The NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE

JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY

JULY, 1944 The American Horticultural Society

PRESENT ROLL OF OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS April, 1944

OFFICERS President, Major David V. Lumsden, U. S. Army First Vice-President, Mr. Wilbur H. YOIlllgIIlan, Washington, D. C. Second Vice-President, Mrs. Robert Woods Bliss, Washington, D. C. Secretary, Dr. V. T. Stoutemyer, Washington, D. C. Treasurer, Mr. J. Marion Shull, Washington, D. C. DIRECTORS Terms Expiring 1945 Terms Expiring 1946 Mr. Robert E. Allen, San Gabriel, Calif. Mrs. Walter Dougla.s, Chauncey, N. Y. Mrs. Robert Fife, New York, N. Y. Mrs. J. Norman Henry, Gladwyne, Pa. Mrs. Mortimer J. Fox, Peekskill, N. Y. Mrs. Clement S. Houghton, Olestnut Hill, Mr. B. Y. MorriJon, Washington, D. C. Mass. Dr. Donald Wyman, J ama.ica Plain, Mass. Dr. E. J. Kraus, Chicago, Ill. Mrs. Ar·thur Hoyt Scott, Media, Pa.

HONORARY VICE-PRESIDENTS Mr. Clarence A. Hall, Pres., Mr. Walter D. Blair, Pres., American Begonia Society, American Rock Garden Society, 2131 EI Jardin, Tarrytown, Ventura, Calif. New York. Mr. A. F. Truex, Pres., Mr. Thomas J. Newbill, Pres., American Rose Society, American Delphinium Society, 3150 South Zunis, 234 S. Brainard Ave., Tulsa, Ok·lahoma La Grange, Illinois Mr. Wm. T. Marshall, Pres. Emeritus, Cactus & Succulent Society of America, Mr. C. A. Weatherby, Pres., 327 North Ave., 61 American Fern Society, Los Angeles, Calif. 27 Raymond St., Mr; James H. Porter, Pres., Cambridge, Mass. Camellia Society of America Macon, Ga. Mr. Jesse E. Wills, Pres., Mrs. John H. Cunningham, Pres., American Iris Society, Hellb Society of America, National Bldg., 53 Seaver St. Nashville, Tenn. Brookline, Mass. Mrs. Beatrice Harms, Pres., Mr. John A. Bongers, Pres., Midwest Horticultural Society, American Peony Society, 4155 West 14th St., Ottumwa, Iowa Chicago 23, Ill.

SOCIETIES AFFILIATED WITH THE AMERICAN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 1944 Akron Garden Center, American Amaryllis Society, 226 South Main St., Mr. L. S. Hannibal, Secy., Akron, Ohio Concord, Calif.

Publication Office, 32nd St. and Elm Ave., Baltimore, Md. Entered as second·class matter January 27, 1932, at the Post Office at Baltimore, Md., under the Act of August 24, 1912. American Fuchsia Society, Garden Center Institute of Buffalo, Headquarters : CaEf. Acad. of Sciences, Delaware Park Casino, Golden Gate Park, Buffalo, N. Y. San Francisco, Calif. Garden Centre, Arlington County Garden Club, % Carolina Garden Stores, Miss Eleanor Swain, Secy., 23 North Lexington St., 4524 N . Carline Spring Rd., Asheville, N. C. Arlington, Va. Garden Center, Bristow Garden Club, Youngstown Public Library, Mrs. J. L. Kohler, Pres., Youngstown, Ohio Bristow, Okla. Garden Club of Ohio, California Garden Clubs, Inc., The M. O'Neil Co., Mrs. J. A. Simmington, Akron, Ohio. 880 Chida Vista Ave., Pasadena, Calif. Garden Club of Virginia, Mrs. Powell Glass, Pres., California Horticultural Society, 210 Lee Drive, Miss Cora R. Brandt, Secretary, Lynchburg, Va. 300 Montgomery St., San Francisco, Calif. Garden Club, Woman's Dept. Club, Chestnut Hill Garden Club, 8 - 2 Margaret Place, Mrs. Bryan S. Perman, Treas., Shreveport, La. 41 Crafts Rd., Chestnut Hills, Mass. Georgetown Garden Club, Mrs. John Blake Gordon, Pres., Chevy Chase (D. C.) Garden Club, 3241 R St., N. W., Mrs. Lawrence E. Voorhees, Washington, D. C. 3810 Alton Place, N. W. Chevy Chase, D. C. Greeley Garden Club, Mrs. Asa T. Jones, J r., Chevy Chase (Md.) Garden Club, 1703-11th Ave., Mrs. Z. D. Blackistone, Greeley, Colo. 29 E. Bradley Lane, Chevy Chase, Md. Home Garden Club of Denver, Community Garden Club of Bethesda, Mrs. C. J. Christensen, Pres., Mrs. Arnold Bmr, 4025 Quitman Bell's Mill Road, Denver, Colo. Rockville, Md. Indian Head Garden Club, Dallas Garden Club (Founders' Group), Mrs. Frank A. Bolton, Pres., Mrs. Sam B. Dickinson, Pomonkey, Md. 1218 N. Clinton, Dallas 8, Texas. Kanawha Garden Club, Eagle Garden Club, Mrs. Ruffner R. Payne, Pres., Mrs. J. D. Allen, Pres., 1507 A Virginia St., Eagle, Colo. Charleston, W. Va.

Fauquier and Loudoun Garden Club, Longmont Garden Club, Mrs. N. H. Morison, Pres., Callahan House, Terry St., Middleburg, Va. Longmont, Colo.

Federated Garden Clubs of Cincinnati and Men's Garden Club of Phoenix, Vicinity, Mr. Maurice J. Bradford, Pres., Mrs. Charles Bosworth, Pres., Rt. 1. Box 826, 2425 Ingleside Place, Phoeni x, Ariz. East Walnut Hills, Cincitmati, Ohio. Michigan Horticultural Society, Garden Center of Greater Cleveland, Mr. Paul R. Krone, Secy., East Boulevard at Euclid Ave., Horticultural Building, Cleveland 6, Ohio East Lansing, Mich. [i] Midwest Horticultural Society, The San Francisco Garden Club, Mrs. Beatrice Harms, Pres., Room 133, Fairmont Hotel, 4155 West 14th St., San Francisco 6, Calif. Chicago 23, III. The Valley Garden Center, 2700 N. 15th Ave., Norwich Garden Club, Phoenix, Ariz. Ruth T . Kroeger, Treas., 40 Hayes St., The Trowel Club, Norwich, N. Y. Mrs. Robert M. Hinckley, 4655 Garfield St., N. W., Ohio Association of Garden Clubs, Washington, D. C. Mr. Victor Ries, Ohio State University, Tulsa Garden Club, Columbus, Ohio. Mrs. Thos. G. Leslie, Librarian, 1439 S. Carolina Ave., Rock Garden Society of Ohio, Tulsa 5, Okla. Mrs. Frank Garry, Librarian, Twin Falls Garden Club, Montgomery Station Post Office, Twin Falls, Montgomery, Ohio Idaho Salida Garden Club, Wayside Garden Club, Mrs. John C. Burgener, Secy., Mrs. W. J. McCuiston, Pres., 802 D S1:., 454 S. Harvard St., Salida, Colo. Tulsa, Okla. Woodridge Garden Club, Takoma Horticultural Club, Mr. A. H. Hester, Pres., Mr. Frank L. Pohanka, Pres., 1824 R. I. Ave., N. E., Silver Spring, Md. Washington, D. C. The Pittsburgh Garden Center, Worcester County Horticul tura! Society, Schenley Park, 30 Elm Street, Pittsburgh, Pa. Worcester, Mass.

[ii] The National Horticultural Magazine

Vol. 23 Copy right , 1 944, by THE AM ERIC AN HOR.TICUT,TURAL SOCIE'fY No. 3

JULY, 1944

CONT ENTS

PAGE J efferson and P lant Introduction. POWELL GLASS ______127 The Long Look. L ESTER ROW NTREE ______. ______132 D isease-Resistant and Har ely Varieties of Vegetables, Part II. VICTOR R. BOSWELL. ______138 H ave You Seen . . . ? MARY FRAKES THARP ______143 A Seven Year Study -of Oriental Poppies. K ARL K. LOREN Z______146 Lilies in the Upper Middle South. ELIZABETH B. TRUNDLE ______153 F ruit Varieties fo r the H ome Garden. W ILBUR H. YO UN GMAN _. ______158 ABo ok or T wo ______162 Rock Garden Notes: Waves, Not Feminine nor Nautical-but Floral. VIOLET NILES W ALKER.______163 The Gardener's Pocketbook T he Mountain Cranberry. WARREN C. WILSON______~ ______171 The Green .Spleenwo rt. WARREN C. WILSON -- ______171 C ladr as tis lu tea ______------______172 S ty1'ax j ap o1'bica ______------______174 P hil.adelphus, "Bouquet Blanc" ______174 FI'011'1, the Midwest Ho-rtiodtural Society: ELDRED -E. GREEN L onice 1' a fmg1'ant'is s·i1na ------______176 Salix cap r ea ______.. ______------______176

P hys 0 W I' p",~s 0 pulifo li:/;~s nanus------______1-76 C onl/;us K ol/;~sa var. C hinensis ------______178 N ,)1111.phea, Midnight ------______~--- 182 D aHo d il s ______------______182 K o e lr e"'~t e n:a pa17iculata 182 L i1"io dend1'on chi11ens'is 182

Publish ed quarterly by The Amer ican H orticu ltural Society, Publi catio n offi ce, 32nd St. and E lm Ave., Baltimore, . Md, Editorial offi ce, R oom 821, W ~s hing to n L oan a nd .T r ust Building, W ashington, D , C. ContrIbUtions from all members ar e cordlally Invlted a nd should be sent to the Editorial offi ce. A subscription to the magazine is included in the annua l dues to all members; to non-memher s th e p r ice is seventy-five cents a copy, three doll ar s a year. [iii ] Les/c?' Rownf1'ce (See page 132) The TCtOl1S Jefferson and. Plant Introduction POWELL GLASS

"The greatest service which can be the P iedmont area a quantltly of seed rendered any country is to add an use­ rice which he sent to the Society. J ef­ ful plant to its culture; especially, a ferson also secured some seed rice from bread grain; next in value to bread is Egypt and received the promise of a oil. " prince of Cochin, China, whom he met When J effersol1 wrote the above in in Paris, to send him some of the seed 1821 , it was not with enthusiasm of of the rice of that coun try when the youth that he wrote but as a result of prince should have returned home. long years of agricul·tural and horticul­ The growing of upland rice met with tural experience and of careful c-onsid­ some success in both Carolina and eration of the matter -l;>o th from the eco­ Georgia, but it, along with the swamp­ nomic and social standpoints. land rice, largely disappeared as a C0111- From 1784 to 1789 J efferson was in mercial crop after the \Var Between France, first under an appointment to the States. It would perhaps please aid Benjamin Franklin and J ohn Jefferson to know that rice is now Adams in the negotiation of certain grown commercially in portions of that treaties of commerce and then as great territory which, as President, he Franklin's success-or as minister to succeeded in getting the United States France ( 1785-89). During hi s stay in to purchase from Napoleon, principally that country Jefferson noticed that rice in Louisiana and Arkansas. was a staple article of di et, particularly Another ' crop which J effers·on be­ in Paris. Upon inquiry he a:scertained lieved would prove successful in South that about half of the supply came from Carolina and Georgia was oli ves. Dur­ the United States by way of Great ing a trip through southern France, he Britain and the other half from the came to the belief that the climate of Italian Piedmont. In this latter place that country was so ve ry similar to th

Frenchman to grow yo ung olive trees J efferson was quite as interested in to be used as understocks for grafting other sections of the country, nor did and to attend to their shipment. He al­ his limited success with upland rice, so arranged for the shipment of the olives and the cork oak serve to damp­ necessary scions to South Carolina. en his enthusiasm for the importation This venture did not prove successful, of exotic plants. On June 8, 1795, he but Jefferson was not daunted, as he wrote to J ohn Taylor the following let­ held one hundred failures not too large ter: a price to pay for one success . " I enclose you a few seed of the A third plant which J efferson intro­ Ruta;baga, or Swedish winter turnep. duced into the south was the cork oak this is the plant which the English (Quercus sube1' Linn), a large ever­ Government thought of value enough green oak that grows in the central and to be procured at public expense from western parts of the Mediterranean Sweden, cultivated and dispersed. a area. A number o·f these trees are still 111r . Strickland, an English gentleman growing in the U nited States from Vir­ from Yorkshire, lately here, left a few ginia to Texas. The present war, be­ seeds with me, of which I impart to cause of its interference with shipping, you. he tells me it has such advan­ has given some impetus to the idea of tage over the C01111110n turnep that it is gro.wing the cork tree commercially in spreading rapidly over England & will the United States where it is thought become their chief turnep. it's prin­ that it might be successfully grow n in cipal excellence is it's remaining in the areas having much sunshine as this oak field unhurt even ·by the severities of is quite drought resistant. The Depart­ the S.wedish winter. he suspects that ment of Agriculture, however, does in the seed he gave me, there is an not appear to be extremely enthusias­ aocidental mixture of the common tur­ tic about the 'matter because of the hi gh nep. it may be easily distinguished price of land and labor in the United when it con1es up, as the leaf of the States. Ruta-bage resembles that of rape or As showi ng that J efferson constant­ cabbage & not at a.Jl that of the turnep." ly kept the social phase of agriculture Another agricultural experiment in in mind he urged an increased use of whi ch Jefferson was greatly interested the fig and mulberry, especially in sec­ was the attempt to grow the sugar ti ons where there was slave la-bo r. In maple (Ace?' saccha,ru.?111) in Virginia. such sections, he poin ted out, "the In this, too, he had a social need in women and children are often employed mind. J efferson had had ample oppor­ in labors disproportioned to their sex tunity to observe the ill effects of war, and age." The culture of the lfig and not only upon the nations engaged as mulberry was done largely by women principals but, also upon neutral na­ and children and, consequently, J effer­ tions, neutral rights upon the seas be­ son thought, would tend to make their ing then but little respected. In a time lot in li fe "much softened." when practically all frei ght was water The fact that J efferson showed such bo·rne, a war in which a nation was not great interest in the South was not be­ a principal might cut off some food cause he .was sectional minded, it was crop whi·ch was sorely needed, even merely the result of the fact that he though there might be an abundance was in France and thought the climate of that crop in so me other section of of the southern United States very the nation. Therefo re, it seemed to simil ar to that of southern France. J efferson, if the sugar maple could be July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 129 successfully grown in the Piedmont beds but also as to the exact plants section of Virginia that tree mi ght fur­ used. rush a sugar supply that could not be A list compiled from J efferson's cut off in the event of war. The sugar Garden Book, Weather Book, letters maple, however, does well in Virginia and various memoraHda shows that he only in the high altitudes of her west­ had planted at Monti-cello something ern counties and was not successful at more than three hundred different Monticello. kinds of trees, shrubs, roses and peren­ Despite the fact that J efferson's best nials and that at least a third of them known importations were in efforts to were native to some foreign land, while create new farm crops, hi s principal many others were not native to Vir­ enthusiasm was for the garden, both ginia but brought in from some other vegetable and fl ower garden. In a let­ part of the U nited States. ter written from hi s Bedford County, Such a proportion of exotic plant Virginia home, P.o plar Forest, to material might not be unusual in a Charles W. Peale on August 20, 1811, large modern garden owing to the im­ Jefferson said, " no occupati on is so de­ portation and propagation of such plant lightful to me as the culture of the material by our commercial nurseries earth, and no culture comparable to since the time of Jefferson, but, in that of the garden." J efferson's day the difficulties experi­ enced in obtaining plants from abroad, At Monti.cello, Jefferson gave as or even from other parts of the U nited much of his time and attention to the States, was so great that the proportion garden as his public duties would per­ of exotic plants which J efferson pos­ mit, and it was hi s custom to experi­ sessed at Monticello was truly remark­ ment at Monticello with seeds and able. Any plant brought from abr.oad plants received from friends in foreign had :to come, of course, by ocean ves­ lands and from other parts of ·the sel, and even when Jefferson ordered U nited States. plants from Philadelphia or N ew York, In 1939 The Garden Club of Vir­ the plants had to be shipped by vessel ginia undertook the restoration of the down through the Virginia Capes and gardens of Monticello. The commit­ up to Richmond. There they were tee in charge, under the chairmanship received by Jefferso n's agent and trans­ of Mrs. Allan Perkins of Charlottes­ ferred to a ri ver barge which carried ville, was fortunate in this work to have them up the James and Rivanna Rivers the assistance of Dr. Edwin M. Betts to a small wharf on the Rivanna near of the Miller School of Biology of the Monticello. The great difficulties at­ University of Virginia, who was select­ tendant upon such shipments and the ed by the Ameri can Philosophic So­ danger that plants might not survive ciety, of which J efferso l1 was a mem­ such a trip made it quite unusual for ber, to edit the forthcoming edition of anyone to possess so large a number of J efferson's Garden Book. exoti c plants as did J efferson. Only a Fortunately, J efferson left plans of man extremely interested in horticul­ hi s garden as well as lists of the plants ture would have gone to so much he employed so that The Garden Club trouble and expense to possess them. of Virginia was enabled to restore the Among the plants found at Monti­ gardens practically as they had been cello was the Scotch broom (C ytisus when Jefferson lived at Monticell o, not sco pan:us) which J efferso n is common­ only as to location and exact size of ly credited with havin g introd uced into 130 THE NATIONAL B.OR1ICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944 this country. This plant is valuable our native Magnolias-M. gmndifiom, not alone for preventing soil erosion M. glauca and M. t1'ipetala. but, in masses, is a beautiful sight each Jefferson also had the services spring. The Virginia State Highway abroad, in procuring plant material for Department is now employing it on him, of Philip Mazzei, an Italian phy­ many of the cuts and fills along the sician, who came to Virginia in 1773 highways where it serves the dual utili­ to engage in viniculture. Mazzei tarian-,beautification purpose. brought with him a number of hborers Jefferson carried on a correspon­ of his own country, bound to serve for dence with persons in various parts of fo ur or -five years. When their time the United States and abroad that was up they left him and he could not would be unusual even in this day 'Of procure others because of the interrup­ dictating to a stenographer, and that tion of navigation due to war. Maz­ was truly remarkable when it is con­ zei's vineyard was on a piece of g.round sidered that each letter had to be wri t­ adjoining Jefferson's and they became ten with his own hand. friends. When it was not possi'ble to In this country his correspondence carry 'On the vineyards further Mazzei included men well known in the field rented his place to General Riedesel of horticulture, such as John Bartram and returned to Europe. Thereafter he of Philadelphia and Bernard Mc­ and Jefferson corresponded on matters Mahon, the seedsman. He did not of horticultural inte~-est to both. confine his corres·pondence tD men of Jefferson became P resident on note in the agri,cul tural and horticul­ March 4, 1801, and on January 18. tural world, but it included anyone 1803, sent a secret message to Congress with whom he could exchange ideas, asking an appropriation to enable him seeds or plants. to send an expedition to explore the During the time he was United Northwest Territory. Secrecy was States Minister to France he made the necessary because the treaty for the acquaintance of M. Thouin, Superin­ purchase of the Louisiana Territory tendent of the Jardin des P lantes at had not yet ,been signed. The apprD­ Paris and after his return to this coun­ pria:tion granted, Jefferson chDse as try kept in touch with him through leaders of the expedition Meriwether correspondence, evchanging ideas as Lewis, who for a time had been his well as seeds and plants. Another of private secretary, and \i\Ti lli am Oark, his French friends ' was Countess de stating that he had selected them be­ Tesse and he mentions in a letter dated cause they werspecies of plants that he expresses regret that a package sent' might be discovered. earlier had fallen into the hands of an When this expedition returned on "Engli sh pirate," because among the September 23, 1806, with its valuable $eeds were seed of "Mart-ons d'Inde" scientific collections and observations. which at that time h:ld not been intro­ these included several new genera of duced intJ America. plants, two of which were named for In other letters to ,Countess de Tesse the leaders of the expedition, the Jefferson lists the seeds he had sen~ Lewisia and the Clarkia. Jefferson her which included three variations of caused the seed brought back to be July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 131 given, for the most part, into the keep­ phnts introd\1ced by him, or with the ing ·of expert horticulturists, among introduction of which he was directly them Mr. Willianl Hamilton for plant­ concerned. These are probably not so ing in hi s botanical garden" "The large as is commonly supposed, because Woodlands," and in part to Mr Ber­ J effer,son is popularly credited with nard McMahon of Philadelphia. An­ the introduction of a number of plants parently, J effe! son retained a few of f.or whi.ch there is no supporting data. the seeds for planting at Monticello, The true measure of his contribution to ,the science is to be found il~ the or to give to his neighbors in Albe­ added prestige which aocrues to any marle County, since in a letter written human undertaking which enjoys the on July 6, 1808 to Mr. McMahon, he sincere interest and endorsement of a states, " I reserved very few of Govr. statesman of Jefferson's stature. The Lewis's articles, and having growing fact that Jefferson gave so largely to only his .salsafia, Mandane corn, and a his valuab,le time and of his means to pea. remarkable for its beautiful blos­ encourage the introduction of "hand­ som & leaf. his forward bean is grow­ some" or "fragrant" plant material had ing in my neighborhood." great i nft uence in promoting popular No true mea:; ure of Jefferson's con­ interest in the science and made easier tribution to the science of plant intro­ the work of men who canle later into duction is to be found in the number of this fielcl. The Long Look

