and C. albus | Sulphur yellow; April to May | One of the most fascinating of all flowering shrubs. It makes clouds of soft colouring, every shoot hidden with the wealth of bloom; whilst when out of flower there is beauty in the brilliant green colouring of the long slender shoots. It is a shrub to make groups of in the flower garden, grows quickly, does not soon get “leggy,” and is very dense. The big groups of it on the grass in the Royal Gardens, Kew, are one of the delights of the spring season there. The ordinary shrubbery is the worst place for it, all its gracefulness is lost, there is no fountain of flowers from the slender shoots. It is best raised from cuttings, as seedlings are apt to reproduce C. albus only. Also well known as Genista præcox. |
| C. purgans | South and Central Europe | Yellow | Chiefly of note because it is one of the parents of C. præcox, but is of little account for the English garden. It is necessary in a collection, but nowhere else. |
| *C. purpureus | Found in Eastern Europe in exposed situations | Purple | A delightful shrub when properly placed. Loudon’s advice to graft it “on the laburnum standard high” is bad, and has been followed in many gardens. This way of treating the shrub is utterly foreign to its nature; it is a trailing Broom, and therefore should be planted on the rough garden or some bank where it can spread in its own way. We have seen it falling over a boulder and making a trail of purple colouring in May. Rare varieties are albus, white, and one with flowers of rose tint. The famous Cytisus Adami is the outcome of grafting this species on the Scotch laburnum (L. alpinum). This curious graft-hybrid usually excites much interest when in flower, both yellow and purple racemes appearing on the same tree. |
| C. sessilifolius | A native of the south of France and Piedmont, and was cultivated in Britain by Parkinson in 1569. | Yellow; May | A Broom for a collection, but without the effectiveness of C. præcox, Andreanus, and others. |
| C. Schipkænsis | Introduced | White | This is a charming little rock-garden shrub, and very rare as yet, but well worth noting for its distinctiveness and freedom. |
| *C. scoparius (Common Broom) | Europe | Yellow | The hardy Cytisuses are popularly known as Brooms, and the Broom of the waste lands of the British Isles is Cytisus scoparius, which makes clouds of golden yellow in the early summer. Many a dryish bank now flowerless might be made beautiful with this glorious shrub. Where Broom is not plentiful as a wild plant, and therefore generally where the soil is not suitable for it, the soil should be made so; it need only be well drained and open. |
| *C. s. andreanus | Choice variety found in Normandy by M. Ed. André, after whom it is named | Brownish crimson and yellow; Spring | This varies considerably from seed, and often reverts to the typical yellow Broom. If possible get own root-plants from original stock. A beautiful shrub, which we can scarcely have too much of, but in some gardens it is used too freely. When in full bloom, and the variety is rich in colouring, it is superb. |
| C. s. pendulus (Drooping Broom) | Variety | Pale yellow | Quite a pendulous variety, but uncommon. It is apparently little known, though so charming when on a bank or rock garden. A group of it in either of these positions would be a revelation to those who know not the value of this family for the English garden. |
| *C. s. sulphureus (pallidus), (Moonlight Broom) | Variety | Pale yellow | Described by Loudon in his “Arboretum” as C. s. albus, “the flowers white or of a very pale yellow.” It is a rare shrub, but should not be so. Mr. Goldring writes of it in “The Garden” as follows: “The Moonlight Brown is a very old variety, as it was described by Loudon sixty years ago, but it is still a rare shrub, not easily obtainable, though it is grown in some of the largest nurseries. Its pale yellow flowers are in beautiful harmony with the rich yellow of the type Andreanus. The only private garden where I have seen it in established mass is that of Mrs. Robb at Liphook, where all kinds of tree and shrub varieties are treasured. I do not know if it comes true from seed, but I fancy not.” |
| C. s. flore-pleno | Variety | Yellow | A so-called double variety in which some of the petals are duplicated, but it is not finer than the type, though it is interesting as one of the few double varieties in pea-shaped flowers. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Cratægus (Thorns) | Rosaceæ | | The Cratægus family comprises nearly 100 species and varieties, contains some of the most beautiful of small garden trees, both with regard to the charm of their white, pink, and scarlet flowers, and the scarlet, black, and yellow fruits. Most of the Thorns are either large shrubs or small trees, and are specially suitable for small gardens, whilst none of them require particular attention, as all will grow in almost any soil and situation. Old trees occasionally require to be relieved of small wood and decaying branches, and a good top-dressing of manure is beneficial sometimes to those which flower and fruit freely; but beyond this Thorns need no attention after they have been planted and become established. The species can be increased by seeds, which are obtained by gathering the fruits when ripe, and mixing them with sand. The mixture of fruits and sand should then be put in a heap in a sheltered place out-of-doors, and covered with a few turfs. By the following spring the fruits will have rotted, and the seeds can be separated and sown. A fair proportion will germinate the first year, and the remainder the second. Many of the Thorns can also be propagated by root cuttings. For this purpose healthy, vigorous shoots, as thick as a man’s finger, should be obtained in autumn or winter, and cut into pieces four inches to eight inches in length, cutting the end nearest the stem flat, and the other slanting, so that either end can be readily distinguished. These should be inserted upright in the ground, with the tops nearly or just covered; they soon form roots, and grow into strong plants. The genus is found practically throughout the temperate region, from Europe throughout the East and Central Asia to China and Japan, and in North America. One species is found in Mexico—but this, and in fact all the Thorns are hardy in this country. |
| *C. Azarolus | South-East Europe and Asia Minor | Pure white; late Spring | This grows to a height of about 20 feet. It is very showy, and has pure white flowers followed by large yellow fruits; the leaves are about twice the size of those of the Hawthorn, and rather deeply cut. Cratægus Aronia is a synonym. |
| *C. Carrièrei | A reputed hybrid, but parentage unknown. Supposed to be C. mexicana and C. tomentosa | Pure white; late Spring | A very handsome Thorn, 12 feet to 15 feet, shapely, leaves large, bright glossy green above, whitish beneath. Flowers appear freely in large corymbs, followed by clusters of pear-shaped green fruits, which hang on the tree until the end of the year, changing finally to dull, yellowish red. |
| *C. coccinea (the Scarlet Thorn) | North America; introduced in 1683 | White; late Spring | This is one of the most striking of all the thorns; it has large bright-green leaves, and flowers nearly an inch across, and in dense corymbs. These are followed by clusters of brilliant scarlet-coloured fruits. There are several varieties equal to or even finer than the species. One is *Macracantha, which has spines sometimes 5 inches long, and bright scarlet haws, not so large as those of the species, but produced more abundantly. It should be more frequently seen in gardens, and is worthy to rank as a species. Indentata has deeply-cut leaves and bright-red fruits. |
| *C. cordata (Washington Thorn) | North America | White; June | This is a small tree with thin, glossy, heart-shaped leaves and small flowers, orange-red fruits, not unlike those of C. Pyracantha, and carried late in the year. Birds, however, enjoy them. |
| C. Crus-Galli (the Cockspur Thorn) | North America | White; June | This is a handsome American Thorn, and one of the most striking of the whole family. It has stout, glossy leaves and formidable spines, these often being from 3 to 4 inches long, and gave rise to the popular name. The brick-red fruits hang on the tree long after the leaves have fallen, and make a bright winter picture. There are several varieties. Arbutifolia has shorter spines and smaller fruits than the type; the leaves are also narrower and duller in colour; linearis has long linear leaves and bright-red fruits. Ovalifolia has large oval shining leaves and bright scarlet fruits, it is rather more upright han the type. *Splendens makes a handsome, shapely tree about 20 feet high, and flowers and fruits very freely; the leaves are rounded, green, and shining, and the flowers pure white, in small corymbs, and followed by bright-scarlet fruits. |
| C. Douglasii | Western side of North America | White; late Spring | This is a large irregular-shaped tree 20 feet to 30 feet, and has short stout spines about an inch long; the flowers appear in small clusters, and the fruits are small and black. Wood and spines are brown and quite shiny. Rivularis has smaller and thicker leaves, and shorter and stouter wood. |
| C. hiemalis | Probably a hybrid, but origin unknown | White; Spring | A tree 15 feet to 20 feet high, round shining leaves, and rather large black fruits, which are the first to ripen of the Thorns. |
| *C. melanocarpa | Caucasus | White; Spring | A very handsome Thorn. It is a small flat-topped tree of medium height, the leaves somewhat like those of the Hawthorn in shape, and covered with a thick grey tomentum; the fruits are small, black, and shining. |
| C. mollis | United States | White, with a small red mark at the base of each petal | Like C. coccinea, but even handsomer. It is a small tree, 15 feet high, with spreading head, and large firm leaves slightly woolly on the back; the flowers are large, and succeeded by bright-crimson, medium-sized fruit. |
| C. nigra | Eastern Europe | White; May | This makes a fair-sized tree, and has small black fruit. The foliage is very abundant, deeply cut, and woolly on both sides. It almost hides flowers and fruit. |
| *C. orientalis | Europe | White; May | A handsome Thorn in fruit. It is a small flat-topped tree, and has large clusters of flowers, the oval fruits being yellowish red. Sanguinea is a very showy variety, with deep ruby-red fruits, but the scarlet colour of the type is brighter. |
| *C. Oxyacantha (Hawthorn, White Thorn, May) | Widely distributed, Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa | White; May | Too well known to describe. It has been divided into two sub-species, viz. C. monogyna in which there is usually only one style in the flowers and one seed in the fruit, and C. oxyacanthoides, where the number of styles is usually three, and from two to four seeds in the fruit. These differences are generally decided. There are other differences also in growth difficult to explain, but can be detected easily by an experienced eye. |
| C. monogyna (sub-species) | ...... | ...... | This is the Hawthorn of the hedgerows, and there are many varieties. Twenty-eight are recorded in the Kew Hand-list. The most beautiful are aurea, with golden-yellow haws, crispa pendula, a pretty weeping tree; Gumperi versicolor, very handsome deep-red, shading to pink in the centre; laciniata, a handsome tree with deeply cut leaves, sometimes called C. apiifolia, but must not be confounded with North American species of that name. Macrocarpa has larger fruits than the type, oxyphylla, large white flowers and handsome fruits, a round-headed tree. Præcox is the Glastonbury Thorn, supposed to flower at Christmas, but rarely does so owing to frost. This is the Thorn which is associated with the famous legend. *Semperflorens is a good variety, a low-growing tree, which flowers for a much longer period than the other Thorns. Stricta makes a dense upright-growing tree, 30 feet or more high; it grows rapidly, and when in flower is strikingly distinct in appearance. |
| C. oxyacanthoides (sub-species) | ...... | ...... | This is distinguished from C. monogyna by the styles and seeds as stated above; and also by the larger leaves, flowers, and fruit. All the double-flowered Thorns belong to this section. Atrofusca, a large, shapely tree, of weeping growth; the flowers large, pure white, and the fruits fair sized and abundantly produced. *Flore-pleno albo, the double white Thorn, with purest white flowers. This, like the other double Thorns, rarely fruits. *Flore-pleno coccineo, the double Scarlet Thorn, one of the most beautiful of trees when covered with its scarlet flowers. Very pleasing when grouped with the double white variety or the Laburnum; *Paul’s double Scarlet, a well-known and beautiful Thorn. *Flore puniceo, a rich purplish pink, single, and fructu luteo, bright yellow fruits, effective in autumn. |
| *C. pinnatifida | China and Central Asia | Pure white; May | The variety *major is the best to grow. It is stronger, and has very large leaves, 4 to 6 inches long, thick and shining. It does not show its true beauty until of some age, but it is a hardy tree of great beauty. The flowers are in large corymbs, and the fruits are of an intense shining red, pear-shaped, and make a bright picture in autumn. This variety is often labelled C. Layi. |
| *C. punctata | East and North America | Variable | A good garden tree; it is variable, but the accepted type has white flowers and bright red fruits as large as a small Crab apple. Another form has smaller deep ruby-red fruits. Brevispina, striata, and xanthocarpa are varieties, the last mentioned with bright yellow fruits. |
| *C. Pyracantha (Fiery Thorn) | South Europe, in hedges and rough ground | White | An evergreen Thorn. Introduced in 1629, and a well known shrub. Its charms consist in its dense glossy leaves and brilliant masses of scarlet berries. It can be grown as a bush or trained up a wall or trellis. It is so brilliant when in fruit that the French call it buisson ardent, or Burning Bush. This Thorn should be more grown as a bush, and not confined as it usually is to a south wall. As the fruits are bitter they are not cared for by the birds, and thus make a display through the winter. Lælandi is a variety with larger and deeper coloured fruits. |
| C. sanguinea | Siberia | White; May | This is not of great garden value, but effective in winter owing to the red bark. Songorica is a variety also with reddish bark. |
| *C. tanacetifolia (Tansy-leaved Thorn) | Levant; introduced 1789 | White; May | This is rare, and can be recognised by bracts at the base of the fruits. The fruits are very large, yellow, and of good flavour, and eaten in the native country of the tree. The specimen at Kew flowers regularly and abundantly every year. |
| C. spathulata | United States | White; May | A very distinct Thorn, small, and the leaves are persistent, remaining on until the New Year. The fruits are very small and scarlet. |
| *C. tomentosa | Eastern United States | White; June | A late flowering and handsome Thorn when its orange-yellow fruits are in perfection, but the birds soon consume them. |
| C. uniflora | North America, and introduced by the famous tree bishop, Bishop Compton, in 1713 | Creamy white; early June | More curious than beautiful; it is only 2 feet to 3 feet high and has greenish haws. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Cyrilla racemiflora | Florida to North Carolina, &c. Cyrillea | White | Quite a shrub, 4 feet to 6 feet high, very rare, although introduced as long ago as 1765. The flowers are in drooping racemes on previous season’s growth. |
| *Daboëcia polifolia, St. Daboëc’s Heath (Syn. Andromeda Daboëcia) | Western Europe and Ireland; Ericaceæ | Rosy purple, bell-shaped; May, and throughout Summer and Autumn | A pretty little Heath-like shrub growing about 18 inches high, and producing erect spikes of comparatively large bell-shaped blossoms. It is the most continuous blooming of its class. There is a beautiful pure white variety—alba. |
| Daphne alpina (Alpine Daphne) | Alps of Europe; Thymelæaceæ | White; May and June | A spreading deciduous shrub, with white, sweet-scented flowers. It grows about a couple of feet high, and is essentially a shrub for the rockwork, as it is particularly happy when the roots are wedged between stones. |
| *D. blagayana | Carniola | Ivory white; March and April | Like the last, this forms a spreading bush, and is equally at home under similar positions. It is, however, of an evergreen character; the ivory white are very sweet-scented blossoms. It is worthy of a place among the most select Daphnes, but difficult to grow well. |
| *D. Cneorum (Garland Flower) | South Europe | Bright rose; May to June | A delightful little evergreen, with highly fragrant blossoms. A good proportion of vegetable soil is necessary to its welldoing. |
| D. Genkwa (Japanese Lilac) | Japan | Lilac | In its flowers this Daphne closely resembles the Lilac, so that it is frequently mistaken for that well-known shrub. It needs the protection of a wall in most parts of England. |
