This section is from the book "The American Garden Vol. XI", by L. H. Bailey. Also available from Amazon: American Horticultural Society A to Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants.
The "Sunny South" has deserved its title this season, at all events; day after day and week after week, we have enjoyed clear, balmy spring weather, with no suggestion even of winter. Heavy dews alone have kept the delicate plants alive and enabled the trees to don their spring attire a month ahead of time. By the third week in January, the gardens of Savannah were bright with anemones, roses and azaleas, in addition to their wealth of japoni-cas and the usual winter blooms, and the Charleston gardeners were gathering strawberries on the 20th of February. One florist of the latter place had eight acres of roses in full bloom ; a gentleman of Savannah was gathering magnificent specimens from his bushes. Capt. Christy, Souvenir, Safrano, Marie Van Houtte, Marie Henriette, Mermets, Marechal Neil, etc. The flowers, however, though full size, fragrance and color, were very perishable, owing, doubtless to the lack of rain. The woods now, February 27, are fragrant with the yellow jessamine and swamp azalea, and bright with the red maple, judas tree, dog-wood, fringe and spiraea; while the ground is covered with violets and other modest blossoms, all a month or six weeks ahead of their season.
Fruit trees are in full bloom, while Japan plums are ripe and of full size and flavor. - M. Savannah, Ga.
 
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