BOX.--The dwarf edging so largely used for borders and paths needs no description, but the Common Box is not so largely used because it gets yellow, the result of sheer starvation, the Box being a gross feeder, requiring plenty of feeding at all times. It should have a dressing of manure annually, or at least biennially, to keep it in good health and colour. It should be clipped in the spring, April or May being the best months, and a top-dressing about the same time will be very beneficial to it. Box is a good shrub for an inside hedge, but should never become overgrown, as, in addition to the hard cutting necessary to bring it into shape, it is a terrible plant to cut, even the small wood being very hard and tough.
LAWSON CYPRESS.--_Cupressus lawsoniana_ and _C. nootkatensis_ (_Thujopis borealis_) can be treated together, as, in addition to their natural relationship, both require the same treatment as a hedge. Neither makes a good flat-topped hedge of the ordinary kind, as the growth is distinctly pyramidal, and unless kept to a point is apt to get injured by snow. They should be cut to a point, and a hedge 12 to 20 feet high of this shape is very handsome and effective in a garden, as well as forming a first-rate screen. They can be trimmed at any time preferably in the spring or early summer, care being taken not to cut the base too hard, and the leading shoots top annually. In planting no manure need be used, provided the ground is good, and it is not required later on unless the hedge shows signs of starvation, when a good top dressing may be given with advantage. Plants 2 or 3 feet in height, placed about 18 inches apart, are a good size to use, as they move readily and are not expensive.
PRIVET.--The oval-leaved Privet (_Ligustrum ovalifolium_) is a native of Japan, and makes a fairly good hedge about 5 or 6 feet high. It grows readily, and moves without any trouble at almost any time. It can be bought cheaply. The ground should be well treated in the first place; afterwards it will require little attention in the way of feeding. It can be clipped at almost any time, but for the first year or two should be cut hard back before growth begins in the spring. Neglect of this leads to a hedge that is leafy at the top but bare at the bottom. In this note the use of Privet is not wholly condemned, but it must be understood its use is not recommended. There is no doubt whatever that for town gardens the Privet is of the greatest service, enduring smoke and fog with impunity. It is vigorous, and soon becomes established in the most dreary gardens.