| D. Laureola (Spurge Laurel) | South Europe and North Africa | Yellowish green | The flowers of this are not particularly showy, but as an evergreen bush some 3 or 4 feet high it is valuable from the fact that it will thrive under the drip of trees, and is one of the few evergreens absolutely rabbit proof. |
| *D. Mezereum (the Mezereon) | Northern Europe | Red; early year | This is an upright deciduous bush that flowers in February or March according to the season. At that time the still leafless branches are packed for some distance with the pretty fragrant blossoms, so that it may be regarded as the most showy shrub at that time in bloom. There is a variety (alba) with white blossoms, and another (autumnalis or grandiflora) that blooms before Christmas. A cool, loamy soil suits this best. |
| *D. oleoides (Syn. D. fioniana, Syn. D. neapolitana) | South Europe | Purplish rose | A neat growing evergreen bush about a yard high, whose flowers are often borne throughout the greater part of the year. It is less attractive than some of the others. |
| D. pontica | Asia Minor | Yellow | A good deal in the way of Daphne Laureola, but the flowers are of a brighter yellow, and are borne in April and May, whereas D. Laureola flowers in February and March. |
| D. sericea (Syn. D. collina) | | Deep pink | A compact evergreen 2 to 3 feet high, clothed with dark-green box-like leaves, while the terminal clusters of flowers are borne in early Spring. It prefers a cool, fairly moist, yet well-drained soil. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Exochorda grandiflora | China; Rosaceæ | May; White | See p. 2. |
| *Forsythia (Golden Bell) intermedia | Oleaceæ; hybrid between F. suspensa and F. viridissima. Represents the two parents | Yellow; Spring | This is a charming early shrub. It may be either grouped or trained, but one has to be careful not to make it too stiff. It is quite hardy, and a bush. |
| *F. suspensa (Syn. F. Fortunei and F. Sieboldi) | China | Yellow; Spring | A graceful and beautiful rambling shrub, now well known. It succeeds well in London—that is, if given anything like favourable conditions. A fence fully exposed to the sun in a London backyard is clothed with it, and each recurring spring the Forsythia flowers profusely, and forms an object of great beauty. Immediately the season of blooming is past the plant is severely pruned, the old and exhausted wood being cut out and the vigorous shoots spurred back to within three or four eyes of the base. This results in the production of long, wand-like shoots, which are allowed to develop at will, hence they dispose themselves in a loose and informal way, and being from the position of the plant thoroughly ripened, the spring display is in every way satisfactory. When autumn pruning is done the best portion of the flowering wood gets cut away. |
| *F. viridissima | China | Yellow; Spring | Quite a bush, and very handsome when in full bloom. Likes full sun and air. |
| Fraxinus Ornus (Flowering Ash), (Syn. Ornus europæa) | Mediterranean region and Orient | Creamy white; late May | This is a very charming lawn tree with luxuriant panicles of flowers, and foliage like that of the common ash. Angustifolia, latifolia, and variegata are varieties. |
| F. floribunda (Syn. Ornus floribunda) | Himalaya | White; Summer | Rather tender, but very vigorous and handsome. |
| Fuchsia.—Though the genus Fuchsia is an extensive one, most of them are of more value in the greenhouse than outdoors—that is to say, throughout the greater part of the country. Still there are a few quite hardy Fuchsias, for, even if cut to the ground during severe winters they soon recover, while in particularly favoured districts, such as in the West of England and the Isle of Wight, they grow unchecked into large bushes, and sometimes make delightful hedges. Few flowering shrubs are more beautiful than F. corallina and F. Riccartoni when in full bloom. The hardiest are:— |
| *Fuchsia corallina (Syn. F. exoniensis) | Garden origin; Onagraceæ | Red; Summer and Autumn | A plant of more vigorous growth, and with larger leaves and flowers than any of the other hardy Fuchsias. It is very popular in the West of England, but is not nearly so effective when cut to the ground each winter as some of the others are. |
| *F. globosa | Chili | Red; Summer and Autumn | A free-growing Fuchsia which, if cut to the ground, pushes up long, wand-like shoots that branch out freely, and towards the latter part of the summer are smothered with bright-coloured flowers. In the bud state these are of a globose shape, hence its specific name. |
| *F. gracilis | Mexico | Red; Summer and Autumn | The name gracilis well expresses the prominent features of this Fuchsia, for, though as vigorous as globosa, it is far more slender and graceful. Where not perfectly hardy the drooping flowers are seen to great advantage when the shrub is trained to a wall, and planted in a permanent bed the old stools will, even in the North of England, pass unscathed through the winter, if protected by a mulch of decayed leaves. Very tender. |
| *F. Riccartoni | Garden Origin | Red; Summer and Autumn | This has the reputation of being the hardiest of all the hardy Fuchsias. It is in appearance about midway between F. gracilis and F. globosa, and is as good as F. gracilis. |
| *Garrya elliptica | California; Cornaceæ | Greenish; Winter and very early Spring | A handsome evergreen shrub with very dark green, leathery, oval leaves, about 3 inches long. Its most notable feature is the long, pendulous male catkins, with which the plant is freely draped during the early months of the year. This Garrya is all the better for the protection of a wall in most parts of the country. The male and female flowers are borne on separate plants, the male being, owing to its catkins, by far the most ornamental. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Gordonia Lasianthus (Loblolly Bay) | Virginia to Florida; Ternstrœmiaceæ | White; July | A sub-evergreen shrub 6 to 8 feet high, bearing beautiful white flowers like single Camellias. It needs a sheltered spot and a moist peaty soil. |
| G. pubescens | Georgia and Florida | White | Of rather smaller growth than the preceding, while the leaves are pubescent underneath. The flowers, too, have the tuft of yellow stamens more pronounced than in G. Lasianthus. Both need the same treatment. |
| Halesias (Silver Bell, or Snowdrop trees) | Styraceæ | ...... | This is a beautiful family of flowering trees, named after Dr. Stephen Hales. The flowers are like the snowdrop in shape, hence the name, and there are two distinct sections, American and Asiatic. The Halesias like a rich, moist, loamy or peaty soil. Although often trees of considerable size in their native homes, they mostly retain a somewhat shrubby character in this country. All the species, however, except H. parviflora, can, by pruning away the lower branches, be made to form small trees. |
| Halesia corymbosa (Syn. Pterostyrax corymbosum) | Japan, in the province of Higo | White, tinted with pink or yellow; Spring | Mr. Bean writes in The Garden, May 19, 1900, p. 361, about this species as follows: “I do not know if there is any authenticated instance of its having flourished in Britain or even in Europe, most plants so called being H. hispida. It was first found on the mountains of the most southern of the main islands of Japan, in the province of Higo, and may possibly not be quite so hardy as H. hispida. Judging by pictures and dried specimens, its racemes, whilst having much the same general character as that species, are shorter, broader, and more branched, and the flowers are not so numerous on the branches of the racemes, and the fruits are more downy than bristly. The flowers have the same one-sided arrangement on the racemes.” |
| H. diptera | South-eastern United States | White; late Spring | Not a common species, and dwarfer than H. tetraptera. The flowers are white, Snowdrop-like, and are borne on slender pendulous stalks as in H. tetraptera; they differ, however, in having the corolla almost lobed to the base. Very distinctive is the seed-vessel, which has but two prominent wings, the other two being only rudimentary. Whilst not perhaps equal in merit to H. tetraptera this species appears to have been undeservedly neglected. Its dwarf bushy habit will also render it more suitable for some positions; it loves abundant moisture at the root. It blossoms rather later than H. tetraptera. |
| H. hispida | China and Japan. Introduced about 1870 | White | This belongs to the Asiatic group of Halesias, and is very distinct from the American species. It is a vigorous shrub, a small tree with large oblong leaves, and small flowers, which are very numerous on the raceme, which is 4 inches to 8 inches long. One striking peculiarity of the raceme is that the flowers are arranged on the upper side only of its branches (a somewhat similar arrangement is seen in Freesia flowers). The seed-vessels are covered with bristly hairs. Mr. Bean says, “Whilst perfectly hardy at Kew in the open, it blossoms more freely on a wall. The finest specimens I have seen of this Halesia are growing near a carriage-road leading to Mr. Gumbleton’s house and garden at Belgrove, Queenstown.” It flowers in this country in June. |
| H. parviflora | South-eastern United States. Introduced in 1802 | White; end of May | This is invariably a shrub. It is represented in the Kew collection by a large bush, which flowers as a rule with great freedom towards the end of May each year. The arrangement of the flowers is more racemose than fasciculate, and whilst they are very abundant they are not so large as in H. tetraptera or H. diptera. They are white and Snowdrop-like. The seed-vessels are only slightly and unequally winged. On the whole, therefore, the species is easily distinguished from its two fellow American species. The grace and abundance of its bloom make it well worthy of cultivation wherever a variety of hardy shrubs is desired. |
| *H. tetraptera (Common Snowdrop tree) | South United States. Introduced by a London merchant named Ellis in 1756 | White; May | A beautiful tree. Whilst according to Prof. Sargent it occasionally attains a height of 80 to 90 feet in its native country, it is seldom more than 20 feet high in the British Isles. Its flowers are like pure white Snowdrops, hence the popular name. The seed-vessels are 1½ inches to 2 inches long, and have four prominent wings that transverse them lengthwise. |
| H. t. Meehani | This originated as a seedling in Meehan’s Nursery, Germanstown, Philadelphia. | White | A very handsome and distinct variety, with shorter flower-stalks, and thicker and more coarsely wrinkled leaves than the type. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Hypericum Androsæmum (Tutsan, Syn. Androsæmum officinale) | Europe; Hypericineæ | Yellow | A free-growing deciduous shrub from 2 to 3 feet high, with a mass of small flowers, but not very showy. It will grow in the shade better than many other shrubs. |
| H. aureum | North America | Yellow; July and August | Reaches a height of about 4 feet. The orange-yellow flowers, about 1½ inches across, have a large and conspicuous mass of yellow stamens in the centre. |
| *H. calycinum (Rose of Sharon, St. John’s Wort) | Levant | Yellow; July to Autumn | Forms a dense mass a foot high, while the golden-yellow flowers are quite 3 inches across. The long hair-like stamens are very numerous and attractive. It will both grow and flower well in shady spots. |
| H. elatum (Tall St. John’s Wort) | North America | Yellow | Grows 4 to 5 feet high, and is very robust. The flowers, however, though freely borne, are only about an inch in diameter. |
| H. hircinum | Europe | Yellow; Autumn | When roughly handled the leaves of this species have an unpleasant goat-like odour, but it is decidedly ornamental, forming as it does a bush a yard high, while the flowers are bright yellow. |
| *H. hookerianum (Syn. H. oblongifolium) | Himalayas | Yellow; Autumn | Rather more tender than some of the Hypericums, but a showy kind. It grows over 4 feet high, and has clusters of large golden flowers. |
| *H. moserianum | Garden hybrid | Yellow; early Autumn | A hybrid between H. calycinum and H. patulum, and one of the most desirable of all the St. John’s Worts. The slender branches are graceful, and terminated by clusters of rich golden-yellow flowers a couple of inches across. |
| H. patulum | Japan | Yellow | A delightful little shrub, but even in the south of England it is liable to be killed by a severe winter. |
| H. prolificum | North America | Yellow | Grows 3 feet high, and bears its clusters of blossoms very freely. The individual flowers are about an inch across. |
| H. uralum (Syn. H. nepalense) | Himalayas | Yellow | Somewhat in the way of H. patulum, and like that species rather tender. |
| Itea virginica | Virginia; Saxifrageæ | White; July | A freely branched rounded shrub, from 3 to 4 feet in height, and has small spikes arranged in much the same way as the shrubby Veronicas. It is a favourite of the Red Admiral butterfly (Vanessa Atalanta). It is quite hardy, but needs a moist peaty soil. |
| Jamesia americana | Rocky Mountains; Saxifrageæ | White; April and May | A somewhat upright shrub, 4 to 5 feet high, with oval-shaped leaves and a great profusion of terminal clusters of pure white blossoms. It is quite hardy and needs a cool moist soil. |
| Kalmia angustifolia (Sheep Laurel) | North America; Ericaceæ | Bright purplish red; end of May | A delightful little evergreen shrub about a couple of feet high, with bright-coloured, saucer-shaped blossoms. All the Kalmias prefer cool damp soil, especially of a peaty nature— indeed, conditions favourable to Rhododendrons suit them well. |
| K. glauca | North America | Purplish pink | Flowers two or three weeks earlier than the preceding, and is somewhat dwarfer, but is equally desirable. |
| *K. latifolia (Mountain Laurel) | North America | Pink; May through Summer | This forms a large rounded bush from 6 to 8 feet high, clothed with handsome, bright-green foliage, while the flowers are pink and wax-like. It is a desirable subject to associate with Rhododendrons, which, except in flowers, it much resembles. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Kœlreuteria paniculata | China; Sapindaceæ | Yellow; June and July | A small picturesque tree 10 to 15 feet in height, with ornamental pinnate leaves, and large terminal panicles of bright yellow flowers, very distinct. |
| Laburnum (Cytisus) vulgare (Golden Rain or Chain) | Loudon writes: “A native of Europe and the lower mountains of the South of Germany, and of Switzerland, where it grows to the height of 20 feet or upwards. It was introduced in 1596”; Leguminosæ | ...... | There is no need to praise the laburnum; it is one of the most beautiful of all trees, and its countless flowers make a shower of gold in early summer. It seems strange to read that the laburnum is not a native, for it is so general in gardens, and is even used in hedgerows in some parts of the country. We have in mind a hedgerow in Berkshire with laburnums rising above the thorn, and a pleasant sight this is in late May and early June. Laburnums grow so freely almost everywhere that they are somewhat overdone in gardens, but it is so beautiful a tree that many would say: “I don’t mind how many laburnums I have in the garden.” Mr. Goldring, writing in the “Gardeners’ Magazine” about laburnums, says:—
“Besides the common way of growing the laburnum as a shrubbery or plantation tree, it may be put to various other uses. It is a beautiful covering for a wall on the north, east, or west sides. In some old gardens one meets with huge trees of it covering large areas of wall, and affording a lovely sight at flower time. This is a common way of growing it on the Continent, and in some of our old botanic gardens it may be seen trained against a wall as a host for the wistaria, which flowers about the same time, and produces a lovely contrast of colour.
“I have pleasing recollections of seeing it in some old gardens trained over a path as a covered way before pergolas were in vogue in this country. For several weeks such covered pathways are glowing with colour, and for the rest of the summer they afford a pleasant shade. In some of the old Sussex gardens laburnum ‘tunnels’ are still to be seen, and they are worth imitating in new gardens.
“Of the two commonly grown species of laburnum, L. vulgare and L. alpinum, there are numerous varieties, differing more or less from the types, though the differences in some cases are slight, even from a garden point of view. A laburnum is a laburnum to most people, and nothing more, but there is a great difference between a worthless seedling with short flower clusters of a poor yellow, and the varieties such as Watereri and Parksii which bear racemes fully 16 inches in length, and of a rich-toned yellow. There is, unhappily, in gardens, a preponderance of inferior seedling trees, because they can be raised easily and sold cheaply, but it is better to have one grafted tree of a first-rate variety than a dozen inferior kinds.
