Is your ga!l'den mi&si~g jewel-like flowers floating on a one ef the mos~ satisfying forms of gardening. If you shimmering water surface and the darting brilliance of haven't one, you are missing a great deal of satisfaction goldfish? 4,re you missing the melodic sounds of water from your garden. spilling from a fountain, vessel or waterfall? Let Lilypons and TETRA POND help you to get started What yOt}. need in your garden is a water lily pool. A water today by ordering one of our durable TETRA POND 32 mil, lily pool is a gal!den whose piJ.ants like damp to very wet flexible 2 ply PVC pool liners. So easy to install and main­ feet. Fish and frogs like to live there and butterflies will tain you will ask yourself why you waited so long to begin like your garden better than ever. A water garden is simply this adventure. Choose frefl). the seven sizes listed (s;izes are approximate, for depth 1712', to 2' in your own design.): o Lilypons water gardening catalogue subscription...... $ 5 '0 8' x l2' liner m~es 4' x 8' pool ...... $ 99 o 10' X 16' liner makes 6' x 12' pooL ...... $145 0 13' x 13' Liner makes 9' x 9' pool...... $165 o 13' x 20' liner makes 9' x 16' pool...... $199 0 16' x 23' liner makes 13' x 19' pooL .. .. : ...... ,. $299 o 20' x 26' liner makes 16' x 22' pool...... $399 0 23' x 30' liner makes :1,9' x 26' pool...... 8499 Use your pers<;lllal check (J)r circle credit crurd: AE CB CH ' DC MC VS. Card Number: Exp. Date ~ ______~ ___~ __

Name Address __~ ______~ ___~ ____

City . State Zip Phone ( ) ~ ______Catalogue free with liner order. CalifQrnia (6%), Maryland (5%) ~nd Texas (7%) residents please add sales tax. Lilypons Water Gardens 1526 Amhort Road Suite 1526 1526 Lilypons Road . P.O. Box 10 P.O, Box 1130 P.O. Box 188 Lilypons, Maryland 21717-0010 Thermal, California 92274.-1130 Brookshire, Texas 77423-0188 (301) 874-5133 Wasltington Local428-068@, (713) 934-8525 Houston Local 391-0076 . VOLUME 67 NUMBER 8

President's Page: Nurturing a Tradition 2 by Carol yn Marsh Lindsay The Design Page: Enhancing the View 4 by Ann Reill y

Strange Relatives: Vitaceae, the Vine Family 10 by Jane Steffey Beneath the Long White Cloud 14 by Rub y Weinberg The Neem Tree 24 by Hiram G. Larew

'A Healthy and lnnocent Amusement' 28 by Carolin e Sloat

Gardener's Potpourri: On Keeping a Garden Notebook 34 by Ferris Cook

Sources 37

The Urban Gardener: Gardening on a Manhattan Rooftop 38 by Joseph Picard

Pronunciation Guide 41 Book Reviews 42 Classifieds 44

Left: Here on New Zealand's remote Titoki Point, Gordon Collier, author and plantsman, works in his bog garden amidst a sea of lush,water-loving plants. New Zealand's gardens are unique in their combinations of unusual natives with plants from the world over. Join a tour through this verdant country's finest private gardens by turning to p2ge 14.

On the Cover: The brilliant blue blossoms and glossy green leaves of August-blooming lupines are seen in their native site high in Washington's Olympic Mountains. They are also represented among the many wildflowers displayed with breathtaking clarity in a new book, Wildflowers Across America, reviewed on page 42. Photo­ graph by Pat O'Hara.

PUBLICATIONS DIRECTOR, EDITOR: Virginia W. Louisell. SENIOR ASSISTANT EDITOR: Karhleen Y. Riley. ASSISTANT EDITOR, HORTICULTURE: laura E. Coit. ASSISTANT TO THE EDITOR: Martha Palermo. DESIGN DIRECTOR: Rebecca K. McClimans. MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR: Sallie Hutcheson. ADVERTISING: American Horticultural Society Advertising Department, 80 Sourh Early Street, Alexandria, VA 22304, telephone (703) 823-6966. COLOR SEPARATIONS: Chroma·Graphics, Inc. EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD: Dr. Gerald S. Barad, Flemington, NJ; Dr. Harrison Flint, West Lafayette, IN; Peter Loewer, Cochecton Center, NY; Dr. Elizabeth McClintock, San Francisco, CA; Frederick McGourty, Norfolk, Cf; Janet M. Poor, Winnetka, IL; Maire Simington, Phoenix, AZj Jane Steffey, Sykesville, MD; Dr. James E. Swasey, Newark, DE; Philip E. Chandler, Sa nta Monica, CA.

Replacement issues of AMERICAN HORTICULTURIST are available at a cost of $2.50 per copy. The opinions expressed in the articles that appear in AMERICAN HORTICUlTURIST are rhose of the authors and are not necessarily rhose of rh e Society. Botanical nomenclature in AMERICAN HORTICULTURIST is based on HORTUS THIRD. Manuscripts, art work, and photographs sent for possible publication will be returned if they 3ce accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope. We cannot guarantee the safe return of unsolicited material.

AMERICAN HORTICULTURIST, ISSN 0096-4417, is rhe official publication of the American Horticultural Society, 7931 East Boulevard Drive, Alexandria, Virginia 22308, (703) 768-5700, and is issued monthly. The American Horticultural Society is a nonprofit organization dedicated to excellence in horticulture. Membership in the Society includes a subscription to AMERICAN HORTICULTURIST. National membership dues are $30; two years are $55. Foreign dues are $40. $12 of dues are designated for AMERICAN HORTICULTURIST. Copyright © 1988 by the American Honicultural Socier,y. Second-class postage paid at Alexandria, Virginia, and at additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Please send Form 3579 to AMERICAN HORTICULTURIST, P.O. Box 0105, Mount Vernon, VA 22121.

American Horticulturist PRESIDENT'S PAGE AMERICAN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY Nurturing a omCERS 1988·1989 Mrs. Carolyn Manh Lindsay Rochester, New York President Mrs. Harry J. Van de Kamp Paso Robles, California Tradition First Vice President Mrs. John M. Maury Washington, D.C. Second Vice President Mr. Richard C. Angino Harrisburg, Pennsylvania ne of the greatest traditions of gardeners is Secretary Mr. Richard J. Hutton sharing. They are notably generous: exchanging West Grove, Pennsylvania plants, information, the first corn or tomato, Treasurer O Mr. Everitt L. Miller and the best way to foil rabbits! Great gardeners have j(ennen Square, Pennsylvania ImmediaJe Past President long had an enormous influence on new gardeners BOARD OF DIRECTORS and on younger gardeners. Stories are legion about Mr. Richard C. Angino young persons whose lives have been directed by a Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Gerald S. Barad, M.D. generous gardening friend. Great gardeners, in turn, Flemington, NewJer sey always point to an older friend as the mentor who Mrs. Benjamin P. Bole, Jr. Cleveland, Ohio focused their lives. Mr. J. Judson Brooks Sewickley, Pennsylvania The questionnaires gathered at the recent Annual Dr. Henry M. Cathey Meeting in Atlanta support the fact that gardeners Washington, D.C. Mr. Russell Clark came, first of all, to associate with fellow gardeners; Boston, Massaehusens the location, speakers, and educational sessions were Mrs. Erastus Co.ming n Albany, New York secondary-much to my surprise. We all want to learn Mrs. Ann Lyon Crammond AlIanta, Georgia from real-life experiences to enrich our book-learning! Mr. Edward N. Dane Boston, Massachusens My mother-in-law, the late Mary Hunter Marsh Mrs. Beverley White Dunn of Wilmington, Delaware, loved children and new Birmingham, Alabama Mr. Richard J. Hutton gardeners. She contributed to their growth by West Grove, Pennsylvania nourishing their early interest in gardening and the Mr. Stephen F. Keating Minneapolis, Minnesota plant world. She never arrived at our house without a Mrs. Carolyn Manh Lindsay plant for each grandchild, plus a trowel to get it Rochester, New York Mrs. John M. Maury planted. One of her favorite young gardeners is Bill Washington, D.C. Frederick, who became a trustee of Longwood Mr. Everitt 1. Miller Kennen Square, Pennsylvania Gardens, a noted author and speaker, and an. Mr. John C. Mitchell n Denver, Colorado acclaimed garden architect. Dr. Julia W. Rappapon And so, gardening friends, let's all keep this Santa Ana, Californi a Mr. Frank 1. Roliinson . tradition alive and flourishing. A membership in the Charionesvllle, Virginina American Horticultural Society may establish the Mrs. Philip Temple Linle Compton, Rhode Island bond that inspires a younger gardener-perhaps your Mr. Roy G. Thomas Woodstock, Vermont own son or daughter, a neighborhood child, or your Mrs. Harry J. Van de Kantp grandchild. Paso Robles, CalifOrnia Mr. Andre Viette Fishersville, Virgin ia Mr. John H. Whitworth, Jr. New York, New York Mrs. Jean Verity Woodhull Dayton, Ohio

2 August 1988 The Great Escape: AIlS Travel for 1988-89

October 2·8, 1988 New England Autumn Display Visit the great houses, gardens, and museums of New England as we follow the breathtaking foliage trail from Stockbridge, Massachusetts to Shel­ burne, Vermont. Serendipity Tours, Three Channing Circle, Cam­ bridge, MA 02318 (617) 354-1789 October 15·21, 1988 Gardens of the Chesapeake Join us for a spectacular fall cruise to see the gardens of the Chesapeake aboard the M.Y. Nantucket Clipper. Leonard Haertter Travel Company, 7922 Bonbomme Avenue, St. Louis. MO 63105 (8 00) 942-6666 October 20· November 6, 1988 Fall Into Spring This trip to the lovely island nation of New Zealand will feature a wildflower walk on the slopes of Mt. Cook. May 2·17, 1989 Soviet Union will include the botanical Passages Unlimited, 14 Lakeside Office Park , Wake· gardens of Moscow, Kiev, and Lenin­ field, MA 01880 (617) 246-3575 The Gardens of Coastal grad, as well as the alpine plants of the Iberia Teberda Nature Preserves on the January 21·28, 1989 Ports of call on this cruise from Lisbon, northern slopes of the Caucasus. Gardens of the Leeward Portugal, to Folkstone, England, will Leader of the tour will be Erastus include Guernsey, the Channel Islands, Corning III, fluent in Russian and a Islands of the Caribbean and New Haven. Experience a most specialist in travel to the U.S.s.R. The This exciting garden cruise adventure unique program of sightseeing ashore group will be accompanied by a botani­ takes us to the tranquil islands of the that will include exceptional public and cal expert familiar with the flora of the Caribbean Leeward Chain. Visit tropi­ private gardens. U.S.S.R. cal rain forests, botanic gardens, and Leonard Haertter Travel Company, 7922 Bonhomme Coming Tours, Box 431, Albany, NY 12201 private estates never open to the pub­ Avenue, St. Louis, M0 63105 (8001942-6666 (518) 463-2160 lic, as we stop at such secluded islands as Montserrat, St. Kitts, St. Martin, June 2·5, 1989 October 7·14, 1989 and Antigua. Seaside Gardens of Rhode Cruising the Hudson Leonard Haertter Tra.vel Company, 7922 Bonhomme Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63105 (800) 942-6666 Island River Tour members will visit historic homes Timed to coincide with spectacular fall and gardens in Providence and the se­ foliage, this cruise will feature some of March 22·29, 1989 cret gardens of Newport, as well as the most important homes and gardens Pacific Coast Gardens Blithewold Arboretum and other out­ along the Hudson River- America's Travel from San Diego to San Francisco on standing gardens of Rhode Island. Rhine-all the way to Albany. Included this horticultural visit to botanical and Triple A Travel, Polo Center, 700 Aquidneck Avenue, will be private entertainment and visits private gardens of California, with excur­ Middletown, RI 02840 (401 ) 847-6393 to Wave Hill, the New York Botanical sions to the Hearst castle- and the San AUgllst 1·21, 1989 Garden, and Sleepy Hollow Miguel Mission. Restorations. FbI' further information contact iLiz S1!li~h, ARS U.S.S.R. and the Caucasus Bellinger Davis Company, rne., t50)llast 58th Street, Special Events, (7.03) 168-57'00. Hig1iHghts @f this special tour to the New York, NY 10155 (212) 759·15~0 4 August 1988 mE DESIGN PAGE Enhancing the VteW

LEFT: This uninterrupted view from shore to house is enlivened by a white wall and colorful annuals. ABOVE: "Upper-level decking enhances the scene below. Note how the two trees frame the walkway.

II too often, the homeowner thinks or a valley, within view of your home and were set further to each side of the line of a landscape design for a new home garden. If you do, take full advantage of sight. The result was a framing of the view. A or the renovation of an older, over­ it. The vertical lines of the trees used for grown landscape is a simple exercise in two A rather sizeable lakefront property, de­ framing repeat the verticals of the nearby dimensions. But a landscape is not two­ signed and landscaped by a nursery in Ten­ wooded area. This results in a strong feel~ dimensional; it is more than the proper nessee, is an example of a functional and ing of unity-a concept important in any selection of plants, their correct spacing pleasing landscape, creating areas for en­ landscape design-by allowing the newly on paper, and the execution of the plan. tertainment and recreation while taking planted trees to flow into their surround­ When designing a landscape, it is impor­ advantage of the natural features of the ings. tant to look beyond the plants themselves site and its views. A deck cantilevered from This technique does not mean that the and consider how plantings can be used the second level of the back of the house, use of specimen trees as accents or focal ~o CFeate and €nhance the view of the house which faces the lake, was planned to be points is not an important function of from the grounds, as well as the vi€w of the new center of family outdoor activity. landscape design. Even when a specimen nearby natural features from inside the Although the height of the deck automat­ is chosen for some aspect of its beauty, house or from the garden. ically increased the view, several other steps such as its shape, flowers, or fall color, it were taken to gain even more from the must not be a distraction but should ap­ Emphasizing a Water View site's natural be;lUty. First, two old spruce pear as part of the overall design, with the You may be fortunate enough to have trees that were blocking the view were re­ eye moving to it and beyond to the other a natural feature, such as a body of water moved and replaced with other trees that landscape featur€s.

American Horticulturist 5 More than THE DESIGN PAGE

On the lake side of the house there is a would have been lacking if only an unob­ sunning platform and dock made of the structed panorama of the water greeted the same type of wood as the deck-again to viewer. Walking beyond the terrace to the achieve unity-and it is defined by stone, water's edge and looking back, the view which is also repeated in other areas of the of the house is strengthened by the white landscape. The platform, because of its de­ brick wall and the colorful annuals on top sign, blends into the view rather than being of it. dominant when viewing the lake from the To improve the view from the house, house. Conversely, the view of the house, plantings were added in selected spots along Janco brings homes to life all across framed with the same trees, is appealing the water's edge. Pines, which tolerate the America. With over 125 standard to anyone arriving by boat. salt spray well, were used throughout for models-from state-of-the-art framing and fOf strength. This plan shows Solarooms to traditional horticulture the impact of planting in masses separated greenhouses-you can count on Janco by open areas rather than planting the en­ for years of sunlit pleasure. tire perimeter of the property or leaving Call 1-800-323-6933 for a FREE color All too often, decks and the area empty. brochure or for $5.00 we'll send you patios are completed 'Janco Environment;' our exciting new Enhancing by Restricting color portfolio of brilliant possibilities, before anyone gives a complete with prices. Take a cue from the professionals re­ Visa or Mastercard welcome. thought to how they will garding expansive views; most feel that by Or write to: Janco Greenhouses themselves they have low impact. In Miami, :l:'" appear from the outside. Dept. AM-8, 9390 Davis Ave . ::>o a twelfth-floor penthouse garden was pur­ .c c:: Laurel. MD 20707 Ql posely designed to have a restricted view ~ In Maryland: (30\) 498-5700 tJ by incorporating trees and overhead trel­ 8 c:: To hide the construction of the deck and lises for increased interest. The trellises also ~

6 August 1988 Bluebells are superb for naturalizing in the same manner as daffodils but prefer a more shady location and will bloom, even where they get no direct sun at all. Endymion hispanicus the Spanish blue­ bell, offered here, has been a garden favorite since the r7th century. In England, it was grown in Elizabethan ABOVE: A gazebo serves as a focal point gardens , and in America it was grown in in this garden, gardens of the early colonists. The enhancing the view {lowers appear from April to June and from a di stance and are born in an upright scape r6" tall. providing a place to In addition to the blue form, there are relax and enjoy the good pink and white varieties. garden . RIGHT: Pine trees and Their shade enduring quality, long massed low pl antings blooming season and great substance of add interest by {lower, makes them of unparalleled restricting an extensive value for difficult areas, where many panorama of water. other bulbous plants do not do as well.

Available in 3 colors: blue, pink, white or in mixture (please specify).