LESTER ROWNTREE

SOOI1 after England was forced to and in spite of daily showers the sky take up arms and English gardeners always cleared for a magnificent sun­ had to turn their minds and their set. The only sad moments were when leisure along paths of self preservation, each evening I spread the sleeping bag a change came over B·ritish horticul­ over hundreds of fl owers but I soon turalmagazin es. Gardeners forced now stopped worrying about that when I to grow Brussels sprouts where pri­ found that after the bedroll moved to mulas once had been, wrote of the fine a boulder or shrub for its daily sun­ polyanthus and auriculas they had ning, every fl ower stalk strengthened. raised, experts in the handling of hot­ The season that year was early and houses now given over to tomatoes, I was too late for many of the plants sung the perfection of prewar calceola­ I meant to stalk. Nevada was uncom­ rias and gloxinias and those addicted monly hot and dry and so were the to rock-gardening dwelt wistfully on eastern parts of Washington and Ore­ collecting trips they had taken in the gon, but in Utah and \iVyoming in mountains of Europe and Asia, de­ July, the watermelon-pink. sometimes scribing newly discovered plant trea­ pure white, bush mallow, Sphaeralcea sures and fl owery passes at present r·ivularis was gorgeous and at the edges trampled by men in khaki. A distinct of coniferous forests, monotonous in note of nostalgia mingled with the up­ their unbroken green, were blue cyno­ to-date gush of vegetable enthusiasm. gloss

L ester Row nfree Sphae1'alcea rivularis 134 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944 folia. In the Tetons it is not quite so of dropped sky covering what in Cali­ dai\1ty as lt is in northern New York fornia we would call a " hogwallow" or in New England, nor is it quite so the adobe brown soil already going variable as it is in gardens where it light and cracking around the edges, becomes a weed, but there were thick and surrounding millions of dainty an­ and chunky plants in the sun, slender nuals happily at ·home in the drying and lithe ones in part shade, many mud. forms of the bell flowers and quite a Montana is one of my favorite states. dozen shades of campanula blue. It has mountains and prairies and Around String Lake a white form of plains, limestone cliffs and places where Spirea dcnsiflora grew with the rose peat lies thickly, there are grassy banks colored type and white Spirea h~c ·ida , where rocks poke out from rich dark and in more open places SedU111- steno­ earth smothered in spots by low gray­ petaz"",1n laid soft gray-green coverlets green JU:J1,1'p en,bs sibirica. There are over moist rocks. On higher ground, glorious hemlock woods where dai nty among large boulders, marmots came white violets grow with f.erny Copfois from their holes to si t and bleat at me. trifoliata, c1intonias and pyrolas. all curious to know what I, on my stone, making a close groundcover. Little was putting down on paper. streams are half hidden in currants In V/yoming the wild roses were the and hawthorns,-birclie places from largest and the penstemons the bluest which in day time come the querulous I have ever seen and two of my hap­ complaints of young flickers and at piest nights were spent in a meadow of night the owl's solemn announcement. tall flowers. There were flaxes, del­ And beyond are the larches, mountain phiniums, lupins, geraniums and asters. ash and shad bushes. Open grassy There was the beautiful soft salmon­ places are gay with gaillardias and pink form of Giha. a.gg1'egata as well Calochol'tus gwnl11sol/·ii and the loco as the usual scarlet tone, potentillas weeds, astragalus. come in intense ranged from cream to buttercup yel­ shades of bright cerise. I revelled in low, Eriogonu111,- s'Ubalp1n~~111. was foamy Montana's many species of clematis with flowers in cream and Galiu11'L and anemones.-there seemed to be boreale had its usual delicious fra­ one for almost every altitude and ex­ grance. posure. I threaded moist woodsy val­ If you know the lobelia-like purple leys where the tree stumps i 11 lodge­ native Californian Downin.g'ias, or the pole forests were ("overed with that sky blue ones with yellow and white little world traveling manzanita, Arcto­ markings, you can easily visualize the staphylos uva-u1'si, where Lil1/'l.aea. related La'U.l'e11tias of Wyoming and borealis made curtains of shiny gr·een Montana, They grow in the same sorts and pale pink and dwarf billberry and of places that Downingias do-in moist Berber·is 'repel/s came up from among clayie soil in the sun where wetness ferns. wild roses and saxifrages. accompanies the growing plant and the I came at the Beartooth range from mature and se.edi ng one is held tightly the east side, leaving behind me open in soil so dry and caked that it cracks. hillsides soft with trailing juniper. The laurentias come with the same slopes where the feather-like seeds of glad surprise with which dow ningias Clematis dOltglasii and c. oeeidel/talis spring upon one. Turning a bend in rose and floated off to establish them­ the road early one morning I looked selves further from the parent plant. down upon what looked like a patch The alpine meadows are above 10,000 July, 1 94~ THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 135

Lester Rmcmtree D'warf lupin, B eartooth NJoull taills, MOlltana, 10,000 fee t altitude 136 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE J uly, 1 94~

Lester ROIc'lltree

feet and surrounded by mountain top~ , talks. into that Montana oky. T OWil­ continually swept by storm cl otlcf~. scndl:a. Parr'yii"the prevailing species. These meadows contain a much Ht\;'g~'r looks ' lik,e:. a l:igid and over-stuffed assortment of wild flowers than tl.fose erigeron iri" ' light lilac or lav·ender pink. of the Californian S ierra and T rinity Groups of it absorbed li ttle depres­ mountains for. though the genera are sions. it colonized thickly at the base much the same in each, there are many of rocky outcroppings and mingled more species in the Beartooth. More freely with the other alpines in the phlox, mertensia, polemonium,-and I wide and windswept lawns of dwarfed' had never seen so many townsendias flowers. in bloom in one place as were looking There were, of course, the regulars, straight, from atop their three-inch -dodecatheons, arabis. draba. arte- July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 137 misias, lupins, potentillas, dwar.f wi l­ day's storm had deposited on their lows, arenarias, violets, pediculari s, smooth heads. In the shelter of can­ saxifrages. J.1 yosotis alpestris was a yo ns, Aquilegia fiavesc e11.s, yellow, divine blue making, with M ertel1sia touched with red-brown, grew with tall su.bgla.bra, one of t.he loveliest wildHow­ M e1'tensia cihata and coryadalis, while er pictures imaginable. Cobalt blue the sil ver pads of AI'te11'l.isia f1'igida mertensias are particularly charming adorned drier, rocky places in the open. when they peep from the shelter of low N ear the snow banks the compact little wide limber pine boughs whose green plants of SY17.thYr1:s Payso17ii had almost tips are densely ·circled wi th crimson ,finished bloomi ng, the four inch fl ower buds. There was a lovely old-rose racemes rising above the bunches of orthocarpus but it seemed to me that pretty ferny leaves. the polemoniums were not so blu e as In my own state, on the way home, those of P. confert~£1n var. eX'i1'l!iu 1'1'1, I stopped to see what was happening t hough that may be because P. pul­ on Mt. Lassen's snow banks and came cherri1nUI1t!, a lovely species, was about down familiar -byways where E rythro­ over. n ifl,1717- p'llwpUraSCe17s lined the upper, Large flowered arnicas huddled be­ woodsy side of the road w hile the neath flat skirts of pine, delphiniums, squidgy marshy land which bordered dwarf goldendrods, erigerons and Pen­ the lower side was nodding with Cas­ stemon pl'ocen£s, just three inches tall , siope 1nertens7:ana bells and rosy with were all jumbled together and the stems the dwarf saucers of Kalmia polifolia of Siever sia t-u1'binata beneath the pret­ var. 11'I.icrophylla, its stream was lined tily nodding fl owers broke the pre­ with the ri-ch beauty of Caltha biftora's vailing -blues, purples and yellows with leaves and its exquisite white fl owers, soft strawberry pink. The few eriogo­ while Ph:yllodoce B1'ewer-i swarmed nums were not as spectacular as the across the drier parts above,-a flower alpine buckwheats of the Californian community firmly imprinted upon the mountains though all high mountain inner eye of those who know the moun­ eri ogonums have a pleasant habit of tains. growth_ The low, rounded, green pin­ All these mountain plants are well cushi on mats of Silene acauhs which, known to wild fl ower enthusiasts who at lower altitudes, were dotted with haunt higher altitudes. I have nien­ blobbie seed pods, looking like large tioned nothing to excite the collector pinheads, were, on the mountain crests, of rarities. My only excuse for writ­ still in rosy-pink fl ower and these with ing about them at all is that it is war the pads of pale lavender-blue Ph-lo ,v time and the remembrance of what is caespitosa seemed to be enjoying what still going on in our mountains and appeared to me to be an exceedingly will continue to go on, may not come heavy mulch of gravel which yester- amiss. Disease .. Resistant and Hardy Varieties of Vegetables (Continued)

VICTOR R. BOSWELL Agricultuml Research Ad111,inist1'ati01v, U. S. Depa1't1'11 el7t of Ag1'1:C1ldtu1'e

In the preceding issue of this maga­ plants are transplanted to the south zine, under this same title, a few re­ sides of ridges in the field about marks were made con c ern i n g the Thanksgiving Day, and they grow but history of varietal improvement in little if any ,before spring. Tempera­ vegetable plants. Then was begun a tures may go down gradually almost to brief account of some of the better zero with comparatively little damage known varieties having outstanding to well-grown, well-set plants. Spring hardiness, or resistance to disease, or varieties like Golden Acre and Copen­ both. Only beans were considered in hagen Market suffer severely under any detail in that portion of the article. such conditions, almost all of them be­ This second part of the. article deals ing killed. with varieties of cabbage and closely Relative hardiness to cold is of ma­ related plants, of celery, and of sweet jor importance in connection with the corn. production of cabbage seed. Most cab­ Cabbage bage seed produced in this country is As stated earlier, the word "hardi­ grown by wintering over the plants in ness" is a relative term; it is used rath­ the field in an immature or rosette er loosely in referring to any ·charac­ stage. Some vari eties, as Danish BaIl­ teristics that enable some plants to head, are so much more susceptible to thrive under conditions that would be cold injury than others in certain of very harmful to other simi lar plants. the main seed-growing districts that Cabbage as a crop is considered seed yields are very uncertain and "hardy" because it tolerates much low­ costs of production are relatively high. er temperatures than many other gar­ Varieties of the Savoy type, however, den vegetables, but it is not hardy to appear to be the most cold-resistant of very hot weather. Furthermore, al­ all, at the half-grown, rosette stage of though all varieties of cabbage will development. Kale and collards, two stand more or less freezing without forms of "headless" cabbage, are very damage while small , there are quite hardy to cold- hardier than cabbage­ marked differences among varieties in but here again varietel differences are the degree of cold that they can toler­ evident. The Siberian type of kale, ate. For example, there are only two sometimes called "blue kale," is hardi­ otherwise sui table varieties that are er than the Scotch varieties. hardy enough to winter over safely in Since cabbage is native to high north­ the garden or :field in the Middle At­ em latitudes, and resistant to cold. it is nlatic States for spring growth and not surprising that it is easily dam­ harvest. They are Early Jersey Wake­ aged by heat. Although no variety field and Charleston Wakefield. When does its best during the warmest part grown in this manner along the upper of the year in the middle part of the part of Chesapeake Bay, seed is sown country, and all fail outright in the in September in open plant beds, the South at low altitudes in summer. some [ 138) July. 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 139 are 1'ela.t'ively more resistant. or less field are "resistant to bolting." The susceptible) to heat than others. Such Southeastern Vegetable B reeding Lab­ varieties as All Seasons, All Head oratory of the U . S. Department of Early, and Early Flat Dutch can stand Agriculture has been working for a the warm climate of late spring in the number of years to develop early, cold­ South or .of summer in some other re­ hardy, round-head cillbbages somewhat gions far better than Early Jersey like Copenhagen Market that can be Wakefield, Charleston Wakefield, wintered over without bolting in the Golden Acre, or Copenhagen Market. spring. Two new varieties with these Danish BaIlhead and other "late" va­ characteristics have been released re­ rieties de.finitely are not resistant to cently for trial and commercial in­ heat and should be grown only in the crease of the seed but they are not yet N orothern States. available for general sale. The names Early Winningstadt is an interesting of these are Madison and Huguenot. old variety although it is little grown Most of the varieties of ca'bbage men­ in American today. It is hardy to cold tioned in the preceding paragraphs are and has the ability to stand longer after old commercial sorts-some of them heading. without bursting, than any very old. Although they show some other commonly grown sort. It is slow­ very marked differences in hardiness growing, produces a huge plant with to cold and moderate differences in a rather smaIl, pointed, very hard head. hardiness to heat, they all have one The designation "Early" is misleading weakness in common-aIl are suscep­ since the variety is so slow-growing, tible to the soil-borne disease known but it is soo called because it is grown as cabbage yellows, or fusarium wilt. in the late fall and winter for harvest In the first part of this article appear­ very early in th@ spring in regions ing in the April issue of this magazine where the winters are mild. reference was made to the early devel­ The terms "hardiness" and "resis­ opment of resistance to this disease in tance" are often used in referring to cabbage. The Bugner variety devel­ some special climatic adaptability of a oped about 1890, before yellows be­ variety or tolerance to an unfavorable came a problem, happens to be some­ soil condition. For example, in cab­ what resistant to yeIlows but it does bage, the tendency to form flower not represent a high degree of resis­ stalks ("bolt") after the pla~ts h"!-ve tance_.dey.el

