Stag's Horn Sumach
Mezereon is a small, sparsely branched shrub growing to a height of 30- 120 cm. The twigs are greyish, the buds dark brown. The flowers appear before the leaves in early spring (February-March) and have a strong fragrance. The round drupes ripen in July and contain a single ovoid black- brown seed. Both fruit and bark are poisonous.
This shrub is widespread throughout most of Europe, where it grows in woodlands, especially beech stands. In England it occurs rarely in woods on chalk and limestone. It grows best in moist soil rich in humus and may be found in valley woods as well as mixed mountain forests, occasionally also in subalpine meadows. It requires semi-shade and will not thrive in sunny aspects. It is a popular ornamental shrub for the rock garden and therefore often taken up in the wild and transplanted to private gardens. For this reason many countries have proclaimed it a protected species and digging it up in the wild an offence punishable by law. It is readily propagated by means of seeds.
Because of its dense root system and tendency to develop root suckers it is also sometimes planted on hillsides to prevent erosion. In some parts of Europe experiments are being carried out to cultivate it in plantations for tannin, as its leaves contain up to 25 per cent of this substance.
The common buckthorn is a shrub or small tree growing to a height of 3-8 m with a crooked stem and asymmetric crown. The bark is blackish and in older individuals peels off in horizontal strips. The twigs are grey and terminated by a thorn between a pair of buds. The buds are blackish brown, longish and often subopposite. It is a slow-growing shrub and may live to an age of more than a hundred years. The greenish, sometimes dioccious flowers appear from May-June.
The orange-coloured fruits ripen at the end of September and remain on the plant late into the winter as they are only taken by birds when other fruits have been finished. This shrub has a widespreading root system and puts out root suckers, and is thereby a good plant for anchoring sand dunes. The roots have nodules containing nitrogen-fixing bacteria that enrich both shrub and soil with this important substance. The sea buckthorn is reliably propagated by means of seeds and root cuttings.
This shrub is widespread throughout most of Europe, its range extending northward to the 60th parallel and eastward to Siberia. It grows mostly on dry, sunny banks and rocky sites in hilly country. A light-loving, frost-resistant shrub, it does well even on poorer soils. The wood is hard, with brownish-reel heartwood and yellow- white sapwood. The bark and fruits were used to make natural dyes and for medicinal purposes.
This shrub is widespread throughout most of Europe, where it grows in woodlands, especially beech stands. In England it occurs rarely in woods on chalk and limestone. It grows best in moist soil rich in humus and may be found in valley woods as well as mixed mountain forests, occasionally also in subalpine meadows. It requires semi-shade and will not thrive in sunny aspects. It is a popular ornamental shrub for the rock garden and therefore often taken up in the wild and transplanted to private gardens. For this reason many countries have proclaimed it a protected species and digging it up in the wild an offence punishable by law. It is readily propagated by means of seeds.
Because of its dense root system and tendency to develop root suckers it is also sometimes planted on hillsides to prevent erosion. In some parts of Europe experiments are being carried out to cultivate it in plantations for tannin, as its leaves contain up to 25 per cent of this substance.
The common buckthorn is a shrub or small tree growing to a height of 3-8 m with a crooked stem and asymmetric crown. The bark is blackish and in older individuals peels off in horizontal strips. The twigs are grey and terminated by a thorn between a pair of buds. The buds are blackish brown, longish and often subopposite. It is a slow-growing shrub and may live to an age of more than a hundred years. The greenish, sometimes dioccious flowers appear from May-June.
The orange-coloured fruits ripen at the end of September and remain on the plant late into the winter as they are only taken by birds when other fruits have been finished. This shrub has a widespreading root system and puts out root suckers, and is thereby a good plant for anchoring sand dunes. The roots have nodules containing nitrogen-fixing bacteria that enrich both shrub and soil with this important substance. The sea buckthorn is reliably propagated by means of seeds and root cuttings.
This shrub is widespread throughout most of Europe, its range extending northward to the 60th parallel and eastward to Siberia. It grows mostly on dry, sunny banks and rocky sites in hilly country. A light-loving, frost-resistant shrub, it does well even on poorer soils. The wood is hard, with brownish-reel heartwood and yellow- white sapwood. The bark and fruits were used to make natural dyes and for medicinal purposes.
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In garden planning, making the formwork carefully is vital to the success of the wall, but it is far more taxing than the actual laying of the concrete garden wall.
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