50 Topsize bulbs Postpaid $ 17 .00 roo Topsize bulbs Postpaid $32 .00

Fall delivery. Full planting instructions included. N. Y. residents please add sales tax. Kindly charge order co Visa, Master Card, Amex or enclose check/money order. patio, deck, or other outdoor-living area, On one property where there were rwo Our color illustrated catalog take a walk around. Study the potential good views over the bluff above a river, views from inside the house. It may be that the owners took advantage of both by la y­ I !BEauty ('Lom !Butb1.' you want to create your new outdoor area ing out the patio at the far end of the as a separate entity and don't care to view property and adding a smaller section with has been a classic in the world of it from inside. If this is not possible, the benches at the point of closer viewing. {lowering bulbs for over 75 years. In it we addition of screening plantings may solve offer an unequalled list of daffodils, the problem. But if you desire the reverse, Placing the Pool tulips and many other bulbs for spring selective pruning of trees and shrubs may In New Haven, Connecticut, owners and summer {lowering. By sending us open up the view. wanted a formal English garden and a $3.00 this catalog (52 pages) will be mailed to you along with copies of our All too often, decks and patios are com­ swimming pool at the back of their house Indoor and Spring editions mailed later pleted before anyone gives thought to how without intruding on the New England fall in the year. they will appear from the outside. Take a and winter views of the rest of their prop­ look from several outside angles. If a par­ erty. The approach taken was to make the John Scheepers, Inc. ticular area affords a better view than an­ pool a strong water feature in the garden, Flower Bulb Specialists other, work with it; if its location means so it was edged in brick in the same color Rd. 6A Phillipsburg Road a loss of privacy from the street, you will tones as the house and planted to pool's Middletown, N.Y. 10940 have to incorporate fencing or hedging. edge on rwo sides. (914) 342-3727

American Horticulturist 7 NOW ••• BY MAIL! TIlE DESIGN PAGE UNUSUAL, HARD­ THATCHED TO-FIND FLOWER ROOF The living room of the L-shaped house ARRANGING SUPPLIES: BIRD opens onto a terrace, a left turn leading TOOLS, TECHNIOUE5, TRICKS OF down to the formal garden and pool. From THE TRADE! HOUSES the bedroom windows, the view looks di­ rectly onto tme pool, the garden, and the The Original countryside beyond. Low-growing hollies planted in front of the bedroom windows KETH CUp® ~--=:1 create interest between the pool and the CANDLESTICK BOWL "- house while not obstructing the view from In colors of polished silver, gold and NOW the window to the garden. available in jet black! An addition to the most exquisite candlestick \~ i For nearly tWo decades, thel National or candleabra. Will : Marne in England by "cottage industry." Landscape Association, headquartered hold a.cYlin/:))der ~ The Thatched Roof Bird Houses have the in Washington, D.C., has been hon­ of OasIs. J charm of Folk-craft ... one of those pleasant Makes a touches that make the English Gardens oring outstanding residential landscape beautifull ll? ~\ famous. The house is a rustic hollowed projects designed and executed by floral )!I' .Aj ~- ~ branch with a flat back to hang on a wall. professionals. This article delscribes focal ___ _ .4!";/ ~ fence . or tree . A stub of a stem is the perch. selvelral sitelS that were chosen for na­ point for your !candlestl"notinClud'd! Twigs are fitted to hold the thatching. 10" tional recognition thmugh the Associ­ table. high. Easy to clean out. Writes a reordering customer: " ... my thatched bird house is the ation's Annual National Residential 5.50 ea. or 2 for 10.00 talk of the neighborhood ." Only 18.95 Landscape Award Pmgram. POstage & handling Included, calif. res, add sales tax. each. Shipping $2 .00

lihe Keth Company The Walt Nicke To comply with local zoning regula­ P.O. Box 645 Company tions, a four-foot "fence" of yews was added Corona Mar, CA 92625 P.O. Box 433A, 36 McLeod Lane del to define the perimeter of the formal gar· Topsfield, MA OJ 983 OUR LATEST CATALOGUE -1.00 den; they are low enough not to block the view of the rest of the property. Soil was excavated so that the terrace and pool are several steps below the house. The eye can ... a book to be treasured by all who love therefore see over the yew hedge and enjoy the view beyond. gardening and painting Creating the View ALLEN LACY • THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW Lucky are those building a new house who can locate the residence on the prop­ The difference between Thomas and a lesser gardener erty in accordance with the best views and is simply the difference between Giotto and a bright then add to it to enhance those views. A a·rt student . .. Raleigh, North Carolina, homeowner sit­ HENRY MITC HELL uated a house where a golf course and lake HOUSE AND GARDEN would be in view, yet the house would not be seen by the golfers on the fairway. As Christopher Brickell [of the Royal Horticultural Several distinct areas. were added to the Society] has sa id, Graham Thomas has made property, including a deck, a pool, a trel­ "a contribution to horticulture unparalleled in lised spa, and a dog run. The entire land­ scape follows the principle of contrast, with this century. JJ This book is the essence of that large, opefl areas next to tight, confined contribution. GEORGE WATERS "rooms;" areas open to the sky next to PACIFI C HORTICU LTURE areas with a lacy trellis overhead; high decks overlooking lower terraces. All of these are THE COMPLETE FLOWER PAINTINGS AND DRAWINGS good techniques for creating and enhanc­ OF GRAHAM STUART THOMAS mg views. Where no natural features exist, correct With an Essay and Notes by the Author placement of plants and a garden accent 208 pp Hardcover, 58 color plates $45.00 will carry the eye to a focal point away Order from your local bookstore from the viewing area, creating the illusion or write to Sagapress, Inc., Route WO, Millwood, N.Y 10546 of distance. The element of surprise is im­ Please add $3.00 for shipping and handling. portant; it creates something to be seen. Achieve this with design elements such as

8 August 1988 INTR OD UCING the pl acement o f paths and island beds. Remember that straight lines may be the GREENKNEESPatent Pending ™ shortest distance between two po ints but not necessa ril y the most attractive when Finally, pants designed for gardening, laying out walk ways within yo ur ga rd en. Try a technique used by a Long Island with built-in comfort and knee protection. designer. He laid Ou t the path fro m the house to the pool with a unique a li gnment I garden about 20 hours a week. That means a lot of including a sudden bend, whi ch ca use kneeling and bending over. ~ One day, hot, uncomfort­ one to stop and take in the view of the able ana with sore knees, I staIied wishing for the perfect gardening pants. They would have built-in knee pads, poo l and cabana. Sometimes it is the thick and always in place. Plus a waist that expanded unexpected that makes for a deli ghtful \ hen you bent over' instead of cutting you in two. And expen ence. they'd be as turdy, but cooler than the overalls I was Trellises or arbors covered with roses, weaI'ing. ~ Since no such pants existed, I had a pair wisteria, or bougainvillea ca n be used to made up by a friend,just like I wanted them. Everybody 1 met wanted a pair, so I named limit the view, onl y to open up a magni f­ them "Greenknees" and now you can buy them icent vista at their end. When des igning from me. ~ They have specialJy clesigned pockets with views in mind, the idea of concealing £Ias/i,. ",ais/balld o~ t~e knee . Inside each is a knee pad and revealing is very effective. (or COII/(ort . Alld sunilar to the one football players wear. 'sMIl-i,i slWllrs High density fOaJTI. l\vo layers each Garden Accents " o/s/el: ~8- inch thicK.. In between, a cushion of air. You can kneel on rocks and Don' t be afra id to use some orr of feel like you're on cloud. When showpiece that accents a view. For ex­ you wash the pants,just slip the , ample, a sunken fl ower ga rden was added pads out. ~ There s a water repel- . :' • to a la rge, sprawling pro perty in New Jer­ lant nylon lining in the knee pocket to Knee pockets hold keep away gTound moisture. ~ The rear half thlck rubber pads sey. The garden was ci rcu lar with a stately \ . of the waist band is gathered with a sturdy, 2-inch band of lawn in the center. From the house, the -He lastic. The waist gives when you bend. ~ The pants are view o f the ga rden directly in front, al­ . . most comfortable w hen worn v.rith suspenders. So I offer a though in the dis tance, is c h a rming / : pair made of top-grade 1V2- inch wide elastic webbing. For throughout the seasons. The most deli b­ . tho e w ho prefer a belt, I offer an excelJent one of the SaJTIe elastic. ~ There's a holster for your hand pruning shears sewn erate-and delightful-part of the view, on to the right leg. Indispensable. And w here however, is the pl acement of a gazebo at you usually fIDd a watch or coin pocket, there's a the rear o f the ci rcl e. It enhances the view shallow little pocket just big enough to get your of the garden from the house and also serves thumb and forefmger into. It's for seeds .~ as a spot for closer viewing of the fl ower Greenknees are made in the USA of the best 10 oz. domestic cotton twill. It breathes better than borders around it. , denim and is more comfortable, and is very dur- Views ca n be created and enhanced with able. Everything is double-stitched and bar-tacked for long life the use of color. Where a sweeping pan­ with rugged u se. ~ Greenknees com e in one color - a deep orama exists, whi ch was the case at a home green. (If you garden, that's w hat color the knees end up, no matter how they sta.rt .)~ There'sjust one style for both men Cutaway view in Dallas, Texas, plantings were added in of knee pocket and women. The cut is full, for m aximum coinfort. There are six and pad a monochromatic theme-in this case sizes: XS (25-25); S (28-31); M (31-34); L (34-37) and pink-with crape myrtles as the primary XL (37-40); XXL (40-44).~ If you want to garden in plant. Flowing beds and an expressive use comfort, get yourself a pair of Greenknees. If someone of rocks added depth to the panorama and you like gardens, give them a pair. They'll thank you at the same time lent an open, spacious every time they bend over or kneel. -Bob Denman feeling, extending the color scheme. Pl ant­ Nanu______prs. Greenknees gardening ers and beds filled with bright annuals are Address______pants @ $39.95 also effective in drawing the eye to an area City. State__ Zip __ Sizes: ______worth viewing. 7elephone L_ _ J______Whether it is the removal or addition of plants, framing by a few or by masses of trees and shrubs, use of the element of surprise, use of color, or study of the line of sight, all these possibilities are worthy of being considered when your goal is to create the most effective landscape for your home. -Ann Reilly COMPANY Ann Reilly is a freelance writer and photographer. 2913 Saturn St., Suite H, Brea, CA 92621 (714) 524-0668

American Horticulturist 9 STRANGE RELATIVES

:J the Wne Family

egend and myth, literature and his­ tory are replete with references to L "the vine," and without exception, the vine referred to is the grape. Botani­ cally, the grape is a member of the Vine family (Vitaceae), which is celebrated pri­ marily in one species, Vitis vinifera, the grape vine-age-old provider of wine and fruit. There are over fifty Vitis species­ fruit-bearing, ornamental perennial vines climbing by tendrils-but V. vinifera is the one that has achieved the world's acclaim. The growing of grapes and the making of wine go back 6,000 years. Records of grape cultivation and wine-making appear on the tomb of Ptah-Hotep, who lived in Egypt in 4,000 B.C. At first, the grape vine was allowed to sprawl on the ground. Leg­ end relates that the Egyptian deity, Osiris, taught men to uaiJil the vine to poles, to prune its superfluous foliage, and to ex-

The porcelain berry's dense clusters offruit change gradually from pale lilac or green to turquoise.

10 August 1988 PREVIOUS PAGE, LEFT: Ampelopsis brevipedunculata. RIGHT: The brilliant fall foliage of Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) is frequently seen on the " ivy" -covered walls of American universities. THIS PAGE, ABOVE: Vitis vinifera 'Purpurea', a cultivar of the age-old European wine grape, has claret­ red young leaves maturing to a dullish purple. BELOW: Perhaps the most spectacular and vigorous of the ornamental grapes, Vitis coignetiae can soar into tree tops and cascade downward.

tract the juice of the grape. In a papyrus of 1,550 B.C., Osiris is depicted sitting in a shrine from whose roof hang clusters of grapes. Best known, though, as a person­ ification of the vine and of the exhiliration produced by the fermented juice of the grape is the classical god, Bacchus. Pliny, the Roman author, wrote that from about 130 B.C. grape-growing flourished in the Roman empire. As the crops increased, ef­ forts were made to induce the water-drink­ ing Romans to drink wine. Wherever Ro­ man merchants or soldiers went, Rome's wines became known. In North America, after many unsuc­ cessful attempts to cultivate European grapes, the colonists turned to wild Amer­ ican species, notably Vitis labrusca, which impressed them with its vigor. In the nine­ teenth century, selection and hybridization culminated in cultivated varieties, includ­ ing the famous Concord grape. Other native American species used in hybrid-

American Horticulturist 11 STRANGE RELATIVES

ization were V. aestivalis, pigeon grape, acteristics. They are vigorous perennial and V. rotundifolia, muscadine or scup­ plants, climbing by tendrils; the tendrils pernong. are modified sho0ts that twine or may end Today, V. labrusca is the most impor­ in disks or suckers, enabling the plant to tant of the American native species in­ attach itself to a support; leaves are alter­ volved in the hybrids that are termed nate and simple or compound; flowers are American cultivars-the mainstay of grape small and insignificant except in botanical growing east of the Rocky Mountains. In classification; stems are swollen at the joints; California, and in some other western states, the fruit is a berry. Among the relatives grapes are commercially produced for three prominent in American landscapes are end products-table grapes, raisins, and Ampelopsis and Parthenocissus. wine. Grapes grown for fruit are mainly Members of the Ampelopsis genus do hybrids of native species or hybrids of not attach themselves by adherent pads; western European wine grapes. The vine­ the vine must be given the support of a yard grapes of California and western North lattice or wire on which the forked tendrils America are derivatives of European wine can twine. These plants are esteemed for grapes, V. vinifera; the muscadine grape, their foliage. E. H. Wilson wrote "in fo­ V. rotundifolia, is grown commercially in liage the most delicate and attractive and the southern states. Because of the great in fruit among the most beautiful of all variation in winter hardiness and in sus­ climbers is Ampelopsis aconitifolia . ... This ceptibility to certain devastating diseases, is a plant from North China with delicate, regionally adapted cultivars must be grown, palmately compound leaves and fruit that and grape growers are referred to state turns from yellow to orange and later, to Most container failure- agricultural extension services or agricul­ purple." and death - comes from tural experiment stations tor current rec­ A native American Ampelopsis is the over-watering. The drowning ommendations. pepper vine, A. arborea. It has a bushy Among the numerous Vitis species other look, its tendrils being small or absent. It roots can't absorb water than the versatile, edible grape are several is native from Virginia south to Florida, or the nutrients they need. with ornamental qualities, especially Texas, and Mexico. The plant suffocates. colorful autumn foliage. The renowned Ampelopsis brevipedunculata, the por­ But when you use Oxy­ plant explorer, E. H. Wilson, in his book celain berry, comes from northeast Asia. gen Plus, you deliver vital Aristocrats of the Garden wrote: "Of It is a vigorous, tendril-climbing vine with oxygen and essential nutri­ climbing plants with handsome leaves no simple, undivided, three-lobed leaves. Small, ents right to the roots. No class exceeds in vigor and beauty the dense clusters of fruit change gradually from other plant food, no emulsion, grapevines (Vitis), and their merits deserve pale lilac or green to turquoise; each clus­ no spike, no ordinary fer­ recognition. Many beawtiful species are ter may contain berries in all stages of ripe­ tilizer can match the perfor­ natives of this country, but noblest of all ness. The cultivar 'Elegans' has leaves mar­ mance of Oxygen Plus. is V. coignetiae from northern Japan. This bled green and white and, sometimes, pink. Proven in university vine has broad, heart-shaped leaves of Parthenocissus species climb by tendrils, tests, and praised by profes­ enormous size and substance, dark green often with disk-like tips or suckers. Leaves sional horticulturists and and netted above with a felt of brown hairs may be unlobed, palmately lobed, or com­ happy gardeners all over the on the underside and in autumn they change pound. The fruit is black or blue-black. country, Oxygen Plus helps to scarlet and crimson .... The fruit is jet These species are remarkable for their bril­ your plants look better, grow black, globose and edible." This species is liant autumn coloring. Best known is Vir­ better and thrive. known as the Japanese crimson glory vine. ginia creeper or woodbine, Parthenocissus Oxygen Plus. It's the Another equally hardy species, thowgh less quinquefolia. It is a high-climbing, woody breath of life for your plants. vigorous and with smaller leaves, is V. vine, attaching itself to any support with amurensis from eastern Siberia. From China disk-tipped tendrils. Its compound leaves comes V. davidii, which has prickly shoots consist of five leaflets, dull green above Look for Oxygen Plus at your and large, metallic-green, heart-shaped and pale beneath. It is a hardy native vine, quality lawn and garden : leaves, pale on the underside and changing growing in the northeastern United States retailer, wherever garden prod­ in the autumn to scarlet and crimsolil-a and as far south as Mexico. ucts are sold -or send for vigorous vine with black edible fruit. In contrast, from China comes the vine your FREE brochure: The Truth Twelve genera make up the Vine family, known in America as Bostol'l ivy. It is P. About Planl foods. some of which are cultivated for their hor­ tricuspidata, another high climber with disk­ PLANT RESEARCH LABORATORIES ticultural merit and are familiar as garden tipped tendrils. Glossy leaves, which may P.O. Box 3976 ornamer-ltals and vining homseplants. be as much as eight inches across, are three­ Laguna Hills, CA 92654 lobed, not compound. The fruit is blue­ 1-800-221-2589 Thowgh it may seem strange to find them In California: (714) 721-0153 mentioned here as grape relatives, these black. One much-used cultivar is 'Lowii', vines do in fact exhibit the family char- which sports purplish foliage when young;