Sweet Cant through seed obtained from an Indian Sweet corn~spetially, on the cob­ about 30 years ago. The quality of is doubtless the most thoroughly and these two varieties is only fair, but distinctly American vegetable in the they can be grown where the season is world. Although the Americas have too short and cool for others. contributed several other important Banting and Golden Gem are two vegetable plants to ' the. world's food very early yellow-kerneled varieties de­ supply, those vegeta·bles have become veloped by the Department of J\gri­ so generally accepted and extensively culture of Canada and by the North grown in other lands that many per­ Dakota Agricultural Experiment Sta­ sons overlook or are unaware of the tion, respectively. These also are very American origin of tomatoes, potatoes, small-eared (4 to 6 inches) and the our "common" beans, garden peppers, ears grow close to the ground on stalks squash. and sweetpotatoes. The peo­ only about 30 feet tall. The quality of ples of other lands, however, have not these is high, distinctly better than that learned to use corn as human food to of Pid

In recent years th(}re have been nu­ rectly, the grower must contend with merous efforts to extend the southern. certain serious diseases. One of the range of successful sweet corn produc­ worst of these is bacterial wilt or Ste­ tion by breeding new varieties more wart's disease. This disease occurs in resistant to h€at and to the ravages of virtually all districts where sweet corn is "Town in the eastern half of the the corn ear worm. In the South it is b the corn ear worm more than the di­ Un.ited States except the very north- ernmost, and is most severe in a belt rect effect of high temperature that extending from Iowa and Missouri limits sweet corn culture. As might be eastward to the Atlantic. In general, expected, the general characteristics of sweet corn is much more susceptible the New types developed for the South than field corn and early varieties much are in marked contrast with the cool­ more Susc(}ptible than late ones. Extra hardy, far northern varieties mentioned Early Golden Bantam, Golden Ban­ above. The Texas Agricultural Ex­ tam, Golden Early Market, Golden peri~lent Station, about 10 years ago, Gem, Golden Sunshine, Gill Early introduced Surcropper Sugar and Market and similar early sorts of major Honey June, two very large, very late interest to home and market gardeners varieties adapted only to the South. In are highly susceptible. Late kinds like contrast to the northern varieties men­ Country Gentlemen, Stowell Ever­ tioned a;bove the plants of these two green, Howling Mob, and Long Island grow 8 to 9 feet high and require 105 Beauty are rather highly resistant. to 110 days to reach the edible stage Whipple Yellow and Spanish Gold are when grown in the middle or north­ intermediate in resistance. eastern States. In the South, they In the past doz(m years Bacterial­ reach harvest stage in 80 to 100 days. wilt-resistant early hybrids have large­ The Florida Agricultural Experiment ly replaced the old susceptible open­ Stati,on has developed Florida 191 and pollinated varieties. Not all early hy­ Suwannee Sugar; and the Georgia Ex­ brids are resistant however; hybridity periment Station two varieties known in itself is no indication of superiority as Georgia 439 at1d Georgia 428 simi­ in resistance to disease, in quality, lar to Honey June in type and ear­ yield, or any other character. Growers worm resistance, but for adaptation to must take care to choose only hybrids the Southeast. U.S.D.A. 34 mentioned of known performance and value. Of above is resistant to corn stripe, a these proven hybrids Golden Cross tropical disease. The Southeastern Re­ Bantam is doubtless the best known, gional Vegetable Breeding Laboratory most widely adapted, and most exten­ of the U.S.D.A. is also devoting much sively grown. It is a mid-season, large, attention to the development of new yellow-kerneled, high-quality hybrid sweet corn that will be especially suit­ developed by the U. S. Department of ed to the southeastern States . . A num­ Agriculture and the Indiana Agricul­ ber of strains have been recently re­ tural Experiment Station. Marcross, leased for commercial increase, but are Spancross, Whipcross, Tendergold, and not yet available on the market. They Top Cross Maine Bantam are medium are: Kiawah, Wappoo, Edisto, and early to midseason resistant yellow hy­ Carowa. brids, but no very early resistant yel­ In addition to the problem of adjust­ low hybl'id or variety has yet been ob­ ing varieties of sweet corn to the rigors tained. Indigo\.d, Purgold, and Ioana of northern and southern climates, di- are wilt-resistant hybrids that are es- July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 143

pecially adapted to the Middle West. corn breeding operations and have de­ There are also many late hybrids, both veloped many other varieties and hy­ white and ye1low, that are resistant, brids having resistance to bacterial wilt among them Country Gentleman Hy­ or special adaptabili ties to one region brid 8x6, Country Gentleman Hybrid of the country or another. Because of SxlO, Hybrid Evergreen, Ioana, and the marked differences in character and Bantam Evergreen Hybrid. adaptability among varieties and hy­ The varieties and hybrids mentioned brids choice of what to plant should be here by no means exhaust the list of based on sound information about the desirable sweet corns that are available vanetles and about the conditions to the discriminating grower. Public where they are to be grown. The rec­ research agencies and also several large ommendations of the respective State seed firms conduct extensive sweet experiment statio.ns should be followed.

Have You Seen ..... ?

MARY FRAKES THARP

Thinning tires, gas and travel re­ for certain types that are well within strictions do not dampen the ardor of the reach of most gardeners. For the enthusiastic iris lovers who play this hybridizer and those who grow for game; as long as trains, busses or com­ show purpose only, one will find an­ munity cars are available to cover the other class of iris, the price range be­ some 60-odd miles in this section of ing almost prohi.bitive. (Incidentally, Idaho - "have you seen-?" will be the new things are coming so fast, that continued to be played with much zest. unless one possesses a pair of seven league boots and an unlimited income, To the uninitiated let us explain that there i's no use trying to keep up with "have you seen?" is just dashing mad­ them.) ly from one iris garden to another To get back to our game-have you (when one should be caring for one's seen a mass of the lovely rich true own garden), seeing and enjoying all purple Indian Hills, with the colorful the new creations and asking the fore­ buttercup yellow of Golden Hind in going question. All of which seems the foreground? For added accent add very foolish to some, but a perfectly a few clumps of Langport Scarlet pyre­ ntaural proceeding to an iris lover. If thrum. Enough said. Make a note of one wants to get in this game, now is it, and don't forget Robinson's Hybrid a good time to plan and plant for next strain with clear lovely colors and fine season, and as material is so wide and stiff stems. If pastels are your dish, varied, if one is not familiar with it, it try this group in one corner. Great is apt to be confusing to a beginner. Lakes, the lovely light blue Dykes Taking for granted that the average medal winner of 1942, and which has persons who are interested in growing proved so satisfactory in every sec­ iris and do so mostly for garden high­ tion, the exquisite creamy yellow of lights, for borders perhaps or for cut Golden Treasure and the lovely tall flower arrangement. These uses call lilac-pink Miss California. (If the cor- 144 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944 ner is partly in the shade use China tone. Neither do well for us here in Maid instead, a very lovely person, but Idaho, but are well worth while trying. cannot take our hot sun.) SI~ining \!\Taters is another good blue As no p].anting is complete without of medium tone, satin texture and good the whites and creams, one should use substance. One should try all of them plenty of these as well as blues. As a well as reser-ving a spot in the back­ there are now so many good ones on ground for good old tall dependable the market, selections are made with Sierra Blue. It grows over 5 ft., and the consideration thaf any garden can is ideal for background plantings. It is afford to grow them. First and fore­ much deeper in tone than the others most in this group, regardless of price, listed. Icy Blue and Ice Maiden, both is the lovely chaste Purissima. In spite in the clear light blue class, are well of its age (its borning was 1927), it worth a trial, both being of excellent still tops the white class and is well substance and good form, blossoms on worth the trouble of a little winter pro­ Ice Maiden lasting four and five days. tection in any man's land. If Snow A blue, that has been relegated to the Flurry ever drops to the $1.00 class, it morgue by iris fanciers, only to be might supersede Purissima, but we resurrected for comparison occasional­ doubt it. Mount Washington would be ly, is Sensation. This iris is late and our next selection in whites; our third one ,begins to think it will never bloom; would be the dainty ruffled Patricia. then one morning you walk out in the If one wished still another white, we garden and the large planting of Sen­ offer the seltlction of Gudrun. Hardy sation under the apricot tree is in full and huge, and while often scored low bloom. A wonderful sight-a before­ for the rather coarse textme and short breakfast lift! (The iris plutocrats are bloom stalk, it seldom fails to put on a not going to like my list.) show at iris time and it is greatly ad­ Yellows, we must have. In the deep­ mired by all garden visitors. Speaking er tones we have Goiden Majesty, of white iris, have you seen'the delight­ Ming Yellow, Golden Hind and Sun­ ful Snow Maiden? Listed as dwarf, it hawk, all good. In a lighter color class grows 16 ill. tall. We keep a group of our selection would be Chosen and Snow Maiden and pure white tulips Treasure Island. Thi,s list is for Mr. growing together with white arabis. . and Mrs. Average Gardener or we Looks just as it sounds-good enough would add here the lovely Elsa Sass to eat. and Gf'lden Fleece. (Well, a cat can In creams, try Sweet Alibi and Sno­ look at a king-or can they?) In se­ qualmie; ther'e may be newer creams, lecting your yellow tones, one must not but certainly no better. \!\Then you see forget Naranja with its orange make­ Brown Boy, Snoqualmie and the ruffled up, of satin-like texture and lovely so pink N o-we-ta grouped together, we form, adds a clever note to your gar­ are sure you will agree. den's ensemble. There are a number of good medium Don't ask why, but we never cared and light blues in the offing, but none for a dark iris until we met Sable. That more beautiful than Great Lakes which dusky boy "sure knocked us for a loop." we mentioned above. This never dis­ Wonder if it was because it was grow­ appoints. For those who can grow it, ing with Barr's huge white Oriental the early light blue Blue Diamond as poppy? well as the later Gloriole of the same Good dark velvety iris in the ].ow shade and texture are blues of pleasing -price bracket are Mrs. J. L. Gi'bson, July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 145

Mary Jane Sisney and Smolder. The \Vabash, the gracious amoena, is a nod goes to Mary Jane Sisney. Brun­ color gem, with milk white standards hilde would be a good choice in the and velvety purple falls. Lovely as it non-velvety types. Have you seen is, it is inclined to give one the brush­ Stained Glass, in the bronze class? off and not b.)oom every season. We Grouped with Radiant, Orloff and grow it, however, because it is so well early blooming Hemerocallis, it will worth while. Speaking of amoenas, stop traffic. Large clumps of eArly have you seen the little Merry Lass Hemerocallis are very good with the (Gersdorff)? A dainty little florifer­ rose-violet toned Violet Crown. We ous iris for that corner of your g;arden like this as it carries a color tone found where J'ou practice resting. Milk in no other iris. To this group add white standards and flaring, rounded, Moonglo, that hard-to-describe blend, rose-colored falls. It does something and what is lovelier? . The answer is , to you. nothing. In the plicata, the sanded or stitched Did you ask about RED iris? Defi­ iris we have the newer Florentine of nitely there are no red iris as we think silvel:y background, dotted and flaked of red as a color tone, although hybrid­ in blue. This iris has a nice straight izers are frantically working to that bloom stalk, the flower having good end. But have you seen Garden Magic? substance. It wea'rs well. Tiff.any is That is what we should call as-star another of our favorites, but falls in iris. Truly a grand thing in its magic the class ·of yellow plicatas. This beau­ robe .of velvety red. This is a late ty has rosy orchid stipplings on a yel­ bloomer of good substance and good low ground. One other pick up we form. It will denote good taste to in­ would add and that is The City of Lin­ clude this iris. Other good ones in the coln, with its crisp yellow standards reci class are Mauna Loa and Christo­ and bright velvety red falls. A king in bel. For a real Sp0t of red in front of its own right. the border, use Wild . Fire, with its Out of thousands of named varieties glowing red falls and perky standards. of iris, these seem ·a pitifully smallnum­ Something to think about. ber, but they are varieties that have N ow for the pick ups. By this we been tried and tested and not found means the many types of iris that give wanting (but wal;}ted). After all it de­ one such a lift. These are also select­ pends on whether one wants a garden ed from moderately priced iris. You with iris plantings or an iris display, will get a big lift out elf May Day, the as to the varieties one would choose. stunning coppery aprioot beauty from Have you seen Blue Shimmer, the David Hall. Plant captivating pansy­ lovely new plicata, Azure Ski.es or .Gay­ coLored velvety Amigo in front of it. oso? No? Neither have we, but are Amigo is a low-growing rare color looking forward to it, in our next gem . . Spring session of "Have You Seen-?" Have you seen Marquita, the iris vVon't you join us? with the 'spot-light" standards, an Don't forget to plant gobs of dark iris the men go for in a big way, and blue table iris Tom-Tit where the gar­ after al), why shouldn't they, for it has den path turns. Combine it with the everything. Cool cream crisp stand­ dark yellow and brown hemerocallis ards, falls flushed and striped rose col­ Sovereign and oddles of H et~ch,e1'a sa'l1.­ or. It needs no companions, it likes to gu-i·nea. You'll get an A grade on this. "be alone." Payette, Idaho A Seven Year Study of Oriental Poppies

KARL K. LORENZ

A numl)(~ r of years ago it occurred parently, the normal length of an ori­ to me that a great deal of valuable in­ ental poppy blossom is about three formation might be developed about days. Should the weather be extreme­ oriental poppies if each day during the ly hot and dry, the length of life of a blooming season a record were made blossom is materially shortened. In the of the varieties in bloom on that day other hand, if it is cloudy and cool, the and the number of blossoms on each blossom may last into the fourth day. plant. Whether it is due to the increasing In the fall of 1935 I started a new heat as the season reaches the end, the garden. It seemed this was a good be­ blossoms of the late varieties last a gi.nning point for such a study. In the shorter time. It seems that these late fall of 1937 this new garden was moved varieties realize that the crowd has to a new location. Except that the gone on before and they need to hurry plants were older, the situation was the to catch up. same as in the fall of 1935. In 1936 there were 19 varieties that How long does the average oriental bloomed. Each year the number of va­ poppy plant live ? How much bloom rieties in my garden increased until in does it have in anyone year? Is the 1941 there were 58 varieties blooming. variety early, medium or late in its It must be understood that this garden blooming habits? Does the nUlnber of is connected with a city residence; blossoms per year increase as the plant there are trees and shrubs and all kinds is older ? When does it reach its maxi­ of perennials. Not all of the oriental mum and how rapidly does it decrease poppy varieties have an equally favor­ from this maximum? How Iong does a able position. As a rule, I have but blossom last? Do different varieti es one plant of each vari ety. vary considerably in the abundance of Certain general observations with bloom they furnish? reference to the poppy season as a From a study of thi s sort, these and whole are of interest. The average to­ some other questions can be answered. tal of blossom days per year for the The data given in this article are based seven years was 1.680. The smallest on a seven-year period, beginning with number of blossom days (258) of the bl ooming season of 1936 and end­ course was in 1936. The plants were ing with the blooming 'season of 1942. young, the garden was new. The maxi­ Before giving the results of this mum number of blossom days for the study, at least one definition is re­ season was 1,939. with a total of 2,270 quired, namely, t he use of the word blossom days. The average number of "blossom days." If an individual blos­ blossom days per variety per year, for som lasts but one day it is counted only the seven years, was 36.5, the lowest on that one day. If, however, it lasts being 15 in 1936 and the highest 45.4 two days it is counted both days. in 1939. Of course, there was a cer­ Should it last three days, it is counted tain day in each season when there three times and, of course, if it should were the most blossoms. That maxi­ last more t han three days it is counted mum day of bloom came on the aver­ more than three times. Each time it is age 18.4 days after the first blossom counted is called a "blossom day." Ap- appeared. That maximum day arrived r 146 ) July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 147

