For May, 1920 



175 



Plan For A unken Garden 



M. ROBERTS CONOVER 



A SUNKEN ga 

 low the wall 

 by means of 

 definite boundaries 

 and plantings 

 which emphasize 

 desirable lines and 

 mask those not in 

 harmony. 



The sunken gar- 

 den may suffer 

 some handicap 

 from being entirely 

 walled in. Unless 

 some attention is 

 paid to its arrange- 

 ment with regard 

 to V e n t i 1 a tion, 

 s u n k e n gardens 

 m ay not have 

 breeze enough and 

 be close and hot in 

 very warm weather 

 or damp and sultry 

 if the weather be 

 wet. 



The garden here 

 described aims to 

 overcome these de- 

 fects to a certain 

 extent. 



There are two 

 points of appeal 

 which must not be 

 overlooked if the 

 sunken garden is 

 to be a success ; 

 one the view of 

 the garden from 

 higher points out- 

 side of the garden 

 itself requiring that 

 the garden be per- 

 fect in its design, 

 furnishing and 

 ])lanting : the other 

 is the prospect 

 from the garden 

 itself. In looking 

 out of the sunken 

 garden, one nat- 

 urally looks up. 

 Part of the charm 

 of the sunken gar- 

 den is the upward 

 vista of charming 

 outlines of trees 

 against the sky, as 

 a serrated outline 

 of cedars, the 

 graceful droop of 

 elms whose ui:iper 

 portions are seen 

 from the garden or 



rd;:; utilizes the declivity, the spot be- 

 or bank which can he made beaiuiful 



onnf? 



^ xV}oom>^b u u L) t> (!> c> 'fLSA j'J^ Sosfe ri 



the variation in masses of evergreens and deciduous trees 

 which interest by their color and harmony of arrange- 

 ment. The gleam 



0£?C> 



of a white balus- 

 trade among vines 

 or trees is lovely 

 and gives a pecu- 

 liar finish to the 

 boundary of a 

 sunken garcien. 



The more vari- 

 ety in the color and 

 form relating to its 

 boundary lines the 

 less restraint one 

 feels in the sunken 

 garden. It is pos- 

 sible to treat the 

 sunken garden in 

 a very costly man- 

 ner and have an 

 effect which is op- 

 pressive and makes 

 one feel almost a 

 prisoner in a much 

 decorated hole in 

 the ground. The 

 secret of success is 

 in the treatment of 

 its peculiar vistal 

 possibilities. 



The garden de- 

 scribed herewith is 

 72 feet wide by 96 

 feet long, with a 

 depth of 6 feet at 

 its walled end. the 

 depth gradually di- 

 minishing toward 

 the grove at the 

 farther end. It lies 

 in a hollow just 

 below the lawns 

 surrounding the 

 dwelling and is en- 

 tered by two flights 

 of steps — t h e s e 

 flights of steps 

 curve slightly tow- 

 ard the middle of 

 the space below. 



A wall six feet 

 high of brick with 

 a white balustrade 

 is constructed on 

 the entrance side. 

 This balustrade is 

 set back about six 

 inches from the 

 face of the wall, 

 and one seated in 

 the paved area be- 

 low has less of the 

 sense of confine- 