“The number of named varieties of L. vulgare enumerated in Continental and English nursery lists exceed a score, and most of them are mere monstrosities of leaf-form or colour, only appreciated by the collector of curiosities. The finest varieties are those named Alchingerii, giganteum, Carlieri, and grandiflorum. Any of these, if true to name, are the kinds to plant. They all bear very long racemes, produced abundantly.” |
| *L. alpinum (Cytisus alpinus), Scotch laburnum | Called the Scotch laburnum because a supposed native of Scotland, but this is not true. Loudon says: “It was introduced into Britain about the same time as the other species, 1596.” The other species is Laburnum vulgare | Yellow | This is a well-known tree. Some of its varieties are very beautiful. |
| L. Watereri | Hybrid | Yellow | We have given this special prominence for the reason it is a hybrid. In Bailey’s “American Cyclopædia” occurs this note: “Watereri, Dipp. (L. Parksii, Hort, C. alpinus and vulgaris Wittst.) Hybrid of garden origin, but found also wild.... As hardy as L. alpinum and sometimes considered to be a variety of that species.” |
| L. Adami (Purple laburnum) | Graft-hybrid | Purple, yellow, and buff | This is a remarkable tree, and is named after M. Adam, who grafted Cytisus purpureus on the common laburnum. Loudon says the purple laburnum “is a hybrid between Cytisus laburnum and C. purpureus, in which the flowers are of a reddish purple, slightly tinged with buff, and are produced in pendent spikes eight inches or more long. It was originated in Paris, in the nursery of M. Adam in 1828; it was introduced into England about 1829, and has been a good deal cultivated.” We noticed a tree of it in a hedgerow near Burnham Common, Slough. It is a strange tree. Some branches will perhaps bear entirely yellow flowers, like those of the common laburnum and others varied like Cytisus purpureus, by a flower that shows the characters of both parents. It is more curious than beautiful. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| *Ledum latifolium (Labrador Tea) | Northern portion of North America; Ericaceæ | White; late April | A much-branched shrub 2 to 3 feet high, and when in bloom covered with its rounded clusters of white blossoms. It needs a cool moist peaty soil,and given this it is very attractive when in bloom. |
| L. palustre (Marsh Ledum) | Northern part of Eastern Hemisphere | White, tinged pink | Much like the last, except that it is rather smaller, and the blossoms tinged with pink. |
| Leiophyllum buxifolium (Sand Myrtle), (Syn. L. thymifolium) | New Jersey and Virginia; Ericaceæ | White; May | A compact little evergreen shrub about a foot high. Every twig, however small, bears a cluster of pretty blossoms, in colour white tinged with pink. It is a good rockwork shrub in a cool moist position. |
| Lespedeza bicolor | Japan; Leguminosæ | Rosy red; July | Sends up stiff annual shoots to a height of 4 feet. The leaves are trifoliate. It needs a warm soil, and is not particularly attractive. |
| *L. Sieboldi (Syn. Desmodium penduliflorum) | China and Japan | Reddish purple; September | A deciduous sub-shrub that dies nearly to the ground in the winter. From the base are pushed up long wand-like arching shoots to a height of 6 feet, clothed with trifoliate leaves, and bearing large terminal panicles of pea-shaped blossoms. Should it escape the autumn frosts it is delightful. |
| Leycesteria formosa | Temperate Himalaya; Caprifoliaceæ | Purplish white, and purple bracts | A very interesting shrub, 6 feet high in the milder parts of these isles, but hardy almost everywhere. These flowers are succeeded by purple berries which are relished by pheasants, hence it is planted for covert in some places. |
| Ligustrum coriaceum (Thick-leaved Privet) | China; Oleaceæ | White | A sturdy evergreen shrub, with very dark-green leaves, thick, about 1½ inches long and roundish oval in shape. It reaches a height of about a yard, and is of extremely slow growth. |
| L. Ibota (Syn. L. amurense) | Japan | White; June and July | A graceful shrub with long, slender, arching branches, narrow leaves, and white flowers. |
| L. japonicum (Japanese Privet) | Japan | White; early July | Reaches a height of 6 to 8 feet, and forms a freely branched bush clothed with bright shining green leaves from 2 to 3 inches, oval pointed in shape. |
| *L. lucidum (Wax Tree) | China | White; July and August | This is the most ornamental of all the Privets in foliage, the leathery dark-green leaves being sometimes as much as 6 inches long, and over two inches wide. It reaches a height of 9 to 12 feet, and has large panicles of white flowers. There is a variety—tricolor, with leaves beautifully variegated, but being tender it needs wall protection. |
| L. massalongianum (Syn. L. rosmarinifolium) | Khasia Hills | White | The long narrow leaves of this species make it distinct from all other Privets. It is hardy only in the west of England and Ireland. |
| *L. ovalifolium (Oval-leaved Privet) | Japan | White | This sub-evergreen species is one of the hardiest of all Privets, being much used for hedges, and for planting where little else will thrive. Its small dense clusters of flowers are borne in great profusion, but they (in common with most Privets) possess such a heavy and unpleasant odour as to unfit them for planting near dwelling-houses. The golden form of this Privet, known as Aureum or Elegantissimum, is met with nearly everywhere, particularly in the environs of London. |
| *L. Quihoui | China | White; late September | A somewhat spreading shrub about 5 feet high, with small leaves and terminal panicles of flowers. For this reason it is worth growing as a flowering shrub. |
| *L. sinense (Chinese Privet) | China | White | The finest of all Privets as regards its flowers. It forms a sub-evergreen shrub from 12 to 15 feet high, with arching branches, and frond-like arrangements of the smaller branchlets, which are clothed with leaves about the size of those of the Common Privet, and pale green in colour. The white flowers are borne in such profusion towards the end of July that the entire plant is quite a mass of that colour. It needs a well-drained soil. |
| L. vulgare (Common Privet) | Europe | White | As a hedge plant this is to a great extent superseded by L. ovalifolium, but it is still a useful shrub for rough places. It is one of the subjects that can be clipped into all manner of shapes, hence it is very popular for topiary work. |
| *Liriodendron tulipifera (Tulip tree) | United States; Magnoliaceæ | Yellow; June | The Tulip tree is one of the most beautiful and distinct of all our hardy trees, for the peculiarly shaped four-lobed leaves cannot be confounded with those of any other. It occurs over a considerable extent of country in North America, and when suitably situated attains a height of 130 to 140 feet. Though these dimensions are not reached in this country, specimens nearly 100 feet high are known, and its great value as a timber tree has been demonstrated here as well as in the United States, where it is given the name of the White Wood. The yellow Tulip-like flowers, from whence its popular name in this country is derived, are very pretty, but as a rule borne at such a height that their beauty cannot be seen. They, however, add to the interest and charm of the tree, and with the handsome leafage and the rich yellow hue of the foliage in the Autumn, as well as its thorough hardiness and almost complete indifference to soil and situation, make it one of the most desirable of our large growing trees. There are several varieties, notable among them being integrifolia, in which the distinctive lobes of the leaves are suppressed; aurea maculata, whose leaves are blotched with yellow; and fastigiata, which is of upright growth. These are all interesting, but not equal in beauty to the type. |
| Loropetalum chinense | China; Hamamelideæ | Pure white; Winter | A very interesting shrub, with long petals, resembling one of the flowers of Hamamelis; they appear 6 to 8 together in clusters at the bract tips. Tender. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Magnolia acuminata (Cucumber tree) | North America; Magnoliaceæ | Greenish yellow | From a flowering point of view this is one of the least showy of the Magnolias, but the tree has handsome foliage; it reaches a height of many feet. The leaves are nearly a foot long, and half as much in width. There is a tree 60 feet high in Syon Park, Middlesex. |
| *M. conspicua (the Yulan) | China | Pure white; early Spring | Of all the Magnolias, and indeed of all our deciduous trees, this is one of the finest, and also one of the earliest flowering. It blooms in some seasons as early as March, and the pure white flowers, like silver chalices, stand out boldly from the bare dark-coloured branches. Owing to the flowers expanding so early, they are sometimes injured by spring frosts, hence in the northern parts of the country this species is often given wall protection. This Magnolia succeeds best in a good, well-drained, loamy soil of not too heavy a nature, indeed, such will suit all the Magnolias perfectly. |
| M. Fraseri (Fraser’s Magnolia), (Syn. auriculata) | North America | Creamy white; May | A distinguishing feature of this Magnolia is the shape of the large leaves, which are broader towards the upper portion than at the base. It reaches a height of 30 feet or more, but needs a spot sheltered from strong winds. The sweet-scented flowers are nearly 6 inches across. |
| M. glauca (the Swamp Magnolia) | North America | White | A shrub from 10 to 12 feet high, with flowers not borne all at once, as in most of the others, but scattered over two or three months, from June onwards. It makes a pretty lawn shrub for a damp spot. |
| *M. grandiflora (the Evergreen Magnolia) | Southern United States | White; late Summer | The evergreen Magnolia is more generally grown as a wall plant than in the open ground, though in the south and west of England it will thrive perfectly without protection. As a wall covering the handsome dark-green leaves render it effective at all seasons, and they also serve as an admirable setting for the large cup-shaped deliciously-scented flowers. |
| M. hypoleuca | Japan | Creamy white | In Japan this is a tree 60 feet high, and is said to be a very desirable kind, but it has not been long introduced, and the plants of it in this country are small. |
| *M. Lennei | Garden origin | Glowing purple outside, pinkish within; late Spring | The flowers of this are large, massive in texture, and delightfully coloured. They are a month or two later than those of the Yulan, hence they escape the frosts which sometimes injure it. |
| M. obovata (Syn. M. purpurea) | Japan | Purple outside, whitish within; late Spring | A spreading shrub 6 to 8 feet high, with flowers much smaller than those of M. Lennei, and not of so pleasing a colour. It is, however, a handsome shrub, less particular in its requirements than most Magnolias. |
| M. parviflora | Japan | White; May and June | A neat bush. The centre of the flower is occupied by a ring of bright-red filaments. It is rather tender. |
| *M. soulangeana | Garden origin | White, tinged purple outside; Spring | A small tree more spreading in character than M. conspicua, and flowering also a little later. Very pretty, early flowering. |
| *M. stellata (Syn. M. halleana) | Japan | Pure white; March | The earliest of all the Magnolias. It is a much branched shrub, seldom more than 4 feet high, and as much through. The flowers, which are borne in great profusion, are about 3 inches in diameter, and composed of a dozen or so of strap-shaped petals; a lovely shrub. There is a variety of this with pink flowers. |
| M. tripetala (Umbrella tree), (Syn. M. Umbrella) | North America | Creamy white; early Summer | A tree remarkable for its large handsome leaves, which are arranged in a regular manner towards the upper parts of the branches. The flowers are creamy white. A sheltered spot suits this best. |
| M. Watsoni | Japan | Ivory white inside, flushed with rose on the exterior; May and June | A bush about 5 feet high. The flowers are remarkable for their central cluster of crimson filaments. It needs a sheltered spot. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Oxydendron arboreum | Eastern United States; Ericaceæ | Pure white; June and July | This is a charming shrub, but in its native country grows to a height of 40 feet. The leaves are dark green, but very richly coloured in autumn. The bell-shaped white flowers remind one of those of the Lily of the Valley, and appear in pretty racemes. |
| Ozothamnus rosmarinifolius | South Australia and Tasmania; Compositæ | White; July | A neat shrub, 4 to 5 feet high, with narrow rosemary-like leaves, and during the summer a profusion of white Aster-like blossoms. It is hardy only in the West of England. |
| *Pernettya mucronata | Cape Horn, introduced in 1828; Ericaceæ | Berries the chief beauty | Many garden varieties. Between 1878 and 1882 the floral committee of the Royal Horticultural Society awarded no less than seven first-class certificates, selecting the following varieties for the purpose: P. alba, carnea nana, lilacina macrocarpa, nigra major, rosea purpurea. and sanguinea. There are ten or a dozen quite distinct shades of colouring, from white through tenderest pink, white and rosy pink, the colours then reaching to a soft scarlet, and ending with a dark blood-red, reminding one of the seeds of the Pomegranate, and also the differences in the size of the berries and foliage, particulars which impart additional interest to this useful group of plants. Some fifty or so years ago Mr. Davis of Hillsborough began his experiments with such forms of the Pernettya as were then in cultivation, and he selected as his first seed-parent P. angustifolia, a native of China, a densely branched, narrow-leaved evergreen shrub, growing to a height of about 3 feet. The fruit of this species is light pink in colour. It is a very effective subject, thriving well under the shade of trees, but in such a position does not, as might be expected, flower so freely as when grown in the open. P. mucronata, the type, bears reddish-tinted fruits. Regarding P. angustifolia as the hardiest of the two, Mr. Davis made this the first seed-bearing parent, and found the seedlings from it to vary considerably in the character of the foliage and colour of the fruit. This encouraged him to take seed from the best of his seedlings, and from it obtained the fine varieties which are now in our gardens. It is difficult to over-estimate their value as berry-bearing plants in autumn in peaty soil. |
| Philadelphus coronarius (Mock Orange or Syringa) | Europe and Asia; Saxifrageæ | White; early May | A well-known shrub, from 6 to 10 feet high, with a profusion of white, strongly scented flowers. There are several varieties, the best being aurea, with golden leaves, and Keteleerii, with double blossoms. |
| P. gordonianus | North America | White; early July | A free-growing bush with flowers twice the size of the preceding, and about six weeks later in expanding. |
| *P. grandiflorus (Large-flowered Mock Orange, Syn. P. inodorus) | Southern United States | White; Midsummer | Forms a bush about 12 high, with large leaves and blossoms. It lacks the fragrance of the other species, which is to many people a point in its favour. |
| P. hirsutus (Hairy-leaved Mock Orange) | North America | White | Grows about 5 feet high, and bears its comparatively small flowers in great profusion. |
| *P. Lemoinei (Lemoine’s Hybrid Mock Orange) | Garden Hybrid | White; June and July | A hybrid between P. coronarius and the little New Mexican P. microphyllus. It (P. Lemoinei) forms a slender, freely-branched shrub about 5 feet high, and has a profusion of small pure-white flowers that are most agreeably scented, the fragrance reminding one of ripe apples. The variety erectus is a rather stronger grower, and even a finer plant. Other delightful hybrid forms are, Boule d’Argent, a neat bush with double flowers; Candelabre, with larger blossoms than the other forms of Lemoinei; Gerbe de neige, dwarf form with large single flowers; and Manteau d’Hermine, semi-double. These are among the most charming of all hardy shrubs. |
| *P. Lewisii | Western North America | White; Mid-June | One of the best, with long graceful arching shoots, and large trusses of pure white blossoms. |
| *P. microphyllus (Small-leaved Mock Orange) | New Mexico | White | A dense rounded bush, 3 feet high and as much across, clothed with tiny leaves, and very fragrant flowers one inch across. |
| P. Satsumi (Japanese Mock Orange) | Japan | White | Rather tenderer than the American kinds this forms a distinct spreading bush thinner than most of the others. The flowers are pure white and fragrant, and differ from the others in that the petals are less rounded and full, thus forming a more starry bloom. |
| *Pieris floribunda (Syn. Andromeda floribunda) | North America; Ericaceæ | White; April to May | A rounded evergreen shrub, from 3 to 5 feet high, clothed with very dark green leaves, and with spikes of pure white Lily-of-the-Valley-like blossoms. It needs a fairly sheltered position and a cool moist soil, such as Rhododendrons delight in. |
| *P. formosa | Himalayas | White; May and June | A large bold-growing shrub, with handsome dark-green leathery foliage. It has spikes of wax-like urn-shaped blossoms. It is too tender for general cultivation, except in the West of England and in Ireland. |
| *P. japonica (Syn. Andromeda japonica) | Japan | White | This differs from the last in the white wax-like flowers being borne on long pendulous racemes, so that at their best the entire plant is quite veiled with them. The tips of the growing shoots too are bright red. This blooms naturally earlier than P. floribunda, and on that account the flowers are often injured by spring frosts, to prevent which, as far as possible, it should be planted in a sheltered spot, where the early morning sun does not shine direct on it. |
| P. mariana (Syn. Andromeda mariana) | North America | White; Summer | A deciduous shrub a yard high, with wax-like flowers. A damp peaty soil suits it best. |
| P. ovalifolia | Nepaul | White; May | Grows to a height of 10 to 12 feet, and has spikes of white flowers. This species succeeds better in the West of England and in Ireland than elsewhere. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Prunus (Rosaceæ) | ...... | ...... | This is a beautiful genus. As at present constituted it contains all those trees which were formerly and in many places still are included under the generic titles of Amygdalus, Persica, Cerasus, Padus, &c. The genus is divided into six sections, viz., Amygdalus, which includes Almonds and Peaches; Armeniaca, the Apricots; Prunus, which contains the true Plums and the Blackthorn; Cerasus, the various Cherries; Padus, the Bird Cherries; and Laurocerasus, under which is placed the Cherry Laurel, Portugal Laurel, &c. Although these genera may differ outwardly, yet they are botanically of the same character. The genus is widely spread, representatives being found in Europe and through Asia southward to Persia and Afghanistan, and eastward to China and Japan; it is also well represented in North America. With the exception of the section Laurocerasus, all the members of the genus are deciduous trees or shrubs of various sizes, and most of them are very beautiful, especially in spring. A fairly light well-drained soil is best. If inclined to be cold and heavy and is not very deep, the plums or any which succeed on the plum stock, are best, as they are more surface-rooting than the remainder. The presence of lime in the soil is highly beneficial to all the Prunuses and, if not naturally present, can easily be given in the form of old mortar-rubbish forked in liberally round them. Propagation is effected by seeds, cuttings, layers, or by budding or grafting. Details of propagation will be found with each section. |
| P. Amygdalus (the Almond) | Native of Southern Europe and the Levant | Pink; Spring | This is the Almond, the tree which foreshadows the coming of spring, its leafless shoots enveloped in pink-tinted flowers. In the southern and central parts of the country it is largely grown, especially in small suburban gardens, but is not quite hardy enough for the north, unless the position is very favourable. The fruit is chiefly composed of the large deeply-pitted stone, which is only covered with a thick, tough, woolly skin. There are five good varieties: Amara, the Bitter Almond, with large white flowers tinged with a soft rose colour in the centre; dulcis, the Sweet Almond, with large red flowers and amongst the first to open; macrocarpa, which has larger flowers and fruits than the type, but the flowers are of paler colour; pendula, a half-weeping variety, deep pink flowers; persicoides, a handsome tree, more upright in growth than the type, and very free. The large pink flowers open somewhat earlier than those of the common Almond. |
| *P. davidiana (Amygdalus davidiana) | China | White or pale rose; January or early February | This is a small tree and one of the earliest to bloom; the flowers opening as early as January in mild weather, though the middle or end of February is its usual flowering time. The buds are not injured by frost, but open when the weather gets milder. The leaves are broader and of duller colour than those of the Almond, but the flowers are of about the same size and substance. There are two forms, alba, white, which is the best, and rubra, rose or red. Beautiful under glass. |
| P. incana (Amygdalus incana) | Asia Minor | Pale red; March and April | This species is allied to the pretty P. nana; it is a spreading shrub 4 to 6 feet high with linear leaves silvery-white underneath. The flowers are about half the size of those of the Almond and freely produced. |
| *P. nana (Amygdalus nana) | Eastern Europe and the southern parts of Russia | Rose; March and April | This delightful little shrub is rarely more than 3 feet high, the thin twiggy growths being covered every Spring with rose-coloured flowers. It makes a charming bed for the Spring, and is very easily increased by layering. |
| P. orientalis | Western Asia | Rose; April | This shrub grows to a height of about 6 feet, but is not very hardy. So many, however, enjoy the beauty of the Almond family that we include it, as in many southern gardens it is happy. The willow-like leaves are silvery white. |
| *P. Persica (the Peach), (Syn. Persica vulgaris and Amygdalus Persica) | China, but formerly considered a native of Persia | Pink; April or May | This beautiful spring-flowering tree needs no description. It is not grown, however, so much as the various double-flowered varieties, such as flore-roseo-pleno and flore-albo-pleno; the former has very double bright rose flowers and the latter white. Flore-rubro-pleno is a double red form. The variety foliis rubris has deep purple-coloured leaves; the flowers are tinged with the same colour and the fruits are dark and freely produced. Magnifica is a double red-flowered variety with larger and finer flowers than the others, and the finest of all. All the Almonds are best propagated by budding or grafting on suitable stocks, which are the common Almond for warm light soils, and the Plum for heavier soils and colder localities. For budding the Mussel plum stock is the best to use, and either the same or the Myrobella plum for grafting. The latter is not usually a good stock for budding, the bark being too thin to hold the bud properly, which objection does not hold good with the Mussel plum stock. The species can also be got from seeds, and P. nana is best raised as stated from layers, or cuttings of half-ripened wood, which will strike, though not very readily. |
| P. Armeniaca (the Apricots) | | | Many of the species in this group are amongst the most precious flowering shrubs of the garden. All can be increased by seed. P. tomentosa and P. triloba flore-pleno can also be got from layers or cuttings. Half-ripened wood of the latter will also root readily, and soon form sturdy young trees. These two in particular should always be on their own roots: a plum stock kills them in a few years. |