12 August 1988 FIRST &ONLY Greenhouse/Screenhouse its sma ll leaves, o ne and one- half inches Year-Round Combination! long, are its chief attracti on. The largest genus in the vine famil y is UNI~~~~G'(_SA"'NG RCt''' Cissus, a group o f about 350 tropi cal o r subtropical vin es o r shrubs, some o f which SUit-PO INSULATED are tendril-bearing. Their leaves may be WINTER SUN SPACE CONVERTS either simple o r palmately compound; the TO A SUMMER SCREEN ROOM! fruit is an inedible berry. M embers o f the genus Cissus were formerl y tho ught to be types o f grapes because their fl owers and tendrils were so similar. The confu io n persists in the common name, grape ivy. Among the best mall vines fo r indoor ga rdening are three Cissus specie, al 0 used as ground covers and lattice coverings in southern Califo rnia: • C. rhombifolia, grape ivy or Venezuela SUNDIALS treebine, which bears long, hairy stems with WE AT HERVANES forked tendrils. The leaves are tri fo li ate, WEATHE R INS TRUMENTS with lea fl ets one to four inches long; the FREE CATALOG margins are coarsely serrate; the lea fl ets Bronze alum inum Shatter-resls!anl glaZing are gl ossy above, o ften with silky hairs No foundat IOns reqUired Ea sy dO 'I! ·yourself beneath and on the peti o les and young assembly Ideal spa hot tub room Wind & Weather stems. Send $2 for Color Catalogues, Prices, PO Box 23 20-AH • C. striata, miniature grape ivy, a sma ll SENT FIRST CLASS MAIL. Dealer InqUiries Welcome Mendocin o, CA 95460 evergreen from southern Chil e and Brazil VEGETABLE FACTOAY, INC. that will withstand occasional frost. P.O. Box 2235, Dept. AHO (707) 937-0323 • C. antarctica, kangaroo vine, a woody New York, NY 10163 climber from Austra li a whose glossy green leaves are simple, fleshy-l eathery , entire and irregularly toothed. FROM 15" LEYLAND CYPRESS Another interesting species is C. dis­ TO OVER A fast-growing evergreen (3 to 5 ft . per yr.) color, trailing begonia, rex begoni a vine, 7 FEET Long-living or begonia cissus, an Indones ian species. IN JUST Its common names are a clue to its leaf Leyland Cypress was discovered in 1952 color or patterns. Its large, heart-shaped, by Mr. Leyland in Wales. Since then it has simple leaves, four to seven inches long, 7' been widely grown in England and Ireland. are of striking coloration-velvety-green It is only now becoming available in this with silvery-white or pale pink blotches country. The trees, grown on the Eastern between the veins and deep crimson un­ Shore, are in pots. derneath. Climbing by delicate tendrils, it makes a handsome conservatory vine. Trees can be planted NOW The genus Rhoicissus, a tendril-bearing Rated for Zone 7 evergreen vine, is native to tropical Africa • Will grow in marshy or dry soil and South Africa. Its leaves are simple or • Not affected by salt sprays palmately compound. The difference be­ tween Cissus and Rhoicissus is that the Prices from $5.00 flower parts of Cissus are arranged in fours (Lots of 100 or more $4.00 ea.) and in Rhoicissus they are in fives. The importance of the Vine family to (Larger sizes available) our enjoyment of living is apparent from this brief review of its merits. Vines are MAIL ORDERS: Six (15") Trees Delivered $51.00 (UPS) treasured for their visual attractiveness, for Cat~a NURSERY the products they add to our eating and wholesale Catalpa Point Oxford Road Gift Certificates Available drinking pleasure, and, to the horticultur­ PO. BOX 1599 EASTON. MD. 21601 Leyland Cypress Trees make ist, for their range of fascinating species in (301) 822·0242 thoughtful gifts for holidays, cultivation. -Jane Steffey homes and other special events. u.s. At. 50 to Easton By·Pass (At. 322) OPEN 7 a.m. to 5 Jane Steffey is an editorial advisor to to Oxford Ad . (At. 333). Turn right at the p.m. American Horticulturist. Catalpa Point Sign (3 mi. from By·Pass) SUNDAYS By Appointment

American Horticulturist 13 14 August 1988 Beneath thewng -teCloud

TEXT BY RUBY WEINBERG PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARTIN R. WEINBERG

magine a garden in which Himalayan poppies encircle American mountain laurel, Japanese azaleas are massed be­ neath Australian gum trees, and South African everlastings cascade from a rock wall along with Swiss alpines. In New Zealand such dramatic combinations of plants from a wide variety of habitats are a frequent sight. Because of the temperate climate, the Kiwis (as New Zealanders call themselves) are able to fill their gardens with international treas­ ures, but in doing so, they may have neglected to appreciate the ornamental qualities of their own flora. Now, "preservation by cultiva­ tion" has become a national theme, and the addition of native plants to the home land­ scape has brought a distinctive look to New Zealand gardens.

At Pukeawa, Barbara and Brent Jury combine unusual plants from all over the world with New Zealand natives in a massive rock garden.

American Horticulturist 15 he Maoris (MA W­ most of the country. It is a green-thumber's REES), Polynesians who paradise. were the first human When my husband and I journeyed to beings to inhabit the New Zealand last year, we were especially Southern Pacific islands interested in visiting private gardens that that now compose New would demonstrate how the Kiwis are in­ Zealand, called it corporating native plants, just as Ameri­ Aotearoa, usually trans­ cans are now discovering and utilizing their lated to mean "land of endemic flora. We were welcomed to quite the long white cloud." But beneath the a few such gardens because the warmth long white clouds that one sees when ar­ and hospitality of the Kiwis is an extraor­ riving by plane, it is green. Over eighty dinary and unforgettable experience. percent of the country is a composition of In a western suburb of Auckland, called green corrugated hills and rounded green Titarangi, the home of Keith Thompson mountains. The three main islands-North, and his late wife, Jan, is on three acres of South, and Stewart-all possess a climate steep native bush. Their modern frame similar to that of our Pacific Northwest, house was built entirely with their own but it is the plentiful, annual rainfall that hands. As farmers turned pr0fessional really accounts for the verdure that covers landscapers seventeen years ago, they both

16 August 1988 were able to visualize th e use of the pre­ cipitous drop below the house that was to become their garden. This was obviously a collector's garden, and in it natives play a starring role. Pimelea 'Bon Petite,' or ri ce flower, a demure low shrub, is enhanced by dwarf conifers for companions. The mirror plant (Coprosma repens) also grows here. It often sports va ri egated foliage; the tiny, polished leaves are reflective, thus its name. It is an easy-growing native broad­ leaf th at is handsome in the autumn when it bears a profusion of red o r purple fruit. The Thompsons' property displays ev­ eral shrubs that are favo rites with Kiwis everywhere. Manuka (Leptospermum sco­ parium) in its white flowering fo rm is a common bush plant. Si nce the leave were used by ea rl y settl ers for a strong drink, it

ABOVE LEFT: Cotula 'Yell ow Buttons'. LEFT: Japanese maples and dwarf conifers complemenr New Zealand flax (Phormium) along the Sanders' drive. ABOVE: Solanum wendlandii climbs above Erica , Duranta, and Cerastium in Keith Thompson's patio garden.

is also call ed tea plant. When a red-flow­ also use many natives, and the combina­ ered form was found, and then a pink, tions are altogether striking. A brick wall hybridists worked to produce double­ is topped by a gnarl ed and ancient pink flowered types, including L. scoparium manuka surrounded by dark red roses. May 'Keatl ey' with larger blooms. Dwarf cul­ had grown the roses from seed and was tivars, such as 'Ruru' and 'Tui' are splen­ so surprised at the vivid color that friends did additi ons to rock gardens. named them "May's Mistake." New Zea­ Pittosporum tenuifolium 'Garnettii ', with land's native flax (P hormium tenax) is here white-margined leaves, is a stunning in several different forms. The long stalks broadleaf accent in this garden. Rosy flushes of the curious bronze flowers were in bloom in the leaves blend well with th e pink fl ow­ during our visit, and for a brief moment, ered perennials pl anted below it. native birds called tuis sipped nectar from Pseudopanax X lesson ii, a species of na­ the blooms. tive lancewood, is often used in variegated One of the most celebrated native shrubs, forms such as 'Gold Flash'. The nine-foot­ the kaka beak (Clianthus puniceus) is also tall shrub is quite handsome, as each green in the Sanders' garden. Its red flowers are leaf is surrounded by gold markings. It is exquisitely intricate and were named after doing well here in a bog with Primula hel­ the beak of the kaka, a parrot. odoxa at its feet. Tree daisies are an unusual sight, but About 100 miles south of Auckland, in New Zealand has many of them. Olearia the countryside near the famous Waitomo cheesemannii, topped by white daisy clus­ Cave, live Pete and M ay Sanders, retired ters, is one represented in the Sanders' bor­ dairy farmers. Seven years ago they built ders. a new home on their remaining 132 acres, Not far away, outside the village of Oto­ then began to enlarge on the garden which rohanga, Elizabeth and Graham Robert­ they had started thirty-five years ago. It son wo rk a SOO-acre sheep and cattle farm. contains fine specimens of camellias, rho­ Their English-style home and one-acre dodendrons, and roses, all of which flour­ garden sit in a valley below their hillside ish in this frost-free area. But the Sanders farm. It is a dreamy setting where Eliza-

American Horticulturist 17 ABOVE: Red-flowering Alonsoa and Lampranthus set off the felted leaves of Pachystegia ins ignis in the Jurys' garden. RIGHT: A group of perennials in the same garden.

beth, a floral artist, has laid out a charming The poor knight's lily (Xeronema cal­ New Zealanders have garden of perennials, roses, and small ttees. listemon) had almost finished blooming come to realize that Soft colors are carefully blended; roses climb when we examined its long, red, bottle­ into trees, a gazebo is centered around yel­ brush flowers. The plant was discovered endemic plants low and blue cottage flowers, and a dove­ in 1924 on an island off New Zealand's cote and its birds emphasize the white Northland. It requires a great deal of pa­ usually establish plantings. In one area are Chatham Island tience to grow as it takes about ten years forget-me-nots (Myosotidium hortensia) to set flower buds. quicker with less with large green leaves that form a splen­ The Jurys also grow several kinds of attention to water, did ground cover. Not every gardener here Hebe, which are usually under four feet is successful with this beautiful plant. An tall. New Zealand has at least one hundred fertilizer, and unusual use of another native is the low species. Most, including the whipcords with trimmed hedge of one of the silvery-leaved scale-like leaves, are excellent bloomers. mulches than is Celmisia or mountain daisy. Placed on a At Pukeawa, Hebe elliptica, with violet required for exotics. rock wall, it divides an area of low alpines. flowers, contrasts nicely with a rare, yel­ Proceeding south to New Plymouth, one low-leaved boxwood. Near it, sprawling After all, they were of the country's larger cities, is the winding on a rock, is a Helichrysum with gray fo­ Mt. Messenger Road, which suddenly opens liage and small yellow daisies. New Zea­ there first. upon the Tasman Sea. In the distance, snow­ land has several species of this alpine, but capped Mt. Egmont appears, a sign that at the moment, many gardeners are grow­ one is entering the Taranaki region. A highly ing a cultivar of a South African species, fertile black loam was produced by this Helichrysum petiolatum 'Limelight'. Some long-extinct volcano. This, and the high species of Helichrysum are used as attrac­ rainfall of Taranaki, account for the fact tive house plants in the United States. that it is a leading cheese and dairy center, The fat buds of the New Zealand Marl­ renowned as well for its superb gardens. borough rock daisy (Pachystegia insignis) One of the first gardens that we visited had not yet unfolded when we carne upon here was Pukeawa, the horne and nursery them in the Jurys' garden. But this in no of Barbara and Brent Jury. Their extensive . way distracted from their beauty-glo­ plantings contain rarities from all over the rious, thick green leaves with margins and world, many displayed in a massive rock central vein etched in white, plus a felty garden. Flowering natives were among indumentum on the undersides. The Jurys them. use this composite as a foil against such

18 August 1988 American Horticulturist 19 red flowers as the ice plant (Lampranthus) suited to this use because of their tight, and mask flower (Alonsoa). The latter, with dense foliage. Spring flowers are yellow. pretty red blooms, is from Peru. In another Corokia cotoneaster, or the wire-netting area, New Zealand's famous pin-cushion, bush, is another twiggy species and is now Cotula 'Yellow Buttons', provides a rich available in U.S. west coast nurseries. Tay­ touch of color. lor's garden also contains Astelia. The strap­ In the suburbs outside of New Plym­ like clumps of this lily relative are some­ outh, Les Taylor works on his second gar­ times epiphytic, that is, it can grow on den with its beautiful view of Mt. Egmont. trees. Its panicles of small, yellow flowers The first, in nearby Stratford, is owned by are oddly decorative. cousins who frequently consult with Tay­ Taylor has planted a few native conifers lor about maintenance. Taylor's horticul­ which are still exhibiting juvenile growth. tural expertise is extensive, and on a rock­ Most are slow-growing and look entirely walled hillside leading to a swampy valley different from mature specimens. The rimu with streams and bog plants are an incred­ (Dacrydium cupressinum) is one of them ible number of fine ornamentals. and has long, graceful branches. The kauri In one area, a formal swimming pool is (Agathis australis) has a tall, cylindrical hedged with six-foot-tall evergreens. They trunk that sloughs off lower branches as are a species of the Corokia, admirably its crown reaches enormous heights. It is

20 August 1988 the country's most precious endemic tree, cherished for both its fine timber and u e­ ful resin.

he native Pratia angu­ lata is a charming ground cover on Taylor's hill ­ side. Its leaves look like an American partridge­ berry, but the profuse white flower, with a di s­ tinctive split between two narrow petals, is entirely different. Pratia bears small purple fruit in the autumn. The looping drive around Mt. Egmont continues into Stratford where Shirley and Rob Chapman-Taylor live and tend th e two-acre garden built by their cou in, Les.

ABOVE LEFf: The kaka beak, Clianthus puniceus. LEFf: Gordon Collier working in his bog garden under Dicksonia fibrosa, a native tree fern. ABOVE: Yellow Primula helodoxa growing beside Les Taylor's garden pool.

" Rosanagh," with its charming old pi­ Remote Titoki Point is a 5,OOO-acre oneer house, is a cu lti va ted woodland of property in central North Island. The Col­ camellias, rhododendrons, and magnifi­ lier family raises sheep on these green hills, cent roses. A large, pink-flowered manuka but Gordon, head of the family, is also a was in full bloom during our visit, but the master landscape designer, plantsman, and kowhai (So phora tetraptera) had already author of many horticultural articles. Rare shed its ye llow blooms. The five-petaled plants are his specialty; choice selections golden pea-flower has become New Zea­ from his garden are propagated and sold land's national symbol. A few gardeners in his small nursery. ar~ growing its dwarf form, Sophora 'Otari Gordon's seven-acre hillside garden is a Gnome'. gallery of beautifully furnished rooms Driving on serpentine roads, some of reached by climbing up or down a series them metal (gravel ), we visited the Mc­ of totara (Podocarpus totara) steps. Choice Conichies in Ohakune. Their rock plant­ trees, shrubs, and perennials are used ings are so extensive that they spill out into everywhere in delightful combinations. A the adjoining roadway, and this is only a bog at the deepest level is viewed from part of their garden. The house sits high several bridges and is the home of water above a winding drive of cobblestones; a plants. Woodland plants, especially tril­ rock wall curves along one side and a roIl­ liums, hostas, and rhododendron, are Gor­ ing lawn edges the other. Like welcoming don's favorites, but he also uses native plants sentinels, three tall, pencil-thin conifers al­ in abundance. Among the bog-loving plants most appear to tip their caps. They are an is a good collection of Gunnera. Although Australian cultivar of Chamaecyparis called most species have huge leaves, these na­ 'Swain's Gold'. tives are small, with interesting fruit. The Among the many New Zealand alpines garden has many kinds of New Zealand are Hebe, Celmisia, and Raoulia. The lat­ flax and another plant with gray, felted ter, also called "vegetable sheep" because leaves called Senecio greyi. An entire bank farmers sometimes mistake them at a dis­ is covered with Arthropodium cirrhatum, tance for grazing animals, make unusual New Zealand's rengarenga or rock lily. white and silvery mats. The long-stemmed white flowers bring color

American Horticulturist 21 ABOVE: Ivy geranium and bougainvillea brighten a corner of Florence Redstone's garden. RIGHT: The subtle textures and colors of conifers create a s€ren€ setting in the Hammonds' garden.

