In January, the first pink buds open on the large crowded clusters at the tips of Rhus integrifolia, commonly known as the lemonade-berry bush or sour-berry bush. The flowers are white, tinged with red. By early spring, the ovule of each bloom will become flattened, round-edged berries covered with pale green flesh. This soon develops … Read more
The title of this story is not intended to suggest forestry or conservation but refers to my living with trees at Breeze Hill since June 1, 1909. At that time, the 100,000 square feet of land we came to call Breeze Hill had some trees on it, not all of them very well chosen and … Read more
Why not take a little time to study the evergreens this Winter? Many of us give them little attention during a greater part of the year, chiefly because our time and interests are taken with the more conspicuously colored deciduous materials. Winter is the time, we say, to study the evergreens when there is little … Read more
Our modern refrigeration systems of refrigeration 1-1 and quick transportation provide our markets with abundant fresh juicy oranges every day of the year. However, looking into the past makes us realize to what extent gardeners in cool climates struggled to obtain a few oranges a year, and those not too sweet or juicy at that. … Read more
Of the 50 or more species of cotoneaster, a large number are tall deciduous shrubs with red or black Autumn fruits. Thus, they may be thought of as slender, thornless hawthorns. But some species are truly evergreen and producers of red berries in Autumn. There are, generally speaking, three types of evergreen species. Three Types … Read more
WEATHER TRAITS West Aridity, drying winds, great temperature extremes, and sudden changes. The west boundary borders the foothills of the Rockies, and there are some important mountain ranges within the area, Gardening there is modified by altitude. Hardiness is a problem with many plants. More than half the winter days are sunny. Sunlight is intense. … Read more
New Years! Bells are ringing everywhere, and one of the happy events they presage is the arrival of gloriously illustrated, shiny new garden catalogs. For all gardeners this is a season of cheerful dreaming and high optimism as they scan the gay pages. But stop! Before diving headlong into the order blanks, make this resolution … Read more
In recent years, Hollies have taken the gardening public by storm. And why shouldn’t they receive attention after so many decades of neglect? They are not difficult to transplant, as was once widely believed. Nor are they especially slow-growing, provided proper requirements are met. However, pollen from male plants is necessary to ensure the setting … Read more
Burford’s Holly (Ilex cornuta Burford!) is one of the few hollies to perform satisfactorily the whole length of the West Coast. It and the other hollies do superbly in the Northwest and fairly well in California’s fog zone. Still, for Southern California and the central valleys, Burford’s holly and its type, I. cornuta, are the … Read more
Last winter, the Eastern Seaboard experienced some old-fashioned weather for the first time in 6 years. The thermometer outside the kitchen window of our southern Connecticut home ranged well below zero on several occasions during January and February, and the ground froze solid in mid-December and stayed that way until March. We chose last winter … Read more