The Siebenthalej' C ompan), Helen Elizabeth soonest after the ,first blossom in 1936, averaged 187, being 23 in 1936, 270 in being the 15th day after the start of 1939. the season. But in 1938 it was 24 days Adding together the total number of after the first blossom appeared before days each variety was in bloom for a the maximum day arrived. The num­ seas01:, the number of days in bloom ber of blossoms on that maximum day per year for all varieties averaged 448, 148 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL 'MAGAZINE July, 1944 the smallest being 144 in 1936 and the which on the average begin to bloom on largest 622 in 1941. On the average, the 17th day of the season or after. a variety of oriental poppies will re­ On the 17th come Colonel Bowles and main in bloom for 10.1 days. This av­ Wunderkind. On the 18th Madam erage varies, of course, with each year. Pavlova, Excelsior and Snowflame. On It was 8.5 days in 1936 and 13.4 days the 19th come Gold of Ophir, Lachs in 1938. Koenigen and Sass Pink. On the 20th One very interesting fact is the Perfection and Pink Delight. Thus my length of the oriental poppy season. garden has ten varieties that may be The number of days in the season va­ classed as late. ries from year to year, depending on N ow we come to the matter of blos­ the weather. The average is 32 days. som days per variety. Before giving a The shortest season among the seven table showing the average blooming years was 1940, 28 days, and the long­ habit of each variety in my garden, it est season was 1938 with 40 days. The may be wise to speak of those varieties kind of spring we have determines the which stood at the top in abundance first day of the season. On the average of bloom. in my garden in southwestern Ohio, Betty Ann, a comparatively new va­ the first day of the season is May 14. riety of Siebenthaler origin, stands a In 1938 the first blossom appeared on very good ,first with an average over April 30, while in 1940 the first blos­ a period of six years of 85 blossom days som delayed opening until May 24. Of per year. In its second year, 1938, it course, the last day of the oriental pop­ had 168 blossom days. In its fourth py season is dependent on the first day. year, 116 blossom days. It is a lovely The av·erage for the seven years was light pink, a rather small flower, pro­ June 16. The season came to an end duces its tallest blossoms early in the the earliest in 1938, on June 8. The season and a multitude of secondary latest the . season ended was in 1940 on blossoms, not so ta ll , later in the season. June 20. May Queen ranks second. This is The very earliest poppy to appear in one of the very early varieties. It the spring is Olympia; two days later spreads by stolons and is very difficult May Queen, a very similar variety. ap­ to keep un,ler control. Plant one plant. pears. Five days intervene before the and in five years you will have a bed third poppy comes into bloom. On the and you wi ll begin asking yourself the 7th day from the beginning of the sea­ question. "\iVill this flower usurp my son, Field Marshal von der Flotz ap­ whole garden?" It blooms for a week pears, fo ll owed immediately by Henri before the regular oriental poppies be­ Cayeux. On the 8th day King George gin, is double and a very charming and Salm on Glow. On the 9th day blossom. Its average over a peri-oel of Toreador. Purity and Schinzianum. five years is 78 blossom days. The fifth On the 10th day Mary Jane Miller. year showed the largest amount-136 Little Shrimp. Prince of Orange and blossom days. Mary E llen. These 13 varieties named The third plac.e is held by another above may well be classed the early s tol on-s prea ding variety, Apricot varieties of my garden. Queen Improved. This was developed The great mass of oriental poppies by Roy Ashley, of Battle Creek, Michi­ come in from the 11 th day through the gan. Perhaps he had never actually in­ 16th day of the season. The late va­ trodilced it to the public. rieties then may be classed as those Maqr Ellen, a Siebenthaler variety July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 149 of comparatively recent introduction, you will be surprised when I say that stands fourth, with an average over a Barr's White ranks tenth, with an av­ five-year period of 68 blossom days a erage over a five-year period of 54 blos­ year. Its performance is rather steady. som days. Its record per year is pret­ with a fairly even number of blossom ty even-a maximum of 76 in 1941 and days each year. minimum of 45 its first year in 1938. Mrs. Perry, the old original li ght I have had an interesting experience pink, introduced by Amos Perry in with another Siebenthaler variety England, stands fifth, with an average named Big Jim. In 1935 it was plant­ of 67 blossom days per year over a ed in very heavy clay. It showed 61 five-year period. blossom days its first season, in 1936; The twin sister of No.2 holds sixth 148 blossom days in 1937. It must place in Olympia. It blooms two days have been on the morning of June 2, earlier than May Queen, has a few less 1937, when there were 34 big red blos­ petals to the ,blossom, but otherwise is soms on this plant, standing tall and identical. It has the same weedy ca­ straight, a picture that will always live pacity to take over the ground with its in my memory. The plant died that spreading stolons. summer and the new plant of the same Number 7 is Madam Pavlova, with variety put in my new garden that fall 58 blossom days average for a ,five-year has been a very ordinary producer of period. This is a cortlparatively recent blossoms, showing a maximum of 41 variety of the very light pink type, in the spring of 1939. My present gar­ with moderate sized bloom, introduced den was made with 50 per cent clay, by Mr. Curtis of Cincinnati. 25 percent sand and 25 per cent hu­ Henri Cayeux, a very early variety mus. Evidently Big Jim doesn't care of the wine-colored type, has an aver­ so much for the lighter soil. age of 56 bloss0111 days a year over a The record of all 64 varieties shows six-year period. This variety was pro­ an average of 36.5 blossom days. Thir­ duced by a famous French hybridizer ty-two varieties of the list are better and was introduced into the United than average; other things being equal States by John Siebenthaler. P lant this in making a limited choice, one would in light shade as the blossoms fade naturally choose from among the 32 badly. A very good variety for use as varieties which give a better than av­ a cut flower. erage number of blossom days. Our next variety, Helen Eliza­ Here is the list of 64 varieties in my beth, probably should, under more fa­ garden, arranged in the order of the vorablecircumstances, have made a amount of bloom they furnish: (In better record. It was planted near a parenthesis after the name is given the strong gJ:owing<;lay lily which eventual­ number of years the variety is included ly smothered it after the sixth year, so in the study. The stolon-spreading va­ that it had only three blossoms the rieties are indicated; also the dwarf va­ seventh year. This is a comparatively ri eties. ) recent Siebenthaler variety, a sister of 1. Betty Ann (6) 85 Betty Ann. In its second year in 1937 2. May Queen (Stolon) (5) 78 it had 153 blossom days. It is a quite 3. Apricot Queen Improved large, very light pink blossom, very (Stolon) (4) 78 lovely indeed. 4. Mary Ellen (5) 68 If you are acquainted with the idio­ 5. Mrs. Perry (5) 67 syncrasies of white oriental poppIes, 6. Olympia (Stolon) (7) 61 150 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944

7. Mme. Pavlova (5) 58 55. Loreley (3) 20 8. Henri Cayeux (6) 56 56. Harmony (6) 19 9. Helen Elizabeth (7) 55 57. New Perfection (2) 19 10. Barr's White (5) 54 58. Glowing Embers (2) 18 11. Joyce (6) 51 59. Snowflame (1) 18 12. John III (5) 51 60. Gaiety (6) 17 13. Mary Jane Miller (6) SO 61. Thora Perry (dwarf) (4) 14 14. Big Jim (7) 59 62. Sass Pink (4) 12 15. Cavalier (6) 48 63 . Schinzianu111 Hybrid (1) 4 16. Mahony (6) 47 64. Pink Delight (3) 3 17. Little Shrimp (dwarf) (7) 46 Remarks about a few of the varieties 18. King George (4) 45 showing a poor blooming record are in 19. June Deiight (5) 43 order. 20. Salmon Glow (Stolon) (2) 43 Echo. The ul11que color justifies 21. Perfection (5) 41 serious consideration of this variety. 22. Pearl Queen (3) 41 Its -location in my garden was not the 23. Prince of Orange (6) 40 best. 24. Mandarin (7) 39 Burke's Laciniated. This variety has 25. Australia (5) 39 not yet been introduced. It is the best 26. Cerise Beauty (2) 39 color in a laciniated variety I have seen. 27. Lord Lambourne (7) 38 Its second year it showed 43 blossom 28. Purity (5) 38 days. 29. Perry's White (2) 38 f;f/u,nderkind. Among the sophisti­ 30. Wurtembergia (7) 37 cated, this is considered tops. Its loca­ 31. Beauty of Livermere (4) 37 tion in my garden is not the best. 32. Curtis White (4) 37 M a')l Sadie?'. Notable for the size of 33. Echo (5) 35 the blossom as well as the color. In 34. E. L. Ferguson (6) 35 my garden it has been quite short-lived 35. E. A. Bowles (2) 34 as a plant. Its quality is worth frequent 36. Lachs Koenigen (6) 33 replacement. 37. Julia Buck (6) 32 Colonel Bowles. Not many blossoms 38. Enfield Beauty (3) 31 but a distinctive plant in the sturdiness 39. Field Marshal von der Glotz of the stem, size of the blossom and (1) 31 rich red color. 40. Mrs. Heen-k (6) 28 Gold of Ophir. In a good location 41. Manchu's Fan (4) 28 this should have made a much better 42. Burke's Laciniated (2) 27 record. I have now moved it from the 43. Wunderkind (7) 26 worst place in my garden to one of the 44. May Sadler (3) 26 best. 45. Col. Bowles (7) 25 Sass Pink. A very beautiful flower, 46. Enchantresse (6) 25 not large, but the plant, in my garden 47. Dainty Lady (6) 25 at least, is short-lived. Died after four 48. Trilby (7) 24 years. 49. Excelsior (4) 24 While the longevity of a plant dare SO. Gold of Ophir (6) 23 not be finally determined by a record 51. Toreador (7) 21 of one plant, I report, for what it is 52. Proserpine (7) ' 21 worth, the following experiences: 53. Ridgefield Beauty (3) 21 Cavalie'l'. Crown rotted in its seventh 54. Hercule (6) 20 year. Send up a new top which has July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 151

The Siebenthaler Co1l1pallY Silbe-rblick taken a year or two to reach the blo0111- Ridgefield Beallty. Died 111 middle mg sIze. o£ its thi rd bl ooming season. a very Mary Jan e Mille1'. Same as Cavalier. wet month. P en'y's vVliite. Notorio usly short- Pi'l1k D elight. Died 111 its third lived. Bloomed but two years In my blooming season. garden. Pearl Q ueI' ll . Died 111 its third 152 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944 blooming season. No explanation. 9h. Mme. Pavlova (5) 12 Field Marsha,[ V01'" dey Glatz. After 9i. Apricot Queen Improved (4) 12 a number of unsuccessful efforts to es­ 9j . Pearl Queen (3) 12 tablish this variety, a plant finally won 9k. Salmon Glow (2) 12 through and bloomed but died after the 20a. Echo (5) 11 first year of bloom. 20b. Col. Bowles (7) 11 Salmon, Glow. The main crown died 20c. Prince of Orange (6) 11 after the third season. There remain 20d. King George (4) 11 four or five young plants growing from 20e. May Sadler (3) 11 stolons. 20f. Perry's White (2) 11 Cerise B eau,ty. A great favorite of 20g. Enfield Beauty (3) 11 mine and ordinarily quite floriferous, 27a. Mary Jane MiIIer (6) 10 A number of nurseries seem to have 27b. Toreador (7) 10 wrong stock. A true plant died after 27c. Trilby (7) 10 its second blooming season. 27d, \i\1underkind (7) 10 Glowi"n.g Embe1's. Planted too close 27e. Hercule (6) 10 to a vigorous Siberian Iris. Died after 27£. Dainty Lady (6) 10 second season. 27g. Excelsior (4) 10 Snow Flal/1i/,e. Apparently planted in 27h. Curtis White (4) 10 an exceJIent position, it died after the 27i. Manchu's Fan (4) 10 second blooming season. 27j. New Perfection (2) 10 How many days in a season does a 27k. Burke's Laciniated (2) 10 particular variety remain 111 bloom? 38a. Cavalier (6) 9 This should be a matter of interest. 38b. Big Jim (7) 9 Consequently, I am tabulating the rec­ 38c. Lord Lambourne (7) 9 ord for the 64 varieties in Iny garden 38d. Joyce (6) 9 during the seven-year period of this 38e. Enchantresse (6) 9 study. The figure in parenthesis after 38£. Gaiety (6) 9 the name indicates the number of years 38g. Loreley (3) 9 the plant ,has bloomed. The final fig­ 38h. Mrs. Heenk (6) 9 ure, not in parenthesis, shows the av­ 38i. E. L. Ferguson (6) 9 erage number of days per year the 38j. Harmony (6) 9 plant remained in bloom: 38k. E . A. Bowles (4) 9 1. Betty Ann (6) 18 381. Glowing Embers (2) 9 2a. Olympia (7) 15 50a. Wurtembergia (7) 8 2b. John III (5) 15 SOb. Mandarin (7) 8 2c. Field Marshal von der Glotz SOC. Beauty of Livermere (7) 8 (1) 15 SOd. Gold of Ophir (7) 8 5. Purity (g) 14 50e, Mahony (6) 8 6a. Proserpine (7) 13 50f. Lachs Koenigen (6) 8 6b. Mary EIIen (5) 13 50g. Australia (5) 8 6c. June Delight (5) 13 SOh. Cerise Beauty (2) 8 9a. Little Shrimp (7) 12 50i. Snow flame (1) 8 9b. Helen Elizabeth (7) 12 59a. Perfection (5) 7 9c. Julia Buck (6) 12 59-b. Thora Perry (4) 7 9d, Henri Cayeux (6) 12 59c. Ridgefield Beauty (3) 7 ge, May Queen (5) 12 62. Sass Pink (4) 6 9f. Mrs. Perry (5) 12 63. Schinzianum Hybrid (1) 3 9g. Barr's White (5) 12 64. Pink Delight (3) 2 Lilies In the Upper Middle South

ELIZABETH B. TRUNDLE

The year 1936, I planted my first themul11s. The soil was dug up about lily bulbs (except t·igrinu.11'b in 1933). 16 inches and some wood ashes and My garden consists of ten squares with bone meal incorporated. When planted, ten foot walks of grass between. It all lily bulbs, (except last two years) slopes to the East with a fall of about were dusted with sulphur and sur­ two feet in a hundred, although rounded with sand. They are planted from the house which is West there 18 inches apart in beds with small is a greater fall. The two squares paths between. No lime has been selected for lilies; the upper is shaded added to either square for 24 years. by tall trees and later the house-the All the other lilies that I have given lower square gets less shade, but later data on as to bloom, when bloomed is shaded ,the same way. The upper and number of blooms, were planted square has some southern shade. in this square-the entire square is There is some shade from shrubbery surrounded with twelve inch metal at each corner of squares. The upper lath, extending 9 inches below ground square had been an asparagus bed and and three inches above to keep out with the addition 'of some wood ashes moles a~1d mice which follow and eat and bone meal, ' in 1936, I ·planted the bul1bs. Wild columbine and petunias following lily bulbs: are used for ground cover and each umbellatu111" tewuijoliu,m, wifl.nwttiae, spring I have added peat moss to top sulpJ?'u1' eU11't, cO'/'l,color, l'egale, for - of beds to protect from sun before 11'bOSanU111, (Price's) ground cover attains sufficient growth. and in 1937, the following: No commercial ,fertil izer or manure has been used. No spraying or watering superb~~'/'Iq" a11wbile, speciosum n£b- except the Parryi (which all died) . 1'um, H enryi, Davidq:, Sunset, Wood's earth, wood ashes and bone testaceu,m. meal has been added from time to time. One H enryi that has done better One lily I have read does not tolerate was planted in another situation with wood a:shes and that is Wardii, and I iris at bas@ and shade in afternoon, did not apply to it, but it disappeared Planted 10" deep. anyhow. The above lilies have periwinkle for The candidu11'1,s are planted 10 feet grou.nd cover, but I understand it is away from above across a grass walk not so good, and it mats a lot. For and I believe are much too close, as about three years these lilies have had they have botrytis. The tigrimmts bone meal, wood ashes, and wood's are four squares away in another part earth for the s~£PerbU1% , I have never of the garden. used commercial fertilizer, or manure, I have raised 1'ega,le, will111;ottiae, They have never been watered or amabile, jormosanU,1%, late variety, from sprayed. They proba:bly would have seeds, and I have a lot that should ,benefi,ted from both and well-rotted bloom this fall, and others to be put manure, into the garden in the fall. It requires In the lower square, which does not a lot of patience. but as it is highly have beenfit of shade as early in after­ recommended, I believe one should try noon. as above, I had raised chrysan- and do it in order to have plenty of [ 153] 154 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944

bloom of one lily. Not so expensive. to leave them alone, I am sure that I plant seeds in deep wooden boxes I have decapitated some of them in with all earth and sand baked in order that way. that there will be no weeding, which is This article is much too long, but a help to me. as I have kept records I trust that it lt is very tempting to dig around will be of interest to some of readers lilies in the spring and while I try of the middle south.

