Some birds nest as early as January and others have their last broods in autumn, the maximum breeding efforts of most of them occur in June. Many species like to hide their treasures in the dense vegetation of evergreens used in foundation plantings, hedges or as lawn specimens. Among these is the chipping sparrow.
This sociable little bird is one of the most delightful and useful inhabitants of our gardens. Most domestic of all native sparrows, it approaches the dwellings of man with quiet confidence and frequently builds its nest and rears its young under the very noses of the human tenants in nearby houses.
Chippy is an early riser, often singing before the robin and thus leading the morning chorus. Its reiterated chipping is a simple, monotonous, soothing chant sung hour after hour with the enthusiasm and abandon of the most accomplished musician. Either sex of the chipping sparrow may be identified in the field by the bright, chestnut brown cap, black bill and the black line through the eye, which (in good light) sets off strikingly the white line over it. One of the bird’s common names, hairbird, refers to its habit of lining its grass-androot nest with coarse hair. Convincing evidence of the bird’s fondness for horse hair is the fact that it has often been noted visiting the village dump and pulling this material from the stuffing of discarded automobile cushions. The bird skillfully conceals its nest near the central stem in the dense growth of an evergreen such as the yew at a height, usually, of 2 to 5 feet.
From the viewpoint of the gardener, home owner or community planner, probably the most useful, esthetic and tolerant of all evergreens is the Japanese yew, Taxus cuspidata, with its many forms and varieties. This plant is a tree, but nursery practice has erroneously designated the tree form as Taxus cuspidata capitata and the vase-shaped, lower-growing form as Taxus cuspidata.
The rich, dark green foliage of Japanese yew remains uniform in coloring throughout the year, and the pistillate or female plants are handsome in autumn with scarlet, berry-like fruits. The flesh part of the fruit is insipidly sweet, a great favorite of children and birds, and nonpoisonous. But the seeds are toxic, especially when crushed.
Japanese yews are tolerant of extremes of climate and do nicely in rocky soil in either sun or light shade. Being of dense habit and standing hard clipping well, they make good hedge plants and are excellent for any form of topiary work. While they may be pruned at any time of year, I prefer to prune in spring on the new growth. In this way, no ugly stubs result and the hedge will not have a too formal sheared appearance. And such spring pruning usually can he completed before it becomes disturbing to breeding birds.
There are several dwarf forms of Japanese yew which are more valuable for landscape design than the type because they are regular in habit of growth, whereas the species is often variable. Taxus cuspidata nana is the most popular form. A beautiful plant, it is low and dense with long, far-spreading horizontal branches ascending at the ends. Foliage is large, broad and a striking dark green. Specimens 6 feet high and 20 feet across are not uncommon in older plantings. A compact, near globose form is T. c. densa. This variety is splendid for rock gardens or formal plantings. Low-growing T. c. thayerae is vase-shaped with horizontal branches extending gracefully upwards at the ends. Taxus cuspidata minima is a true dwarf. After more titan 15 years, one specimen I have noticed has attained a height and width of only 9 incites.
Taxus media is a hybrid of the Japanese yew and the English yew, Taxus baccata. It has the hardiness of the former and many of the characteristics of the latter. The two best-known forms are the Hicks yew, Taxus media hicksi, and the Hatfield yew, Taxus media hatfieldi. The first is a slow-growing, columnar form, while the Hatfield yew is a dense, compact cone with upright and ascending branches.
For lawn specimens, hedges and backgrounds, and as nesting sites and food sources for avian visitors, the Japanese yews are well suited. Add to that their accommodating variety of shapes and sizes and one may safely say there is a yew for every garden where evergreens can be grown.
by R Alfred