| P. Armeniaca (common Apricot) | Northern China | Small, white, opening early in the year, and frequently blackened by frost | We mention this because it is the parent of the various varieties of Apricot. |
| *P. Mume | Japan | Rose; early, before the leaves | This is a small and pretty tree of upright growth, and the leaves large and shining green in colour. There are four varieties, viz., flore-albo-pleno, double white; flore-roseo-pleno, double bright rose; flore-rubro-pleno, double red; and pendula, which makes a pretty, small, weeping tree if worked standard high. |
| P. tomentosa | China and Japan | Pinkish | This is a pretty, small branching shrub, with stout leaves covered with a thick tomentum; the flowers are followed by small red fruits. |
| *P. triloba | China | Pink; March or early April | The species is not of much account, but the double variety flore-pleno is one of the most handsome of flowering shrubs. Its large, double, rose-coloured flowers are produced so profusely that hardly a leaf is visible. For a wall it is invaluable, but in this position it should only be pruned immediately after flowering, the summer growths being allowed to develop at will, as this is the wood that will produce flowers the following season. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Prunus (the Plums) | | | There are several species of Prunus, but those mentioned are the most important for gardens. The Plums are best grown from seeds, but if these cannot be got then they must be worked upon the Wild, Mussel, and Myrobella or Myrobalan Plum. Plum stocks should be raised from seed. If got from layers or suckers they are liable to throw up suckers from the base, and ruin the plants worked on them. |
| P. cerasifera (P. mirobalana) | Uncertain, but probably of Caucasian origin | Small, pure white; Spring | This is the well-known Myrobalan Plum, and the seedlings are used as stocks. Its hardiness and vigour in almost all soils and climates make it a good small shrub, and its white flower-clusters are delightful in early spring. The fruits are popular on the Continent, and are red in colour. It is used as a hedge in some places. There are two varieties, viz., angustifolia pendula, which is half pendulous in growth, and the well-known atropurpurea, more often called *P. Pissardi, which is a native of Persia, and has warm purple leaves, which get darker with age. The flowers are rose-tinted. It is a good shrub for colour, but must not be too freely planted. |
| P. communis (Wild Plum) | The origin of this plum is uncertain; it is stated in some works to be a native of Britain, Europe, and a part of Asia | White; April and March | The wild plum is mentioned because a well-known tree, but its varieties are more beautiful. *Pruneauliana is very handsome; its fruit is the prune imported from abroad. It is of upright growth, with downy leaves, and large, pure white flowers. *P. fl. pl. is extremely handsome; it has double flowers. The wild plum is the same as P. domestica. |
| *P. divaricata | Wide distribution from Macedonia Caucasus and Persia. Introduced in 1822 | White; April or late March in a mild season | This is one of the most beautiful of the Plums, but rarely seen. A fine example of it is now in the rock garden at Kew, and when the weather is mild before March is out, this spreading tree is enveloped in snowy-white flowers. But unfortunately its flowers are sometimes spoilt by late frosts. The growth is slender, twiggy, and dark in colour. |
| P. spinosa (the Sloe) | Britain, and Europe, North Asia, &c. | White | The Sloe or Blackthorn of the English hedgerow is familiar, but the variety *flore-pleno is a good garden shrub; its spreading Spring shoots are covered in April with double white flowers, each like a little rosette, and longer lasting than the Sloe of the English lane. It is as yet rare in British gardens. This should be worked on the type. |
| The Cherries (Cerasus group) | | | A beautiful group of flowering trees. They are propagated by seeds or by grafting them on stocks of the Gean (P. Avium), but never resort to this practice if possible to avoid it. The small-growing cherries, P. humilis, P. Jacquemontii, P. japonica, P. prostrata, and P. pumila, must be increased by layers; the Gean stock kills them. |
| P. acida | Europe | White; April | P. acida would be little heard of if it were not for its variety, P. a. semperflorens, (the All Saints’ Cherry), which blooms twice or thrice in a season, indeed, keeps up a scattered succession from May to September. The first display of flowers takes place in April, and in about two months afterwards it blooms again. The fruits are very abundant, and are scarlet in colour. There are several other varieties, but not of much consequence. |
| P. Avium (the Gean or Wild Cherry) | Europe, and a woodland tree in many parts of these Isles | Pure white; April and May | The Wild Cherry is pretty, and it is interesting as the parent of the fruiting cherries, but neither this species nor its varieties, decumana, white, the cut-leaved laciniata, or the weeping pendula, can approach the beauty of the *double white (flore-pleno), which is one of the loveliest of all flowering trees. In late April the whole tree seems enveloped in blossom as white as driven snow, and it lasts for many days in this condition. No garden should be without this queen of flowering trees. |
| P. Cerasus (Dwarf or Wild Cherry) | Europe and Britain | White; Spring | This is not very interesting, except that it is one of the parents of the fruiting cherry, and in the garden is hardly wanted, as its double-flowered varieties are far more beautiful, especially *Rhexi flore-pleno, which has very double, snow-white, rosette-shaped flowers. It is one of the most beautiful of all the Cherries, and when grown as a standard makes a small and spreading tree of much charm. It is sometimes catalogued as C. caproniana multiplex, C. c. ranunculiflora, and C. serotina flore-pleno. Persicifolia has similar flowers, but tinged with rose. C. Cerasus and C. Avium have much in common, but the former has smaller leaves and an acid fruit. |
| P. Chamæcerasus (Siberian Cherry) | Europe, but long grown in English gardens | White flowers, ¾ in. across; Spring | This is a small shrub, seldom more than 4 feet high; it has slender branches, shining dark-green leaves and flowers, followed by small reddish-purple acid fruits. When grown as a standard it makes a round, half-drooping and graceful tree. |
| *P. japonica | China and Japan | Double, pure white | This is one of the prettiest of small shrubs when in flower. It is very charming against a wall, but is a success in the open, flowering freely, and for this reason makes an interesting and beautiful group. It grows between 3 and 4 feet high, and its long slender branches are often weighed down by the wealth of pure-white flowers. The leaves are tinged with red when young. The flowers of the variety flore-roseo-pleno are rich rose; it is a beautiful shrub. Increase only by layers or by cuttings; never graft. |
| *P. prostrata | Mountains of the Levant | Bright pink; Spring | Mr. Goldring in the Gardener’s Magazine, April 6, 1901, p. 210, writes thus of this Cherry: “I am afraid that this species, which is a low shrub from the mountains of the Levant, is not very easy to obtain, yet it is one of the most delightful of dwarf cherries. It is a spreading plant with slender arching branches, but scarcely prostrate. The leaves are amongst the smallest in this group, being from a half-inch to one and a half inches long, and finely toothed. Nor are the flowers large, being a half-inch or little more in diameter, but in their profusion they almost hide the branches. The colour is a bright, and, among Prunus, unusual shade of rose. This shrub was known to Loudon, and was recommended by him. It has, indeed, been in cultivation for nearly one hundred years, but seems to have shared the fate of many other lovely hardy shrubs in the middle decades of last century, and almost passed out of cultivation. It grows at elevations of 5000 to 6000 feet, and is perfectly hardy.” |
| P. pseudo-cerasus (Japanese Cherry) | China and Japan | ...... | This is a glorious cherry, and very popular in Japan; indeed, it is one of the most beautiful introductions we have had from that land of flowers. The recent double-flowered varieties should be in all gardens, and given a fairly moist soil and sunny situation, will bloom well. P. pseudo-cerasus goes under several names, such as Cerasus Sieboldi rubra, C. Watereri, and others. It is a small tree here, with stout greyish branches, and firm broad serrated leaves. *J. H. Veitch, with intense deep rose flowers, is very charming, and blooms from a fortnight to three weeks later than the type. The brownish-tinted foliage is quite a feature. |
| *P. pendula (Cerasus pendula rosea) | Japan | Deep pink; April and May | A beautiful tree of distinct weeping habit, and raised from seed quite readily, retaining its true character. The flowers are borne profusely, and sometimes open in March. It is a tree that could be raised from layers. Mr. Bean, writing in the Garden of April 13, 1901, says: “Prunus pendula is as naturally pendulous in growth as the Babylonian Willow is, and it should, if possible, be obtained on its own roots. It is an early flowering kind—probably the earliest of the Cherries—being in bloom as a rule soon after April comes in. The flowers are of a lovely shade of delicate rose, but are not large. They are, however, freely borne, especially after a hot, ripening Summer and Autumn. In the United States it succeeds even better than here, and by some authorities is regarded as the loveliest of Japanese trees introduced to that country. So much cannot be said of it in Britain, but it is well worth cultivation for its beauty and earliness.” |
| *P. serrulata (Cerasus serrulata) | Introduced from China about 80 years ago. Also a native of Japan | The flowers are in large loose heads, and are white, or white suffused more or less deeply with rose, and 1 inch to 1½ inch across. End of April | This is one of the most ornamental of the Cherries. It is naturally a small tree with a rather loose habit, and is peculiar by reason of its short-jointed stunted-looking branches. The leaves are fairly large and very evenly serrated. For lawns or shrubberies it is excellent, making a good companion plant to its own countryman, the large-flowered pseudo-Cerasus and its European cousins, Cerasus and Avium. In addition to being an excellent outdoor tree, it may be cultivated in pots for forcing for the conservatory in Winter and Spring. |
| *P. Mahaleb | Europe | White; April and May | The Mahaleb is well known for its remarkable profusion of pure white blossom and its free graceful habit. In the variety pendula, the pendent character of the branches is not unduly marked, but is sufficient to add greatly to the beauty of the tree. It is not only one of the best of Cherries, but of all flowering trees, and is as well adapted for planting in groups as it is when isolated as a single specimen. The flowers are borne on short racemes, and in such abundance as to envelop the tree in a snow-white mantle. Every garden should have at least one weeping Mahaleb. |
| P. Padus (the Bird Cherry) | Europe, and a great part of Asia | White; Spring | A well-known tree, and frequently seen in woodlands, where its strong scent is quickly detected. It is a shapely tree, growing 20 feet to 30 feet high, and has long erect branches, and in Spring drooping racemes of flowers 6 inches or more long. The fruits are small and shining black in colour. There are, however, many poor forms, sometimes with almost greenish flowers. Perhaps the most valuable is the double variety, flore-pleno, which has very long racemes and very pure white. Pendula is a weeping variety which will, no doubt, be an acquisition, but it is of too recent appearance here to say much about it. It is curious to note that there is a variety (stricta) with an exactly opposite tendency, branches and racemes being quite erect. P. virginiana, a nearly allied Bird Cherry from North America, is also represented by a pendulous form. P. serotina and its variety pendula, and the other members of the Padus group, are not important. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Malus Group (the Apples). | | | |
| *P. baccata (Siberian Crab) | Himalaya to Japan | Rose pink; May | A well-known tree, very beautiful on the lawn. It grows 20 feet to 30 feet high, and as much or more in diameter, and the flowers smother every branch, followed by a glorious display of brilliant scarlet fruits, which are esteemed by some when preserved. There are several varieties, of which three may be mentioned, Bertini, which is of rather more upright growth than the type, and has large white flowers and scarlet fruits; and Genuina, which differs from the type in its more open growth and larger fruits. Xanthocarpa has bright golden fruits. |
| *P. coronaria (American or Fragrant Crab) | Eastern United States. Introduced 1724 | Rose; May and early June | A beautiful and neglected tree, 15 feet to 20 feet high, with large, deliciously-fragrant flowers. It is worth growing on this account alone. The leaves are dark-green and lobed, and the fruits sweetly scented and grass-green, not very ornamental. It should become more popular in English gardens. The variety flore-pleno has large, almost double, rich rose-coloured flowers. |
| *P. floribunda | Japan | Rose; late Spring and early Summer | A delightful tree and happily much planted in gardens. It is quite small, little more than a graceful bush, rarely exceeding a height of 10 feet, wreathed in flowers in the appropriate season, the buds intense crimson, but opening out a paler shade, and thus there is a gradation from one colour to the other. It should be freely grouped and planted in small and large gardens. The fruits are yellow, and about the size of a pea. There are two good varieties, Atrosanguinea, which has flowers of much deeper colour than those of the type, and flore-pleno or Malus Parkmanni, as it is more often called. This has semi-double red flowers, and reddish wood and leaves. |
| P. Malus (Crab Apple) | Britain; Europe and Asia | White; late Spring | This is the Crab Apple of the hedgerow, and although not very ornamental, three varieties of it deserve notice. These are *coccinea, which has large scarlet fruits in abundance; flore-albo-pleno, with large semi-double, pure white flowers, and Neidzwetzkyanus, a very handsome form with purple-tinted leaves and fruit. But no tree can become popular with such a name. We hope it will be changed. Pendula is welcome for its drooping growth. |
| P. prunifolia | Siberia | Rose; late Spring | This much resembles P. baccata, and has many varieties, one of them named pendula being a beautiful weeping tree. |
| P. Ringo | Japan | Late Spring | A small tree about 20 feet high, with rather long spreading branches, and large flower trusses followed by bright yellow fruits. These are sometimes borne so abundantly that the branches get weighed down. |
| *P. Schiedeckeri | Supposed hybrid (P. spectabilis, *P. Toringo) | Soft rose; May | This hybrid has for its near allies such popular and beautiful plants as Pyrus floribunda, P. spectabilis, P. baccata (Siberian Crab), &c.; yet it is not inferior in beauty to any of them. It is only in recent years that it has been in commerce. It has not, of course, reached its full size yet in this country, but it is evidently going to be a small tree. It is nearly related to P. floribunda, but gives every indication of possessing a more tree-like character, its branches being sturdier and more erect in growth. But it is for its wealth of blossom that it is chiefly remarkable. Even among such profuse-flowering things as those of its allies mentioned above, it is noteworthy for its qualities in that respect. During May, its flowering season, clean branches 3 feet and even 4 feet long can be cut, which are wreathed from end to end with blossom. The flowers are semi-double and come in the usual Apple-like clusters; each flower is about 1½ inches across. |
| *P. spectabilis (Chinese Crab) | China and Japan | Pink; Spring | A beautiful and fairly well known tree, 20 feet to 30 feet high, with large semi-double flowers of much charm; the fruits are bright red. Every garden should possess a group of it, and at least a single specimen standing out by itself, unfettered by trees or shrubs near. There are three varieties of note: flore-pleno-albo, with white flowers; flore-pleno; and Kaido, which is a very charming tree, upright in growth, and with rose-pink flowers and yellowish-red fruits. These trees of the Malus section are usually propagated by being budded or grafted on stocks of the Common Crab. If any of them are growing singly away from other species, then seeds from them will come true to name, but where various species are growing together they become crossed when in flower, and the seedlings result in a variety of hybrids, few or none of which are of any value. But as all of them succeed very well when worked on Stocks of the Common Crab, this is probably the better way to propagate them. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Aria Group (White Beam trees) | ...... | ...... | A very distinct group. |
| P. Aria (Common White Beam tree) | North Temperate Zone | White | A well-known tree, frequently seen in chalky districts. It is a large tree, 40 to 50 feet high, and has oval leaves, which are silvery white on the under surface. The white flowers are borne in large clusters, followed by oval red or scarlet coloured fruits. There are several varieties. Lutescens is very handsome, with its broad and silvery leaves; chrysophylla has leaves of quite a golden hue; græca is a handsome form found in Greece, it is much later in flowering and fruiting than any of the others; salicifolia has striking leaves, quite silvery white underneath. |
| P. decaisneana | Origin unknown; presumably a hybrid | ...... | A handsome vigorous tree, with oval leaves, 6 inches long by 2 to 3 inches broad, silvery beneath. The pinkish flowers are on large dense corymbs, followed by bright scarlet fruits. A tree well worth growing. |
| *P. lanata | Himalaya | White | This is better known under its garden name of Sorbus majestica, and is perhaps the most beautiful of this section of Pyrus. It is an upright-growing tree, 30 feet to 40 feet high, with large serrated leaves, covered beneath with a dense silvery tomentum. The flowers are succeeded by corymbs of intense scarlet fruit. P. pinnatifida is also of note for its silvery leaves. |
| P. vestita | Northern India | White | Thoroughly hardy in this country, and a handsome tree, met with commonly under the names of P. Thomsoni and Sorbus magnifica. It has large oval silvery leaves, and is worth growing for this reason alone. The white flowers and scarlet fruit are an additional charm. The above are all best propagated from seeds, which are freely produced, and come true to name, with the exceptions of P. alpina and P. decaisneana, which, being hybrids, cannot be depended on. These two, and the varieties of P. Aria, are best worked on stocks of P. Aria, on which they succeed very well as a rule, care being taken to choose clean, vigorous stocks with straight stems. |
| Sorbus Group. | | | |
| P. americana | North America | White | This is the American Mountain Ash, and is not a great success in this country. It is of smaller growth than our Mountain Ash, and has pinnate leaves and clusters of red fruit, which, like those of most of the Pyruses, are much liked by birds. There are several varieties. |
| *P. Aucuparia (Mountain Ash or Rowan tree) | Native | White; Spring | This adds a brilliant note of colour to the garden landscape in Autumn, and is the glory of many a Scotch and Welsh ravine. In the north the berries are very rich. There are many varieties; the best are asplenifolia, a very handsome tree, with finer leaves and more deeply serrated leaflets than those of the type; dulcis, a handsome, vigorous variety, with bold foliage and larger fruits than those of any of the other Mountain Ashes. Fastigiata has somewhat the habit of the Lombardy Poplar; fructu luteo has bright yellow or orange fruits, which are freely borne and very showy; pendula is a weeping form with branches that sweep the ground. |
| P. lanuginosa | Eastern Europe | Dull white | This is a showy tree, 30 feet to 40 feet high, with pinnate leaves, woolly on both surfaces. The fruits are red. |
| *P. sorbus (Service tree) | Native | White | This is more commonly known under the names of P. domestica or Sorbus domestica, and is like the Mountain Ash in leaf, though more spreading in growth. The flowers are succeeded by green fruits about the same size as those of a Crab Apple. There are two forms, viz., maliformis, with apple-shaped fruits, and pyriformis, with fruits shaped like those of a pear. |
| P. thianschanica | Eastern Asia | White | This is a comparatively new introduction, but a valuable tree. It has reddish-coloured shining wood and pinnate glossy leaves, with pointed and serrated leaflets. The fruits are small and scarlet. The above can, and should, be propagated from seeds, which germinate readily, and the seedlings soon form strong plants. The varieties of the Mountain Ash should be worked on that species, and, if absolutely necessary, most of the other species can be increased in the same manner and on the same stock. We have seen P. lanuginosa worked on a Hawthorn stock, on which it succeeded very well, but should not recommend the Hawthorn as a stock for any of the Pyruses. |
| Adenorachis Group. | | | Not a very important group,containing two species, P. arbutifolia and P. nigra. Both are easily raised from seeds, but the quicker way is to detach suckers. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Cydonia (the Quinces) | | | |
| P. cathayensis | China | Rosy red; late Spring, early Summer | Best on a wall as at Kew. Bolder in growth than P. japonica, but not so hardy. Very handsome on a wall. |
| *P. Cydonia (Syn. Cydonia vulgaris) | Unknown | Flesh | The Quince is for the garden orchard. “How seldom does one see Quinces planted for ornament, and yet there is hardly any small tree that better deserves such treatment. Some Quinces planted about eight years ago are now perfect pictures; their lissome branches, borne down with the load of great deep-yellow fruit, and their leaves turning to a colour almost as rich and glowing. The old English rather round-fruited kind with the smooth skin is the best both for flavour and beauty—a mature tree without leaves in winter, has a remarkably graceful, arching, almost weeping growth. The other kind is of a rather more rigid form, and though its woolly-coated, pear-shaped fruits are larger and strikingly handsome, the whole tree has a coarse look, and just lacks the attractive grace of the other. They will do fairly well almost anywhere, though they prefer a rich loamy soil, and a cool, damp, or even swampy place.”—Wood and Garden, p. 128. |
| *P. japonica | China and Japan | Scarlet; April, earlier in some gardens | A beautiful shrub, one of the most valuable introductions that we have ever had from China and Japan. It is the “japonica” of many a cottage and villa wall, and in sheltered warm gardens begins to bloom before winter has gone, a bright, cheery, and welcome shrub indeed in border or on wall. It is so well known that a description is almost needless, but there are several varieties, with considerable range of colour, from white to scarlet. We give the six from the Kew list: candicans, white; luteo-viridis, yellow; Moerloesi, crimson; nivalis, white; sulphurea perfecta and versicolor lutescens, both yellowish. All the varieties are good, especially Knap-Hill scarlet, which is a brilliant scarlet, delightful in a group; it is a most valuable shrub. Sinica has very showy deep red flowers. |
| *P. Maulei | Japan | Orange scarlet; May | A charming shrub, dwarfer than P. japonica; the fruits are yellow, and have a pleasant aromatic odour, and, like those of P. japonica, make an excellent preserve. Superba is a variety or rather reputed hybrid between P. Maulei and P. japonica, and has deep scarlet flowers.