Year Dateg. Y1'. N u.mbe·r Number Name Planted Bloomed Height Stalks Blooms Re'marks

tigrillllll1 1933 July 16, '34 3-8' 2-8 5-15 These lilies are In an- other part of garden from others and do well with only feeding and they reseed. H enryi 1936 July 29, '37 3' 1 2 Does well with little 3' 1 4 feeding. Planted 10" July 29, '39 30' 1 18 deep with some after- July 24, '40 4' 1 22 noon shade. Iris near July 22, '41 5' 1 23 base of lily. No. blooms July 25, '42 5' 1 25 represents bl ooms and July 18, '43 6' 1 27 buds when cut. Buds open in house. H enr:yi 1937 July 19, '38 l ' 1 2 July 26, '39 2' 2 2 July 23, '40 2I/,' 3 11 July 25, '41 2' 5 6 July '42 2' 6 Did not bloom. Might have been injured. Still comes up. Needs re- planting. 1tmbella./l111l 1936 June 1, '37 1' 1 2 June 10, '38 I I/,' 2 5 This lily does well, but June 10, '39 2' 2 6 it also needs replanting. June 9, '39 2' 3 18 June '40 2' 4 14 Last fall dug up and June '41 10' 5 18 had 5 big and 7 small June '42 I Yo' 5 8 bulbs and replanted. June '43 1)12' 6 7 1tmbe lla tnm Chief Chinook 1941 July '42 1' 1 :l Very lovely lily. July '43 14" 2 4 sulphllreml'L 1936 July '37 Did not come up. July 21 , '38 2' 2 Lovely trumpet blooms. July '39 No winter protecti on and did not come again. Another planted at same time does not bloom, but bears bul bi ls. testace1l11! 1936 June 20, '37 2' 7 Cut and brought In house. No protecti on and it disappeared. Might have cut too much. specios!l1n r'Ub1'1l1l1- magllijic II11t 1936 Sept. '37 3' 14 Cut down too much to exhibit. Dug up in 1940 and replanted 4 bulbs. Next Spring I noti ced moles had been near, so presume mice got them. July,1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 155

Yea1' Datetj Yr. Nwmber NtM-nbe1' Nam.e Planted Bloom.ed H eight Stalks Blooms Remarks spe.ciosum n~bnl11t 1937 Sept. '38 2' 1 4 Sept. '39 2J1, ' 1 6 T hi s lily does better for Sept. '40 2v,' 2 7 others in this county. Sept. '41 2' 3 6 Se~t. '42 2 v,' 3 8 Bulb from Julia Clark. Sept. '43 3' 4 9 W ill1no tt·ia e 1936 June '37 1J1,' 1 -4 Disappeared. Might have June 18, '38 2' 1 8 been inj ured or cut too June 27, '39 5' 1 23 much. W illmottiae 1937 June 24, '38 2' 1 4 June 25, '39 30" 3 2-3--4 Needs replanting. June 21, '40 20"-3' 4 3-4-5 June 23, '41 3' 5 Fair June 21, '42 3 v,' 5 9 June 23, '43 1-3' 6 12 cancalo'r 1936 June 3, '37 5" 1 1 June 1, '38 6" 1 1 June 11, '39 7" 1 3 June '40 5" 1 No bloom. June '41 Completely di sappeared. June '42 Came up 3". June 10,'43 4" 1 1 Surprise. temtifoli!U1n 1936 June 5, '37 1' 1 4 June 1, '38 Iv,' 1 7 June 9, '39 1 JI,' 1 3 June 11, '40 14" 1 5 In '41 it di sappeared. t eHAJri! 0 lil/. l.111- Medium 1937 June 13, '38 12J1, " 1 10 1 12 June 5, '39 l' 2 11 June 13 , '40 15" 2 18 June '41 14" 2 14 June '42 12" 2 None June '43 Disappeared. F orl1'1OSIUttMn (Price's) 1936 July 1, '39 18" 8 1 Bloom 6" long. July 12, '40 15" 9 1 July '41 15" 9 1 July' '42 15" 10 1 July '43 10 2 Needs replanting. F 01"I1WSQl/!'U1n Late variety 1939 Planted seeds in March. Aug. 23, '41 1-4' 1--4 2-10 Blooms every year. ca.ndid',mt 1936 JU1~e '37 2--4' 2-3 2-13 June 15, '37 Blooms every year. Some 111 COU1~ty have had 15 blooms. Is af- f~ted with Botryti s. 1'egale · 1936 June 17,'37 l' 1 5 June '38 I J1, ' 1 6 June 18, '39 2' 2 20 10 bud, on each stalk. June 20, '40 3' 2 11 & 10 June '41 5' 3 10-14 Needs replanting. They June '42 5' 3 7-12 . have early afternoon June '43 5 v,' 3 4-10 shade - ground cover periwinkle, sHperb1l.1'/1. 1937 July 3, '38 2' 1 1 Added woods earth and July 4, '39 3' 1 2 'bone meal and wood July 14, '40 67" 1 16 ashes. July 15, '41 3'&6' 2 10 & 5 blooms and bud s. July 14, '42 4 v,' & 6 v,' 2 20 & 7 bloom.; and buds. July 7, '43 3-4-6' 3 16- 7-5 blooms and buds. This lily is truly outstanding turk's cap yellow center with scarl et towards edge of petals. More Chinese red. ( Periwinkle ground cover. ) 156 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944

Year Do.te 1$- YI'. NH111be'r N llm ber Name Planted Bloo/lled Height Stalks B loo/lls Relnarks

Sunset- Pardalinum- Giganteum 1937 '38 Came up but no bloom. June 20, '39 2-3-4' 3 8 5 stalks in all. A lovely June 23, '40 2-4' 11 ea. 3--6 lily. Very much like June 22, '41 2-3' 12 ea. 4-8 S ll perbll1ll. June 21 , '42 2-3' 14 ea. 2-5 June 23, '43 2-3' IS None Dug up and replanted 5 big and 10 sma l1 bulbs. amwbile 1937 June 13,'38 LV/z" 1 10 June 12, '39 12" 1 None June 12, '40 3'&2' 3-2-1 9 3 blooms on each stalk. June '41 2' 3 8 June '42 2' 3 5 Needs replanting. June '43 2' 3 4 elegans June 13, '38 SYz" 1 Cut to exhibit. Alice \,yi lson 1937 June 11 ,'39 50" 1 Cut to exhibit. June '40 Disappeared. elegans June 25, '38 7" 3 (Aureum ) 1937 June '39 Came up, but some ani- mal broke down.

Da.v£dii 1937 June 24, '38 1' 2 4 June 27, '39 1' 2 7 & 2 on side stalk. June 20, '40 l' 3 3 on each stalk. June '41 13" 4 2 on each stalk. SLeaves June '42 Up 4 1 on each stalk. 1 yellow. June '43 l ' 5 2 Batnna.1Hliae 1938 July 4, '39 10' 1 4 In '43 did not bloom, July 14, '40 25" 2 5 but seems to have 111- July 12, '41 24" 2 4 creased sma 11 bulbs. July 8, '42 14" 3 3 Needs replanting. l'l£bell7.m~ 1938 May 24, '39 5" 1 Beautiful for rock gar- May 31, '40 10" 2 den. May 25, '41 10" 2 Bloom 2Ys " long. May 30, '42 10" 1 A mole burrowed near this lily and expect mice got it. speciosmn albwll 1939 Aug. 4,'·W 25" 1 4 31" 1 2 20" 2 3 each stalk. Planted 4 bulbs. Cut for exhibit. Dug up in '41 and they had shrivel1 ed up inside sand. Beautiful lily. IOl1g1"!lontnt 1939 July 8. '40 17" 1 4 Planted 4 bulbs. Each 18 Yz" 1 4 bloom 60-7" long. 16" 1 3 14" 1 2 '41 Did not bloom. I had cut all for exhibit, but left plenty stem. Drouth I think cause. In April. July '42 15" 3 Side stalks. 3 2 did not bl oom. June 30, '43 Jil" 2 Probably needs .replant- ing. July,1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 157

Year Da.teg' Y1'. Nwnbe'r Nt£mbel' Nam~e Pial/ted Bloomed Height Stalks Blooms Remarks }.Ifaximowiczii 1939 July 8, '40 29" 1 2 4 bulbs planted. 17" 1 I 27" 1 2 39" 1 4 '41 About the same bloom. '42 25" 5 2 did not bloom. Comes July 27" 6 up. July 11, '43 23" 4 2 did not bloom. Seems 25" 5 to increase in bulbs. centifoli-Itm (Horsford) 1940 July 8, '41 12" Large white, very lovely. '42 8" Side stalks. '43 18" 2 X G. C. Creelman ;Horsford) 1940 July '41 12" 1 2 Smaller white blooms. '42 11" 1 1 Lot side stalks. '43 12" 1 1 Parryi 1940 Came up first year, but never again. Nee d s plenty of moisture. 1940 Planted below pool in muck from creek and it bloomed every year. The others were in garden with tiles near for watering, but evi­ dently did not get enough watering. thunbergianwn- alntacenm 1940 Comes up but never blooms. Wardii 1940 Came up first year, but no bloom. Bulbs from England. 1'1tbescens 1941 Came up first year, but no bloom. Disappeared. Roezlii, carolim:anl//l1, never came up. WashingtonionH111 came up every year since 1941 , but no bloom. Pa1'VWIn lu,fe·/-t1f1. did not wme up. The Martagons do not come up, neither do the philadelphicwms. Have planted philadelphicwm twice, two different years. No luck. . Hansoni, canode'lIse jlavUln and Shuksan are grown well in the county, but I have had no luck with them. My fault. Perhaps not in right situation. Davidi- macranthAlm~ 1942 June 23, '43 2' 4 Have hopes for it. a1f.raf1tm - Esperanza str. 1942 July 11,'43 I' 1 Very beautiful. Fruit Varieties for the Home Garden

WILBUR H. YOUNGMAN

Choosing varieties of fruits for the The glowing descriptions of the ever­ home orchard, be it large or small, has bearing strawberries intrigue every been a difficult and largely an unguided embryo gardener who wishes to enjoy task. The war-time interest in home this luscious fruit throughout the sea­ fooel produ<;tion, however, stimulated son. They thrive only in the northern federal and ' State authorities to look States or on .the higher elevations. into this problem. Heretofore, the H ome grown figs attract many al­ though they are not hardy north of the would-be fruit gardener looked through Mason-Dixon line (in some places far a catalogue and then chose those varie­ to the south of it). Sweet cherries are ties with the most superlatives in the a much desired fruit which have limi­ descri ptions. tations of adaptability as to soils. Simi­ There is more to the problem of se­ larly many -other kinds of fruit, though lecting' the right varieties for the home desirable for home use, are limited as garden than counting the number. of to soil, climate and hardiness. The be­ superlatives attached to the descnp­ ginner should recognize this and avoid tion. The Delicious apple has, fo r long, disappointment. been one of the main varieties on the N ext to the problem of meeting soil market. It is well known and general1 y and climatic adaptations, the question liked. However, it is not as widely of quality shoul d be emphasized. Com­ adaptable as to climate and soil as some mercial growers, who are the big buy­ believe. The Deli·cious seems to do ers of trees and plants, demand and best in the middle west and fa r west. buy those varieties whose 'fruits ship The J onathan is another popular va­ well and have an attractive appearance riety that seems to thrive best in the on the market. That they may lack in middle west. The Stayman Winesap flavor, texture and juiciness is of little does very well in the middle Atlantic concern. However, the home fniit States. The aromatic, juicy McIntosh grower should look for and demand grows to perfection in the northern quality in the fruit that he grows. High States or on the higher elevations, but quality means good texture, a desirable is a miserable failure in the more south­ fl avor and sufficient juice. Frequently, erly appIe growing States. the commercially important varieties Not only is it a question of regional lack in these important characteristics, adaptation, but soils and fertility are usual1y 'because they are too tender to important. The Stayman Winesap ap­ withstand commercial handling. A va­ ple is well known for its good perform­ riety that is thin skinned, juicy or ten­ ance on poor soils, while the old-fash­ der (soft-fleshed) bruises easily in ioned Winesap is a failure unless plant­ handling and goes to pieces quickly, ed on deep rich soils. The Yel10w N ew­ hence is difficult to market. For home town apple (Albemarle Pippin) grows use it is oftentimes .the most desirable. best in the mountain coves of Virginia, Susceptibility to disease and insect the Hood River Val1 ey of Oregon and injury probably ranks third in the fac­ in the San Benito River Val1ey near tors to be considered in choosing a va­ VI/ atsonvil1 e, California. riety. Most everyone prefers the Bart- [ 158 ] July,1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 159 lett variety ,of pear for eating, but in Not only do they ,ecognize the climate the east and middle west it is usually and soil, but for once they have given injured if not destroyed by the "Fire­ seri ous thought to the importance of blight" disease. Just because it is the quality. Of necessity they have limited most desirable of the dessert type va­ the lists of varieties to a very few, rieties does not justify planting where omi tting some because they were not it cannot possibly live and thrive. The generall y available in commerce. For sweet cherries are very desirable, but t he most part they have listed the fruits in the east, even on sui table soils, it is in the order of dependability both as to exceedingly difficult to protect the fruit climate and disease resistance. Thus from the "Brown-rot." The Grimes hardiness and freedom from disease in­ Golden apple is an excellent early fall jury have been given the most consid­ variety, but in some sections is seri­ eration, with quality secondary. This ously ,troubled by the "Collar-rot." Red probably explains why they list the raspberries are a choice home garden Kieffer pear which is about the hardi­ fruit, but in regions where the wild est and most disease resistant variety dewberries abound, it is difficult to known- and of t he poorest dessert keep ,them in production for the dew­ quality. berries oftentimes carry a virus dis­ Some people will, no doubt, wonder ease that is fatal to .the raspberri es. why so many standard commercial va­ Formerly, the size of the trees often­ rieties are li sted. It was mentioned times prevented the home gardener above that many of the most desirable from giving seri ous interest to the cul­ so far as quality goes are not generally tivation of fruit. Today it is possible available in the nurseries. Also, it to buy dwarf, semi-dwarf and half­ must be pointed out that a fu lly ripened standard sized trees of many varieties E lberta peach, freshly picked from the of both apples and pears. No doubt, in tree, is a prize wor,th having'. On the time dwarfing stocks will be fo und for other hand, few wi ll recognize the M. other large growing kinds of tree B. Waite pear, a recent release of the fruits. With these small sizes of trees U. S. Department of Agriculture, it is available it is now possible to enjoy the most di sease resistant variety of home grown fruit in the smallest of the Bartlett type yet introduced to the back-yards pr,oviding they are sunny. fruit grower., Fruit trees do not thrive and produce Notes on Apple Va,rieties.' Of the acceptable quality fruit in shady situa­ dessert type of apple varieties the fol­ tions. Blueberries, a bush fruit, thrives lowing are susceptible to Apple scab, in partial shade. but are resistant to spray injury-De­ With the exception of size, the fed­ licious, Stayman Winesap and McIn­ eral and State authorities have pooled ,tosh. The J onathan is resistant to scab their experiences and recommended va­ but susceptible to spray injury. Golden ri eties of fruit for the home fruit gar­ Delicious is very susceptible to Bitter den for every section of the country.1 rot in the humid regions .of the south. J onathan and Golden Delicious are 'Leafl et Z18- The Home Fruit Garden in the East Central and Middle Atlantic States ; Leaflet troubled by the Cedar rust in those 2I9-The Home Fruit Garden in t he Southeastern and Central Southern States; Leaflet 221-The areas where the red cedar is abundant. Home Fruit Garden in the Central Southwestern Apple trees cannot be depended upon States; Leaflet 2n-The Home Fruit Garden in the Northern Great Plains, Northern Mounta in, to produce good crops of fruit unless and Intermountain States, and Leaflet 224-The Home Fruit G3rden in the Pacific Coast States there are two or more varieties present, and Arizona, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. i.e. , they are not good self-pollin izers. 160 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944