I to this aFea where the clay soil is especially winner in an Auckland competition. It heavy. Above the deFlse plantings are the contains many giant specimens of tropical tree ferns, Dicksonia fibrosa, with shaggy, plants such as begonias and streptocarpus. fibrous trunks. According to Fowell, the soil here is com­ pletely lacking in fertility, but his appli­ n the town of Marton, the cation of mushroom compost, rotted horse Hammond family has used this manure, lime, and straw, mixed with peat, same native conifer in a most produces superb results. unusual way. Their well-de­ In Fowell's f(;lar garden, I noted that touch signed garden contains a hedge of whimsy for which the Kiwis are famous. of the golden totara, P. to tara He grows the native pigeonwood tree, He­ 'Aurea'. PruFled to a height of dycarya, and within its branches he has ten feet, it is hard to btdieve placed a bird feeder with provisions for a that these plants could become £lock of white, fan-tail pigeons. The birds forest trees. look quite at home in this setting. Florence Redstone's home in Gisborne As in the United States, New Zealanders overlooks Poverty Bay on North Island's have been slow to appreciate the beauty west coast. CaptaiFl Cook, the mariner who of their native flora. But as the cost of labor first charted these islands, called it "pov­ increases and help in maintaining complex erty" when much needed sllpplies were re­ plantiFlgs becomes more and more a prob­ fused his ship's crew by the hostile Ma0ris. lem, the Kiwis have wme to realize that The area is still poor in rainfall, but this endemic plants usually establish quicker, is not obviol!ls in Mrs. Redstone's garden. with less attention to water, fertilizer, and Her secret is mulch. A mix of sheep "dags," mulches than is required for exotics. After sawdust, and seaweed is frequently pro­ all, they were there first. We a,re all learn­ cured and used on every garden bed to ing that with native plants a garden be­ increase the moisture-holding capacity of comes an interesting symbol of one's coun­ the soil. It is ql!lite a task for this elderly try and a source of pride to be shared with woman, but the result is luxuriol!ls with all who come t(') visit. tropical plantings. Shortly before leaving New Zealand' we Ruby Weinberg is a frequent contributor to visited Joel Fowell's garden, a first prize American Horticulturist.

22 August 1988 American Horticulturist 23

THE BY HIRAM G. LAREW

was on a tight schedule in Miami ; my fr om the commonplace to the miraculous, mission was to track down one of the the presence of religious awe toward the five neem trees I knew grew at Fair­ neem is not surprising. Hindus consider child Tropi ca l Garden. The fruits of th e tree sacred; each New Year they eat th e tree had occupied much of my th e leaves and bathe in neem-steeped water time for more than a yea r, yet I knew to cl eanse th e body and soul. Inhaling the the leaves onl y fr om brittle herbarium smoke of burning neem leaves is thought speci mens and the trees fr om bl ack and to drive out ev il spirits. white photos. The ga te attendant at the Nati ve to India, the tree has been ex­ Garden directed my fri ends and me to the ported to several other parts of the world, neems in their coll ecti on, and as we drove including many developing countries. Re­ up to one of the trees on the bank of a centl y, three intern ational conferences have small pond there was no outward sign of been held to hi ghlight the uses, benefits, the remarkabl e. It was just a large tree, and economi es of growing neem for shade, slightl y chl orotic a nd not p a rticul a rl y fu el, fee d, and sprays in Third World vil­ shapely, but as the peopl e of India have lages. The National Academy of Sciences kn own for centuries, it is noble in its po­ ca ll s neem " potentiall y one of the most tential. va luable of all arid-zone trees" because it ca n grow quickl y in nutrient-poor soils. Added benefits are that the leaves can be used as mulch or fodder and the seed pulp as fe rtilizer or livestock feed. Trees can be grown from freshl y harvested seed or from cuttings, and prefer well-drained soils and full sun. For all of its attributes, neem might have remained unappreciated in the West had it not been for the discovery of a surprising property of its seeds. A 1962 article by the Indian scientists Pradhan, Jotwani, and Rai in the journal Indian Farming reported that a very dilute solution of neem seed extract repelled desert locusts from feeding on sprayed plants. Word spread, for anything useful against locusts is newsworthy. It was thought that perhaps neem seeds could be The neem tree, Azadirachta indica, is a used as a locally-grown, -collected, and member of the Mahogany family and is -processed insecticide that would decrease revered in India for uses that range from the dependence of developing countries on lamp oil to livestock feed. Extracts of the more expensive and toxic synthetic insec­ bark, leaves, and seeds have been used there ticides. for years in personal hygiene products such Reports began to appear, particularly as soap, hair tonic, tooth powder, sham­ from India, suggesting activity against a poo, and mouthwash. Infusions or poul­ wide range of insects. Chemists became tices made from its bark, roots, or leaves interested. Drs. Nakanishi, Broughton, and have been prescribed for ailments as di­ verse as tuberculosis, snakebite, warts, and LEIT: Indians eat the leaves of neem to diabetes. Simply sitting under a neem tree welcome the New Year. INSET: Neem seeds, is deemed healthful due to its cleansing here being harvested in West Africa, exhibit a vapors. With a list of attributes that range surprising number of agricultural uses.

Anita Sa barese INS ET: Hiram G. Larew American Horticulturist 25 Morgan, as well as several other chemists from around the world, began to isolate and identify a particularly active insecti­ cidal component of the seed extract which they named azadirachtin. The structure of azadirachtin was described by Dr. Kraus of the Institute fur Chemie der Universitiit Hohenheim in Stuttgart in 1985, and with the description came the hope that one day scientists might be abh~ to laboratory­ synthesize the materia'!' So far, however, we remain dependent OF! the tree to man­ ufacture this complex compound.

he most recent tally of inse(;ts, mites, and nematodes that are re­ pelled or killed by neem seed ex­ tract was made in 1979 by Dr. David Warthen of the U.S. De­ partment of Agriculturt~ 's Agri­ cultural Resean;h Service. By that time, sixty-one types of insects rangiFlg from the Japanese beetle to the house fly, aphids, and the tobacco caterpillar had been stud­ ied and found to be repelled by neem seed extract. Just as important, scientists also observed a disruption in the way that many neem-fed insects developed. The extract either killed the insects outright, as in the case of some aphids, or caused a more delayed death due to interference with the insect's hormone system, as in the case of gypsy moths. These neem seed-treated in­ sects were unable to moult properly. Dr. Warthen's summary, a popular publica­ tion that he has shared with over 2,000 scientists, has not been updated, but a con­ servative estimate is that at least as many species of insects, mites, aFld nematodes as he tested have been tested in the years since 1979 and found to be sensitive to the seed extract. In 1971, Drs. Gill and Lewis from The Imperial College in London reported that the toxin in neem seed extract, if used as a root dip or drench, would be taken up by the treated plant and impart insecticidal properties to foliage normally eaten by in­ sects. The same scientists provided evi­ dence that bean seeds soaked in neem seed extract germinated to toxic seedlings. The possible uses of neem as an insecticide were at least doubled by this report, for the re­ sults meant that the extract could be used not only as a foliage spray but also as a systemic soil drench and perhaps even as a seedling protectant, and thus might be active against insects that feed inside plants. A decade later, a team on which I serve at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Photos by Hiram G. La rew Beltsville, Maryland, decided to test neem ABOVE: A neem seedling. Relatively little is known about neem culture. seed extract, both as a spray and as a drench, ABOVE RIGHT: The fruit of the ancilmt neem. against the leafmining fly, Liriomyza tri-

26 August 1988 folii, a new and formidable insect that was we obtained later when we used the extract such is not the case. We still have a great receiving worldwide attention among outdoors at a commercial nursery against deal to learn about how to culture the tree flower and vegetable growers. Resistant to the birch leafminer, a tiny wasp that dam­ so that growth, fruiting, and the produc­ many of the synthetic insecticides applied ages ornamental birches throughout the tion of azadirachtin are optimized. No germ against it, this insect (a close relative of Northeast. Our work has demonstrated plasm improvement has been attempted the columbine and holly leafminers) seemed that the extract performs well under con­ even though we know that useful variation an appropriate one to use as a model for ditions and settings representative of those occurs in wild plantings; neem is thus an­ testing neem outside the laboratory in the in which a commercial neem product would other example of plants that should be real world of a commercial greenhouse. A be used. protected in the wild. We are at the crucial chrysanthemum grower near Baltimore who Such a product may be in the offing. point where all we know is promising, but had a leafminer problem allowed us to Robert Larson, president of a small wood what we don't know seems formidable. spray, drench, and sample plants through import company in Wisconsin, became in­ We know little about propagative meth­ a crop cycle, from rooted cutting to bloom­ terested in producing a commercial neem ods, about seed handling for extraction, ing cut flower. We knew that the extract seed insecticide in 1982. Throwing time or about the logistics of mass seed pro­ had little immediate effect on leafminers and resources behind the effort, he has duction. and caused no rapid "knockdown" of the been able to formulate and patent a neem It is an important challenge in today's adult flies. In fact, because of neem's slower insecticide which has been approved by the agriculture generally, and horticulture spe­ activity, other entomologists had mistak­ U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for cifically, to indentify useful, safe, and ef­ enly reported that the extract was not use­ use on non-food crops. The insecticide fective ways of keeping pests in check. Neem ful for leafminer control. We found, how­ should be on the market in the near future. is no panacea, but it is certainly a refresh­ ever, that even though there was a delay A host of other companies are making sim· ingly new (the Indians would say "old") of up to ten days between applications and ilar efforts. option. We should not ignore it. leafminer death, the amount of kill was as With such a myriad of possibilities now Dr. Hiram G. Larew is an AAAS Fellow in great as with a potent synthetic insecticide the focus of enthusiastic attention, the neem the Bureau of Science and Technology, Office that we tested along with neem. Our re­ tree should long ago have been dissected, of Agriculture, U.S. Agency for International sults in the greenhouse were similar to those classified, and studied inside and out. But Development, Washington, D.C.

American Horticulturist 27 'A Healthy and Innocent Aniusement'

stance, began to grow and package seed ~""I hortly after the beginning of which their peddlers distributed to country the nineteenth century, Thomas stores. No longer did the wealthy, who Jefferson, a man whose talents were able to import trees, plants, and seed and interests included horti­ from Europe, have a monopoly on exotic culture, was elected president plants and elaborate gardens. of the United States. In a bold By 1833, travelers were beginning to note gesture during his administration, Jeffer­ a new sensibiliry that was transforming son authorized the Louisiana Purchase and dooryard gardens and pleasure grounds. commissioned Meriwether Lewis and One author said that "there has of late George Rogers Clark to lead a cross-coun­ been manifested in this country an increas­ try expedition to explore the new territory. ing taste for the cultivation of ornamental They gathered extensive information, and plants and fruits. The taste ... seems to they also gathered plants that were later pervade all classes. ... It has been well added to eastern botanical collections, remarked that 'where flowers are seen in propagated, and made widely available. the windows and about the dwellings, even Lewis and Clark's pioneering travels were the most humble, the inmates are seldom part of a tradition extending back to Wil­ America's love of without some pretensions to refinement liam Bartram that would later include and taste.' This is a healthy and innocent explorers such as Thomas Nuttall, whose gardening grew amusement and particularly fitted for the collecting enriched the nascent Harvard occupation of females." Heman Bourne, Botanical Garden in Cambridge, Massa­ right along with author of The Florist's Manual published chusetts. Within a few years these plants the new nation in in Boston in 1833, considered this new were finding their way into the flower beds interest important enough to produce a and borders of gardens throughout the set­ the early 18008 botanical publication that would simplify tled areas of the young nation. the Linnaean system by reducing the de- As horticulture'became a business, New England gardeners who had traditionally saved seed and exchanged it with their ABOVE: Globe amaranth, as pictured in The Florist's Manual, still sparkles in gardens and neighbors soon had new sources. Plants dried arrangements at Old Sturbridge Village. were grown and the seed collected and RIGHT: Women dressed in period costum~s marketed; Shaker communities, for in- BY CAROLINE SLOAT carry on the traditions of the 1830s.

ABOVE: Art photographed by Henry E. Peach 28 August 1988 RIGHT: Photo by Robert S. Arnold

pendence on Latin and Greek names for plants. Also im portant in th e world of agricul ­ ture and horticulture in the second quarter of the nineteenth century was th e Vermont lawyer and newspaper edi tor, T homa Green Fessenden. During the summer of 1822, he moved to Boston to become th e first edi tor of the New England Farmer and other publications under the aegis of th e Seed Store a nd Agri cul tural Ware­ house. Under the ownershi p of T homas Shepard, then George Newell and Joseph Ru ssell , and finall y Jo eph Breck, th is ga r­ den center publi shed and sold seed cata­ logs, horti cultural publicati ons, and tools fo r fa rm ers and ga rdener , and wa in­ strumental in the fo undi ng of the Mas­ sachusetts Horticultural Society. Fe sen­ den's contribution was his abil ity to bring together in fo rmati on from both the ga rden cl assics and new writings. He took pa rt in a li vely correspondence with gardener and fa rmers around New England and the na­ ti on and printed their letters in hi new­ paper. Thus the newspaper and th e books th at he produced a re a compendium of contemporary in fo rmatio n o n ho rtic ul ­ ture, intended to provide guidance fo r hundreds of readers. ica ted to historica l horti culture. With such a ri ch and va ri ed legacy from The Sa lem Towne House garden and the ga rdening world of New England in the Fitch House garden show quite diffe r­ 1830 as well as fr om art and literature of ent approaches to gardening in that era. th e peri od, O ld Sturbridge Vi ll age today The ga rden at the Towne House is old­ brings ea rl y nineteenth-century horticul ­ fas hi oned, even fo r 1830. It is a parterre ture to life. Fl ower and vegetable ga rdens encl osed by a hedge of Japanese quince. are planted to conform with each of the Walks encircle the ga rden fo r viewin g the six residences in the re-created community . round center bed, four pattern beds, and Each house is furnished to show how a adj acent rectangular cutting beds. The path famil y of a certain size, wealth, and age leads through the grape arbor and into the would have li ved. H orticultural literature summerhouse to enj oy the view of the pond of the earl y nineteenth century is analyzed and covered bridge below. to discover some of the choices these ea rl y Connecti cut poet Lydia Huntley Sigour­ homeowners might have had in their land­ ney described a garden with beds inter­ scaping. Many observers, including the sected by walks leading to a summerhouse histori an Jeremy Belknap, noted the role in a nostalgic reminiscence of eighteenth­ women then pl ayed in gardening. Belknap century Connecti cut life. Possibl y she had wrote in 1812 that the " gardens in the helped each fall when her father, the gar­ country towns are chiefly left to the man­ dener for a family named Lathrop, planted LEIT: The Towne House Garden's quiet, agement of women, the men contenting " the guard of tulips" which came up in orderly look harks back to an even earlier themselves with fencing and digging them." the spring in uni fo rms of " buff streaked time. TOP: Morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea) twines up the arbor in a circular Thus the gardens in the museum village with vermillion and pure white mantled bed at Fitch House. BELOW: The fragrant are cared for by women dressed in cos­ with a blush of carmine." four-o'clock (Mirabilis jalapa), once tumes of the period who receive special The springtime tulip pl antings in the whimsically known as the marvel-of-Peru, training in the history and the gardening Towne House garden a re based on re­ shimmers in the midsummer sun. techniques appropriate to the garden that search sources which include a series of each tends. As a part of their work, they watercolor illustrati ons in Bourne's book make an effort to find early plant varieties and descriptions in others, many of which, through research and with the assistance like Fessenden's N ew American Gardener of amateur and professional societies ded- (1834), described the 'tulipomania' of mid-

