_August 25th._
No one needs to be told how much a house is adorned by _vines_; and
yet many are averse to their liberal use from the impression that they
make a house damp. It is true that they _may_, but it is not necessary
that they should. Vines do not _collect_ dampness. If any part of the
house wall needs the sun to warm it, and is covered by a vine from its
influence, it may favor dampness. But an ivy vine, on the other hand,
is reputed to make a wall dry, and has sometimes been employed to
correct the undue moisture to which certain portions of a dwelling are
subject. A grape vine, trained upon slats, which shall have a few
inches of air-space underneath it, will not injure the house. Upon
porches, over trellises, vines may be trained with charming effect,
and without offending those who are superstitiously prejudiced against
vines on the house.
The kinds of vines must be left, in the case of thousands, to
accident. Men that are obliged to count the very last penny in their
expenses cannot send many orders to florists for beautiful things, but
must take what they can get in their own neighborhood. We will mention
a few things now generally diffused.
The _Glycine_, or _Wistaria_, is one of the noblest. It will run a
hundred feet or more, and grow in time to have a trunk like a small
tree. Nothing can surpass it at its blossoming period. It is like a
vision of the garden of heaven. It may be raised by _layers_, but will
be found somewhat slow in taking hold after transplantation. Its arms
may be carried out in tier above tier to cover the whole side of the
house, when economy of space is no object; but where one desires to
spare for other things, the _Wistaria_ may be trained upon a corner,
or along the eaves.
There is nothing more beautiful in its summer greenness or gorgeous in
its autumn reds and purples, than the Virginia Creeper—_Ampelopsis
hederacea_. There is a variety called _Ampelopsis Veitchii_, or
Veitch’s, which is extremely beautiful. It clings to wood or brick
with as much tenacity as the ivy. Its foliage is fine, and its habit
fits it to fill small spaces. It is a plant that, having once owned,
no one would part with.
If one wishes a dense screen, there is no vine that grows more rapidly
or that is more hardy than the _Aristoloicha sipho_, or Dutchman’s
pipe. One might as well attempt to look through a brick wall as
through the opaque mass made by its enormous leaves. But its
coarseness fits it chiefly for hiding ungainly things or shading from
the light.
The _Trumpet Creeper_ is effective at a distance, but its coarseness
excludes it from familiar nearness.
Few people are aware of the vast improvements which have taken place
in the _Clematis_. Every one knows the wild white clematis, which is
beautiful in blossom, and almost as fine when its seeds are ripened.
It abounds in our fields, and bears transplantation easily. The new
kinds, or those comparatively new, deserve to be better known.
Fortune’s, Henderson’s, Jackman’s, the Prince of Wales, Standish’s,
together with Helena, Sophia, Lanuginosa, are obtainable at our
first-class nurseries, and may be easily propagated. Besides these,
there are every year new varieties introduced. There is no vine that
we should spare with more reluctance. The sheets of gorgeous bloom,
which, by judicious selection of kinds, will last from June to
September, the perfect hardiness of the plant, and the ease with which
it is trained, fit it eminently for small places and sunny spots. For
it loves the full blaze, and will not flourish well even when planted
with other vines that at all shade it. Indeed, to have the best effect
of clematis, it should be trained in a clear and open space to a
trellis of its own.
But, of all vines, none is more popular, and deservedly so, than the
honeysuckle. The kinds are numerous. But if but one can be had, let it
be the _Halleana_, or Hall’s Japan honeysuckle. It cannot be
distinguished from the _Brachypoda_, in leaf or blossom; but it excels
that immeasurably in the habit of blossoming all summer. The
_Flexuoso_, or Chinese, is fine, but we consider it second to Hall’s,
which ought to be better known and more widely diffused than it is. By
planting it on open soil, without support, it spreads over the ground,
and roots at every joint, so that hundreds of new plants may be gained
every year.
There is a beautiful golden honeysuckle—_aurea reticulata_. This ought
not to be planted by the side of green-leaved varieties. It produces
the effect of a diseased or weak branch, rather than of contrast and
variety. But the golden-leaved, if planted by itself, and well grown,
is gorgeous. It is perfectly hardy, and is of good growth and
constitution. If one has a yard of ground, he may have a vine which
will give unfeigned pleasure through the whole summer.