Delicious, Jonathan and Golden De­ leased for commercial progagation, is licious may be depended upon to fur­ the most disease resistant of the Bart­ nish pollen for other varieties. lett type for growing in the middle belt .. The Golden Delicious is rated as of The Gorham, introduced by the Geneva "very good" dessert quality, but it Experiment Station, is reported to be should be noted that unless picked at resistant to the "Fire blight" in the the proper season this is not quite true. northeastern States, but has not proved If picked too early the fruit is leathery so in the middle Atlantic States. and the flavor poor. If picking is de­ Pears are one of the few fruits prac­ layed too long the flesh is mushy and ticall y immune from injury by the the flavor poor. Japanese beetle. The pear . physlla, the Many of the so-called color strains­ cause of the stony or gritty spots in the improved coloring of established varie­ ripe fruit which which greatly reduces ties are of primary value commercially the quality is caused by a plant louse. because of their meeting color specifica­ It may be controlled by spraying dur­ tions in grading. During seasons of ing the winter with a strong dormant cloudy weather when fruit does not spray, or in the earlier spring with a color well , this characteristic is of im­ milder spray. portance to the producer who can mar­ Pears require cross-pollination for ket his fruit as meeting the color re­ good crops. The Kieffer is one of the quirements for the top grades-even best for this purpose but its fruit is though the fuit is lacking in maturity. lacking in quality. For the home fruit gardener such va­ Notes on Plum, Varieties: Plums are rieties have little if any advantage. a choice summer fruit. In the hot Apples, to be of tfirst quality, must humid regions of the country, however, be sprayed and protected from diseases it is difficult to overcome the "Brown and insects. Since, normally, they are rot," a destructive disease. The Dam­ large growing trees, the cost of the son, a good plum for jelly making, necessary equipment and the work in­ seems to be immune to this trouble. volved discouraged many home garden­ The eating types, however, are more ers from growing them. However, by difficult to grow. Some plum varieties growing the dwarf trees this difficulty require cross-pollinization. The trees is largely overcome since the same need protection from the borer, the equipment used for spraying or dusting same as peaches. Plums are one of roses and shrubs may be satisfactorily our hardiest fruits. employed to protect dwarf apples and Notes on Peach Var-ief1:es: The pears. quality in peach varieties seems to de­ Notes on Pear Va;riet·ies: Pears, like pend to a large extent upon the degree apples, are one of our most desirable of maturity at time of picking. The fruit crops, but unlike apples we do not usual commercial varieties when al­ have as many high qaulity varieties to lowed to ripen fully on the tree are choose from. The Bartlett is consid­ of excellent quality. Peaches need pro­ ered the best of the dessert type, but tection from the "Brown rot" in the it is susceptible to "Fire blight." for more humid regions, as well as from which there is no cure. It is unwise to the Peach Tree borer. plant the Bartlett except in the far Peaches are not as hardy as the west. The Seckel, a small summer above mentioned kinds, but breeding "sugar" pear, is resistant to the dis­ work in recent years has increased "'.ase. The M. B-. Waite, recently re- hardiness and it :s now possible to July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 161 produce this fruit farther north than Concord is probably the most outstana­ was possible a few years ag-o . They in g excepti on to this and is one of the still suffer from winter injury to the mo t widely grown native varieties. In fruit buds, so the home gardener recent years some hybrids between the should select vari eties based upon his Ameri can and European types have locati on. been put on the market. But like otber Notes on Strawberry Va1'1:eties: As varieties they are of limited adapta­ previously mentioned the everbearing bi li ty. varieties are most sati sfactory in the Notes on the Other Fntits: Apricots northern states or at the higher eleva­ are hardy enough to grow in the East tions. Varieties vary as to winter but their fruit buds open so early that hardiness and adaptability to soils and in most years they are kiIIed by late climate and this should be carefuII y frosts, thus are seldom fruitful. N ec­ checked with local info rmation. Home tarines are more hardy in thi s respect. qua lity fruit is very different from com­ Raspberries are not adapted to very mercial quality and a search is justi­ hot or dry weather. Blackberries can fied , if necessary, to locate suitable hi gh endure hot weather but not hot drying quality vari eties adapted to local co n­ winds. Red raspberri es are susceptible ditions. to serious virus diseases and should not \ iV hile in some seasons there is not be planted near black raspberries which much interval betweela the fruiting sea­ carry it but are themselves not affect­ son -of the early, mid-season and late ed. Dewberri es are more tender than varieties, the h0J11e fruit grower will either the raspberries or blackberries. usually find it desirable to have varie­ Blackberries spread by underground ties maturing at different times so as stolons are difficult to keep under con­ to prolong the harve'?t season as much trol in the small garden. Loganberries as possible. and Boysenberries are tender and need Notes on Gmpe Val'ieties : Grapes special winter care in the middle and formerly were considered to be one of northern States. the most easily grown and satisfactory Currants and gooseberfies do best fruits for the small garden. With the in a cool climate, but can stand fairly advent of the Japanese beetle this is warm summers if they have plenty of becoming less true. However. they water. They should not be grown in ~ti ll are well adapted to the 'S mall yard white pine growing areas as they are since they can be employed to cov@r an intermediate host of the white pine trellises or trained to a fence or wall, blister rust. thus taking up relatively li ttle space. These brief notes should indicate the In the east and middle west and the importance of using care in the selec­ south, improved varieties of our native tion of fruits and thei r varieties for the grapes are commonly grown, while in home garden. To make certain -of hav­ tile far west and the Old \iV orld, the ing the most satisfactory ones which vinifera grapes are most important. by the way are not always those that Grape varieties are not adapted to all grow around the old homestead, con ­ soils and climatic conditions and care sult local fruit growers, the County should be exercised in selecting those Agricultural Agent or get the leaflets best adapted to local conditions. The mentioned. A Book or Two

The Greel~ Ea1,tl~. Harold William fornia Press, Berkeley and Los An­ Rickett. Jaques Cattell Press, Lan­ geles. 1942. 225 pages, illustrated. caster, 1944. 353 pages, illustrated. $10.00. $3.50. Although Mrs. Baird does not pro­ The subtitle of the book is "An In­ fess to be a botanist or an expert on vitation to Botany" and down at the the genus Viola, she has been long and very bottom of I the jacket one reads intimately acquainted with many mem­ "one of the Humanizing Science bers of the group through association Books" but doubtless Dr. Rickett was with her father's technical studies, not responsible for that, nor for the which are still generally authoritative blurbs within the jacket. on V~ola . There is a great bulk of interesting In Ezra Brainerd's bulletin on the material, told with considerable free­ Violets of North America, published dom in not too technical language; but in 1921 by the Vermont Agricultural it remains the sort .of book that one Experiment Station. there were in­ either likes or dislikes, or perhaps one cluded some 25 excellent colored plates should say, is ready for or no longer of various violets by the artist F. needs. It is easy to believe that many Schuyler Mathews. To have a com­ will find it a new field of enjoyment plete series of plates by the same ar­ and then move on to more solid stuff tist had been his unfulfilled wish and which Dr. Rickett can also provide, so is probably the main reason for the that the main purpose ef the book will present book, which for its 80 colored have been accomplished. plates alone is well worth its price. The drawings are very good and in For those species familiar to the re­ many instances are more pleasuraHe viewer the color reproduction is very than the text. good. Citations as to the exact source of the illustrated material enhances Patholog'jl in Forest Pmctice. Dow V. their value in such a variable group Baxter. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., as Viola. New York, N. Y , 1944. 618 pages, To those wl,o wish to learn some­ illustrated. $5.50. thing of the ·culture of our native vio­ This is essentially a reference book lets the book will be disappointing in for a clearly defined and well developed that little can be learned about the field. It is organized and illustrated var~ous species' requirements beyond carefully and there is a long index, as what ·can be inferred from the brief re­ well as lists .of reference materials af­ marks as to habitat. Likewise, the ter each chapter. botanist wishing to obtain up-to-date It does not come close to the field of knowledge of the genus or its species readers of this journal, but those who will find little that is new in descrip­ have trees on their places might well tion and inadequate distributional data. have it and consult it as they watch The editi-on is limited to one thou­ their possessions wax or wane. sand copies and uridoubtedly will be­ come a collector's item. All students Wild Violets of North America. Viola and lovers of violets should have it. Brainerd Baird. University of Cali- C. O. E. [ 162 ] Rock Garden Notes ROBERT MONCURE, Editor

WAVES Not Feminine nor Nautical-but Floral

VIOLET NILES WALKER ,

"Sweet are the uses of perversity"­ and June, even the first year's efforts Stupid, isn't it, to open an article with were crowned with overpowering suc­ a foolish paraphrase. In those far-gone cess. But by the first week in July a days when in school, we, of an older blank garden faced me-almost every­ generation, were taught rock-bottom thing had bloomed out, and there was grammar and rhetoric, with accent on little left to make any show until the Prose Composition, it was impressed late fall anemones and chrysanthe­ ·on us that such procedure implied (and mums. True, there were dwindling doubtless with much truth) a lack of crops from purchased delphinium plants originality or pbssibly of gray brain (and most of these died the following matter. And yet, even facing such tra­ winter), snapdragons, and some heliop­ dition, and with deep apologies to the sis went on, bedraggled, spider-infested Bard of Avon, this article, which has phlox ·bloomed, but left yellowed, dead to do primarily with problems of rock foliage, and there were a limited num­ gardening through the summer months ber of petunias, ageratum, marigolds in the Upper Middle South, is based and zinnias which had been planted on just such foolishness. For sheer rather apologetically, as first year perversity alone has been responsi·ble ,fillers (for they weren't considered for assembling these notes over many stylish, and stylish I must be!), to­ years ·of experiment. gether with some nasturtiums. Fortu­ It all began when, thirty-three years nately these last, purchased as dwarf ago, I came to live permanently in varieties, turned out to be climbers, so Piedmont Virginia. Almost my first many gaps of ,bare ground were merci­ thought was to raise flowers, for early fully and unexpectedly covered, but years of mild gardening of sorts spread the general aspect of the garden. was between Virginia (·both Tidewater and such as to move one to tears. All Northern), Philadelphia, New York, ground left ·bare baked to a hard yel­ Lake George, and "way stations," had low crust in the long heat spells, and developed a passion for gardening; and watering to preserve the flowers only at my new home the remains of a cen­ made for greater work in ceaseless cul­ tury old garden which had suffered al­ tivating (under a blazing sun) to main­ most total annihilation in the sixties, tain a dust mulch. As I studied the and had only partially been resusci­ sad wreck in perplexity I thought of tated, seemed a heaven-sent answer to the great five to six feet clumps of del­ prayer. phiniums, long established spider-free So a small beginning was made, mod­ white phlox, stout tiger lilies, etc., etc., elled on a Lake George, New York, which were the backbone of midsum­ garden, and the first spring all went mer bloom in our tiny mountainside well. Favorite perennials were bought garden at Lake George. . and annual seeds planted, and in May To my amazement. I received no [ 163] 164 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944 sympathy, nor any helpful suggestion found the Journal a mine of suggestive for this tragedy-only "I told you so," wealth, while about that time the South and the universal attitude that nothing African Gardening Magazine dawned else could be done thr,ough July and on my horizon. August under the Virginia sun and All of this yielded amazing result;;, breezes. and the further study of English seed That just didn't make sense to me, catalogues brought to me a wide range and as I listened to friends and rela­ of material not to be found at that time tives I wondered-thell got mad, and among ,our Amer.ican seedsmen, and so, from that time became a horticultural in a few years my expanded garden Bolshevik. "We couldn't have all sum­ with its carefully planned "Waves Df mer bloom?" Oh, yes we could, and bloom" presented a fairly credita·ble ap­ I'd find it-or what? pearance through the so-called desert In those early days, modern trans­ months. portation was in its birth-struggle. Then came the inevitable. Who Motor roads were yet to be developed, could resist the Rock Garden urge after and communities still lived within the unending study of the British Alpine limits of a horse and buggy trip, so Society publication, Gardening Illus­ there were none of the quick contacts trated, etc., etc. ? Not I, for one, so a­ whi,ch later make possible the inter­ rock-gardening I would go, willy-nilly. chang(l with outsiders, Df gardening That there were no surrounding condi­ experiences, and ultimately led to the tions that by the wildest stretch of the rise of the garden clubs. Sounds like imagination could be in the last way the Dark Ages, doesn't it? suitable for a rock-garden wasn't of the That this same search for all-season slightest importance. The flower gar­ bloom was going on elsewhere in neigh­ den is a long narrow strip, stolen from bGrhoods then seemingly remote, but and bordering on the old ten-acre later brought together by motors, did steeply terraced vegetable garden. It me no good. fu a newcomer I was lies at the top of the hill which rises long ignorant of their very existence, two hundred feet from the river to the and soon realized that only through one hundred and ,fifty-eight year old study of horticultural literature and residence built by James Madison, Sr., the slow, hard way of trial with many­ for his son William and which occu­ to-be expected failures, could I hope pies part of the limited level ground of to reach my goal, though I was never the ridge top. A road leading to the without the conviction that it could be farm buildings at the rear of the house attained. But alas, the next stumbling separates the garden territory from block was that there were no depend­ the house lawn with its bluegrass shel­ able American horticultural publica­ tered by age-old white oaks, poplars, tions thalil. even so ri1Uch as hinted at cedars, a huge black gum, and a box the cultural problems of this erratic hedge inside the paling fence which Virginia thing dignified with the name ,bound the garden side of this road in a of climate and so aiq must be sought gentle elliptical curve. The hill is of further afield. So I turned to English heavy (though rich) red clay, sophisti­ books and magazines, and, after some cated and tamed in appearance-not trials, finally settled down regularly the slightest vestige of anything evell with Gardening Illustrated, and, from approaching a weathered surface rock, its first appearance, the New Flora or the conditions that would produce and Silva. Later, becoming a Fellow one. Moreover, there is no water on of the Royal Horticultural Society, I the hill. A well, sunk almost a mile July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICuLTURAL MAGAZINE 165 from the house, in the different soil imity to flower garden, and both boun­ fDrmation of the valley stretching away daries "sophi sticated." towards the Blue Ridge mountains, Advantages: First and last-none­ supplies the strongly iron-impregnated just a perverse determination to grow water which is pumped unceasingly rock plants, and, if possible, alpines. for the school, farm, and garden needs. Hut built it was, faithfully done But again perversity saved the day. from foundation up, "according to A great five hundred year old white Hoyle"-drainage, soil mixture, root oak had died, just inside the box hedge. runs between sunken rocks, etc., etc. A summer house had been built over And the less said of the outer manifes­ the space it had occupied overlooking tations of a rock garden the better. the vegetable garden, the river valley, After years of attempting to age the and the hills opposite. Black walnuts, barren rocks artificially with manure ancient cedars, and other trees fur­ water, milk and soot, etc., they have nished a background and wind-break toned down sufficiently not to cause a from north winds, with slight protec­ shudder at every glance, bu.t they are tiom from the last rays of the summer still rather uncompromisingly ugly and sun, and in a moment of landscaping I have reason to believe have furnished I had planted two Sal·ix babylonica many a legitimate criticism. (sent over thi rty years ago by Dr. Then, for some years there was a Fairchild) at either side of the summer planting orgy from seeds to mature house. nursery plants. English nurserymen To make a long story short, I devel­ supplied the seeds entirely until, in oped the two small spaces on either side 1926, I unexpectedly found that the of this summer house, formed between Pacific Coast seeds were passing in the brick walk (which runs straight quantity by my very doors, en route to across the entire top of the garden) and England, and then returning to me in the curving line of the tall box hedge small packets. West Coast plants were screening off the road-about eighteen located with difficulty in small ~ursery feet at the widest part, and tapering to firms and almost nothing was left un­ meet the ends of the one hundred and tried and Eastern natives just didn't seventeen foot brick walk. To empha­ seem to be noticed by "The Trade." size the total unsuitability of the spot, When, looking back, I think of the dol­ let's sum up the disadvantages, together lars and cents representing the unfor­ with such advantages as might be dis­ tunates that are buried among the deep covered wi,th a ·fine tooth comb. root-runs beneath my willows and wal­ Disadvantages. First: Wrong soil­ nuts, I wonder at my own tenacity of heavy clay, strongly alkaline, with purpose, for still I held on. heavier sticky sub-soil needing severe To go into details as to the materials treatment for proper under-drainage. that were handled would necessitate the Second: No vestige of any rocky condi­ printing of almost a complete Alpine tion, and rocks must be brought from a catalogue, for a high ambition demand­ distance and would probably never look ed unswerving (and, I fear, blind) de­ natural. Third: No natural moisture­ votion to the highest ideals of Alpine water must be pumped. Fourth: Lo­ beauty and rarity. But after some cation over the roots of thirsty willows years of effort and July still found me and walnuts, drinking up any moisture. facing a tired Rock Garden where Fifth: All day exposure to intense sum­ bloomed-out spring flowers were rest­ mer sun and unfailing southern breezes. ing and acid-loving plants were going Six~h: Limited space; too close prox- on hunger strikes, even to committing 166 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944 suicide, almost over night there came THE WAVES THEMSELVES a reaction and light dawned. A long­ The greatest lull in the season (and delayed soil analysis disclosed a total there are several lulls) occurs from lack of acidity within the garden bound­ the middle of June to early July. What aries, and even carefully prepared do the notebooks show over the years acid pockets (again according to for this and ensuing periods? A truly Ho)'le) would leach out while my back amazing mixture, and though the list is not overwhelming, practically all was turned. Why not ?-everything, quarters of the globe have contributed. including water, was alkaline. So I Obviously the ,first necessary step is -asked myself, why continue reaching to use some foliage plants that will for the moon? Why not paint my pic­ provide fresh-looking spots while the ture with materials that would be happy various waves are gathering force and under my hot, dry, alkaline conditions? the earlier perennials and bulbs are Surely, all -the beauty and adaptability resting before starting new growth. in the world weren't confined to the The three ·best I have found arfl acid-demanding inhabitants of the ver­ S elaginella bmt£l'l-vi, C o1'ydalis thalictri-­ dureless Alpine peaks. And just as folia (both from China) , and Begonia surely somewhere could be found mate­ Evansiana from Java and Southern rial that would furnish a dependable China. Radically differing from each succession of bloom throughout our other in every respect, these three rare­ many months of open growing weather ly beautiful plants furnish season-long -actually, February to December. interest, the last doubly so since a lit­ And a succession of some sort I must tle later the graceful pink flowers bloom have, since the little experimental in profusion till October. patch is an integral part of my small S elaginella Bmu1'l.ii, a greenhouse garden, and could not be allowed to be subject further north, is reliably hardy a waste for the months following the here; its brilliant yellowish-green, fern­ main early spring display, in spite of like foliage is invaluable. Further often met assertions that nothing more south it grows to three or four feet but than spring display was to be expected among my rocks it is a true dwarf of of the rock garden. fifteen inches. So again exploring expeditions went Corydalis thalictrifolia comes nearest forth and again, slowly but surely, to being the ideal all-season "must there have been accumulated enough have" of which I know. Its virtues are subjects to carryon a creditable show­ manifold, length of season, beauty of ing through the lull following the spring form and color, adaptability to any con­ tide, even in my pocket-handkerchief ditions, indifference to weather ex­ space that must accommodate experi­ tremes and sun or shade, hardy, free­ ments, "sleeping beauties" and present seeding, but easy to control, and even a good face at one and the same time. invalu