Photos by Robert s. Arnold American Horticulturist 31 The anti-transpirant ~ HEALTHY AND INNOCENT AMUSEMENT' used by horticulturists, seventeenth century Holland. At that time, ticulture at mid-century, he noted how fast nurserymen and Fessenden noted "some splendid varieties fashions in flowers had changed. " Old age were sold for enormous sums of money; is a crime and aged flowers are mercilessly landscapers for one of which, called the viceroi, brought consigned to the po'or-house," he wrote. over 40 years ... ten thousand dollars." "If we look to an old garden catalogue, In June, the focus of color shifts to the we can but wonder how the flower garden pattern beds. A santolina border frames / was decorated by our fathers, for we find the succession of plants. Included are can­ little besides races now known only by dytuft (lberis sempervirens), gas plant name. Marigolds and Candy tufts, Daisies (Dictamnus albus), pinks (Dianthus plu­ and Dittany ... Tricolors and Marvels of marius, D. caryophyllus, and D. del­ Peru, Sunflowers and Sweet-sultans, pride toides), and the shrublike false indigo (Baptisia australis). This display will give way in the height of summer to annuals which have been brought forward in a u 0 gardens in the hotbed then transplanted into both the center bed and into the pattern beds. Mari­ country towns are chiefly golds and amaranths dominate the August left to the management of garden, with other plants adding to the variety of color, foliage, and fragrance women 000" sought in early nineteenth-century gar­ Jeremy Belknap, 1812 dens. African and French marigolds (Tag­ etes erecta and T. patula,) were described by Joseph Breck in 1851. He, considered the French marigold with its "rich velvety of the 18th-century, ye have all fallen vic­ brown and yellow, one of the old-fashioned tims to the flickering meteor called taste flowers," and commended the "large, dou­ and are now to be found in ... remote ble varieties" of the African marigold, not­ country gardens .... The Amaranths are ing that the colors ranged "from a pale a race peculiarly suited for rich autumnal citron yellow to a deep orange," providing decoration, quick-growing, vary sized and color "from July to frost." long enduring ... but they are abandoned Amaranths were, in Breck's view, the for the sake of Petunias and Chrysanthe­ "old favorite of the flower garden." Joseph's mums." But not at Old Sturbridge Village, coat (Amaranthus tricolor) was described where the clock is turned back to the time by Gerard, who hailed the "sundry mix­ when they were in style. ture of colours that nature has bestowed Before Breck became the proprietor of in her greatest jolitie upon this f1oure." In the Seed Store and Agricultural Warehouse the center bed, ringed with fragrant, low­ he had raised flower seed for it and au­ growing sweet alyssum (Lobularia mari­ thored a short book. The Young Florist, tima) are the dramatic blood-like pendant or Conversations About Flowers provides spikes of love-lies-bleeding (Amaranthus a view of a gardener'S year through a series Sprayed on plant surfaces, Wilt­ caudatus) and globe amaranths (Gom­ of dialogues between two siblings, Henry Pruf®forms a protective coating phrena globosa), a symbol of immortality. and Margaret. Breck was promoting the that slows down moisture evapora­ Bourne pointed out a confusion that re­ idea that tending a flower garden was a tion from leaves and stems. Use for: mains today-globe amaranths' resem­ valuable educational activity for young • spring and summer transplanting • protection from summer heat blance to clover, except for their "several children. The garden suggested by Breck and drought varieties of white, purple, speckled with was attempted by Old Sturbridge Village • fall transplanting gold and variegated." at the Fitch House, but it has been some­ • winter windburn protection This garden filled with old-fashioned what curtailed because of space limitations • Christmas trees, wreaths plants also has dahlias, although they have and in recognition of the fact that this ideal and greens only a resemblance to the old varieties. The garden would have been beyond the means Organic and biodegradable, Wilt­ Village's search for varieties with a doc­ of many rural New Englanders of the time. Pruf is the safe way to guard umented history before 1840 is a project The garden that Breck suggested would against moisture loss year 'round. that has yet to meet with success. Joseph have been colorful and amusing. He showed IIll0 Breck described the dahlia in 1833 as "a his young readers how to create continu­ Ask for Wilt-Pruf at grand object of admiration," informing his ous color from April through frost, while your garden supply PRUf® readers that the plant had been named after providing information about the growing store today. ANTI.TRAN$P1RANT Dahl, a Swedish botanist who had been a characteristics of perennials, biennials, and p.o. Box 4280, Greenwich, CT 06830-0280 203/531-4740 pupil of Linnaeus. annuals. He includes bits of history of dif­ When Joseph Breck looked back on hor- ferent plants, underscoring their place of

32 August 1988 Recreate the Famous Fitch House Garden at Old Sturbridge Village ori gin and th eir introducti on into the gar­ By midsummer the center bed provides den to provide a sense of th e contribution color to a height of three to six fe et, cre­ The Young Florist was written in 1833 of the United States to wo rld horti culture. a ting th e cone-sha ped pro fil e recom­ by Joseph Breck (first president of Mass. Horticulture Society) as dia­ " We will have a fin e co ll ecti on of Amer­ mended by Breck. Twining up the arbor -Wi. logue between children de­ are sca rl et runner bean (Phaseolus cocci­ ican pl ants," wro te Breck, spea king as m'.m scribing the garden plan and young Henry and refl ecting the drive whi ch neus), mo rning glo ry (Ipom oea purpurea), 1833 pl ants to create the desired must have fir ed M ess rs. Lewis, Cla rk , Bar­ and sweet pea (Lathyrus odoratus). effect both horizontally and ~vertically for maximum pleasure. tram, or Nuttall . " We will at our leisure The four o'cl ock (Mirabilis jalapa) is no search the woods, mea dow and fields fo r lo nger treated as an annual, but foll owing This beautifully illustrated rare-book is reprinted on acid-free paper, library­ flowers and pl ants to decorate our little Breck's advice " its large tuberous roots bound, with a charming reproduction on patch . " (are) taken up and preserv ed during th e the cover . Order NOW for only $13.95; a When tulips and daffodils bloom in th e winter like the Dahli a (to) fl ower peren­ fraction of it's value on the antiquarian center circle of th e Fitch fa mily' ga rden, ni a ll y. " Loui e Chandler Moulton tho ught market. th e ru sti c arbo r of white birch i las hed th at when fo ur o'c1 ocks were in the ga rden, Other OPUS Reprint. into pl ace and seeds of climbing pl ants are th ey" eem to have been selected with an The Florist's Manual by H. BourlUl, 1833 The Fl ower Garden by J.Breck, 185 1 pl anted at its ba e. Coltsfoot (Tussilago eye to good behavi or ... reg ul ar in their farfara) grows in th e outer bo rder. This hour a an old ma id 's tea-drinking." This o Please send a brochure. Please send me_ copies of The plant was recommended by Lydi a Mari a under cores Breck's recommendati on of o Young Florist @ 13.95 + 2.50; (shipping) Child in The American Frugal Housewife pl ants th at bl oom at di ffe rent times of th e ISBN: 0·940983·20·6 (1828) as an essential ingredient in a sy rup day, such as th e mo rning glo ry and the o P ayment Enclo sed $-=_ ____ fo r an " inveterate cough. " Such linking of evening- fl owering four o'clock, also known o Charge my 0 MC 0 Vi sa Acct. No. ______household advice with ga rden instructi o n as th e ma rvel-of-Peru. Exp.Date ______fulfill s the spirit of Breck's philosoph y about Breck also sugges ted the importance of N a me ______ga rdens and the kind of fa mil y most li kely fragra nt pl a nts, in cl uding mi gno nette Address,______to cultivate one. (Reseda odorata) and four o'cl ock as among Ci ly State_ Zip _ ___ Sweet vi olets, ox-eye daisies (Chrysan­ th o e that draw dragon fli es and mo ths. Or call (203) 453-5334 themum leucanthem um ), and cra nes bill Curious pl ants we re also a catego ry th at OPUS Publications, Inc. P .O. Box 269, Guilford, CT 06437 (Geranium m aculatum), descendants fro m Breck recommended fo r children's special those in th e wild, provide colo r while th e interes t. A sea rch among coll ecto rs has perennials are still in lea f. The white-painted yielded the snail pl ant (Medicago scutel­ shingle stakes, which Breck call ed " num­ lata), but th e Vill age resea rchers are still ber sticks," mark the pl antings of annual looking fo r th e hedgehog pl ant (M . inter­ seed. Calliopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria), now texta) and the ca terpillar pl ant (M . circin­ self-sown in th e bed, provides a feathery nata). M artynia (Proboscidea louisianica) touch in July and a reminder of Nuttall's is also known as the unicorn pl ant for its explorations of the prairies of the Mid­ seed pod which can be sliced and pickled, west; clarkia (Clarkia pulchella) was ad­ a recipe provided by Mrs. Child in The vertised in Breck's Seed Store catalog in American Frugal H ousewife. Love-in-a­ 1838 as a product of the 1802 western puff, also known as the balloon vine (Car­ expedition. diospermum halicacabum), and the sen­ sitive plant (Mimosa pudica) which folds up its leaves when touched also add their touch of whimsy. Old Sturbridge Village, a living history Through exploring the literature of Water lilies, goldfish, museum that re-creates a New England nineteenth-century gardens, Old Stur­ town of the 1830s, covers over 200 acres gurgling water in bridge Village has found many examples with more than 40 restored buildings your garden. Lilypons of how the educational value of these gar­ where people in historical dress dem­ dens was presented to the readers of the has ita11! onstrate the life, work, and community 1830s. The museum's effort to bring this celebrations of early nineteenth-century Catalogue Subscription, S5 whole era to life helps us understand what New Englanders. it was like to live in New England during Open year-round, summer hours are the first fifty years of the new republic. It Nrune ______9:00 a.m. to 5 :00 p.m. through Oc­ shows that New Englanders believed, as tober 30. Admission is charged. Address ______Thomas Fessenden once wrote, that "hor­ Old Sturbridge Village is located on ticulture, as it respects ornamental gar­ City ______State __ Zip --- Route 20 West in Sturbridge, Massa­ dening, is the most healthy, and to some, chusetts, near Exit 9 of the Massachu­ the most pleasing employment in life." Lilypons Water Gardens setts Turnpike and Exit 2 of Interstate 1526 Arnhort Road 84. For information, call (508) 347- P.O. Box 10 3362. Caroline Sloat is director of publications for Lilypons , Maryland 21717-0010 Old Sturbridge Village. See our ad inside front cover.

American Horticulturist 33 GARDENER'S POTPOURRI On Keeping a Garden Notebook

ntil I started gardening four years My own attempts at a daily entry have ago, it had never occurred to been thwarted several times by zealous over­ Ume that anyone would want to recording. After my second gardening year, keep a notebook about the plants on one's when I was trying to make notes of every property. But I moved into a house at that blooming thing and its possible C0mbi­ time, which led to enlarging my copy of nation with everything else, I ended with the survey and sketching in the trees and an exceptionally long and repetitive list of shrubs. My mother gave me some white flowers. Richardson Wright, gardening in irises from her garden in Connecticut, which Silvermine, Connecticut, had another so­ I added to my diagram, and when I made lution. In The Gardener's Bed-Book (1929) a note of the date they bloomed my garden he writes: notebook had begun! Since then there have November 4. FIRST BLOOMING. An­ been many new copies of the survey, and other tabulation I made at the end of the my record of those years has expanded garden year is the list of first bloomings. beyond a three-ring notebook with two These are set down day by day as they pockets. appear and now go in a big set of columns In my notebook I have also accumulated that cover, so far, the first bloomings for material from catalogs, my friends, and ten years. Whereas annuals fluctuate ac­ from second-hand gardening books. It's cording to the time they were first sown, wonderful to discover in these old books I )\ there is very little fluctuation in the per­ 11l)\ • t how many gardeners surround us. Eliza­ t) \ \ \' I \ ennials' dates. When one ofthe natives tells beth Lawrence, who gardened in Char­ me that the weather ain't what it used to lotte, North Carolina, says in The Little be when he was a boy, I listen politely and Bulbs (1957) "Gardening, reading about think my own thoughts, for these tables gardening, and writing about gardening show that it really changes very little. A are all one, no one can garden alone." So, deviation either toward earliness or late­ as I continued my not~book, ideas from ness may be marked in one year, but over these authors are side-by-side with those a decade they about strike an average. from my neighbors, mixed with entries This kind of list would make a valuable about my family's comings and goings, de­ section in my notebook. However, a later scriptions of the weather, and what garden piece of advice from Richardson's Another work I have done. There are snapshots and Gardener's Bed-Book (1933) goes beyond lists, sketches, and even filled-in-but-never­ my needs: mailed nursery forms. It seems that instead January 13. In your garden notebook of a garden plan, I need a notebook plan...... make a list of those people you met at I suspect that many gardeners keep some Books from the collection of Ferris Cook parties this winter and to whom you glibly sort of book. While all gardening books promised to send plants in the spring. are structured on the seasons, often di­ count, while I have revised my seed and For me, there is great appeal in daily vided by months or special subjects, my plant lists; and though there is fair-day advice as it always translates into a man­ favorites also include entries on specific garden work for a month yet, we cannot ageable amount of work for anyone day. dates. Mabel Osgood Wright's The Gar­ always have a November like the last. Now Mrs. Francis King, who gardened for a den of a Commuter's Wife, Recorded by it is the sowing time in the book garden, time in Alma, Michigan, wrote many books the Gardener (1901) had this entry: which we intend more than ever to plant on gardening including The Flower Gar­ October 19 after a Northeasterly storm. with perennials. Blessed gardens of flowers den Day by Day (1927), a slim book with Evan stayed at home today so that it should and of books! Is there any phase ofa wom­ every left-hand page left blank for "Notes." be a festival for me, even if the storm an's life, either of joy or of sorrow, when She made entries on the keeping of a gar­ howled, and he has drawn me a plan for you will not strengthen and comfort her? den notebook: developing, not altering, the wild garden, I like knowing what Evan and the Gar­ January 25. There is a world of study so that everything we add may be of ac- dener did on October 19th. in the subject of times of bloom of flowers

34 August1988 Discover our new 50 page Color Catalog, it has over 200 quality gardening items like these;

The Hay racks, Hanging or Wall Bas kets and Planters are ge nerously proportioned - and dee p enough so th ey do not dry out Qui ckly. Each piece is made from we lded in the small garden. Make a simple table I also found in her book the fo ll owing, steel th en thickly dipped in blac k of this to-day for your own use. There is entered under October 18, 1901: plasti c for another in the study of color; yet another Today, though ice has formed three times, protec ti on and 24" x 17" x II" deep superb appearan ce. in the forms and habits of plants. Yet this I have fi lled nineteen vases with flowers. need not discourage the gardener. The They are Ph lox, Larkspur, Monkshood, knowledge comes with the work, and if Salvia, Nasturtium, Roses, Mignonette, and mistakes are made, there is always next Chrysanthemums. year. Are there still people who can fi ll nine­ March 2. The first injunction for every teen vases of flowers from their garden) month of the year should really be this: Richardson Wrig ht has some more se­ keep a garden notebook. If this has not rious thoughts on "Garden Records" in been started in January, with records of The Practical Book of Outdoor Flowers what has been done towards the garden if (1924): not in it, then this is the time to buy the If a game is worth playing at all it is book and make the first entries. An ex­ worth keeping a score, and the gardener pense account can be kept, too, in such a keeps his score card-keeps it perhaps book. longer than the golfer, because it grows in Classic August 13. Keep a notebook close at service and value as the years pass. An Garden hand during this month, especially, and ordinary ledger in which Sunday notes are to-day use the pencil freely with regard to written has served our purpose better than Arches & Arbors notes of color arrangement of flowers, both the more fancy books designed for this Yo u ca n eas il )" assemble a wide va ri et)" of structures with th ese strong English arches. as it is and as it should be. It may be a pleasant pastime. In this we keep a record Climbing roses. grapes. wi steria and good plan to have a page or two now di­ of the work that has been accomplished, clematis ca n grow on Gateways. Bowers. Tunnels or lean·t os (against buildings). vided into two columns, one headed "Bad" expenditures, the date ofthe first flowering Sturd y steel tubing is weatherproofed with and the other "Good." Here will be food of each kind, any observations on the idio­ malte green bamboo-textured pl astic. for winter thouKht. syncracies of plants that come to our no­ Gro-Thru There's magic in a date. Whenever yo u tice, the weather, temperature, and such refer to a notebook you have the pl easure items that will be of interest in further Plant of looking up the current date to see if group planting, and also we include the Supports yo u've done anything resembling the rec­ remarks of visiting garden friends! Hold perennials or ommended chore. Helen a Rutherford Ely In addition to these we keep a set of annuals invisibl y. in A Woman's Hardy Garden (1903) cap­ garden cards, made early in the spring when without tying or staking. These tions the black-and-white photographs: the seed and plant order is sent in. My English supports " Peonies-June sixth," " Planting on the stenographer takes largish fi ling cards and hold not only the whole plant, but each edge of the lawn-August second," " Pop­ fi lls in the following items when the fl ower individual stem as it grows pies growing in rows-July fo urteenth." is one that we haven't tried before: through the 3" square mesh. Soon the natural green frame is concealed by She writes about the garden book from Botanical Name: foliage and the plant is held firmly for the Meadowburn Farm, "70 miles fro m New Planted: season. Different sizes of heads can fit York," quotes from her own notebook, Common Name: Where: different lengthS of legs to suit various Type: plants. Galvanized under the green coating and advises her readers : Season of Bloom: to last many years. If a scrap-book be kept, in which every­ Color: Culture: Height: Pests: • English Forged • Watering cans thing of interest pertaining to the garden Garden Tools • Sharpeners Protection: can be pasted or written, it will be found • Steinmax Electric • Hayracks a great help. In this way items about fer­ On the other side are kept such data as Chipper-Shredders • Trellex tilizers, insecticides, special treatment of the first blooming and its actions in the Call or write for OUR FREE CATALOG plants, with copies of lists ordered, can be environment in which we place it. The in­ preserved, and also, most interesting of all, formation is culled fro m experience, from Kinsman Company notes of when the different plants bloom garden books, conversations with other River Road. Dept. 6\1 Point Pleasant. PA 18950 each year. gardeners and items picked up here and Order by phone: (215) 297-5613