The Quince can be propagated by seeds, by cuttings, or by layers. Cuttings of well-ripened wood about 9 inches long should be taken in autumn and inserted 6 inches in the ground, when they soon form roots and make sturdy plants. P. japonica and P. Maulei can be increased by seeds, by suckers, or by root-cuttings. Suckers are freely produced by old plants, and can easily be detached, so that this method is the easiest means of propagating them. |
| Mespilus Group. | | | |
| *P. germanica (the Medlar) (Syn. Mespilus vulgaris) | Europe and Asia | Pure white; early Summer | A small tree for the garden, orchard, or woodland. It is handsome in leaf and growth, a dense spreading tree, with fruits of acceptable flavour when eaten at the right stage. |
| *P. lobata (M. Smithi; M. grandiflora) | Unknown; probably a hybrid | White | A very handsome but neglected tree, about 20 feet high, with dark-green leaves and snow-white flowers, rather smaller than those of the common Medlar; it has small pear-shaped reddish fruits, and is a good lawn tree.
These trees are best propagated by grafting or budding on the Pear or Quince stocks, on which they do well. The Medlar can also be increased by seed. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Rhododendron Species. | | | |
| Rhododendron arboreum | Himalaya; Ericaceæ | Bell-shaped, various colours—blood-red, white, rose, and, as a rule, spotted | This is a famous Himalayan Rhododendron, a tree attaining a height of 40 feet in its native country. It has bold, thick foliage, green above but quite silvery beneath, and the bell-shaped flowers vary in colour. There are several varieties, such as album, cinnamomeum, kingianum, Nilagiricum, puniceum, and others, but difference in flower colouring is the chief reason for distinctive names. Not hardy except in a few very favoured spots, chiefly Cornwall and south-west generally. Must be grown under glass, and requires a big house. Many beautiful trees in the Temperate House at Kew. |
| R. barbatum | Sikkim | Bell-shaped, blood-red, 1½ inches across | This is a tree 40 feet to 60 feet high in its native country. It is hardier than R. arboreum. |
| R. californicum | California | Rose-purple, upper petal spotted with greenish yellow; broadly campanulate, almost without a tube. Good sized umbels; June | This is a strong-growing Californian species, the leaves dark-green; fairly hardy. |
| R. campanulatum | Himalaya | Lilac, with purplish spots; June. Leaves elliptic or elliptic oblong, blunt as a rule at both ends, April | This is a beautiful species, about 4 feet high. We have seen it in several Surrey gardens, but it requires shelter. It is not one of the hardiest. |
| R. campylocarpum | Himalaya | Bell-shaped, clear, pale yellow, 2 inches or so across, in rather loose clusters; May or late April | The best hardy yellow Rhododendron at present known is this. It is hardy at Kew in sheltered spots, but succeeds better farther to the south. It is a shrub of neat compact habit, with leaves 2 inches to 3 inches long, dark-green and glossy above, blue-white beneath. When full of flower it is a singularly pretty and distinct Rhododendron. It varies somewhat in shade, and the flowers are sometimes of a pale lemon tint, becoming almost white with age. The late Mr. Mangles, we believe, raised some hybrids from this species, but we know of none in commerce. |
| R. catawbiense | Mountainous regions of Southern United States | Good-sized heads of lilac or purplish flowers; late May and June | This is a strong growing species and one of the hardiest of all Rhododendrons, and has played a large part in the production of the present race of garden Rhododendrons, and is with R. ponticum the best stock on which to graft the various varieties, and is useful for covert. It is hardier than R. ponticum, and varieties with much of the Catawbiense blood in them are hardier than those closely allied to other species. Fastuosum fl. pl. is a well known form. |
| R. caucasicum | Introduced nearly a century ago from high rocks close to the snow-line in Caucasus | Rose or whitish green spotted flowers, in compact and upright clusters | This is a quite hardy Rhododendron. The true species is rare in gardens, but there are several forms, and it has been used to a great extent by the hybridist. It is dwarf, spreading, little more than a foot high, with ovate leaves with brownish tomentum on the under surface. It flowers late in July or in August, but its progeny is in beauty during May and June. A hybrid, which flowers at a considerable earlier date than the others, is nobleanum; it claims R. arboreum as its other parent, and flowers from December onwards until the end of March. At Kew there are several large groups in the Rhododendron dell. |
| R. ciliatum | Sikkim | Flowers are white, suffused with rose; April outdoors | This is a Rhododendron more adapted, except in the quite southern counties such as Cornwall, South Wales, &c., for a cold house. It is of compact and bushy growth, 2 feet or 3 feet or less high, but varies according, of course, to locality, and is part responsible for a number of hybrids, such as præcox, Rosy Bell, and Queen of Dwarfs. The hybrids mentioned are all hardy, but owing to their early flowering often get injured by frost. |
| R. cinnabarinum | Himalaya | Flowers are tubular, with short, spreading limb, pendulous, and orange-scarlet, orange, or red; they vary somewhat in size, but are usually about 2 inches long and ¾ of an inch across the mouth, and thick and fleshy | This is a very distinct-looking shrub, about 3 feet; but only an approximate height can be given, as it is sometimes more than this. The growth is somewhat loose, and the branches upright and slender, the leaves ovate, 2 to 2½ inches long, and glaucous. Only moderately hardy. |
| R. dauricum | Alpine regions of Eastern Asia | Rosy purple; January | This is quite hardy, but flowers so rarely that it is only seen in beauty very often in a cold house. It is almost deciduous, as most of the leaves fall off in winter. It is a bush, and has been crossed with R. ciliatum, the well-known præcox and Rosy Gem being two of the hybrids. |
| R. ferrugineum (Alpine Rose) | European Alps. Introduced about 150 years ago | Flowers small, funnel-shaped, and in small upright terminal clusters in June; bright rose or scarlet | This is frequently seen in rock gardens, and grows about 1 foot high, forming a rounded mass thickly clothed with small green leaves, covered with minute reddish-brown spots. When young the leaves are slightly hairy, but the mature foliage is almost free from hairs. There are varieties, one with white (albiflorum), another with rosy or scarlet flowers (myrtifolium), but there are others. Its popular name is Alpine Rose. |
| R. Fortunei | China | Fragrant, pale rose-coloured flowers, with seven petals; Mid-May | This is one of the hardiest of the Himalayan species, and, as it does not flower until well into May, it is generally untouched by late frosts, which so disturb early-flowering species. It grows from 10 feet to 12 feet high, and has large, handsome oblong leaves. It is the origin of a distinct race. |
| R. fulgens | Eastern Himalaya | Blood-red; April and May | There are several forms of this Himalayan Rhododendron in gardens, the best producing compact clusters of medium-sized flowers of the colour mentioned. The leaves bear a striking resemblance to those of R. campanulatum in both size and colour. Although hardy, it is seldom seen in true beauty outdoors, because of its naturally early-flowering season. |
| R. glaucum | Himalaya | Rose, waxy, ¾ of an inch across, and in small upright heads; May | This is a dwarf species, with small oblong leaves, seldom more than 2 feet high, and rarely seen in cultivation, although very pretty. |
| R. hirsutum | Alps | Pale red; May and July | In many ways this is the counterpart of R. ferrugineum, the chief difference being in the intensely hairy leaves of this species. The two species grow side by side in the Alps, and the one under notice is one of the few species that will grow in a limy soil. It has also been used by the hybridist. |
| R. Keysii | Bhotan | Flowers tubular, red and yellow, and 1½ inches long; May | A distinct, upright-growing, scantily branched species, suggesting affinity to R. cinnabarina, but it is quite distinct. It grows from 4 feet to 6 feet high, has narrow quite distinct ovate or lanceolate leaves 2 inches long. |
| R. lepidotum | Temperate and Alpine Himalayas | Colour varies, usually purple and yellowish; curious flattened form, and about 1 inch across; May and June | The individual flower does not suggest a Rhododendron, so unlike other species is it in this respect. It is a low-growing plant with small oblong leaves; it succeeds outdoors at Kew. |
| R. maximum (Great American Laurel) | North America | Rose, or whitish spotted with yellow or red | This will grow to a height of 35 feet, and has large, thick, elliptical, oblong leaves. It is not much grown here. In the “Cyclopædia of American Horticulture,” it is mentioned: “This is one of the hardiest species, being hardy as far north as Quebec and Ontario.... This species and the former (catawbiense) are now often extensively used in park-planting, and taken by the car-load from the woods. If properly handled and taken from a turfy soil with a sufficient ball of earth around the roots, they are usually successfully planted.” There are three varieties, album, purpureum, and roseum. |
| R. Metternichii | Japan; known here about 30 years | Rose; about 2 inches across, and in small clusters; March | This is not in general cultivation, but is hardy. As yet no opportunity has arisen of ascertaining to what dimensions it will grow in this country; it has thick and leathery oblong leaves, 3 to 4 inches long, green above, and covered underneath with a thick grey or brownish tomentum. |
| R. niveum | Himalaya; 8 to 9 feet | Purplish; April | At Kew this species lives outdoors, but is not a success, and even in Cornish gardens gets injured in severe weather. It makes a dense bush, with medium-sized leaves, green above, and covered with a dense greyish tomentum beneath. It has been in cultivation about 40 years. |
| R. ponticum | This has a curious distribution, being found in Portugal and not again until Asia Minor is reached | Purple; about 2 inches across; May | Of all the hardy Rhododendrons this is the most largely grown and most popular; it is much used as an undergrowth in woods and other places. In many parts it has become naturalised, reproducing itself from self-sown seeds. It has been much used by the hybridist, and with R. caucasicum and R. catawbiense has produced many beautiful hybrids. It will grow beneath trees, and its evergreen foliage is not the least of its attractions. There are several varieties. |
| R. punctatum | North America, Alleghany Mountains, from North Carolina to Georgia | Flowers rose; 1 inch across; in clusters in June | A dwarf and evergreen species. R. minus is a synonym. |
| R. racemosum | First exhibited by the introducers, Messrs. Veitch, in 1892, and is a native of Western China, where it is found 6000 to 10,000 feet elevation | Pink-white; April | The introduction of this added another type to this genus, for both in flower and general habit it is distinct from other species. It is dwarf, with small oval leaves, and flowers borne in axillary and terminal clusters, and so profusely that every branch is a mass of blossom. It is quite hardy and very welcome. There is a form with deep rose flowers. |
| R. Rhodora (Rhodora canadensis) | North America | Magenta-purple; April | Not much grown, but colour probably not popular. It makes an upright deciduous shrub, 3 feet to 4 feet, slender, twiggy wood, and small ovate lanceolate leaves. Should have moist peaty soil. A failure on dry and sandy ground. Does not object to partial shade. Easily increased by seeds and layering. |
| R. Smirnowi | Caucasus | Crimson-purple; 3 inches across; April and May | This has large flowers and leaves, and, as recorded elsewhere, has founded a distinct race. It blooms freely when about a foot or so high. The leaves are about 5 inches long, 2 inches wide, and covered on underside with a soft white felt. |
| R. Thomsoni (see page 437) | | | |
| R. yunnanense | Yunnan; first flowered at Kew in 1899 | White, with blood-red spots on upper petal; in loose clusters in May | This is an erect shrub, with glossy green leaves 2 to 2½ inches wide. A very useful shrub, and should not be forgotten by the hybridist. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| R. Hardy Hybrid | Ericaceæ | ...... | Very few of the species of Rhododendron have not some value either for out of doors or under glass. Rhododendrons are widely distributed, species being found in North America, Europe, and through temperate Asia as far south as the Malay Peninsula, the headquarters of the genus being Western Asia and the temperate Himalaya. Rhododendrons also differ greatly in size, some very tall as R. arborea, which is sometimes said to grow to a height of 40 feet in the Sikkim forests, to the little alpine R. Chamæcistus, which rarely exceeds 6 inches high. There is quite as marked variation in the size of the leaf, several species, of which R. Falconeri may be taken as a type, having large and handsome leaves, sometimes a foot high and 6 inches wide, whilst the quaint little Japanese species R. serpyllifolium has tiny leaves not a third of an inch long and of corresponding width. The Rhododendron family may be divided into two great sections, deciduous and evergreen. The evergreen section consists of a large number of species, either quite hardy or tender, the tender ones being represented by such beautiful flowers as R. griffithianum, Edgeworthi, R. Dalhousiæ, R. Nuttalli, the Malayan species, &c. With the exception of R. ponticum true species are seldom met with outdoors, except in gardens where collections are formed, or in the south-west countries. The scarcity of species is doubtless due to many of the hybrids being much hardier, and begin to flower and grow at a later time of the year. Although some of them will stand severe frost in mid-winter without injury, growth beginning early in the year, the young leaves and shoots get considerably injured by the late spring frosts, and flowers when open in March are also destroyed or much spoilt. In Cornwall, South Wales, and parts of Ireland, huge specimens of R. arboreum, barbatum, grande, Falconeri, griffithianum, and others may be seen in full vigour, but all have to receive protection from the north. Although these species cannot be grown successfully outdoors in most parts of the country, the hybridist knows their value. Through crossing them with hardier and later growing and flowering species many beautiful hybrids have been raised. Hardy evergreen hybrid Rhododendrons may be divided into several groups according to parentage. Of these groups by far the most familiar is the one that has originated through the crossing and intercrossing of the Himalayan R. arboreum with the American R. catawbiense, the Caucasian species R. caucasicum, or the European and Asiatic ponticum. This hybridising has been progressing for half a century or more, and the parentage is plainly seen in the offspring. Thus where R. arboreum asserts itself most strongly we find rich red flowers and leaves with a silvery under-surface. Where R. catawbiense is most in evidence the leaves are large and handsome, deep green, and softer to the touch than R. arboreum, while the clusters are often of great size, the flowers prettily spotted, and the plants of exceptionally good habit. For very cold districts the catawbiense hybrids are the best, being hardier than the others. The flowers of many of the earliest of the R. catawbiense hybrids are of lilac or purple colouring. The influence of R. caucasicum is most plainly shown in the rose, white, and heavily spotted varieties,whilst it also imparts some of its sturdy habit to its progeny. R. ponticum shares with R. catawbiense the honour of producing many of the best lilacs and purples, but through so much intercrossing it is difficult to trace the influence of any particular species in many of the newer hybrids. In this group raisers are fastidious, regarding the shape of the inflorescence as of first importance, that is, a conical truss of symmetrical outline, the flowers on short stalks and held firmly in the truss. In the Rhododendron dell at Kew many of these hybrids are to be seen, and in a number of the older ones it is not difficult to trace the influence of the various species mentioned. Some of those which show much of the catawbiense character are album elegans, white with yellow spots, delicatissimum, blush, everestianum, lilac with darker spots, fastuosum fl. pl., double lilac, and purpureum elegans and purpureum splendens, with dark-spotted flowers. R. arboreum blood is very noticeable in the early flowering, bright-red nobleanum, the rich red russellianum, and russellianum superbum, the white dark-spotted Baron Osy, the blush or almost white Blanche superb, and many others, whilst R. ponticum is in evidence in a large number of hybrids. In addition to this group there are others which, though not so universally grown, are quite as beautiful. For a number of years other species besides those worked on to produce the last-named group have been taken in hand in several places, notably at Tremough by Mr. Gill, and all who are interested in shrubs know the great work accomplished by Messrs. Anthony Waterer of Knaphill, John Waterer & Sons of Bagshot, Wm. Paul & Son of Waltham Cross, George Paul of Cheshunt, Fisher, Son & Sibray of Sheffield, Messrs. J. Veitch, and in the Royal Gardens, Kew. |