teen-inch stems in a long succession, scentless) heliotrope fl owers one-fourth though their presence or absence are of an inch across in three parted clus­ of little importance for the "plant is the ters. Native to South America from thing." Brazil to Argentina, it is perfectly Begonia EVG11>S1:(J;J1,a appears the mid­ hardy here, due, do ubtless, to its amaz­ dle of June and up to its blooming pe­ ing tap roots. Although it ~eeds al­ ri od a month later is as decorative as most too abundantly and can quickly might be expected from its typical fam­ ,fi ll that definition of a weed-"a fl ower ily characteristics. With the beauty of out of place," its quiet beauty and in­ its red-veined and red-backed foliage difference to drought and sun {)utweigh and its drooping pink fl owers, added any other disadvantages. It shows up t{) a hardy constitution (for it doesn't late in spring but makes up for lost even insist on moisture, as generall y time. claimed for it), and amazing pliability Nierenq,bergia hipp011q,af/1. ~ca, in both of reproduction, this hardy begonia be­ blue and purple is fairly dependable, comes a No. 1 asset. It can be moved though a few replacements should be at any time of its existence and the tiny raised early from seeds each year. bulbils will produce blooming plants The little yeIlow trailing "baby zin­ the following year. nia," Sanvitalia; procumbens, if raised Among dwarf materials we find the early from seeds, is developing nice greatest dearth of bloom of the entire mats in the bare spots left fr·om early season. Barely half a dozen are avail­ bulbs such as E ra:l1this hy e 11~alis , his able, some of which are goi ng, others reticulata, Triteleia, etc. just starting. Notable among these In the middle heights, eighteen to latter, however, are the species ver­ twenty-four inches, come my two ear­ benas which will give fine color for two liest aIliums-A. va.lidum, in its white months. variety with fl ower-heads 2.0 inches VeTbena aubletia, or Canadense, na­ across, composed of many half-inch tive down the coast to Georgia, in its starry fl orets on 2 foot stems, with lovely salmon shade, is "tops." grey-green foliage - the other (name­ V. e·rinoides, from Chile, is equally less) a lower form with large round desirable in white or lav ~nde r. heads of lavender bloom on IS-inch V. bipinnatidifolia, from Western stems, starts the latter part of validum's North America, has a most beautiful bloom. Each of these lasts over two soft lavender flower and makes the weeks. H euchera, beginning late April, same spreading mats as its cousins. and fl owering vigorously until August, Seeds or cuttings increase these. Vol­ forms a pivotal base for interesting unteer seedlings show up late, but can combinations at all time of its bloom. be depended on to appear. H. sanguinea's dwarf form and more The only "safe" Oxalis is the sham­ briIliant coloring isn't as long-lived f{)r rock-leaved Salmon Queen, and even me as the paler shade, IS-inch H. though it leans a bit t o over-abundant Rosa1nonde. growth it is a steady, long-season What I think is Galiu1% verum is a bloomer of fine color and form. lovely mass of fine feathery yellow One of the hardiest and (to me) best bloom and foliage fo r about two weeks dwarf perennial fillers for the entire and a g{)od cover at all times. Stands summer months starts now-Heliotro ­ cutting back like the subulata phloxes. pium anchu-saefoliu1n (or, as it was M econ,opsis integrifolia ~ the lovely given to me, CO'chranea) , with its yeIlow Chinese biennial poppy and the spreading mats and typical (though only meconopsis that has ever suc- 168 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944 ceeded for me, begins in late May, con­ with cream color inside spreading to tinuing 'til late August. Hunnemannia the recurving petal tips. The character fumariaefolia, closely resembling it, has of the plant is choice, growing three or the same blooming period. Though four feet with rounded clasping leaves perennial, this only lasts a few years (grass green outer side, asphodel green for me, but since it blooms the first beneath) and with graceful tiny ten­ year from seed sown where it is to . drils which show a thwarted ambition grow, its loss is negligible. to climb. This valuable clematis came Ruella cil-iosa's fine lavender-blue to me from the Allegheny Mountains funnels, though unexciting, are fresh and, contrary to Alice Lounsberry who and charming, and carryon from early locates it by moist stream sides, it June through August. It is easily fairly revels in my hot, dry situation. moved in full flower. Two familiar white natives, from Ornithogalum thyrsoides, even with woods and stream-sides, contribute comparatively short season (about their bit to the background for at least two weeks) and not over-hardy in con­ two weeks: Cim,icif~~ga racemosa, with stitution, is too beautiful to overlook its tall fuzzy "Fai ry Candles," alJd the and since it blooms the second year tall feathery Meadow Rue, Thalictrwm from seeds (sometimes even the first, if polyga1wu1n. These flourish well un­ sown indoors very early) it gives no der my demanding conditions. more trouble than any other perennial. But the regal lilies are the redeem­ Mentha citrata (bergamot) flourishes ing feature of this period. Years ago, in half shade and its two to three-foot inspired by Ernest Wilson's descrip­ stalks of fragrant blue flowers carryon tions of the native home of his great for weeks. discovery, this lily seemed to me to be Then come the taller, background the soluti{)n to a tough problem. I plants. Several of these are well­ argued that if Lilp~t1n regale was a rock known and need only be mentioned for plant in China, why not here? Time their place on the calendar. First are has proved the wisdom of this reason­ M onGlrda didY111,o, coccinea and its lovely ing, for the first few seedling bulbs, pink variety, M onarda d. var. salmonea. tried cautiously, have established them­ Then the two stunning Adenophoras, selves happily and their grandchildren, Potanini and lilifolim, first cousins to coming up carelessly among the crev­ the pestiferous Cam.panula mpuncu­ ices in the rocks, are appropriate in loides but finer, more beautiful, more size and placing. amenable in their root systems, mak­ Then come the two formerly-dreaded, ing ,fine clumps and giving several so-called, "bad months"-early July to waves of bloom. mid-September, when normally, noth­ Clematis Addisonu holds the center ing is expected. Strange as it sounds, of the stage from Mid-April 'til frost­ same of the choicest inhabitants of nothing daunts it. Even as a crop of widely differing areas all over the bloom begins to seed, and the decora­ world, bulbs, perennials, and annuals, tivecharacteristic seed pods develop contribute to a long wave of good color. their coppery whorls, fresh flowers ap­ Moreover, let it be noticed that, except pear and if all seeds are removed, the for the frequent watering my condi­ entire plant fairly bursts into bloom. A tions demand, with occasional weeding dwarf bush clematis, the flower has the and snipping off of seed pods, the care bell shape of the Viorna group. Open­ at this time is as surely effortless as is ing a soft ·blackish red-purple, it light­ found at any time in any garden work. ens in full bloom to a soft Tyrian Pink, Few annuals are used but they are July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 169

indispensable. VDlunteer seedlings of A. cernUU,11'L, ten inches, white droop­ several, such as T07'enia Bailloni and ing umbels of tiny fl.owerets. June, T. fou?'nieri appear in late June and are well into July. pricked out from between the bricks of A. pulchellu11'L, one of my choicest the walks for bloom from July 20th to and hardy, though difficult to hold, September. Sanvitalia proCt£1'PLb ens, as since the close resemblance of the fo­ before mentioned, and Inca1'villea va­ liage to wild garlic invites destruction riabil'is are raised in early cold frames. by zealous weeders. Color, a choice Incidentally, this last is one of the Tyrian pink; in form differing from the choicest annuals used, and with its wide 11W1'ltanU11'L type, for the pointed bud­ open trumpets, 1 Y;; inches across, in sheath splits open down the side, spill­ pastel shades, and its finely cut foliage ing out a cascade of tiny florets. Early it is a superlative filler for bare spots July. Not listed in Bailey-doubtless from Mid-July to September. because not in trade. My plants came Among tall subjects, the native from seeds collected in the Blue Ridge Phlox pa?1icu,Zata is the most important. many years ago. Opening the first week in July, the A. tib eticU11'L, dwarf 8-10 inches, with masses of varying shades of lavender small rounded heads of lavender-blue flowers can be kept blooming 'til late bloom in July. Again not listed, but August, by preventing seeding. Al­ plants were purchased under this name. though this phlox was dug from our A. 11tLOntanU1% (or senescens) , to 18 moist, rich river banks, the change of inches. Medium-sized rounded heads, diet affects it not one whit, and as back­ lavender blue. Late July. ground for masses of Ane11wne hupe­ A. tangutiCU11'L, blooming in late Au­ hensis (the fine, half-dwarf silvery lav­ gust into September. Invaluable. ender-pink Chinese anemone) it has no Any time after mid-July Zephy-ran­ equal for fresh cool effects. It never thes candida puts on its unflagging suffers from blight. show, especially after a rain, and until About now Begonia Evansiana starts September this dwarf extraordinarily its all season flowering, while several amenable white amaryllid blooms in alliums make definite groups of white, masses. Hardy, of rapid increase from lavender, blue, and pink. seeds and bulb division, it can be moved Two things about alliums: 1st, they at any time without affecting its bloom. are decidedly Df prime value. Easy to Two of the Iridaceae provide variety raise, hardy, with good bloom in pefl­ in form and bloom. B elamcanda, or nite masses over long periods, they Pardanthus chinensis, the perennial should be much more used. 2nd, they Blackberry Lily from China, natural­ are little known, little advertised, and ized on our roadsides, with small red­ like the sedums, the 300-odd varieties spotted orange flowers, blooms early; are only casually alluded to as "the while the often annual h is diclwto11w, 300." While I have enough varieties belonging to the same section, and with to keep a succession from June to Sep­ similar leaf and flower form , but the tember, only five names have been fur­ color, lavender spotted purple, blooms nished for all, nor am I at all certain in August. these fit! But even without names, I ScutellMia baicalens1:s, a true Alpine couldn't live without them. Here they from Eastern Asia, with its lovely vel­ are: vety blue skull-caps on lO-inch stems, A. validtm~ , the white variety, and blooms from July 10th for weeks, and the dwarfish blue, above mentioned, if seeds of the dwarf annual, Diascia blooming mid-June. berbera.e are planted near it in May, 170 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944 the exquisite little pink-horned blos­ of drooping flowers on lO-inch stems soms provide a choice color combina­ lies between Ridgway's carmine and tion. spectrum red. H (J)branthus blooms with­ out the leaves which, coming up later, T(]Jli1~U111, te?'etifoliM.l'l'L, an Eastern persist all winter. American perennial succulent, 8 inches September 10th brings the old fa­ tall, has small, clear, bright purple cup­ vorite, Lycoris 1'adiata, for three weeks, shaped flowers, which open during mid­ and there are few lovelier sights than day. Hardy, long-lived, it prefers great clumps of this choice hardy ama­ rocky, dry situations, and grown near ryllid with a background of white starry gray-foliaged sedums will conciliate native asters, though these latter must even the "magenta-hater." The annual be held

The IV! oU'l'btaiJ/ CraJ/b erry, solid mats because of their creepino-e ' R ed Ove'}' Gree n underground stems. In a lightly shad- ed place with a porous, acid soil high Luscious red cranberries peeped in humus few plants can surpass this through their foil of glossy green dwarf cranberry as a groundcover. leaves. The mats covered many square yards of the meadow-like, open areas \VARREN C. WILSON . above high tide on the ,Cap it I'Original, Quebec, shore. Having seen the Moun­ The G1'ee1'1 S plee ll w ort, Cliff Dweller tain Cranberry before only on the al­ pine summits of New En;-laJ;1d, I was Sometimes high on the face of a surprised to find it at sea level. Since, shaded and mossy limestone cliff, some­ I have learned that it also grows in times withi n easy reach on a limy eastern Asia and from Alaska to Green­ boulder, the delicate Green Spleenwort land and south to coastal Massachu­ clings almost unnoticed. Its lovely pale setts. green fronds droop gracefully in shady Do not let the scientific name of this locations or stcfnd more upright in less ericaceous shrub, Va.ccini"bI.11! Vitis­ protected , ituations. They are soft in Idaea var. 11'I,im'('s, frighten you. It sim­ texture and have green stalks which ply means that ·our plant is a dwarf are often brownish at the base. The variety of the European ·Cowberry, V. fronds an~ rarely longer than six or Vitis-I daea,. The Mountain or Rock seven inches. Cranberry is much more attractive Aspleni~t1'11. vi1'ide, the botanical than its trans-ocean relative. The name, readily translates into the com­ J~thery, evergreen leaves are small, mon name, Green Spleenwort, Vir';d e is the Latin for "green" and Asple11iu11I about three-quarters of an inch lono-e' and shiny. In June or July the pink the Greek for "without spleen." So we or sometimes reddish, bell-shaped flow­ find the " Green" refers to the green ers make a lovely but not showy dis­ stalks which, by the way, help distin­ play. The brilliant red berries which gli sh it fr0111 many of its relatives and follow are startling! They are nearly "Spleenwort" to its supposed medicinal as large as those of cultivated cran­ properties in correcting troubles of the berries, but even more amazing, rest spleen. on emerald carpets only four inches, or Although I have seen this attractive less, high. These berries are rather little fern only in eastern Quebec on acid and bitter when eaten raw but the Gaspe Peninsula, it is widely dis­ have a delicious, unique tang when tributed. The Green Spleenwort is cooked. found in suitable habitats from Green­ Gardeners have begun to recognize land and N ewfoundland west to Alas­ the beauty and value of the Mountain ka and south to Oregon, Colorado, and Cranberry. In addition to its attrac­ Vermont. It also grows in Europe and tive summer foliage, flowers, and fruit, Asia. Many gardeners who have As­ the leaves take on warm red tints in plen:iu1''''' viride consider it one of their the Autumn. Small plants SOOI1 make choicer rock ferns. It usually grows [ 171 1 172 THE NATIO::-JAL HORTICULTURAL },'IAGAZI NE July, 1944

Warren C. W ifsoll A 111.at ot Vaccin,i-z,t71'l Vilis-I daea in tnt.i t, with white-flowered Potentilla tridentata and E11'lpetru'/1'L 17ig1'u111, in tn1it on n:ght well in a gritty, limy soil with a large year the trees were just as laden with proportion of leafmold. Of course, it fl owers. Since large trees with abun­ requi res light shade. dant blooming are not legion. partiCll­ VVARREN C. \ \TILSON. larly trees that flower conspicuously after the development of their foliage, Cla drastis lutea (See page 175 ) such a tree as this is worthy of more Although there is a very fair num­ attention than it gets. ber of mature specim ens of this tree in It is a tree of interest to us in that the public parks of \Vashington, it is it, like our tulip tree Liriodendron and not COl11 mon, nor is it much used by our sassafras, has relatives in C hina, al­ amateurs in these parts. What li es be­ most as isolated there as it is here. hind this. cannot be guessed at the There is a beautiful plate of Cladms­ present time. And although these tic sinensis in Curtis Botanical Maga­ trees do fl ower more or less regularly, zine ( t.9043 ) with a fu ll sized inflo­ their years of maximum fl owering are rescence distinct in its pink flushed nearly always the occasion of exciting pea-shaped blossoms as compared to telephone calls "about that beautiful the white fl owers of our own, but so fl owering tree in such and such a arranged on that plate that one can­ park" not tell whether or not they are some­ The photograph that illustrates these what drooping or if the panicle is some­ notes was taken in 1939 but it might what erect. The writer knows of no well have been takep in 1944, for this spec im ~ns in thi s country and cannot July, 1944 THE N ATIONAL HORTICULTU RAL MAGAZINE 173