American Horticulturist 35 GARDENER'S POTPOURRI

there in the hortiGUlture press. These cards more interesting than useful. It is the re­ are kept in a tickler. The date of first pository for all sorts of facts and fancies blooming becomes a valuable and inter­ concerning gardens, plants, and country esting record as the years pass. matters generallly. Old recipes for home­ I find these suggestions helpful, al­ made remedies, perfumes, wines, and cor­ though index cards remind me of cooking, dials; local superstitions regarding plants for which I have no patience. B€sides, in and their uses, quotations from the flower­ The Gardener's Day Book (1938) Mr. loving poets, accounts of gardens visited, Wright seemed to have later thoughts about quaint flower names and much more. his own suggesti0Iils: Both books are well thumbed and smeared with soil; between the pages lie sprigs of Thyme and the long sweet leaves of Costmary, and both bear witness to being On these still and sunny in constant use. They are the records of many years of joyful, health-giving work, days come many ideas and each year adds to their value, as it which it is not - as it is so does to my love for this beautiful and be­ loved craft. often-too late to carry When I start redesigning my notebook out. I will keep the diary for reminiscence--the family gathering at Thanksgiving in the ice storm, the stray cat that the neighbors thought came by UFO, the toad living un­ October 24. GARDENING EFFI­ der the dianthus--but in a section separate CIENCY. If you are one of those very from the notes I make for the survival of orderly and systematic persons, I suppose my clematis. I plan to make two lists of you will keep your garden records on cards. new plants: the first will detail those I or­ While I admire efficiency, only with tongue der with the acknowledgement, prices, and in cheek could I praise the introduction of pertinent guarantee information; the other efficient office methods into gardening. will identify the plants given to me, as they Terribly efficient people usually possess a evoke the warmest recollections of my minimum of imagination and are all too friends. With just these few changes in my often impolite and overbearing . . . . All such notebook, I can turn back to the garden information we should learn beforehand and reading. As Mrs. Francis King wrote and keep it close by so that it can be readily in From a /,-Tew Garden (1928): "Blessed consulted. But whatever system you adopt be September, for then come still and sunny for collecting and collating this informa­ days when one can sit in the garden to tion, don't become a slave to it. enjoy it: when plans can most reasonably Louise Beebe Wilder, who gardened "one· be made for next year's garden improve­ hour from New York City," told how she ment, garden beauty. In such days come separated the practical from the whimsical many ideas which it is not--as it is so in her book, My Garden (1916). She says: often-too late to carry out. Now the note­ o Please send me a Free Catalog. A 'Day Book,' kept in connection with book with its many spring and summer o Please send me Mammoth Darwin the garden and nursery, will be found an penciUings should be taken into the garden Hybrid Tulips/100 invaluable aid to memory. Mine is rather and quietly consulted and considered: a o Payment enclosed $ ___ a stout ledger, in which is kept a record pad and pencil for suggestions of changes o Charge to: of all plants and seeds puchased and from of position, for orders, for general charting o Master Card 0 Visa whom, and all expenses connected with of the places of plants, must accompany Exp. Date ______the garden. Note is made of all experi­ the note-book. It has been my own habit, Act. No. ______ments under way, of all new flowers under on such sweet quiet days as September al­ Name ______observation. Careful note is made of ways has to offer, to take a light wicker Address ______changes to be made at a convenient season. chair and table to a little spot in our place City ______Memory is short in the garden, the beauty known as the rose-garden-a very se­ State ______Zip ___ of one season blots out the mistakes of the cluded place-and then to let no one know last, and one may easily forget the pink where I was, so that the necessary thinking Sweet William growing beside the flaming and writing might be done without inter­ Oriental Poppies and discords of a like ruption. " Stillbrook Farm nature, if one does not 'put it down. ' --Ferris Cook Maple Street, 307-X, Litchfield, CT 06759 Another book, which we call the 'Coun­ Ferris Cook is an artist who also enjoys try Miscellany,' is kept, and is probably gardening.

36 August 1988 Sources

Beneath the Long White Cloud Stokes Seed Company, P.O. Box 548, Buf- fa lo, NY 14240, ca talog free. The ONLY speCialty liquid plant The fo ll owing eed companies supply seed I I Thompson & Morgan, P.O . Box 1308, I foods in the Industry. Made for I of New Zealand natives. Jack on, NJ 08527, ca talog free. safety, accuracy and results. I Peter Dow and Company, P.O. Box 696, Ve rmont Bea n eed Company, Ga rden I JUNGLE JUICE (2-5-4) for fantastic Gisborne, New Zealand (as k fo r the U.S. La ne, Fai r Haven, VT 05743, ca talog I foliage growth and super green. I edi ti on). free. I GRANNY'S BLOOMERS (0-6-5) I International Seed Suppli es, P.O. Box 538, ZERO nitrogen and special trace I Nowra, N.S.W., Austra lia 2541, catalog I for abundant african violet $3.00. The Vine Family I blooms, you won't believe your I Southern Seeds, The Vica rage, Sheffield, Tropical ge nera of the vine fa mil y (Cissus eyes. I Canterbury, New Zealand 8173, cata­ and Rhoicissus) are ava il able from the fo l­ I CACTUS JUICE (1 -7-6) For outstanding specimens and helps log $2.00. lowing green houses. I . I promote flowering . I Thompson & Morgan, P.O. Box 1308, Gla shouse Work Greenhouses, P.O. Box Jackson, NJ 08527, catalog free. I FLOWER CRACKER (1-6-5) For 97, 10 hurch St., Stewart, OH 45778- I Impatiens, Orchids, Bromellads, I 0097, catalog $1.50. I Geraniums, all flowering plants. I The Neem Tree Logee' Greenhouses 55 North St. , Dan­ 6 oz_ bottle makes 12 gals. capful I ie l on, CT 06239, ca talog $3.00. I measure_ $3_85 ppd_ Seed of Azadirachta indica is available from Hardy ge nera (A mpelopsis and Parthen­ I Any 4-6 oz. btls_ $11 _85 ppd_ Free I the fo ll owing company. ocissus) are offered by the fo ll owing nur- catalog The Ba nana Tree, 715 Northh ampton St. , serie . Easton, PA 18042, ca talog $.75. Blue bird Nursery, In c., 5 15 Linden St., . nClarel Neem insecticide will be ava il able fro m: Clarkson, NE 68629. Deerfield, IL 6001 5 ", Laboratorles,lnc Vikwood Botani ca ls, Inc., 1817 North 5th Carroll Gardens, P.O. Box 310, 444 East Sr. , P.O. Box 1414, Sheboygan, W I Main St. , Westminster, MD 21157, cat­ 53082. alog $2.00. Fo res t Fa rm, 990 Teth row Rd ., Willi ams, A Healthy and Innocent Amusement O R 97544-9599, ca talog $2.00. Gree r Gardens, 1280 Goodpasture Island Old Sturbridge Vill age obtains some of their Rd., Eugene, O R 97401-1794, ca talog seed fro m th e fo ll owing sources. $2.00. Thomas Jefferson Center fo r Histori c Plants, Woodlanders, Inc., 11 28 Coll eton Ave., Monticell o, P.O. Box 316, Charl ottes­ Aiken, SC 29801, catalog free with two ville, VA 22902. fi rst-class stamps and self-addressed le­ ga l-size envelope. The Thomas Jefferson Center fo r Historic Pl ants, an educational institution affi li ated with Monticell o, works to coll ect and pre­ Gardening on a Manhattan Rooftop serve old, hard-to-find vari eti es of annuals, Andre Viette Farm and Nursery, Route 1, perennials, bulbs, fruits, and vegetables. Box 16, Fisherville, VA 22939, catalog To be put on the mailing li st and receive $2.00. their annual seed li st, send a legal-size, Bluestone Perennials, 7211 Middle Ridge stamped, self-addressed envelope. Rd., Madison, OH 44057, catalog free_ The following companies offer seed of a Busse Gardens, Route 2, Box 238, Cokato, wide range of pl ants, some of which are MN 55321, catalog $2.00. appropriate fo r historic gardens. Carroll Gardens, P.O. Box 310, 444 East Main St., Westminster, MD 21157, cat­ W. Arlee Burpee Company, 300 Park Ave. , alog $2.00. Warminster, PA 18974, catalog free. Lamb Nurseries, E. 101 Sharp Ave_, Spo­ Park Seed Company, Inc., P.O. Box 46, kane, W A 99202, catalog $2.00. Greenwood, SC 29648-0046, catalog Wayside Gardens, P.O. Box 1, Hodges, SC free. 29695-0001, catalog $2.00. Richter's, P.O. Box 26, Goodwood, ON, WE-DU Nurseries, Route 5, Box 724, Canada, LOC lAO, catalog $2.50. Marion, NC 28752, catalog $1.00. Seeds Blum, Idaho City Stage, Boise, ID White Flower Farm, Route 63, Litchfield, 83706, catalog $2.00. CT 06759-0050, catalog $5.00.

American Horticulturist 37 mE URBAN GARDENER Gardening on a Manhattan RoQ/ivP

n a rooftop in the loft district of Chelsea in New York City, a hardy, Ocolorful, old-fashioned garden thrives, even though hemmed in by taller buildings and limited to only a patch of sky. Cultivated for over a decade and now in its third five-year plan, this once barren plane of tarpaper has become an oasis in the midst of harsh urban surroundings. From sun-loving lilies and trails of lav­ ender wisteria to the wind-shielding hem­ lock that shelters woodland flowers, this is a real achievement that overcame un­ usual adversities. David Murray, an art director and the person responsible for this accomplish­ ment, has been a gardener for most of his life. But when he moved to New York, he was cut off from gardening until he came to reside at his present location. With ap­ prehension he approached the desolate, blacktop roof covered with broken glass, but could not resist the opportunity that this outdoor area presented to garden once again. He proceeded gradually, respecting the new and strange territory, experiment­ ing with numerous plants, and attentive to the novel problems presented by the roof. Heading the list were some rather formi­ dable conditions: reflected solar radiation, only four hours maximum sunlight in summer and no sun at all in winter, pre­ mature thawing and freezing in spring, and the changeable, unpredictable weather in New York. After all, how many Manhat­ tan rooftops have witnessed the failure of attempted gardens? How many "grand plans," after a try or two, have now dwin­ dled to nothing more than several potted plants and a lounge chair? Urban rooftops can be as hostile to vegetation as the Mojave Desert-but the desert can be made to bloom. As the seasons passed, the gardener learned a major lesson-invaluable for ur­ ban rooftop gardeners-about dealing with the fierceness of the sun's heat. The most direct sun the garden receives is four hours around the time of the summer solstice, Photos by Bard Martin

38 August 1988 FALL INTO SPRING OCTOBER20· NOVEMBER 6,1988

Forest primeval and li ving vo lcanos­ cosmopolitan cities and peaceful farmland-this is New Zealand. There is no place on earth where so many different landscapes and sensati ons are contai ned in so relati vely small an area. This October the American Horticultural Society invites yo u to venture forth to the far reaches of the South Pacific to "Fall Into Spring" on both the No rth and So uth Islands of New Zealand and to see what man, as gardener, has co ntributed to his overwhelmingly beautiful natural surroundings. In leading his fourth AHS tour, Dick Hutton will have as his local counterpart Mary Burn ard, a nati ve of Wellington, author of "Garden Heritage of New Zealand:' garden consultant and professional photographer. With her assistance we have arranged visits to many private gardens rarely accessible to the public. We have also timed this trip to take full advantage of the extraordinary profusion of rhododendrons and azaleas for which New Zealand is justly famous. Please join us on this exciting and surely-to-be-unforgettable journey as we Fall Into Spring. yet the rays pour down as though concen­ reflected solar radiation in mirages, such For informati on on Fall Into Spring please trated through a magnifying glass. Unlike as those in summer that make a street's check mail this coupon to: gardening in the country, where excess so­ blacktop appear like a pool of water. No Passages Unlimited, Inc. lar radiation is absorbed into the earth, in type of paint or artificial surface can suf­ 14 Lakeside Office Park an elevated, urban environment the heat ficiently retard these scorching, rebound­ Wakefield, MA 01880 reflects off the hard surface beneath and ing rays. Mr. Murray discerned the only or Call 1-617-246-35 75 assaults the delicate undersides of the leaves, solution-lavishness. Employing pots and dries out the stomata, and impairs the tubs and large, permanent wooden boxes, Name plants' respiration. Everyone has seen this he entirely covered the roof area with rich soil which could support abundant foliage, Address including trellised vines, creepers, and small LEFT: A leafy garden surprises the eye City ______State_ Zip __ among the angular buildings of Manhattan's trees. skyline. ABOVE: A deep shade arbor Though a crucial tril!lmph, this was not Phone ______provides relief from a relentless summer sun. the end of the battle. Other enemies loomed:

American Horticulturist 39 GUNSTON HAll THE URBAN GARDENER

the wind, winter's cold, and the vicissi­ this was to resist th~ natural desire to start tudes of Manhattan's climate. Through gardening early in the spring and, instead, years of building, of experimenting, of us­ to keep the plants in the darkest areas of ing annuals to maintain a color scheme the roof, well mulched, until the middle of while progressively working in perennials, April. Despite these measures, certain this dedicated horticulturist learned an­ plants, such as hybrid tea roses, would not other vital lesson: only the toughest plants survive and had to be abandoned. Built 1755 by George Mason can survive a New York roof. Accordingly, Because of the garden's lushness and Framer of the Constitution he sought out hardy specimens. For in­ hardiness certain unexpected ecological Father of the Bill of Rights stance, a young mulbeFfY tree was discov­ changes took plac~. For instance, six years ered growing through a crack in the pave­ ago, just before spraying for aphids in june, WILLIAM BUCKLAND Masterpiece ment; relocated to the roof it is now a it was discovered that the garden had at­ 18th Century Furnishings handsom~, virtually indestructibl€ provi­ tracted a large number of ladybugs and 18th Century Boxwood Allee der of valuable shade. Taking the search these completdy destroyed the aphids. Each to the countryside of New jersey and Penn­ year the ladybugs return and spraying has Formal Gardens Restored in 1950 sylvania, he observed those plants which become unn€cessary. Five years ago pray­ exhibited an ability to overcome harsh ing mantises were discover(ld. by the Garden Club of Virginia conditions such as those growing by the The north wall, graced with cl€matis and roadside where heat and auto pollution are other climbing plants, serves another pur­ • Gift Shop • Museum Exhibits factors and those exposed to winter wind pose-the aesthetic one of enclosing the • Nature Trail in unsheltered areas. Through his keen eye space. By making use of this and of the Rental Space for Parties and Meetings and intuitive sense, he chose an array of stairwell housing and constructing arbors sturdy sp ~ cimens, the strongest of which and fencing (now grown over with wis­ 9:30 to 5:00 Daily (except December 25th) have become the very heart of the garden. teria), th~ garden has been removed from Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), black­ the harsh factory environment whioh sur­ Lorton, Virginia 22079 (703) 550-9220 eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta), and blue rounds it. Of course, the success of this 22 Miles South oflMJshington, D.C., Signs From 1-95 or US1 flag (Iris versicolor) are but a few. Curi­ escape depends even more on the inf<:>rmal, ously, many of these wildflowers, like yet deliberate, arrang(lment. Having laid Queen Anne's lace, had been grown in old­ the foundation and overcome the basic time gardens. By planting such hardy plants obstacles to urban rooftop gardening, the on his rooftop and carefully working in garden now possesses a collection of sev­ other worthy candidates, Mr. Murray has eral hundred tried-and-true plants that created a garden with definite, old-fashioned produce a colorful, changing palette from charm. April until October. Pink-and-white spring From the end of November until the end beauties (Claytonia virginica), purple tril­ of February no light reaches the roof. Dur­ liums (Trillium erectum), and rosy-purple ing this season the great enemy is wind­ wood geraniums (Geranium maculatum), burn. Though somewhat alleviated by the are soon followed by dainty, white-and­ building's false front which serves the gar­ yellow Dutchman's br~eches (Dicentra cu­ den as a wall, th~ wind can nonetheless be cullaria), an assortment of daylilies, and a serious problem. To combat this, all per­ the splendid japanese irises (Iris kaemp­ THE PERMANENT ennials are placed in a protective corner, feri). Summer brings white baby's breath METAL GARDEN LABEL mulched, and a windbreak erected which (Gypsophila paniculata), Veronica spicata A -Hairpin Style Markers 30 $ 8.00 is kept open to the sky so that the plants 'Blue Fox' , lav(wder, astilbe, and holly­ B -Plant or Shrub Labels 100 $ 6.55 C -Cap Style Markers 30 $ 8.55 receive moisture. An unexpected result of hock. In late summer there are phlox, mums, D -Swinging Style Markers 30 $ 6.85 windburn has been the trimming and shap­ hardy asters, blanket flower (Gaillardia x E -Rose Markers 30 $ 7.50 F -Tall Display Markers 30 $10.60 ing of the wall-guarded hemlock, keeping grandiflora) with their cherry-red c~nters, G -Tall Single Staff Markers 30 $ 7.90 H -Flag Style Markers 30 $ 6.60 it within the proportions of the garden. and the obedient plant (Physostegia virgin­ J -Small Plant Labels 100 $ 6.35 Also, in winter all clay pots are emptied ica) with rosy-pink spikes. Achillea, Core­ K - Tie·On Labels 100 $ 7.85 M -Miniature Markers 30 $ 6.35 aNd the pl~nts are transferred to plastic opsis, and blazing stars (Liatris) are also containers. proven survivors of the city's heat. Special Quantity Prices Available Prices Include Prepaid Postage The next challenge is an early thaw. After One can sit under the arbor during the a winter of no direct sun, in late February summer and feast one's senses. Due to pa­ INTRODUCTORY OFFER 1 Each: A, B, C, D, E, H, J and K With th(l sun suddenly reappears and at this cru­ tience, labor, and perseverance, it can now Waterproof Crayon, Only $2.75 cial time of early growth solar radiation be imagined that the setting is a charming again becomes a problem. The roof warms country garden even though the snarled PAW PAW EVER LAST LABEL COMPANY rapidly in the light and retains that heat traffic of Manhattan is not far below. into the night, creating a false spring often P.O. Box 93-AH -Joseph M. Picard Paw Paw, Michigan, 49079-0093 followed by a hard fr(leze. Early on it was Joseph M. Picard is a fredance writer who understood that the best way to counter resides in New Jersey.

