378 FLORA HISTORICA. 



Let the imagination picture a bank sloping to 

 a piece of water, covered with these gay flowers, 

 so disposed that they rival the richest patterns of 

 the carpets of Persia, or the most curious figures 

 that the artist in filigree can devise ; see these 

 reflected in the liquid mirror below, and some 

 idea of the enchanting appearance which these 

 brilliant stars are thus made to produce in the 

 gardens of China may be conceived. 



In no part of the globe is the culture of plants 

 so generally understood as in Great Britain, but 

 we pay too little attention to the manner of dis- 

 posing flowers in general; after having raised 

 them with the greatest care, they are frequently 

 planted in the most careless manner, or without 

 the least attention to general harmony or design 

 of any kind ; a vacant spot is to be filled, and no 

 thought is given how the colour of one flower 

 may be made to assist or diminish the lustre of 

 the neighbouring plants ; this is a matter of 

 chance, and as well might we expect to see a 

 beautiful picture produced by throwing a quan- 

 tity of gay colours promiscuously on a pannel, as 

 to expect a good arrangement of flowers without 

 trouble or attention in their planting. 



When the seed of the China Aster cannot be 

 depended on as to what coloured flower it may 

 produce, the plants should be kept in a nursery 



