Things and Thoughts of the Garden 



By The Onlooker 



When (ine considers the vast anionnt uf distinct, 

 handsome plants that grow wiUl in the meadows, lanes, 

 glades, copses, hills and njjlands, as well as in the 

 marshes and by the seashores of our land, many of 

 which are in the height of their beauty at the present 

 time, it does seem remarkal)le that hardy flower gar- 

 dening is. comparatively speaking, so little developed 

 in our gardens. It is by no means neglected; not for 

 a moment is that suggested ; but the question might 

 well be asked whether all is done that could, might 

 and nught to be. Latel}- a good deal of attention has 

 been directed to alpine or rock gardening, and signs 

 are not wanting that there is to be a return to the 

 former keener interest in this feature of outdoor 

 horticulture. 



I have to confess that m\- surmise a^ to the former 

 higher regard for hardy plants is iiased not so much 

 on personal experience or study of the history of the 

 suliject as from the former greater efforts the trade 

 made to advertise hardy stock. Look back fifteen or 

 sixteen j'ears and see the full page ads. that such a 

 firm as Dreers had at that time. Or was this merely 

 pioneer work of theirs ? Lists of one hundred and 

 fifty dift'erent kinds of hardy peremiials were olTered, 

 and as the advertising was well continued it would ap- 

 pear that it met with support, ^'et if such heavv ad- 

 vertising is not the rule now, it may be that it is more 

 widel_y difl:used. More firms are now in the business 

 anrl the tendency has been and is to specialize. 



Reverting \oy a moment to the native hardy plants, 

 have we full}- appreciated the merit and diversity of 

 them ? Take the following list as merely representa- 

 tive of a much longer catalog that could be writ- 

 ten: — the .\sters or Michaelmas Daisies, the Golden- 

 rods, of which there are some forty species, the 

 superb Swamp Lily, the stately perennial Phloxes, as 

 well as the dwarf ones that bloom in the Spring; the 

 pretty Erigerons, of which there are several natives 

 of this country that are much prized in the gardens 

 of France, German}", England, and other European 

 countries. At the present season of the year the gar- 

 deners across the Atlantic think our Arrowhead (Sa.g- 

 ittaria variabilis) one of the gems of their water- 

 gardens, along with another American plant, the Pick- 

 erel-weed, Pontaderia cordata. In passing. I might 

 ask if anything more lovely could be imagined than a 

 vase of the Sagittaria, above-mentioned, arranged with 

 the Maidenhair-like foliage of the Tall Meadow Rue 

 (Thalictrum polygonum) ? Others of our native plants 

 that are prized abroad if not so much witli us, are 

 the Port Wine Plant or Pokeweed (Phytolacca de- 

 candra) ; the Evening Prinn-ose (CEnothera biennis) ; 

 the Jewelweed (Impatiens fulva) ; the Shrubby Cin- 

 quefoil (Potentilla fruiticosa) ; together with Eupa- 

 torium purpureum, .\scle])ias tuberosa, Malva Mos- 

 chuetos, Verbena hastata, Rudbeckia hirta, \'eratrum, 

 Tradescantia, and many another. 



With all these excellent subjects we have also an 

 admirable opportunity for wild gardening. The own- 

 ers of some estates do practice the sowing of the 

 choicer native plants and shrubs. I remember seeing 

 half a mile or more of railrtiad embankment covered 

 with Spanish Broom, and the sowing had been made, 

 curiously enough, by the Mr. Robinson already men- 

 tioned in these notes. He was in tlie habit of fillincr 



his coat pockets with the seeds of this shrub and as 

 he walked along, used to scatter it. In this way places 

 that before were bare and uninviting were converted 

 into places good to look at. The railroad company was 

 not averse to having its property improved either, since 

 it cost them nothing, '["lie Spanish Broom, of course, 

 is not hardy with us except down South, but what 

 about Gorse or Whin, Common Barberry, Pepper Bush, 

 Rhododendron maximum. Hop, Clematis, etc., together 

 with colonies of the more vi.sjorous perennials? 



'i'he m;iin requirements in the making of a successful 

 herliaceous border are a good soil, deep and holding 

 if possible; secondly, enrichment in the form of yard 

 manure or fertile leaf mold ; thirdly, young, clean stock, 

 either freshly raised or old stock divided ; lastly, close 

 planting. Some folks will very likely raise objections 

 to this latter piece of advice, but the reasons are these : 

 that the plants not only look better in the mass but 

 support themselves to a large extent in the Summer 

 and, most important of all, they afford shade and pro- 

 tection to each others' roots in the hot weather. 



In regard to the system of grouping or planting, 

 opinions dift'er about as much as it is possible to. Be- 

 sides the mixed border, which is the most common, 

 there is the I)order that is planned for color effect, such 

 as the blue, the white, the grey, the orange, and so on. 

 While these are exceedingly interesting and exhibit 

 knowledge of har<ly plants and skill in how to employ 

 them, still, for everyday use and the widest utility, the 

 old-fashioned mixed collection will generally be voted 

 best. Let the plantings be in ample masses though, 

 or to be more definite, say a three feet by three feet 

 grou])ing, whether it be round or drift-like. That is 

 a very small planting even for such things as Achillea, 

 Dianthus, Campanula, or similar dwarf growers. Of 

 the plants that are soon out of flower, like the Peonies, 

 and which are apt to leave a dull patch the rest of the 

 Summer, one good plant by itself in one place seems to 

 me to be sufficient. It will test the skill of any gar- 

 dener, however, to maintain a moderate display of 

 bloom throu.gh the season, from May to October. Can 

 it be done ? Only by the exercise of the greatest fore- 

 thought. Even then, so far as the writer's experience 

 goes, it has ahva\s been necessary to supplement the 

 permanent framework, so to speak, with a certain 

 amount of "bedding." But this "bedding" precludes 

 most of the plants that are associated with the parterre 

 or forrnal flower garden, with its Begonias and Gera- 

 niums. .Such subjects as Verbena venosa. Calceolaria 

 amplexicaulis, Nicotianas, Polygonum orientale, and 

 otliers that will arise to mind, are one and all suitable 

 and even desirable. Certainly these must be raised, 

 grown on to a decent size, and kept ready for use 

 wherever wanted, which is a very easy matter indeed. 

 No place of any pretention should be without a reserve 

 space or garden from which to be able to draw either 

 [jlant stock or cut flowers. Now is the time when we 

 have more leisure to think out these planting problems, 

 and with pa])er and jsencil during the lengthening Au- 

 tumn evenings, jil;in and prepare for better things 

 ahead — greater triumphs yet. 



Washouts are all too common — commoner than they 

 need be if we would only channel or fix up the sides of 