40 August 1988 Pronunciation Guide

Agathis australis M. intertexta M. in-ter-TEX-ta AG-uh-this aw-STRA Y-liss M. scutellata M. skew-tell-A Y-ta Alonsoa a-Ion-ZO-ah Mimosa pudica mim-OH-sa pu-DEE-ka Amaranthus caudatus Mirabilis ;alapa am-ar-ANTH-us caw-DAY -tus meer-AB-ih-lis jal-AH-pa A. tricolor A. TRY-kull-er Myosotidium hortensia Ampelopsis aconitifolia my-oh-so-TID-ee-um hor-TENSE-ee-ah am-pel-OP-sis ak-on-ite-ih-FOE-Iee-ah Olearia cheesemannii A. arborea A. are-BORE-ee-ah oh-LEAR-ee-ah cheese-MAN-ee-eye A. brellipedunculata Pachystegia insignis A. brev-ih-ped-unk-yew-LA Y-ta pack-ee-STEE-gee-ah in-SIG-nis Aquilegia canadensis Parthenocissus quinquefolia ak-wil-EE-ji-ah can-ah-DEN-sis par-thee-no-SIS-us kwin-kwe-FOE-Iee-ah Arthropodium cirrhatum P. tricuspidata arth-ro-POH-dee-um sir-RA Y-rum P. tri-kus-pid-A Y-ta Astelia as-STEEL-ee-ah Phaseolus coccineus Azadirachta indica fa-SEE-oh-Ius kok-SIN-ee-us az-ah-dirr-ACH-ta IN-dick-a Phormium tenax FORM-ee-um TEN-ax Baptisia australis Physostegia lIirginiana bap-TIZ-ee-ah aw-STRA Y-liss fy-so-STEE-ji-ah vir-jin-ee-A Y-na Cardiospermum halicacabum Pimelea pih-ME-Iee-ah kar-dee-o-SPERM-um hal-ih-ka-KA-bum Pittosporum tenuifolium Celmisia cell-MISS-ee-ah pit-OS-por-um ten-yew-ih-FOH-lee-um Chamaecyparis Podocarpus nillalis kam-ee-SIP-a-ris po-doe-KAR-pus nih-VALL-iss Chrysanthemum leucanthemum PHOTOINATS: Pri scilla Connell P. totara P. toe-TAR-ah kris-ANTH-em-um loo-KANTH-em-um Pratia angulata Cissus antarctica Geranium maculatum, the PRA Y-tee-ah ang-gew-LA Y-ta SIS-us an-TARK-tih-ka cranes bill, takes its name Primula helodoxa C. discolor C. DIS-kull-er PRIM-yew-Ia hell-oh-DOX-ah C. rhombifolia C. rom-bih-FOE-Iee-ah from the classical Greek Proboscidea louisianica C. striata C. stry-A Y-ta pro-bo-SCI-dee-ah loo-eez-ee-AN-ni-ka Clarkia pulchella word for crane, geranos, Pseudopanax lessonii KLAR-kee-ah pul-CHELL-ah sue-dah-PAN-ax les-SON-ee-eye Claytonia lIirginica an allusion to the long Raoulia ra-OOL-ee-ah c1ay-TOE-nee-ah ver-JIN-ih-ka beak of the carpels. Reseda odorata Clematis KLEM-at-is or klem-AT-is re-SEE-da oh-door-A Y-ta Clianthus puniceus Gomphrena globosa Rhoicissus ro-ee-CISS-us klee-ANTH-us pew-NISS-ee-us gom-FREE-na glow-BO-sa Rudbeckia hirta Coprosma rep ens Gypsophila paniculata rude-BECK-ee-ah HER-ta kop-RAHZ-ma REE-penz jip-SOFF-ill-ah pan-ick-yew-LA Y-ta Senecio greyi Corokia cotoneaster Gunnera GUN-er-ah sen-EE-see-oh GREY-eye kor-OH-kee-ah ko-toe-nee-AS-ter Hebe elliptica Sophora tetraptera Coreopsis tinctoria HE-bee el-LIP-tick-ah so-FO R -ah teh-TRAP-teh-ra kore-ee-OP-sis tink-TORE-ee-ah Hedycarya hay-dee-KA Y-ree-ah Tagetes erecta Cotula KAH-tew-Ia Helichrysum petiolatum ta-JEE-tees ee-RECK-ta Dacrydium cupressinum hell-ih-CRY-sum pet-ee-oh-LA Y-rum T. patula T. PAT-yew-la da-KRID-ee-um ku-press-SIGH-num Ipomoea purpurea Tussilago farfara Dianthus caryophyllus eye-po-MEE-ah pur-pur-EE-ah tuss-ih-LA Y-go far-FAR-ah dy-AN-thus care-ee-oh-FILL-us I beris semperllirens Veronica spicata D. deltoides D. del-TOY-deez eye-BEER-is sem-per-VIE-rens ver-ON-ih-ka spy-KA Y-ta D. plumarius D. ploo-MARE"ee-us Iris kaempferi Vitis aestillalis Dicentra cucullaria EYE-riss KEMP-fare-eye VY-tis es-tih-VAY-lis dy-SEN-tra koo-kul-LARE-ee-ah I. lIersicolor I. VER-sih-kull-er V. amurensis V. ah-mure-EN-sis Dicksonia fibrosa Lampranthus lam-PRANTH-us V. coignetiae V. kwun-YA Y-tee-eye dik-SOH-nee-ah fi-BRO-sa Lallendula lav-AN-dew-la V. dallidii V. day-VID-ee-eye Dictamnus albus Leptospermum scoparium V. labrusca V. lah-BRUSS-ka dik-TAM-nus AL-bus lept-oh-SPERM-um sco-PA Y-ree-um V. rotundifolia Gaillardia x grandiflora Lobularia maritima V. row-ton-dih-FOE-lee-ah gay-LAR-dee-ah grand-ih-FLOR-ah lob-yew-LA Y-ree-ah mah-RIT-ih-ma V. lIinifera V. vy-NIF-er-ah Geranium maculatum Medicago circinnata Xeronema callistemon jer-A Y-nee-um mack-yew-LA Y-tum med-ih-KA Y -go sir-sin-A Y-ta zer-oh-NEE-ma kal-ih-STEE-mon

American Horticulturist 41 Book Reviews

In this beautiful book a new gener­ Wildflowers Across America ation of fifteen young garden designers Lady BirdJolmson and Carlton B. Lees. from the United States, Australia, Eu­ rope, and South America show how to Photographs selected by Les Line. National Wildflower Research Center; Abbeville Press, develop gardens that will fit our life­ style. They have a feeling for nature New York 1988. 309 pages, 139.95. which is important in creating a lush, This celebration of American wildflow­ leafy environment, beautiful at all times ers brings together three quite different of the year and requiring little upkeep. perspectives. Writing in a personal vein, Details of stone, brick, and wood set off Lady Bird Johnson r-ecalls some experi­ the plants: furniture, lighting, and or­ ences associated with her lifelong de­ naments help make the gardens livable. light in wildflowers, culminating with The book is divided into eight sections her establishment of the National Wild­ plus an appendix on choosing plants. flower Research Center in Austin, Texas. It begins with a chapter introducing the Horticulturist Carlton Lees examines young gardeners and their methods of many facets of the past and present of planning gardens. Following this, there wildflowers, presenting a wealth of in­ is a part about applying principles and formation in lively, nontechnical terms. making a master design. The third sec­ And superb color photographs of wild­ tion covers designs and themes of gardens flowers speak for themselves. An absorbing chapter follows the search to fit every need, climate, and terrain. These diverse elements are loosely in­ for new plants in America, making plant The authors feel that enclosing bound­ terwoven in an exploration of this coun­ explorers vivid through excerpts from let­ aries gives a garden a feeling of shape and try's native and immigrant wildflowers and ters and journals accompanied by plates character, so chapter four is titled "Cre­ their place in gardens and landscapes, and from early botanical publications. ating the Framework." Then comes a sec­ in people's lives. Mr. Lees observes that Beyond the botanical name of every tion on features to be added for additional we understand the word "wildflower" ac­ flower pictured or mentioned, the book interest. "Living in Style" is sixth and fo­ cording to "our own experiences and prej­ does not attempt to give information about cuses on outdoor living. udices, where we live, romantic allusion, particular plants. Moreover, the emphasis The seventh, "Designing With Plants," biology, history, and a host of other fac­ of both authors is on wildflowers in land­ is the most exciting part of the book. It tors." That suggests the scope of the book. scapes designed for human use, to balance shows the use of plants to make the design Many readers will probably linger over the continuing loss of natural habitats. apparent. Stunning color pictures show how the pictures first. Color photographs, rep­ Within that compass, Wildflowers Across the texture of large leaves combined with resenting the work of many photographers America is an engaging invitation to wider small foliage gives emphasis while differ­ and the discriminating eye of Les Line, acquaintance with a beautiful and diverse ing sizes, shapes, and textures provide in­ make up nearly half the book. The high­ aspect of America. terest. Patterns of small leaves or gravel light is a hundred-page portfolio of pho­ -Mary Packman are restful. Shades of green, from gray to tographs depicting wildflowers from many emerald, as well as harmonious colors are regions and habitats across the continental shown. Mary Pockman is president of the Virginia United States. A field washed yellow by Wildflower Preservation Sociery which works The eighth section is a helpful guide to mustard; claret cup, brilliant against an with Virginia state agencies and other the design of garden constructions such as austere backdrop of mountains; a single environmental groups. gates, trellises, decks, steps, and walkways. delicate miterwort blossom-splendid or The appendix is devoted to choosing subtle, these photographs evoke the indi­ plants and includes helpful lists. Although viduality of each flower. The Garden Design Book some of the plants shown in the gardens Much in Mr. Lees' essays may be new Anthony Paul and Yvonne Rees. Salem House may not grow in your area, there are many to readers familiar with wildflowers chiefly Publishers, Topsfield, Massachusetts. 1988 256 native plants with the same foliage shapes through field guides or how-to books on pages, 350 full-color photographs, 100 two-color and sizes and the same plant forms. Let wildflower gardening. Looking at wild­ diagrams, 134.95. these pictures stimulate you to make your flowers in the broad context of horticul­ gardens beautiful at all seasons with a min­ tural and human history, he delves into The way in which gardens are designed imum of care. such topics as the evolution and migration has always followed our lifestyles. Now -Alice Upham Smith of wildflowers, the climatic regions of the that life has become busier and finding United States, and the taming of wildflow­ good garden help more difficult, we need Al ice Upham Smith, a retired landscape ers in gardens and, most recently, in road­ gardens that look well all year with the architect, is a Fellow of the Garden Writers side plantings and wildflower meadows. least care. Association of America.

42 August 1988 teresting garden without becoming a slave The American Weekend Garden to it. In spite of the easy, breezy style, the LANDSCAPING book promotes some serious and progres­ Patricia Thorpe. Random House, New York 1988. WITH sive ideas: criticism of the overuse of water 238 pages te.x~ 48 page.s color plates, 124.95. and chemical pesticides and fertilizers, and PERENNIALS For the many among us who have only choosing plants biologically adapted to weekends in which to revel in and labor one's climate and aestheticall y adapted to New Concepts for in our gardens, and who find the labor not one's regional landscape are two exam­ North American Gardens really laborious at all , Patricia Thorpe has ples. A symposium sponsored by written this morale booster of a book. In separate sections, some of the more The New York Botanical Garden Throughout the opinionated, humorous, mundane aspects of gardening are touched and informative text, she addresses readers upon, such as weeding and soi l prepara­ The Vertical Garden who are tired of the characterless, low­ tion, and there is a hilarious as well as Raymond Evison maintenance "suburban acre which is as informative chapter on pests in the garden. Designing with devoid of natural life as a gas station." Because this is more of a thought-provok­ Ornamental Herbs With fine line drawings and inspirational ing book than a practical guide, th e author Holly Shimizu photographs, we read how we may rise doesn't make the common mistake many above this and create our own "American American author fall prey to, that of trying Native Perennials: A Rediscovery cottage garden." to be all things to all gardeners in all places. The author's own experience as an avid However, she does address regional ga r­ Ruth Clausen gardener with an extremely busy schedule, dening in a ve ry broad manner in a chapter Green Beauty of Ferns as well as her predilection for the cottage dealing mainly with the va ri ous climates John Mickel, Ph.D. garden style, has led her to conclude that and soil conditions and their effect on gar­ Planting the Romantic Garden what we need is a strong dose of peren­ dening. Step hen Lacey All in all, the author puts forth a strong nials, a point well made. Unfortunately, The Border and Beyond argument for "restructuring our gardening the fact that some gardeners are not wholly Pamela Harper taken by this fluffy, feminine, floriferous habits by establishing the place of peren­ garden style is never acknowledged. The nials and hardy bulbs," as she puts it. It use of foliage texture and color through is hoped that many of us weekend gar­ The New York Botanical Garden ground covers and dwarf conifers is barely deners will read this well-written book and Bronx, New York mentioned. The book, while acting as ad­ take some of the author's good advice. Thursday, October 6 vocate for a particular group of plants, is -Lauren Springer The Arnold Arboretum of not a manual on how to grow them, but Harvard University rather a thoughtful, well-written deliber­ Lauren Springer is a professional Cambridge, Massachusetts ation on the choices and processes in­ horticulrurist who writes and lecrures Saturday, October 15 volved in creating and maintaining an in- frequently. Chicago Botanic Garden Glencoe, illinois Tuesday, October 11 National Wildlife Federation Book Order Fonn Vienna, Virginia Saturday, October 8 Please send me the following books at the special AHS member prices Royal Botanical Gardens Hamilton, Ontario, Canada o Wildflowers Across America ...... $31.95 I would like to order ____ books. ABBEV 05870 Thursday, October 13 Please add $2.50 per book for postage o The Garden Design Book...... $27.95 and handling. Virginia residents, also SALEM 05850 add 4V2% sales tax. Please allow six o Please send me the symposium weeks for delivery. brochure, Landscaping with o The American Weekend Garden ... $21.85 RANDO 05860 Enclosed is my check for $___ _ Perennials: New Concepts for North American Gardens

Ship to: ______Name Address ______Street: ______Zip ___

Ci~: ------Return to Education Department

State: ______Zip: ______The New York Botanical Garden Bronx, New York 10458-5126 MAIL TO: Robin Williams, AHS, P.O. Box 0105, Mount Vernon, VA 22121. 212-220-8720