Warren C. Wilson [See page 1711 Asplenium, vi1'ide, G1'een Spleenwort 174 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944 guess if it would endure our extremes is not as troublesome as in some other of cold and heat, but since it is report­ cases. ed from 'Vestern Hupeh and Szechuan, Two things should be recalled by it might not be; to which the statement the gardener who is first trying this that "it was proved hardy in the South plant, one that it ·is very slow to leaf of England" lends some further doubt. out in the spring and two, that it often Other species of Cladrastis are men­ winter-kills in part for a year or two ti.oned in the cited text, but this note before it settles down into its stride. is chiefly to call attention to our own This will pass, unless the site is really tree with its fine smooth, dull gray too far North or inland. bark, its broad spl~eading crown when \Vhen the tree grows to maturity it grown in the open, its clean pinnately forms a definite graceful trunk with compound leaves and its May-borne broad rather flattish branches, not like flowers. but not unlike our flowering dogwood, Cu60usly enough, the writer does which develop, branching on to finely not recall having seen seed pods on the twiggy branches. The foliage is abun­ trees known to him, but such must cer­ dant and varies somewhat in size the tainly develop from the abundant flow­ largest leaves appearing on the 'long ering and the seeds might easily pro­ new annual growths. vide an easy and rapid method of in­ As can be seen from the illustration, crease. the flowers hang pendant from the branches, so a location in the garden Styrax japon£ca Sieb. & Zucco (See where one can walk under the tree is page 177) to be recommended. In July, 1933, the Magazine pub­ The flowers are shown natural SIze, lished Miss Guernsey's lovely photo­ but there is no way to suggest ade­ graph of Stjwax obassia and spring af­ quately the delightful perfume that ter spring has gone by without secur­ floods the garden when the tree is ·in ing a photograph .of the much more flower. Of the perfumes known to me, commonly met subjed of this note. it most resembles that of the species Tl~e branches that were chosen are by Rosa. 11'lU,lt1:ftom, not that of its hy­ no means the most robust nor the most Brids. It is, as suggested, a perfume heavily flowered that might have been that fills the air, here competing suc­ cut. cessfully with the unwelcome and lll­ vasive honeysuckle. There appear to be de·finite limits of cold hardiness for all the styrax spe­ X Philadelphu.s "Bouquet Blanc" cies and Dr. Rehder lists Zone V as (See page 179) possible for this shrub, which seems Although it is quite possible that we perhaps a little .optimishc and yet the shall never know with certainy the original trees for the garden here, were pedigree of the various beautiful Phila­ bought on the advice of a Massachu­ delphus varieties that have come from setts friend who urged me as a South­ M. Lemoine, Mr. Rehder offers tenta­ erner to have this beautiful flowering tive positions in his Manual of Culti­ tree. vated Trees and Shrubs and writes (p. The expression original trees was 274). Also "Boquet blanc may be re­ use.d because this is another plant, ferred here, though the calyx is scarce­ whIch once established will sow itself ly pubescent" and with this assigns it lavishly under its feet. The seedlings to the hyb rid group of X P. V'vrginalis are easily killed, if one wishes, so this Rehder. July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 175

Robert L. Taylor, USDA Cladrastis lutea, Yello'W'woo d 176 THE NATIO~AL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944

It is true that considering the gross one of the smaller mock-oranges of the characteristics of the plant do come June season. closer to those of the Virginalis group, As a different shrub this can be used with the somewhat more vigorous to replace the more common tatarian growth and larger leaves, but in many honeysuckle, or the I a r g e mock­ ways it also suggests the varieties that oranges. Cultivation does not require Dr. Rehder groups as X P. Le111.0nei any special considerations. Lemoine, particularly in its tendency Salix caprea to form long heavily flowered branches. Early spring always brings out the such as are indicated by the illustra­ almost universal attraction of the tion, w'hich shows a natural size por­ pussywillow. In many cases these are tion of one such. gathered from wild and are catkins As to flowering, it comes to its peak about two-thirds of an inch long. How­ here a little after P. c01'onarius L itself ever, the ones that attract the most and yet before P. gmndifion£s Willd. praise are the culticated ones that may One hesitates to suggest a classifica­ reach one and a half or two inches in tion of its scent which is like that of catkin length. These chubby catkins coronarius though distinct. may be either a clear white or may have Like all Philadelphus it is relatively a pink tinge underlying the outer white tolerant of shade and is moderately hairs. tolerant of dryness. But like all 1110ck­ These large cultivated pussy willows oranges, it is very responsive to good are forms of Sali·_'!: cap1'ea, the goat wil­ treatment, rewarding the grower with low of Europe. In general appearance abundant flowering and demanding only occasional thinning of the old the plant is similar to our native pussy­ . wood. It will make a shrub for the willow but somewhat larger through­ out. The catkins are about fifty per middle group, rather than either the foreground or background. cent larger. the leaves are about ten per cent larger and the stems and ulti­ vVashin.gton, D. C. mate height about twenty percent larger. FROM THE MIDWEST In places where the goat willow has HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY been planted as a specimen it grows as Lonicem jrag1'a,nt1'ssi11W an ascending treelet with a profusion of the catkins appearing at the tips of This member of the honeysuckle the branches. It is quite attractive and group is not commonly grown here. showy at that season of the year when It is a large shrub and may be used in all other shrubs are yet dormant. shrub border or as foundation materi­ Like most willows this species will al against large flat walls. In general grow in many situations but appreci­ effect one is reminded of the tatarian ates most a deep, moist soil and little honeysuckle but the branches are stout­ or no shade. The white and the pink­ er and the leaves slightly larger and ish forms are available at nurseries. more rounded. While reputed to be evergreen, this species behaves here as Borders of ponds or streams natural­ a deciduous plant. ly suggest willows and for early spring this is the best. The flowers of this honeysuckle are about an inch in diameter, appear be­ Physoca.rpus opu.lijoi£u.s 11alq~£S fore the leaves and are fragrant. When The dwarf nin.ebark is one of the they appear in early April they remind nice plants for low hedges in the mid- July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 177

Robert L. Ta~l l or [See page 174] S tyrax faponica, natuml si:::e 178 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July, 1944 west. Lacking some ' of the better ma­ flowers and takes on an almost exotic terial of the eastern and southern re­ beauty. On closer inspection these may gions th~ choi~e ot small plants for have only the structural perfection that hedging is rather Ii 11ited. Many peo­ is always the wonder of all flower ple are familiar with the common nine­ forms, but who cares f'0r such minutiae bark which is native to matly places in when the temperature is at 90° F.? this region. While it attains a height It has another time of beauty when of ten feet with a spread of .fi ve or six its black, berrylike fruits cover the same its dwarf counterpart rarely reaches a inHorescences which have turned to height of three feet with a spread of crimson or reddish purple.' about eighteen inches. The foliage of In planting the tere, one must recall the ninebark is rather similar to that that it makes bare, almost stark, single of the VanHoutte spiraea yet it has trunks covered with stout prickles, and a heavier, glossier appearance. The also that it does sucker and send up flowers are in small flat-topped dusters its stems where one does not want and appear in late spring. them. One must remember also that Although the ninebark is native to it can well be planted in a mass of rich moist soil, and can stand partial lower shrubs above which it rises ma­ shade, yet it will make satisfactory jectically choosing, if one may, shrubs growth in most kinds of garden soil with a much finer foliage to give a and in full exposure. As a trimmed contrast. hedge one or two feet in height it is excellent. As an untrimmed hedge it P~wple foZ,iage. will attain two to three feet. There was a time when colored foli­ ELDRED E. GREEN. age was not in style, but times have changed a little and one may now dis­ Bam,boos. creetly introduce C'0lored foliage into a Although several members have writ­ green mass and n'0t be frowned upon. ten of their specific interest in this very There is a garden hereab'0uts, .in interesting family of plants, it occurs which a common weed of old gardens, to the editor that a note in the Maga­ Pen:Ua frutescens, has sown itself as a zine might bring to attention planting carpet under the ea·rlier flowering of the hardier species which would go shrubs. Its mass of dull red purple far to completing our somewhat scat­ foliage, which appears as a chocolate tered reporting. In writing, notes are purple in the shade, makes a striking desired only for bamboos, and not for variation, from the shadow coIors that either "cane" referring to our native appear in the normal greenery. plants nor to the old Arulldo donax which is quite another matter and ha~ em"nus Kousa. var. chinensis (See page its own claim to distinction. The data 181) most desired are those which tell the Although this particuhr form of range of hardiness. flowering dogwood has had a rather good "press" as such things go, one Amlia spinosa. does not come across it so often, per­ This is the sort of tall shrub that haps because the splendor of the dog­ one would scarcely think to order from wood native to the eastern portions of a catalogue, and yet when the sultry our country has made it less of a need last days of July settle down over the than elsewhere. The details of its in­ countryside this near-tree puts out its troduction and its earlier notices will great inflorescences of creamy white be left to a later issue. Its picture July, 1944 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE 179

Robert L. Toylor [See page 174] Philadelphus, Bouquet Blanc, natural sIze 180 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE July,l944 appears here, chiefly to attract the at­ nias listed in the chief catalogues and ~ tention of our readers. faithful test of the material assembled. It is planned to have shortly pictures \Vith the exception of one or two of C 01'1'lIHS fio-rida itself and if possible species, the garden zinnia has been di­ pictures of Con'lus N~tttallii from the versified by the creation of innumerable Pacific Coast, a plant that is more races and forms. It has not yet suf­ closely bound perhaps to the J apanese­ fered the fate of the marigold, which Chinese species than to our Eastern is being evolved into forms that no form. longer resemble its original self, but It will be appreciated if readers who the appearance of the Fantasy race, grow Co·rnus KOllsa, either in its typi­ may only be the prelude to other in­ cal form or in the Chinese form which novations as remarkable in their way is supposed to be the more beautiful. as the scabiosa-flowered form which is would send in a note for publication. the other main variant. Several appeals have been sent out for The editor will be interested to hear pictures and copy about COT1~US Nut­ from members who might be willing tallii but the Magazine will welcome to help in this undertaking. notes. N ,)l1nph ea, Midnight. For the moment, suffice it to say, Among the tropical waterlilies which that the Chinese tree is very much like are having a first trial in the editor's our own Eastern dogwood, save that it garden is this very delightful hybrid flowers well after the 1.ea ves have de­ irom Mr. Pring-, of the Missouri Bo­ veloped, that the flowers stand well tanical Garden. It will be recalled above the foliage, that they last long that in former issues of the Magazine in bl oom even longer than our own. a word has been said on the value of and are followed by fruits of pinky tropical water lilies for the gardener white in which the seeds are buried. who feels a slump frol11 midsummer The tree in the garden here has not temperatures. Although the cost of fl.owered enough as yet to show whether the first root may seem large, the re­ or not the fruit will be eaten with the turns per plant are so generous that eagerness that birds and squirrels show _ one reaps a large return on his invest­ for our native sort, but one fears the ment, whether he keeps the root over worst, since everything a bird can eat winter and embarks on the somewhat seems to fall and flourish like the Bibli­ more troublesome task of starting his cal mustard seed. Perhaps, as happens plants the following spring. with some of the magnolia fruits, its It will be recalled also, that this is fruits will be eaten while still soft and one of the hybrids from NY'11'1·phaea succulent, so that a minimum germina­ colora.ta an Afri'can species that had tion will result. As yet, also, it has not figured in our garden forms before shown no special tendency either to Mr. Pring's work. color or not to color in the autumn. Unlike its varieties of other lineage Z inni-as. this plant is not so robust in its dimen­ Am?ng the several programs for sions, so that one does not have to 1945 IS one of a g.eneral test of an­ have so large a pool for growing it. nuals. A candidate has already pre­ Like them it is susceptible to heavy sentee! himself for a general study of feeding and sends up a mass of beauti­ petul11as but the editor is looking for ful leaves, which make the usual pat­ s?meone who would be willing to con­ tern on the surface of the water. Un­ SIder the general survey of all the zin- like them, it is more likely to have July, 194-l THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL :YIAGAZI ::-.JE 181

L .. Robert L. Ta3,Ior ConI u.s Kousa var. chinel1S':s 182 THE NATIONAL HORTICULTURAL MAGAZINE Jui y, 1944

more flowers in bloon. at one time, so not seem to increase materially. The that there is a greater mass of color. only trees which grow near the garden The fl owers are not so large as those are small although they have been there of well fed plants of the other sorts, many years and it may be that this but are not small. slow rate of growth is one of the fea­ This particular sort is a deep pur­ tures which is held against the tree. ple, a rich blue purple and appears to Since flowering trees which are con­ have all its stamens transformed into spicuous in their flowering after the petalciids which are colored like the tree is clad in its full foliage, are not petals themselves. The only note of too numerous 'it would be interesting contrasting color comes from the sur­ to know how far this particular sp€cies face of the ovary, and this is a clear has been tried out in this country. bright yellow. Letters on this point will be welcomed. As in all the others there is a de­ It has the further advantage, over lightful scent, which pervades the gar­ and above its huge panicels of strong den in waves, and which seems to draw yellow flowers, of producing fruits with the particular attention of the Japanese papery bracts, forming a sort of three­ beetles, which settle down in their un­ sided lantern like body, and bearing gainly fashion to the dull business of within them the hard black seeds, eating it to bits. which do germinate where they fall, It is hoped that in some later issues as can be attested hereabout, since the we may have photographs and color seedlings, like all such, usually appear notations of this and of the other newer where they are least wanted and where SOTts that are coming into their first they are particularly · hard to get at flowering this season. Of these latter. for transplanting. as yet there have been good fl owers There are other species known here, only on Bagdad. Rio Rita. Persian but the only one of which I have seen Lilac and Isabel Pring. specimens and these cut in seed. was Here again, not.es would be wel­ K. bipinnata. The specimens gave no comed from members, par6cularly special indi·cation of distinctions so that those who have the advantage of longer one need not regret its lack of cold growing season than we have here. hardiness. If however, in habit or in where it is safe to plant tropicals onl y floriferousness it should excel. there about June ·first. would be one more reason to lament the long cold winter, with its variations Daffodils. that are more trying than a steady cold. Since ,there seems to be no possibility for a new Daffodil Yearbook in the Lioriodel'ldro'l1 cllillel'l sis. immediate future. it has been decided Notes would be particularly appre­ that we should start a section for the ciated from any member who may be regular publication of notes 0 11 this so fortunate as to have growing a plant flower which has had such excellent of this Chinese cousin of the familiar support from the Society . Your co­ tulip-or tulip-.poplar tree of the east­ operation is urged as well as invited. ern s~a tes. The few plants that have Koel1'e~£ten'a paniculata,. been seen have not survived the cold Every year, specimens of this sum­ of the winters here, and as they are mer-flowering tree are brought in for very hard to import, even at best, it identification, and yet the number of may not be widely represented in this trees in the general neighhorhood does country. The American Horticultural Society

I NVITES to membership all persons who are interested in the devel­ opment of a great national society that shall serve as an ever growing center for the dissemination of the common knowledge of the members. There is no requirement for membership other than this and no reward beyond a share in the development of the organization. For its members the society publishes THE NATIONAL HORTICUL­ TURAL MAGAZINE, at the present time a quarterly of increasing impor­ tance among the horticultural publications of the day and destined to fill an even larger role as the society grows. It is published during the months of January, April, July and October and is written by and for members. Under the present organization of the society with special committees appointed for the furthering of special plant projects the members will receive advance material on narcissus, tulips, lilies, rock garden plants, conifers, nuts, and rhododendrons. Membership in the society, therefore, brings one the advantages of membership in many societies. In addition to these special projects, the usual garden subjects are covered and particular attention is paid to new or little known plants that are not commonly described elsewhere. The American Horticultural Society invites not only personal mem­ berships but affiliations with horticultural societies and clubs. To such it offers some special inducements in memberships. Memberships are by the calendar year. The Annual Meeting of the Society is held in Washington, D. c., and members are invited to attend the special lectures that 'are given at that time. These are announced to the membership at the time o,f balloting. The annual dues are three dollars the year, payable in advance; life membership is one hundred dollars; inquiry as to affiliation should be addressed to the Secretary, 821 Washington Loan and Trust Building, Washington, D. C.