| R. Thomsoni | Sikkim | Blood red; June | R. Thomsoni may be taken as a type of a group in which it has played a great part. This species is hardy even near London, and farther north, but flowers very early, so much so that frost frequently destroys its beauty. It grows from 6 feet to 15 feet, has broadly ovate leaves and loose trusses of six or eight waxy flowers. |
| R. Luscombei | Hybrid between R. Thomsoni and R. Fortunei | Rich rosy red; April | This was raised by Mr. Luscombe about thirty years ago. It is finely represented in the Arboretum at Kew, the largest specimen being 8 feet high and as much through. The flowers are in loose trusses, tubular, 3 inches across, and very waxy; a handsome hybrid. |
| R. F. Thiselton-Dyer | Hybrid, same cross as Luscombei | Deep rose, with darker mark at the base of the tube | This is a Kew-raised hybrid, and very similar to Luscombei in growth. |
| *R. Ascot Brilliant | Raised by Mr. Standish | Rich scarlet; mid and late May; a peculiarly brilliant colour | This is a flower of wonderful colour and the whole shrub in growth, size of calyx, texture, and clusters reminds one strongly of R. Thomsoni. It is of dwarf and bushy growth, and flowers with great freedom. |
| *R. Shilsoni | Raised by Mr. Gill, gardener to Mr. H. Shilston, Tremough, Penrhyn, Cornwall, between R. Thomsoni and R. barbatum | Crimson | This beautiful hybrid combines the good qualities of both parents. It resembles R. barbatum in height and R. Thomsoni in foliage, and the flower truss is compact as in the former parent, with the larger, more fleshy leaves of the latter. It is an exceptionally fine Rhododendron for Cornwall, but at Kew is grown in a cold house, although a small plant withstood the winter of 1901-2 outside without injury. |
| R. Harrisii | A hybrid raised by Mr. Harris, at one time gardener to Lord Swansea; the parents are R. Thomsoni and R. arboreum | Red; early Spring | This is a hybrid of much interest, and flowers freely when quite small. It is apparently quite hardy, but would be happier in the south than elsewhere. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Griffithianum Group. | | | |
| *R. Aucklandi | Himalaya | White; May | The group, in which the Himalayan species griffithianum, better known as R. Aucklandi, is most marked, is composed of a number of large-flowered hybrids which vary considerably in size of flower and colouring. It is probably the finest species of Rhododendron in existence, and named in honour of Lord Auckland, a Governor-General of India, by Sir Joseph Hooker. It appears, however, to have previously been named after Griffith, the Indian botanist, whose name it ought now properly to bear. It carries its flowers in large, loose trusses, and individually they are frequently 6 inches across. This Rhododendron, we believe, ranks first in the genus in regard to the size of its bloom. Six or eight of these are borne in a truss, and they are pure white when once fully expanded, although pink in the bud state. The handsome leaves are smooth, narrow-oblong, 6 inches to 12 inches long, and of a deep lustrous green. When fully grown this becomes a small tree, the bark peeling from the trunk in large flakes. It is not, unfortunately, one of the Himalayan species that can be grown out of doors near London. In Cornwall and similar places it is magnificent. It only just escapes being hardy, and can be grown out of doors in tubs for the greater part of the year. Some of the best specimens in the country have, in fact, been grown in this way. Even when placed under glass little or no fire-heat is needed. We know plants that have stood 18° of frost without injury. It is remarkable that this Rhododendron has not been used more for hybridising. Most people seem to have been slow in awakening to its value, and although, at the present time, there are doubtless thousands of young hybrids from it in existence, it will be some years before they flower. There are, however, a few hybrids that are hardy and very beautiful. |
| *R. kewense | A hybrid between R. griffithianum and R. Aucklandi | Delicate rose, passing to white with age; April and May | This was raised at Kew in 1875, but did not flower until fourteen years later. Since then it has flowered very freely every year. It makes a large bush 6 to 8 feet high, spreading, and with leaves resembling those of R. griffithianum, and the flowers as regards shape and size being also similar, whilst they are very sweetly scented. In addition to the true Kewense, there is a form in cultivation with red flowers. The bracts are light red. Kewense is a hybrid of charming colouring—so many shades of rose and deeper-tinted buds. |
| *R. Manglesii | Hybrid sent out about 1880 by Messrs. Veitch & Sons, and the outcome of crossing R. griffithianum with the catawbiense hybrid album elegans | White, the upper petal spotted with red or reddish brown; April and May | This is a very beautiful hybrid, popular, and very free. Although the leaves are smaller, this Rhododendron—named after one whose interest in the race was intense—resembles the Himalayan parent when not in bloom, but the influence of the American parent is seen in the flowers, which are about 4 inches across. A peculiarity of the inflorescence is the long truss. There are several forms, that only differ slightly in size or density of the spotting from the type. |
| *R. Pink Pearl | Raised by Messrs. J. Waterer & Sons of Bagshot | Delicate pink; May | This beautiful Rhododendron has rapidly become popular. The leaves and size of flowers point to the griffithianum influence. The flower truss is very large, well formed, and the individual flowers 4 to 5 inches across.
No doubt new hybrids with R. griffithianum influence will be constantly occurring, but raisers must remember that hardy growth is of the greatest importance. R. griffithianum has been much used by Mr. Mangles as a parent, in whose garden there are many beautiful hybrids, such as Liza Stillman, Dulcie Daffan, Manglesii var. delicatum, Daphne Daffan, Mrs. Mallard, and others. |
| Fortunei Group. | | | |
| R. Fortunei | China | White with deep pink suffusion, and very fragrant; May and early June | This species, when not in flower, bears a strong likeness to R. griffithianum, but the flowers are very distinct, about 3 inches across, and very fragrant, whilst each one has seven petals. The hybrids are of good habit, flower with great freedom, are very fragrant, and each bloom frequently has six petals, whilst the stamens are often imperfect. The group displays a wide range of colouring, pink and deep rose predominating, but a few are red, and many are prettily spotted or blotched with red or chocolate. We hope this group will be better known, as many of the hybrids are very charming, a few having names; thus those raised at Kew were named respectively Mrs. Thiselton-Dyer and George Thiselton-Dyer. They bloom profusely, the flowers being very deep rose with dust-brownish blotches at the base; the chief difference is that the flowers of the former are paler than those of the latter. An interesting hybrid raised at Kew by crossing R. Fortunei with the variety Meteor has flowered well for the last four years. The cross was made in 1893, and the plants flowered when only a few inches high. Several plants have now grown to a height of 2½ feet. The flowers are in compact, rounded trusses, and appear in May; they are delicate pink, and fragrant. The great peculiarity of the hybrid is that no plant has perfect stamens, some being full size but barren, others reduced to mere specks, and occasionally they are quite absent. |
| R. Smirnowi | Native of Caucasus. Flowered for the first time in England at Kew in 1893 | Bright rosy-lilac; April and May | This is a handsome species, of compact growth, and 3 feet to 6 feet high, with large, deep-green leaves, covered on the underside with quite a dense, whitish, wool-like substance. The flowers are from 2½ inches to 3 inches across, and in shapely trusses. Both at Kew and in the nursery of Mr. George Paul many hybrids have been raised. The first raised at Kew resulted from crossing the species with the scarlet-flowered garden hybrid Johnsoni in 1893. It flowered when four years old, and was of dwarf growth, with rosy-red flower. Of numerous other hybrids raised since then three resulted from crosses made in May 1896; they flowered in May 1902, and are so far the best. One of these was raised by crossing with the variety purpureum splendens; this has trusses of purplish flowers. Another claims R. Fortunei as its male parent; it has large fragrant flowers with five or six petals, pink, and arranged in shapely trusses. In the third case kewense was selected as the male, and this is the prettiest of the three; the flowers are on long stalks, droop, and have daintily fringed petals; they are fragrant, rose colour, mottled with dark spots in the throat. The somewhat drooping character of the flowers is not an advantage. |
| R. azaleoides | Cross between R. (Azalea) viscosum and R. maximum | White, lilac-tinted flowers; June | This grows about 3½ feet high, and, as the parentage shows, is a cross between the evergreen and deciduous sections. It has been known under the names of hybridum, fragrans, odoratum. Quite hardy. |
| *R. Smithi aureum | This is not new, but rare; it is supposed to have been raised by a nurseryman named Smith of Norbiton, between a variety of R. caucasicum and a yellow form of R. sinense, and is said to have been exhibited at Chiswick in 1841 | Buff inclining to apricot; June | This is a very beautiful Rhododendron, dwarf, not very compact in growth, but when its handsome flower clusters are out the bush is almost smothered with bloom. At Saltwood, near Hythe, in a Rhododendron glen Mr. Leney has several plants of it. A glaucous-leaved form is in cultivation, but the flowers are not so rich in colour as those of the plainer leaved one. Quite hardy. |
| R. roseum odoratum | Hybrid between the two sections. One a white-flowered deciduous variety, and the other a red-flowered evergreen form | Reddish; June | Quite hardy. |
| R. altaclarense | Result of crossing R. catawbiense and R. ponticum. Flowered first in 1835. Raised at Highclere | Bright scarlet | A very charming, bright flowered hybrid. |
| *R. præcox | A hybrid between R. ciliatum and R. dauricum | Rose-purple; late February and early March | This hybrid is quite hardy, but must have a sheltered spot, if not grown in a cool house for the sake of its colour, as it blooms early in Spring, and therefore is apt to get spoilt by frost and rain. It makes a bush about 3 feet high, spreading, with a profusion of flowers, very rich in colour, but the variety rubrum is darker than the type. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| *R. (Azaleas) | ...... | ...... | For many years the hardy, deciduous Rhododendrons were known only as Azaleas, and in many places the name Azalea is still maintained. When the two sections—deciduous and evergreen—are compared it will be at once seen that there is no real structural difference between them. Although in the making of the two genera the number of stamens was considered one of the principal points, it has since been shown that it is a point unworthy of notice, as the number of stamens varies considerably in both deciduous and evergreen species. It is doubtful whether the name of Azalea will disappear, but we are following here the latest classification, and therefore place the “Azalea” in its proper group. About 20 species have been known under the name of Azalea, 3 or 4 of which are evergreen, and the remainder deciduous. Of these about half-a-dozen are really well known in gardens, either by the type plants, hybrids, or garden forms. The majority of the species belong to China and Japan and North America, one species being found in the Caucasus. Several of the North American species, such as R. arborescens, calendulaceum, nudiflorum, &c., the Chinese and Japanese species R. sinense (better known as Azalea mollis), and the Caucasian flavum (Syn. Azalea pontica), have proved splendid breeders, and in the hands of the hybridist a wonderful assortment of varieties has been obtained, which for delicate shades and rich self-colourings are unsurpassed among hardy shrubs. The colours range from white to pink and from pink to blood-red, from lemon to deep yellow and orange-scarlet, with all descriptions of intervening shades and combinations of colour. From R. calendulaceum most of the orange and orange-scarlet and red forms have originated; flavum has been responsible for many of the yellows and terra-cottas; arborescens, occidentale, and viscosum for the whites and pale rose varieties, also for the late flowering ones; while R. nudiflorum has been responsible for a great number of hybrids of all shades. As a rule it is much easier to trace R. sinense blood among hybrids than that of other species, the flowers in that case being larger and the leaves more closely resembling those of the species, but even in some of these repeated intercrossing has almost obliterated the special sinense characters. Many of these hybrids have been raised in the old-world city of Ghent, a fact which has given rise to the name “Ghent Azaleas.” In England Mr. Anthony Waterer has raised beautiful forms at Knaphill, such as the pure white Mrs. Anthony Waterer. Few are named, however, nowadays, this brilliant group being called the “Knaphill,” and it is rich in beautiful colours, from white through yellow, orange, buff, crimson, scarlet, and other flaming tones, which create glorious pictures in the garden in late Spring and early Summer. The shrubs should be planted in groups in woodland and elsewhere when the rich colouring of the flowers is most effective, and in Autumn the foliage turns to warm tints, crimson, brown, purple, and other shades intermingling, making the bushes almost as beautiful in their Autumn dress as when covered with flowers in Spring and early Summer. Of late years these Rhododendrons, especially the sinense group, have been much used for forcing, and they are extremely useful for that purpose, as has been so well demonstrated by the brilliant groups exhibited at various meetings of the Royal Horticultural Society by Messrs Cuthbert and other firms. When planting these hardy Azaleas, choose a sheltered position, not because they are tender, but to protect the flowers as much as possible from cold winds and late frosts. The majority of them are in bloom before the time of frosts has passed, and sometimes the flowers get destroyed wholesale. Few shrubs are more suitable for planting in woodland or on the fringe of walks in single groups, as here the colours are fully brought out. A peat soil or a mixture of loam and peat will provide quite suitable material. Mr. Anthony Waterer writes as follows: “In a general way all American plants may be said to delight in and to require what is called a peat soil; it was at one time believed they would not grow in any other. Experience, however, proves the contrary, and it is now found that Rhododendrons and Azaleas, which are the most important of that class, as well as any other of the more vigorous plants, succeed in almost any soil that does not contain lime or chalk. In many sandy loams they grow with as much luxuriance as they do in peat; in fact, almost any loamy soil, free from lime or chalk, may be rendered suitable for them by a liberal admixture of leaf mould or any fibrous material, such as parings of pasture lands. When the soil is poor, thoroughly decayed cow dung is one of the best manures for Azaleas.” Seed pods should be picked off immediately the flowers are over. |
| R. arborescens (Syn. Azalea, arborescens) | Found by Pursh, and described in 1816 in his “Flora of North America.” It is a native of the mountainous regions from Pennsylvania to South Carolina and Tennessee, especially about the lower portions of the mountains of North Carolina, where it is said to grow along the borders of streams. It attains a height of from 15 feet to 20 feet | White, tinged with rose, the stamens scarlet; occasionally the colour is rose | This has fragrant flowers, and grows about 9 feet in the British Isles. |
| R. calendulaceum (A. calendulacea) | Alleghany Forests. Introduced about 100 years ago | Great range of colour; yellow, red, orange and other shades; May and June | It forms a large, handsome bush about 8 feet high, and is one of the most beautiful of the species. |
| R. flavum (Syn. A. pontica) | Native of Caucasus, and has been grown for upwards of a century, viz., introduced in 1793 | Yellow, fragrant; early Summer | Few Rhododendrons are better known; it grows from 6 feet to 8 feet, and has fairly large shining leaves. Excellent for forcing. |
| R. indicum (A. indica) | Widely distributed in the mountains of China and Japan | Various; early Summer | This is the plant regarded as the “common” Azalea. It has been improved considerably under cultivation, and there are several beautiful garden forms of it. The majority of these are unfortunately not hardy, and a few only can be planted outside with safety. About ten years ago Professor Sargent, of the Arnold Arboretum, collected seeds of this type in the mountains of Japan. The young plants have proved fairly hardy, but flower, as a rule, too early to be of any great garden value. The well-known Azalea amœna is the hardiest of the varieties; it is easily recognised by its reddish hose-in-hose flowers. Balsaminæflorum is dwarf, and suitable for the rock garden; it has pretty, double, rose-like salmon flowers. In many southern gardens R. indicum is hardy; we have seen borders of it in Mr. Leney’s garden near Saltwood, Hythe, and of course in Devonshire and Cornwall. |
