BERRIED SHRUBS

Evening Star, Issue 21636, 3 February 1934, Page 23

BERRIED SHRUBS

A considerable number of shrubs and trees that are valued for their attractive flowers in spring or summer are additionally noteworthy because of their brightly coloured fruits in autumn and winter These include evergreen and leaf-losing sorts so that the garden and shrub borders need not be dull and uninteresting even in mid-winter. Most of the best-known berried shrubs thrive in ordinary cultivated garden soil and flourish in most town and suburban gardens. Added value is given to many of them because the long sprays lend themselves so readily to cut for vase decoration in the house (says ‘Popular Gardening,’ London). While the planting of leaf-losing or deciduous trees and shrubs may take place between early November (May in New Zealand) and early March (September), when weather conditions are favourable and the soil is not too wet or frozen, the berry-bearing evergreen shrubs are best planted in April (October), unless one buys plants like the Pyracantbas or Firetborns, in pots. Berry-bearing shrubs and trees fruit freely, and plenty of seeds are available to raise new bushes and trees. THE FIRETHORNS. Among evergreen shrubs suitable for small gardens, the Firetborns or Pyracanthas are the most beautiful. There are usually bouse walls, fences, and screens which the owner wishes to cover partially or wholly with evergreens, and if these are in fairly open and sunny positions the Firetborns are splendid for the purpose. The most popular kind is Pyracantha Lalandei, with orange-red fruits; P. Gibbsii has rather larger dark red fruits. A little later in ripening, but lasting for two or three months into the New Year, are the slightly smaller fruits of P. yunnanensis. All three kinds are covered with clusters ol white May-like flowers in late May and June, followed by heavy crops of berries. A distinct and beautiful evergreen for a warm sunny wall, though not quite so hardy as the foregoing, is Pyracantha angustifolia, which has clusters of rich orange-coloured berries. More bushy in habit, with smaller leaves and slightly smaller berries, are the red and yellow fruited varieties ol P. Rogersiana and P. Rogersiana fructu-luteo. These are useful and interesting evergreens for the shrub borders, growing from 4ft to sft high. The Pyracantbas should be pruned a little each year early in April to keep the branches close-growing on house walls and fences. WITH WHITE FLOWERS AND RED FRUITS. The Cotoneasters are an interesting group of evergreen and leaf-losing shrubs. Some make very large bushes; others rarely exceed Ift to 2ft high, while several are trailing rockery shrubs. They thrive in ordinary soil. The best berry-bearing tall shrub is the Himalayan Cotoneaster frigida, a tall, wide-spreading, leaf-losing sort, 13ft to 20ft or more in height. It bears clusters of white flowers in early summer and rich red fruits in autumn and early winter. C. rotundifolia is a semi-evergreen bush, 4ft or oft high; the large red fruits usually hang on the bushes until March. As a climbing plant for the house wall or verandah and arches, there is the evergreen C, Henryana, with long elegant branches which can he readily trained to a height of 20ft to 25ft, and used-to drape a verandah or pergola. Cotoneaster salicifolia is an evergreen of upright and arching growth for the shrub border; it has narrow willow-like leaves and large clusters of red berries. For the rock garden, pride of place should he given to the leaf-losing G. horizontalis, which rarely exceeds 2ft in height as a bush, but will grow 6ft or more against a wall. The dense horizontal branches of the shrub have earned for it the name of the “ her-ring-bone ” Cotoneaster when leafless. In autumn it is covered with scarlet fruits. C. microphylla is a small-leaved, neat-growing bush for the rock garden, with red fruits in autumn. The Magellanic Heath or Heather, Pernettya inucronata, forms a closegrowing, spreading shrub, 2ft or more high, and -bears small dark green leaves and clusters of ornamental fruits in autumn and winter. The latter vary from white to deep crimson or almost black, and include shades of purple, pink, rose, and red. It is evergreen. The Pernettyas grow best in a rather moist, lime-free soil, and are propagated by seeds, cuttings, layering, and division! They are berried shrubs, which seldom fruit' when single specimens are grown, and should be _ planted in the proportion of live or six berry-hearing (female) bushes, with at least one pollen-bearing (male) bush in the centre. A selection of the best of the wold roses should include the Chinese Rosa Movesii, a tall bush 6ft to Bft high, with large bright red, bottle-shaped fruits in autumn and early winter. Rosa pomifera, the apple rose, is a bush 4tt or sft high and through, with large dark crimson fruits. 'The Japanese Rosa rugosa forms a thick 'bush 4ft to 6ft high, with tomato-shaped fruits, and is suitable to plant as a hedge and for seaside gardens. Rosa Davidii, one of the newer Chinese roses, is fairly tall and upright in growth, with clusters ol bright red fruits; the Himalayan Rosa Webbiana, with bright red fruits, is ol more spreading and bushy growth. The Spindle Tree, Euonymns europaeus, is worth a place in the wide shrub border. The showy orange and red fruits and seeds are distinct and attractive in autumn. The Sea Buckthorn, Hippophae rhamnoides, forms a large deciduous shrub or small tree, with grey willow-like leaves, and masses of orange-coloured fruits which last in good condition during autumn and winter. When planting it is essential to grow a number of plants together, as male and female flowers are borne on different bushes. To ensure fertilisation one male plant should be grouped with four or five females.

Celastnis articulatus is a climbing or trailing deciduous shrub, useful to plant on a fence or arch. It bears 'bunches of large pea-like yellow fruits, which reveal orange-scarlet seeds in early winter. The Snowberry or Symphoricarpus will grow almost anywhere ; it increases rapidly, and spreads by offsets ’ and suckers. The plants grow 3ft to fill high. The finest large-berried variety, Symphoricarpus rnccmosus leavigatus, is one of the most conspicuous bushes in the shrub border in winter, when the long branches are weighed down with large round white fruits.

BEAUTIFUL HERBIES. In recent years, the Herheris or Barberries have become popular berry-bear-ing shrubs. The common Barberry, Berberis vulgaris, is a large ‘bush oi great beauty when covered with pretty red fruits. The best of the Chinese Barberries with showy fruits include B. polyantha, a tall bush with grape-like clusters of small coral red berries; and B. Wilsonae, a small compact bush with coral fruits in dense clusters. B. Stapliana is a bush 3Aft to 4ft high, with carmine-red fruits, and B. Prattii, 4tt to 6ft high, bears masses of coral berries chietly at the ends of the shoots. Even more attractive and free-fruit-ing than these are a race of hybrids or crosses between the above kinds. Sonic of them, like Dnbrostilla, Sparkler, and Firefly, have been given distinctive names, but are now 'being raised and sold as mixed seedlings. Among the Hollies there are berrybearing and pollen-bearing kinds, both of which should be grown. Attractive berry-hearing varieties are Ilex aquifolium vars. argentcn. marginnta, Golden King, Handswortli New Silver, and Hemtersonii, with green leaves. Two pollen-bearing varieties (males’! for pollination are var. argentea regina (Silver Queen) and var. regina (Golden Queen). ■With' its large clusters of bronzegolden and orange fruits, Crataegus Carrierei is the best of the thorns, as a fruit-bearing tree in December (June). Of the fruiting crabs. Pyrus baccata should be placed first, 'because the red cherry-apples hang on the trees for a long time.