American Horticulturist 43 CIassifieds

Classified Ad Rates: Write to WHEELBARROW BOOKS, 22, phasis in administration and management of 85 ¢ per word; $17.00 minimum per ins €l rtion. Brangwyn Avenue, Brighton, Sussex, BN1, 8XG, public gardens. The Progtam offers student ac­ 10% discount for three consecutivCl insertions England. ademic study at the University of Delaware and using same copy. Copy must be received two BROMELIADS practical experiClnce working with business, ed­ months prior to publication date. Send orders ucation, horticulrure and maintenance staff of TILLANDSIAS-GROW WITHOUT SOIL. to: American Horticultural Society Advertising Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Penn­ Large selection available on our Free Price List. Department, 80 South Early Street, Alexandria, sylvania. The Longwood Graduate Program is Distributorshi",s availabl€l. Wholesale, Retail, Virginia 22304. Or call (703) 823-6966. appropriate for individuals interestCld in lead­ Mail-order. HOLLADAY JUNGLE, Dept. B, ership and professional careers in arboreta, bo­ PO Box 5727, Fresno, California 93755 (209) ACCENTS tanical gardens, horticultural societies, park sys­ 229-9858. REDWOOD, BURL AND DRIFTWOOD. tems, civic garden centers and related institutions. OCEAN SMOOTHED, PERFECT FOR TILLANDSIAS. Nature's true air plants. Intro­ Further information and applications may be LANDSCAPING, INTERIOR DECORA­ ductory offer, 3 different, $7.95 p",d. LSASE for requested by contacting Dr. James E. Swasey, TION, FLORAL ARRANGEMENTS. CAT A­ list. ENCHANTED GARDEN, 1524-A Pike Coordinator, Longwood Graduate Program, Box LOG $.25 PLUS LSASE. S. GARROW; BOX Place, Seattle, WA 98101. H, 153 Townsend Hall, University of Delaware, 8059j EUREKA, CA 95502-8059. Newark, DE 19717-1303. Tel. (302) 451-2517. BULBS THE AVANT GARDENER EVERGREEN SEEDS Unusual winter and €larly spring flowering bulbs. DIFFERENT, EXCITING, GREAT FUN TO Send $1 for list, dClductible with order to: WIL­ Seeds, free sample and price list of evergreen READ-for the gardener who wants to get more seeds, WAUKESHA SEED COMPANY, PO Box LETT~ P.O. Box 446; Moss Landing, CA 95039. out of gardening! Subscribe to THE AVANT 1820, Waukesha, WI 53187. BUSINESS OPPORTIJNITIES GARDENER, the most useful, most quoted of FLORAL SUPPLIES all gardening publications. Every month this Blooming nursery/landscaping business in North Purchase the Products Professional Floral De­ unique news service brings you the newest and Georgia. Real estate, equipment, inventory. Call signers have been successfully using in their shops most practical on-going information-new for brochure. Susan Godbee (404) 536-4370 or for years, including Floralife Cut Flower Food plants, products, techniques, with sources, ",Ius Pat Harrell (404) 532-4644. COLDWELL for extending flowClr life, d€lSignClr supplies, plant feature articles, special issues. 20th year. Awarded 1IANKER HERITAGE REAL ESTATE (404) products, candles and much more. Catalog­ Garden Club of America and Massachusetts 536-9700. FREE. THE FLORAL MAILBOX, PO BOX Horticultural Society Medals for outstanding CACTUS 235, Lombard, IL 60148-0235. contributions to horticulture. Curious? Sample ORCHID CACTUS COLLECTION: 6 differ­ copy $1. Serious? $10 full year (reg. $15). THE PRETTY MINI BUNCHES of Dyed Miniature ent young plants . .. $12.95. Rattail Collection AVANT GARDENER, Box 489M, New York, Baby's Breath. 12 bunches-6 pastel. 6 Bright­ NY 10028. ... 4 different young plants . . . $10.95. Both $14.95 postpaid. NClw Wreath Catalogue, $2.00. collections ($39.00 value) ... $22.00 Airmail Free with order. MERRY MEADOW FARM, AZALEAS & RHODODENDRONS delivered with catalog, cultural instructions. OR: P.O. Box 8061-A, Cranston, RI 02920. (401) WINTER HARDY AZALEAS & RHODO­ GIANT full-color 72-page ",Iantlbookshop cat­ 732-3334. DENDRONS. Northern grown and acclimated. alogs of Orchid Cacti, Easter/Christmas/Rattail Big sizes! Big Selection! Personal service! Two Cacti, Hoyas only $2.00 (refundable). RAIN­ GARDENING GLOVES Year Catalog Subsc~iption: $2.00 (deductible). BOW GARDENS, Box 1431-AH88, Vista, CA GOATSKIN GLOVES. Tough, lightweight CARLSON'S GARDENS, Box 305-AHA888, 92083. goatskin stretches and bClcomes form-fitting, South SalClm, NY 10590. (914) 763-5958. giving wearer ultimate in fit, grip, dexterity. CA~OROUSPLANTS Natural lanolin in leather keeps hands soft. SiZ€lS BONSAI Carnivorous, woodland terrarium plants and 7-10 or sClnd outline of hand. $8.50 postpaid. Bonsai Plants, Pots, Tools, Books, Supplies. Great supplies. Book, THE WORLD OF CARNIV­ PUTNAM'S, Box 295C, Wilton, NH 03086. Hobby or Business. Catalog $1.00. BONSAI OROUS PLANTS, $8.95 postpaid. Catalog FARM, Box 130, Lavernia, TX 78121. FREE. PETER PAULS NURSERIES, Canan­ GREENHOUSE ACCESSORIES COMPLETE MIST PROPAGATION SYS­ BOOKS daigua, NY 14424. TEMS. Get phenomenal propagation results, DAYLILIES OUT-OF-PRINT-BOOKS: B(!lUght and Sold: indoors-outdoors. Environment sensitive con­ Horticulture, Botany, Landscaping, Hetbology. DA YULIES GALORE! Carefree, gorgeous, long­ trolled. FREE 1IROCHURES. AQUAMONI­ Large Catalog $1.00. POMONA BOOKS, lived. Quantity discounts. Send now for FREE TOR, Dept. 4, Box 327, Huntington, NY 11743. Rockton, Ontario, Canada LOR 1XO. informative catalog. LEE BRISTOL NURS­ Tel: (516) 427-5664. ERY, Box 5A, Gaylordsville, CT 06755. 1985 Edition EXOTICA 4, with 16,300 photos, GREENHOUSES 405 in color, 2,600 pages in 2 volumes, with DA YLILIES FOR THE COLLECTOR. Many Addenda of 1,000 Updat€ls, by Dr. A. B. Graf, colors-tetraploids, diploids, miniatures. Spuria, HOOP HOUSE GREENHOUSE KITS FOR $187. TROPICA 3, revised 1986, 7,000 color Louisiana IRISES. Catalog $1.00. CORDON UNDER $299. For colorful brochure and grow­ photos, now 1,156 pages, $125. Exotic Plant BLEU FARMS, Box 2033, San Marcos, CA er's supply catalog, send $1.00 to: FOX HILL FARM, Dept. A-88, 20 Lawrence Street, Rock­ Manual, 5th Ed., 4,200 photos, $37.50. Exotic 92069. ville, CT 06066; (203) 875-6676). House Plants, 1,200 photos, $8.95. Circulars EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY gladly sent. ROEHRS, Box 125, E. Rutherford, HEATHS & HEATHERS LONGWOOD FELLOWSHIPS IN PUBLIC NJ 07073. HARDY HEATHERS FOR ALL-YEAR GAR­ HORTICULTURE ADMINISTRATION; DEN COLOR! Send SASE for descriptive mail­ HOW TO BECOME A LANDSCAPE CON­ Newark, Delaware and Kennett Square, Penn­ order list. Fast Service! HEATHER GROW­ TRACTOR. Landscape Contractors' Hand­ sylvania. University of Delaware's Longwood ERS, Box 850, Elma, WA 98541. book. First steps and beyond. Complete Book, Graduate Pmgram is accepting applications 150 pages. Send $39.95 to: HORTICULTURE through 31 December 1988 for the 1989-91 HERBS PROMOTIONS, PO Box 78, Mountainburg, class. Graduate Record Exam must be taken no HER1IS-Annual & perennial; extensive col­ AR 72996. later than October for December application. lection. Perennials-Large selection for sun & Out of print, scarce and antiquarian gardening The two-year Program yields the M.S. degree shade. Sedums-Tall, medium, carpeting, many and botanical books. Catalogs issued regularly. in Public Horticulture Administration with em- varieties. WRENWOOD, RT. 4, BOX 3561,

44 August 1988 Berkeley Springs, WV 25411. Catalogue $1.50. CLALTY FERTILIZERS AND MORE. COLOR HOUSE PLANTS CATALOG-$1.00. PLUMERIA PEO PL E, DEPT. A, PO Box 820014, Houston, TX 77282- ORCHIDS, GESNERIADS, BEGONIAS, CACTI 0014. & SUCCULENTS. Visitors welcome. 1988-89 catalog $2.00. LAURA Y OF SALISBUR Y, Rt. POSITION WANTED 41 (Undermountain Rd .), Salisbury, CT 06068 EXPERT PROPERTY ARE. Land, Flo ra, (203 ) 435-2263. Stru ctu res, Administration, all ca pably handled. Permanent positi on sought with responsibi li­ IRISES ties. Will live on site. L.S. , P.O. Box 761, Ojai, Bearded Irises- 7 Mixed Named $10.00. Po t­ CA 93023. paid. Catalog $1.00. M a ny iris types. CO­ POTTING MATERIALS MANCHE ACRES IRIS, Dept. AH, Gower, MO 64454. SPECIAL POTTING MATERIALS: sa nds, dec­ orative sco ne, lim e to nes (4 izes, 6 na tural JAPANESE FLOWER ARRANGING colors), fin e clay, gravel, bark mul ch. 1 lb. pkgs. JAPANESE FLOWER ARRANGING: Bi ­ Catalog, sa mpl es. Se nd SASE: HIGHBALL monthly newsletter devoted to study a nd prac­ PRODUCTS, P.O. Box 43276, in cinnati ,OH tical applications, $12/yr. Edicor Pototsky , 44 45243. Lane Park, Brighton, MA 02135. RHODODENDRONS AND AZALEAS LANDSCAPING RHODODENDRONS AND AZALEAS-Se­ Learn Landscaping and th e growing of plants lect fr om 1,000 va rieti es with many new excit­ at home. Start business or hobby. Free bookl et. ing introductio ns. Al so Laurel, Andro meda, LIFETIME CAREER SCHOOLS, Dept. A-350, Ho ll y Conifer , Rare Pl ant and Trees. Mail­ 2251 BarryAvenue, Los Angeles, CA 90064. order catalog $2.00. ROSLYN NURSERY, Dept. NURSERY STOCK AH, Box 69, Roslyn, NY 11576. (5 16) 643- ~" "- Perennial Wild Flowers 93 47. .,.. Plants & Seeds lor Sun & Shade BABY EVERGREENS, SEEDS, SEEDLINGS, 100% Nursery Pro pagated RHODODENDRONS, AZALEAS, FLOW­ ROCK GARDEN PLANTS Se nd S.A.S.E. for plant list or ERING SHRUBS, SHADE TREES. LARGE AS­ Ra re Alp ines, Wi ldflowers, Dwa rf Conifers, s1 for descnptive catalogue SORTMENT RARE AND STANDARD Ground covers, colorful Rock Pl ants, ha rd y Native Gardens PLANTS. CATALOG FREE. GIRARD NUR­ Rh ododendrons, Bonsai Books. Ca talog $ 1. 2f RFD I, Bx. 494 Greenback, TN 37742 SERIES; BOX 428; GENEVA, OH 44041. RI CE CREEK GARDENS, 13 15 66th Ave. NE, f~------~ ORCHIDS Minneapolis, MN 55432. (612) 574-11 97. Help! We need room. Mature Cattleya orchid ROSES plants, our selection. $8.00 each. Minimum or­ HORTICO ROSES; H a rd -co- find va rieties, der five plants. Packed five maximum per box, Austin Hybrids (New Engli sh ga rd en roses), bareroot. Include $5.00 per box shipping. FOX hardy Canadian Explorer roses. Catalog listing ORCHIDS, INC., 6615 West Markham, Little over 350 va ri eti es, ava il abl e on req uest, $2.00. Rock, AR 72205, (501) 663-4246. HORTICO INC., Robson Road, RR 1, Water­ PEONIES, TREE PEONIES, DAFFODILS down LOR 2HO Ontario, Canada. (416) 689- m AND HOSTAS 6984. Grown in Michigan's North Country. World TETRAPLOID DA YLILIES Membership famous for herbaceous & tree peonies. Featur­ Over 700 hybrids, exoti c new Tetraploid Intro­ ing spectacular new introductions and the bes t ductions. Catalog $1.00, deductibl e with ord er Seniees time-proven, quality hybrids. Send $1.00 for of plants. SEA WRIGHT GARDENS, 134 In­ our 1988 color catalog. REATH'S NURSERY, dian Hill, Carli sle, MA 01741 (5 08) 369-2172. Box 521, Vulcan, MI 49892. Visitors welcome! Your satisfaction with our service is PERENNIALS UNUSUAL PLANTS very important to us. If you have a We offer a good selection of sturdy perennial RARE SUCCULENTS, EUPHORB1AS, CA U­ question about your membership, and groundcover plants. Send $1.00 for Plant DICIFORMS, SANSEVIERIAS, LOW LI GHT please refer to the mailing label on List (refundable). CAMELOT NORTH, R2, Pe­ PLANTS, OTHER EXOTICA. Catalog and pe­ your monthly magazine. It has the quot Lakes, MN 56472. riodic newsletters $1.50 deductible from 1st or­ information we need to solve the DA YLILIES, JAPANESE IRIS, SIBERIANS, der, SINGERS', 17806 Plummer St., North­ problem as quickly as possible. HOSTA and PEONIES. Fall catalog-$1.00 ridge, CA 91325. (refundable with order). CAPRICE FARM W ATERLILIES NURSERY, 15425 SW Pleasant Hill, Sher­ "WATER GARDENING is our Specialty" Wa­ Your Membership Expiration Date wood, OR 97140. (503) 625-7241. terIilies, Lotus, Aquatic Plants, everything you 8801 = January 1988 PLANTS WANTED need. Pools, Liners, Fountains, Pumps, etc. All Your Membership Number Borago officinalis Bmago. Hispid annual; stems new catalog $2.00. Refundable with first order. 22303HUTCHS262X 15-70 cm, erect, robust, often branched. Cor­ WICKLEIN'S WATER GARDENS, Dept. A, olla totate, bright blue, rarely white. Nutlets 7- 1820 Cromwell Bridge Road, Baltimore, MD Your Name, Address, Zip Code 10mm. Native co Southern Europe, naturalized 21234 (301) 823-1335. in the Uniwd States. Plc:ase send 5-10 grammes WILDFLOWERS of black, ripe seed to Andrew Fieldsend, Writtle UNCONVENTIONAL, RARE AND FAMIL­ Membership Department Agricultural College., Writtle, Chelmsford, CM1 3 RR, England. IAR NATIVE WILDFLOWERS AND CUL­ American Horticultural Society TIVATED PERENNIALS for formal or natu­ P.O. Box 0105 PLUMERIA, GINGERS, HIBISCUS, ralist areas. Top quality nursery propagated Mt. Vernon, VA 22121 BOUGAINVILLEAS plants. Free list of mail-order plants or descrip­ ALSO RARE AND UNUSUAL BULBS, FLOW­ tive catalog $3.00. NICHE GARDENS, RTE. (703) 768-5700. ERING VINES, FRAGRANT PLANTS, SPE- 1, Box 290, Dept. A. Chapel Hill, NC 27516.

American Horticulturist 45 TheNew

Peifect for Gifts and Please send me the following 1989 AHS Calendars: for Yourself o Single copy at the member price, $8.SO. $ ____ SHIP TO: Perennials fulfill our craving for color o Quantity member price: Name ______and bloom throughout the gardening 3 or more mailed to same address, seasons, and here are your favorites in $7.95 ea. $ ____ Address ______brilliant color month after month, o Single copy non· member price, $9.50. $ ____ City ____ Stale __ Zip ____ accompanied by pointers on growing Total price for __ calendars: $, ____ and suggestions for companion plantings. Please add postage: MAIL TO: American Horticultural Society: Calendar, A year-long visual pleasure, with room 1·2 calendars $1.00 o P.O. Box 0105, Mount Vernon, VA 22121. ADow four for notes and with all important dates, o 3 or more $2.00. $ ____ weeks for deii,·ery. Make checks payable to American holidays, and American Horticultural TOTAL ENCLOSED: ,,-$ ____ Horticultural Society: Calendar. Society events noted for your reference.