| R. ledifolium (A. ledifolia) | China and Japan | Pure white; March | This reminds one of the old white A. indica of gardens, but the leaves are more hairy, and it is hardier. It is like the preceding, and evergreen. It grows well out of doors in the Royal Gardens, Kew. |
| R. nudiflorum (A. nudiflora) | From Canada to Florida and Texas. On side of hills. Introduced in 1734 | Pinkish as a rule; April and May | An extremely useful shrub, and has been of considerable service to the hybridist. It grows about 6 feet high, and makes a wide-spreading bush. It bears pinkish-coloured flowers, though many hues are to be found among its many forms. |
| R. occidentale (A. occidentalis) | California | White; late June | This species flowers later than most of the others, and, through using it as a parent, hybrids have been produced between it and the earlier flowering species, thus the flowering period is prolonged. It makes a good-sized bush, and blooms freely; the flowers are fragrant; the leaves are very glossy. |
| R. rhombicum (A. rhombica) | Japan | Rose-lilac; April | This is easily distinguished from other Rhododendrons by its rhomboid leaves and large flowers. In the seedling stage it is somewhat tender, and until several years old its growth is not satisfactory. |
| A. Vaseyi | Mountains of North Carolina | White suffused pink; April | Of the lesser known species this is one of the most beautiful, and should be in every collection. It makes a small bush here, though in its native country it grows more than 15 feet high, and is quite hardy in the Thames Valley. Album is a white variety. |
| R. viscosum (A. viscosa) | North America. In shady woods and swamps. Introduced in 1734 | White and sometimes pink; July | This does not usually flower until most of the others are over. It is readily recognised by its viscid leaves. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| *Rhodotypos kerrioides (White-flowered Kerria) | China and Japan; Rosaceæ | White; May and June | A very pretty shrub, 4 to 6 feet high, and bearing some resemblance to the popular Kerria japonica, hence it is often called the white-flowered Kerria, though it is really quite distinct. The white flowers are very much like those of a single Rose. |
| Ribes alpinum (Alpine currant) | Northern Hemisphere; Saxifrageæ | Greenish | A beautiful group of flowering shrubs. R. alpinum is a dwarf bush 3 feet high, and has a golden-leaved form, which in the Spring is one of the prettiest of shrubs with this leaf colouring. |
| R. americanum | North America | Greenish | Has little claim to beauty, except the vivid autumn tints of the decaying foliage. |
| *R. aureum (Missouri Currant) | North America | Yellow; early May | A shrub 4 to 6 feet high, with drooping clusters of golden-yellow blossoms. It forms a good companion to the flowering Currant, Ribes sanguineum. |
| *R. gordonianum | Garden hybrid | Yellow and red | A hybrid between the species immediately preceding and the flowering Currant; it is in all respects about intermediate between the two. |
| R. multiflorum | Carpathian Mountains | Yellowish green | Grows 5 to 6 feet high, and is remarkable for the long, pendulous and graceful racemes of small yellowish blossoms. |
| *R. sanguineum (Flowering Currant) | Western North America | Bright rosy red; April | A shrub 5 to 6 feet high, with bright-coloured flowers. A deservedly popular shrub of easy culture. There are numerous varieties, all beautiful, viz.: album, nearly white; atrosanguineum, very deep coloured; flore-pleno, with double flowers the last of all to bloom; glutinosum, pale rose; malvaceum, dense clusters of rosy-lilac flowers. |
| *R. speciosum (Fuchsia-flowered Gooseberry), (Syn. R. fuchsioides) | California | Deep scarlet; April and May | Shrub 6 to 8 feet, stems spiny, flowers very beautiful. A delightful wall plant, though quite hardy in south of England. |
| *Robinia hispida (Rose Acacia), (Syn. Robinia rosea) | South United States; Leguminosæ | Purplish rose; June | From a flowering point of view this is the finest of all the Robinias. Though usually a small standard grafted on the common False Acacia, this is naturally a rambling shrub some 6 feet in height, with wide-spreading branches clothed with dark-green pinnate leaves, and about June the pendulous racemes of large snowy blossoms are at their best. In this species the stiff hairs that clothe the young shoots and flower stalks are very noticeable, but there is a variety (inermis) in which they are entirely absent. |
| *R. neo-mexicana | Colorado and New Mexico | Rose | A small tree related to the common False Acacia, but it differs from that well-known tree; the chief differences are—the glaucous green of its prettily divided leaves, the bright rose tint of its flowers, and the hairy flower stalks and seed pods. A beautiful autumn-flowering tree. |
| *R. Pseudacacia (Common Locust or False Acacia) | North America | White; late May and June | One of the handsomest of all hardy trees; the elegant pinnate foliage retained in all its freshness throughout the entire Summer, however hot and dry, renders it a delightful object during the whole of that time, and its beauty is considerably increased when the racemes of white flowers are fully open. In Winter, when bare, the deeply fissured bark, and its somewhat rugged aspect, are picturesque. There are many distinct varieties, chief among them being—aurea, in which the leaves are tinged with yellow; bella rosea, a smaller tree with rose-coloured flowers; bessoniana, a round-headed thornless form; decaisneana, with pretty rose-tinted blossoms; fastigiata, as upright as a Lombardy Poplar; inermis (Syn. umbraculifera), a mop-headed small tree; pendula, of weeping growth; and semperflorens, which continues to flower throughout the growing season. |
| R. viscosa (Clammy Locust Tree), Syn. R. glutinosa | North America | Pale rose; June and July | A small tree, easily known by the sticky glands that cover the new wood and leaf stalks. The leaves are larger than those of the others. |
| *Romneya Coulteri (Californian Poppy) | California (Papaveraceæ) | White, with golden stamens; Summer | Few flowers are more beautiful than those of the Californian Poppy. The flowers are so simple in form and delicate in substance. At first sight they remind one of the finest white crêpe, and flutter in the slightest breeze, their purity enhanced by the great golden boss of stamens from which they radiate. Many of the flowers are six inches and more in diameter, and when a dozen or more are open at one time, form a beautiful picture, whilst the fragrance is delicate. The plant, although flourishing in the south-west of England, is not absolutely safe there; several specimens were killed by the severe frost of a few winters ago. A certain amount of protection is desirable, but undue coddling often leads to the plant rotting to the root stock and so perishing. The Romneya is very impatient of root disturbance. When once established in the open ground, however, it grows strongly. The seeds take a long while to germinate. The plants may also be raised from root cuttings and layers. When growing in the rock-garden it often sends out shoots at some distance from the parent stem. Probably the best site for Romneya Coulteri is a sheltered one backed by a wall. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| Rubus bambusarum | Rosaceæ | The flowers give place to a black edible fruit | Henbane. Introduced by Messrs. Veitch from China, the trailing branches 10 ft. to 12 ft. |
| *R. biflorus (White-stemmed Bramble) | Himalaya; Rosaceæ | White | This Bramble forms an upright freely-branded specimen, 10 ft. high, and has whitened stems, which, especially in winter, are very conspicuous. |
| *R. deliciosus (Rocky Mountain Bramble) | Rocky Mountains | White | A Currant-like, bushy shrub, with large white flowers (like single Roses) in great profusion. It is one of the finest flowering shrubs we have. |
| R. flagelliformis | Central China | White | Introduced by Messrs. Veitch. The flowers are on growths 6 ft. to 8 ft. in length. Partly evergreen. A useful climber. |
| *R. fruticosus flore-pleno (Double Pink Bramble), Syn. R. bellidifolius. | Garden form | Pink; late Summer | A double pink form of our common Bramble, and of a loose rambling nature, soon forming a tangled mass. |
| R. innominatus | Hupeh; Central China | Interesting for its stems covered with a soft pubescence and large orange scarlet fruits, which are edible | Introduced by Messrs. Veitch, and is a great addition to dessert fruits. |
| R. laciniatus (Cut-leaved Bramble) | Garden origin | White | A strong-growing Bramble with elegantly cut leaves. It is essentially a plant for the wild garden, while the fruits are particularly good. |
| R. nutkanus (Nootka Sound Raspberry) | North America | White | A free upright species that pushes up annual shoots like the Raspberry, while the lobed leaves are decidedly ornamental. The large white blossoms are borne in May and June. |
| R. odoratus (Purple-flowered Raspberry) | North America | Rosy purple | Somewhat like the last, but with rosy-purple blossoms that are rather later in expanding than those of R. nutkanus. It thrives best in partial shade. |
| *R. phœnicolasius (Japanese Wine Berry) | Japan | Whitish | A strong-growing Raspberry-like plant, densely clothed with hairs. It is principally grown for its fruits, that are, when ripe, of a bright red tint, and appreciated by many. But this is a picturesque spreading shrub worth growing for its colouring and rambling growth alone. It is a good bank shrub, or to spread about over the rougher parts of the rock garden. |
| R. spectabilis (Salmon Berry) | North America | Purple; early May | A shrub so aggressive that it must go into the wild garden. It forms a dense tuft 6 feet high, and when laden with its drooping purple flowers is decidedly ornamental. |
| R. thyrsoideus flore-pleno (Double White Bramble) | Garden form | White | A semi-double white-flowered Bramble, less effective, however, than the double pink. |
| Sophora japonica | China; Leguminosæ | Creamy white panicles, which show up against the dark-green foliage | Excluding the plants formerly known as Edwardsia, now included in Sophora, this is the only well-known member of the genus, and it is the only one of our large-growing hardy trees that flowers in autumn. Regarded only from a foliage point of view, it forms a very handsome specimen, the elegant pinnate leaves retaining their deep green tint long after most trees acquire their autumnal hue. Like many other Leguminosæ, the deep descending nature of its roots enables it to resist a long period of drought during the summer months better than most trees. It is very quick in growth, and is therefore valuable where rapid results are desired. The Sophora has been grown in this country for the last century and a half, and though in its early days considered to be rather tender, it has long proved to be thoroughly hardy. Varieties are not numerous, there being one, variegata, which is but a poor thing, while another, pendula, is one of the most striking of weeping trees. In winter the bright-green bark of this is a very noticeable feature. |
| Spartium junceum (Spanish Broom) | Europe; Leguminosæ | Golden yellow | Owing to the deeply-descending nature of their roots, many of the Leguminosæ resist drought better than the majority of shrubs. A case in point is furnished by the Spanish Broom, which in summer is laden with its large golden-yellow blossoms. Against a dark-tinted background it stands out conspicuously, while seen in a mass or clump it is particularly striking. The Spanish Broom ripens seeds freely, from which young plants can be readily raised, but as they make very few fibres and do not as a rule transplant well, they should be put into their permanent quarters while still young. The leaves are very few in number, their place being filled as in some of its allies by the young shoots, which are dark green and Rush-like. There is a double variety, flore-pleno. |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| *Spiræa arguta | Garden origin; S. multiflora and S. Thunbergi (Rosaceæ) | White; late April | One of the best of the shrubby Spiræas, forming a dense bush about 4 feet high, which towards the end of April is profusely laden with clusters of pure white blossoms, despite frosts or cold winds, which play havoc with some of the early kinds. |
| S. bella | Nepaul | Deep pink; May and June | A free-growing species, 5 feet high, with pretty flowers. |
| S. betulifolia (Syn. S. splendens) | Europe | Clear cherry-pink; midsummer | A dwarf bush, 2 feet high, with pretty cherry-pink flowers. |
| S. brachybotrys (Syn. S. luxuriosa) | Garden origin; S. canescens and S. Douglasi | Pale pink; June | A bold bush, 6 feet or more in height. |
| S. bracteata | Japan | White; May | Grows 5 or 6 feet high. |
| *S. bullata (Syn. S. crispifolia) | Japan | Rosy carmine; July | A dwarf species suitable for rockwork. |
| *S. canescens (Syn. S. flagelliformis, Syn. S. nepalensis, Syn. S. rotundifolia) | Himalaya | White; June and July | The shoots of this are slender and arching so that it forms a graceful freely-branded shrub, some 5 to 8 feet in height. It is one of the best Spiræas. |
| *S. discolor (Syn. S. ariæfolia) | North-West America | Creamy white; July | A well-known shrub, far better known, however, under the name of Spiræa ariæfolia. It reaches a height of 10 to 12 feet or even more, with plume-like clusters of creamy white blossoms. This is a shrub for the smallest garden. |
| *S. Douglasi | North America | Rosy red; July and August | Forms a crowded cluster of erect shoots 6 feet or so in height, with each shoot terminated by a dense spike of flowers. It succeeds best in damp soil. |
| S. hypericifolia | Europe | White | The slender arching shoots are clothed with clusters of pure white flowers in late May. |
| *S. japonica (Syn. S. callosa) | Japan | Rosy carmine; June and July | Far better known under the name of S. callosa than that of japonica; it forms a shrub 5 or 6 feet high with brightly coloured flowers in flattened clusters. There are many distinct varieties, all good, the best being alba, a dwarf form with white flowers; Bumalda, also dwarf with pink blossoms; Anthony Waterer, the richest tinted of all dwarf kinds; superba, a deep tinted form of the type; and glabrata, with curiously broad leaves. Anthony Waterer is especially worth growing. |
| *S. lindleyana | Himalaya | White; August | Reaches a height of 10 to 12 feet, and is remarkable for its handsome pinnate leaves, while the large feathery flower panicles are very striking. |
| S. media (Syn S. confusa) | Europe | White; May | Forms a dense rounded bush from 5 to 8 feet high, and has clusters of pure white blossoms in profusion. |
| S. opulifolia (Nine Bark of the United States), (Syn. Neillia opulifolia) | North America | Whitish | One of the largest of all the Spiræas, being of almost tree-like habit, but the flowers are not showy. There is a golden leaved form (aurea) of dwarfer habit than the type, which is in the first half of the season very pretty. |
| *S. prunifolia flore-pleno | Japan | White; Spring | The flowers of this are quite double, like little rosettes, and in clusters along the arching shoots. Early in April as a rule they are very pretty. |
| S. salicifolia | Europe | Pinkish | A variable kind, more or less approaching S. Douglasi, but with light-tinted flowers. |
| S. sorbifolia | Northern Europe | White; July | A pinnate-leaved species somewhat in the way of S. lindleyana, but it does not grow more than half the height and flowers a month earlier. |
| S. Thunbergi | Japan | White; very early Spring | The first of all the Spiræas to bloom, but its beauty is often marred by inclement weather. It forms a dense mass of slender twigs clothed with tiny leaves. |
| S. Van Houttei | Garden form | White | A hybrid kind with pure white blossoms, which are as a rule more satisfactory under glass than in the open ground. |
Name. Country or Origin and Natural Order. Colour and Season. General Remarks.
Syringa (lilac) Eastern Europe and Northern Asia; Oleaceæ Various A lovely family. Mr. Bean in The Garden, April 2, 1898, writes: “As now constituted, the genus consists of two groups: First, the true Lilacs, represented by S. vulgaris; and second, the Privet-like Lilacs, of which some authorities have made a separate genus under the name Ligustrina. The species in this latter group are distinguished from the true Lilacs by flowering later in the summer, and by having large panicles of smaller Privet-like flowers, the corolla of which is white and much shorter than in the other group. There are three of them in cultivation—S. amurensis, S. japonica, S. pekinensis—which, however, some botanists have considered to be merely geographical forms of one species existing in Manchuria, Japan, and China. The following is a complete list of the species in gardens, with some of the commoner synonyms: S. Emodi, var. rosea (S. Bretschneideri), S. Josikæa, S. oblata (S. chinensis), S. persica, var. laciniata (S. filicifolia, S. pinnata), S. villosa (S. pubescens), S. vulgaris, S. chinensis (S. dubia, S. rothomagensis) hybrid. Ligustrina Group.—S. amurensis (Ligustrina amurensis), S. japonica (Ligustrina amurensis var. japonica), S. pekinensis (Ligustrina pekinensis).”
