Himalayan Laurel

Himalayan Laurel (Aucuba) - A noble evergreen which came into this country in a curious way. Like the young man from the country fascinated by the painted lady on the stage, the man who first brought it to this country selected a poor spotted form. People who love variegation were delighted with this for years, and it took long to find out the really good things under this name. As with so many other plants, variegation is a disease. The natural plant is the best evergreen yet introduced. It is fine in color and hardier than the true Laurel, and has good qualities in all ways for garden or woodland. I began with the spotted kind, but, not loving variegation in any form, I went to a good nursery, where I picked out a number of green forms, which differed so much in leaf that I had the greatest pleasure in using them. Fully exposed, the foliage is very attractive, and the plant has the precious quality of growing under Pines or various trees in perfect health, and fruiting yearly. Where it fruits well, it is very pretty for indoor decoration. The natural plant varies much in form of leaf, and sometimes names are given to these forms, but they have little value. Where an evergreen covert is desired under trees it might be well to use Aucubas—it is so easily increased, that it would not be difficult to get a stock. The Himalayan kind is thought by Mr Bean not to differ very much from the Japanese kind.