S. amurensis Manchuria; discovered in 1857 by a Russian botanist named Raffe Creamy white A sturdy bush with stout, erect branches. The small creamy white flowers are borne on large branching racemes. It is a native of the valleys of the Ussuri and Amur Rivers. One of the earliest of hardy shrubs to break into leaf.
*S. chinensis Probably raised in Rouen Botanic Garden by M. Varin over 100 years ago from seed borne by S. persica. Synonyms S. correlata, S. dubia, S. rothomagensis May The flowers are in panicles intermediate in size between those of its parents, and are of the same colour. Very free-flowering and pretty, and might be recommended as a substitute for the common Lilac in positions where the latter would be too large. To add to the confusion respecting its origin, it is still called in some nurserymen’s catalogues the Siberian Lilac, Rouen Lilac, and Chinese Lilac. It lasts longer in flower than the common Lilac.
*S. Emodi (Himalayan Lilac) Dr. Aitchison found this on the Afghan Mountains in 1879, 9000 feet to 10,000 feet elevation Pale purple This is altogether of sturdier growth than the ordinary Lilac, with large leaves and terminal panicles of flowers. Of greater ornamental value is the variety rosea which was introduced a few years ago from the mountains about Pekin by Dr. Bretschneider, and in gardens (French chiefly) it is known as Syringa Bretschneideri. It is more robust than the type, and bears large panicles of rosy-tinted flowers in June or later. There is a variegated-leaved variety of S. Emodi, which is handsome when vigorously grown. Another form with more or less golden is foliis aureis. When the soil is rich the leaves measure 6 inches long and 4 inches wide.
S. japonica Japan White A large growing shrub, of bushy growth, and larger in foliage than S. vulgaris. It bears large branching panicles of small white flowers, reminding one of those of the Privet, hence the name of the group to which it belongs (Ligustrina). These panicles in Japan and the United States attain as much as 18 inches and even 2 feet in length, but whether it will grow in this country in such a way remains to be seen.
S. Josikæa (Hungarian Lilac) Hungarian Mountains Lilac; May An old shrub of moderate growth, but is not of great value, as it happens to flower when we have a wealth of bloom from the commoner kinds. It is, however, interesting and worth growing, if only for the sake of the pretty sentiment that attaches to its origin, having been found by Baroness Von Josika in her wanderings about the Hungarian mountains in 1835. It may be best described as a small form of S. Emodi. It was first grown in Britain at Edinburgh, in the year mentioned. Its height is 6 feet to 10 feet, with the young twigs of a purplish colour; the panicles are terminal, erect, and small compared with those of the more showy Lilacs, and usually about 4 inches long, rarely as much as 6 inches to 9 inches.
S. pekinensis Mountains of North China White One of the three Privet-like Syringas, and one of the last introduced. It is the Chinese representative of the Ligustrina group. From its two allies (S. amurensis and S. japonica) it is to be distinguished by its long and much more slender branches, which in one form are distinctly pendulous (var. pendula).
*S. persica (Persian Lilac) Found by Dr. Aitchison in 1879. Afghanistan. 7000 feet to 8000 feet elevation Deep purplish; May This old favourite is often confused with the Rouen Lilac, but it is quite different, being smaller in stature, with much smaller leaves, and with an elegant spreading habit of growth. In the type the flower clusters are nearly as large as those of S. chinensis, deep purple in colour, varying to almost a pure white in the variety alba. In the variety laciniata, known also as S. ficifolia, pinnata, and other names, the leaves are cut or coarsely toothed. It is a beautiful little shrub, and suits a place where the tall growing kinds would be too large. Like the common and the Rouen Lilacs, it may be forced into flower at Christmas time, and, unlike the others, its small size enables it to be grown in pots for room decoration. The exact length of time the Persian Lilac has been in cultivation is not known. It had long been cultivated in the country to which it owes its name—since the year 1200, say some authorities—but it has never been found truly wild in Persia. It was not until 1879 that its real native habitat was revealed.
S. villosa (Syn. pubescens) Introduced from the Chihli province of China in 1880 Rose Lilac; May This interesting species first flowered in 1888. It is very fragrant, and the panicle is from 3 inches to 4 inches long.
*S. vulgaris (Common Lilac) A native of Eastern Europe, and although it appears to have been originally introduced from Persia about, or previous to the year 1597, it was found to be a native of Southern Hungary, in the region of the Danube especially on the chalky precipices of the Cverna Valley and on Mount Domoglet. It is not found truly indigenous further west than these localities, and it is not, as has been stated, a native of Italy, although, no doubt it has become neutralised there and elsewhere Lilac; May See below for remarks.
The common Lilac has been the glory of English gardens since the days of Gerard and Parkinson of the sixteenth century. From the time that Parkinson grew it in a pot, with no doubt as much care and anxiety as is bestowed nowadays on a hundred-guinea Orchid, the Lilac has, on account of its extreme hardiness and easy culture, become almost naturalised in these islands, as now we see it in copse and hedgerow, besides gardens large and small, and even in the town forecourt. To every place where the Englishman goes to make a home he likes to have about him Lilacs and Roses. As in the case of several other beautiful shrubs, the improvement of the Lilac by the raising of new varieties is of comparatively recent date. Gerard and Parkinson write of the blue Pipe and the white Pipe (the Lilac being then called the Pipe tree, on account of pipes being made from its wood), besides the ordinary lilac-coloured sort, and Loudon, writing fifty years ago, only enumerates the blue (cærulea), violet (violacea), the white (alba), and alba major, and one double called alba plena, seven in all. He just mentions, however, a fine variety, Caroli (or Charles X., as we know it), which about that time had been raised in France. This still is one of the choicest sorts, and particularly valuable for forcing into early bloom in winter. Since that time there has been great activity in raising new kinds in France, till now the list of named single sorts numbers upwards of fifty, while the doubles are almost as numerous. There are far too many named sorts, in fact, as the differences between many of them are of the slightest, so that the selection of the best from catalogues, from the mere names and brief descriptions (not always accurate) is perplexing to an amateur. To no raiser do we owe more to the improvement of the Lilac of late years than to that famous veteran French hybridist, Victor Lemoine of Nancy, who has made the genus Syringa one of his special studies, and favoured as he is by a climate suitable for the free seeding of the Lilac, he has been highly successful. There are four more or less distinct shades of colour among the sorts, viz. whites, reds, pinks, and so-called blues. A selection of a dozen single sorts would include the following, placed in order of merit: Whites—Marie Le Gray, Alba grandiflora. Blue or Bluish—Cærulea or Delphine, Duchesse de Namours, Lindleyana or Dr. Lindley. Reds or Purple-reds—Souvenir de L. Späth, Philemon, Rubra insignis, Mme. Kreuter, Camille de Rohan, Ville de Troyes. Pinks—Lovanensis, Schneelavine. This selection comprises the finest sorts, having the largest flower clusters in their respective colours, and is representative of the whole of the sorts. Of the double flowered sorts there has of recent years been a great number sent from French nurseries, and only a few of the oldest sorts have developed into large specimens, and therefore one cannot judge of their merits, as in the case of the single sorts. The best varieties include the following dozen sorts: Lavender and Blue—Leon Simon, Renoncule, Alphonse Lavallée (pale blue). Pinks—President Carnot, M. de Dombasle. Whites—Mme. Abel Chatenay (the finest), Mme. Lemoine, Cassimir fils. Reds—President Grévy, Senateur Volland, Comte H. de Choiseul, Maxime Cornu. In the Lilacs there is material for the tasteful planter of gardens, yet how seldom does one see in ordinary gardens full advantage taken of them for producing beautiful effects! In the common way of planting they are dotted about shrubberies indiscriminately, and jumbled with trees and shrubs of a totally different character, so that the Lilacs cannot be seen to the fullest advantage. An isolated group of the choicest kinds, or even a simple hedge of the white or rich purple kinds is seldom seen, except in some old gardens, and still less seldom does one see any attempt at culture in the way of pruning and the cutting away of suckers. At Kew one may see bold examples of grouping Lilacs, as well as well-developed specimens standing alone on grass, while about London one sees in the market gardens fine hedges of Lilac planted for the twofold purpose of cutting from and providing shelter. Mr. Goldring writes in The Garden, “The most beautiful Lilac hedge I have seen was that I enjoyed recently at the White Farm, Crichel (an enclosure devoted to white animals), where there are glorious hedges of the pure white Lilac Marie Le Gray in abundant flower—quite appropriate to the white surroundings. The only culture the Lilacs require is occasional manuring in light, poor soils, occasional pruning so as to induce a bushy growth, as the growth is apt to become ‘leggy,’ and continuous attention in cutting away suckers, which are so plentiful as to rob the tops. Two or three suckers should be allowed to grow so as to keep up the supply of strong, vigorous flowering stems. Lilacs can be made to form standards by keeping the bush from the outset to one stem, and when seen rising out of a low hedge of Lilac, or a mass of the dwarf kinds, they have a pleasing effect, and is one of the various ways they can be arranged in planting.”
| Veronica.—There are a vast number of Veronicas, all natives of New Zealand, and garden forms raised from them, but many can only be regarded as hardy in the extreme west of England and Ireland, whereas some of the hardiest are from their diminutive growth suitable only for rockwork. The best are— |
| Name. | Country or Origin and Natural Order. | Colour and Season. | General Remarks. |
| *Veronica Andersonii | Garden Origin (Scrophularineæ) | Purple; Summer and Autumn | A neat evergreen shrub with dense spikes of bluish-purple blossoms in great profusion for a long period. Near the sea, in especially favoured spots, it is delightful, while in other districts it forms a valuable subject for greenhouse or conservatory. Of the numerous other garden forms belonging to this section the following are all good: Blue Gem, light blue; Bolide, reddish; Celestial, sky blue, light centre; La Seduisante, rich reddish-purple; Marie Antoinette, pink; Purple Queen, rich purple; and Reine des Blanches, white. |
| V. hulkeana | New Zealand | Pale lavender; May and June | Very distinct; it has large terminal panicles of pale lavender flowers. |
| *V. Traversii | New Zealand | Pale mauve; June and July | The hardiest of all the shrubby Veronicas; it is a dense box-like bush, with a profusion of dense spikes of flowers. In the neighbourhood of London this is a thoroughly good shrub of easy culture. |
| Viburnum | Caprifoliaceæ | ...... | The Viburnum family includes several beautiful shrubs, and of the thirty or forty species and varieties in cultivation at least six are indispensable, i.e. no good shrub garden is without them. Most of them are vigorous in growth and easily propagated; they like a fairly rich soil and moisture at the root. Several of the American species grow naturally in damp, more or less shady woodlands. Taken collectively the Viburnums possess a variety of attractions. Some species are evergreen, and thus useful Winter plants; others are amongst the most beautiful shrubs for their flowers, others again, like our native Guelder Rose (V. Opulus), have showy fruits; finally the foliage of several of the deciduous species dies off rich red or yellow tints. |
| V. dentatum (Arrow-wood) | North America. Introduced in 1763 | White; June and July | The American Viburnums are not apparently so valuable in the British Isles as in their native country. Most of them are handsome vigorous bushes, but without the same flower attractions as plicatum, macrocephalum, and the Guelder Rose (V. Opulus var. sterile). Many of them, however, bear very showy fruits in their own country, and the leaves turn to beautiful Autumn tints. V. dentatum is deciduous, free-growing, leaves bright green, deeply toothed and strongly veined. The trusses are 3 inches to 4 inches across, the flowers white, and fertile. It is one of the handsomest as regards flowers of the American Viburnums. The dark-blue fruit ripens neither abundantly nor regularly in England. |
| V. Lantana (Wayfaring tree) | Britain, also Europe North and Western Asia, and N. Africa | White; May and June | A beautiful native shrub. Its chief beauty is in the colour of the flowers and the gorgeous Autumn leaf tints. Groups of this are pictures of colour in Autumn. The fruit, at first black and afterwards red, soon disappears before the birds. The tree grows rapidly and generally attains a height of about 12 or 15 feet; the leaves are large and downy. The wayfaring tree should be more planted in English gardens. It will grow almost anywhere. There are two variegated-leaved varieties, but these we know little about, and we care more for the type than any golden variegation. |
| V. macrocephalum | China and Japan. Introduced from China in 1844 by Fortune | Pure white | This must be included, but it is not very hardy. Mr. Bean, writing of it in The Garden, November 17, 1900, p. 361, says: “The shrub known under this name is a cultivated form of a Chinese species, in which all the flowers have, under artificial influences, become sterile. The wild plant to which it belongs is also in cultivation, and is known as V. Keteleeri. In this type plant the middle of the truss is filled with perfect flowers, the edges only being occupied with the large and showy sterile ones. V. macrocephalum is by far the most striking plant, its large, rounded or pyramidal trusses of pure white flowers being unequalled among the Viburnums. The plant is, however, better adapted for growing in pots for greenhouse decoration or as a wall plant than it is as a shrub in the open. In my experience it is scarcely hardy enough to assume its best character without some sort of protection. Although hard winters may not kill it outright they seriously cripple it. It is only in recent years that it has attained popularity, but it has long been known.” |
| V. Opulus (the Guelder Rose). It is called in America the Cranberry bush or High Cranberry | Britain, Europe and Northern hemisphere | White; May and June | Of the two species of Viburnum this is the better known, and is the more valuable as a garden shrub. It grows to a height of from 10 to 15 feet, and is easily known by the beautiful lobed Maple-like leaves, which die off brilliant crimson shades. Sterile as well as fertile flowers are produced on each truss, the flowers being white and three-quarters of an inch across. But the wild Guelder Rose is in its fullest beauty in Autumn when the fruits change to brilliant red, and the leaves gradually assume their gorgeous colouring. As this species appreciates moisture it is a noble shrub to make groups of in moist places, such as by stream, pond, river, or moist margin. The beauty of the wild Guelder Rose is not realised by many planters of gardens. Its colouring is intense. In the “Cyclopedia of American Horticulture” it is mentioned: “Handsome native shrub, very decorative in fruit, which begins to colour by the end of July, remains on the branches, and keeps its bright scarlet colour until the following Spring. The berries are not eaten by birds.” |
| V. O. sterile (Snowball tree) | Variety. Origin unknown | White; early June | This is too well known to need description. It is a graceful shrub, its branches bent with the weight of the rounded flower trusses. As in the case of V. macrocephalum and of V. plicatum the small and insignificant fertile flowers have become transformed by cultivation into large barren ones, and the truss also loses its flattened shape and becomes rounded or conical. It appreciates a moist soil. |
| V. rhytidophyllum | China | Yellow white | A handsome evergreen shrub, introduced by Messrs. Veitch. Ornamental foliage, and in September the berries turn to a rich red colour. |
| V. tomentosum Mariesi | Japan | Cream white | A very graceful shrub but little known. The sterile flowers are on the outer edge of the flat cymes, and line the spreading shoots. We hope it will soon be plentiful. |
| V. tomentosum var. plicatum | Japan. Introduced by Fortune in 1844 | Ivory white | We have used the word tomentosum as plicatum is a variety of that species. V. tomentosum itself is a handsome shrub with big, flattish cymes and creamy-white sterile flowers round the margin of the truss. That known as V. plicatum, a sterile form of V. tomentosum, is a beautiful shrub; the most precious perhaps of the whole family. It makes a glorious group on the lawn, and in early June the spreading shoots are so thickly covered with flower clusters that scarcely a vestige of the dark-green, wrinkled leafage is visible. It is quite hardy, but in the north it will be wise to choose a sheltered position for it. As a wall shrub too it is valuable, and a specimen on a wall in the Royal Horticultural Society’s gardens at Chiswick is quite a mass of bloom every year. Passers by who know not the shrub wonder what it is making so thick a mantle of white. It grows 4 to 5 feet high in the British Isles, taller in its native country; the trusses of flowers are erect on short branches, and each measure about 3 inches across. Being in pairs they make a striking double row on every branch. V. plicatum must come into the smallest list of flowering shrubs. |
| V. Tinus (Laurustinus) | South of Europe and North of Africa. Introduced in 1596 | White; flowers in Winter in the south, but much depends upon locality | This is a well-known evergreen shrub, and quite hardy in the south of these Isles, where its planted as a hedge. Even when out of flower the bush has a certain beauty owing to its shining green leaves. Near London it succeeds. Many things considered hardier get severely injured when the Laurustinus escapes. North and easterly winds are harmful to it. There are several varieties. Lucidum is the finest; the leaves and corymbs are larger than those of the type, the former being of a very glossy green and smooth. In lucidum the leaves and branches are woolly, whilst there are also purpureum, with purplish leaves, and a variegated variety, but neither is of value. |