i8 97 . 



' ' ' GARDENING. 



275 



WILD GARDENING AT EGANDALE. 



flower they are all that could be desired. 

 Mahwab, N.J. David Fraser. 



WILD GARDENING. 



Egandale is fortunate in being partly 

 bounded by deep ravines whose banks are 

 thickly covered with native trees. Where 

 the main lawn exists the clearing away 

 of the original forest trees, on the table- 

 land right up to the edge of the ravine 

 banks, has allowed the sun to reach 

 those trees and shrubs growing on the 

 banks, and in time they became thickly 

 clothed with leaves. This leafage reaches 

 from the table-land level up to the tree 

 tops, thirty or more feet high, forming, as 

 it were, a leafy hedge trending in all the 

 sinuosities of the bank lines. The sheared 

 lawn is brought to within three or more 

 feet of the edge; the intervening space is 

 devoted to whatever native plants 

 existed in situ and is further planted with 

 those most likely to exist without care. 

 Whenever some species that is pleasing in 

 effect shows itself I supplement it with 

 others taken from the fields. 



A small space of this "leafy hedge" is 

 here illustrated. I desire to call attention 

 to one feature that caused this section to 

 be photographed. It is one of the few 

 cases where a photograph does not do 

 justice to the original. The planting was 

 accidental, but the effect, in the light of 

 wild gardening, was grand. Before the 

 leafage had become so dense down 

 towards the base, I had set out one 

 strong plant of the white form of the 

 everlasting pea I Lathyrus sylvestris var. 

 jilatyphyllus) with the idea of its droop- 

 ing down over the bank which exists 

 within a foot or so back of the foliage. 

 This was several years ago. The situa- 

 tion is naturally dry and receives no 

 artificial watering, and for several years 

 the plant made no headway, and in fact 

 became almost forgotten. Last summer 

 was more rainy than usual and the plant 

 seemed to take on a new lease of life and 



climbed up among the branches of some 

 young oaks, blooming here and thereeven 

 up to a height of over six feet. Visitors 

 were very much puzzled to know "how 

 those sweet pea blossoms came there." 

 The plant has given me a hint of what it 

 can do under favorable circumstances, 

 and it shall receive hereafter extra care in 

 order that it may reproduce its charming 

 picture. 



In another picture here illustrated is 

 shown a rustic bridge that crosses a spur 

 of the main ravine. The main ravine, 

 some ninety feet deep, is hidden by the 

 tree tops back of the picture, one spur 

 running in under the bridge, and another 

 to the left of the picture, and not shown. 

 This divides the table-land into "points." 

 At the end of "Cedar Point" (so named 

 from an old gnarled red cedar in the 

 ravine near it) can be seen a rustic bridge 

 running from the table land out into the 

 branches of some native oaks that start 

 from the ravine bank some fifteen feet be- 

 low. The distance, seen in the picture, 

 from the rustic animal (the "what-is-it") 

 to the bridge at the point is about thirty- 

 five feet, but by opening up in the center 

 and massing native shrubs at the sides, 

 the distance, when both sides of the 

 point can be seen, seems much greater. 

 The bridge crossing the sub-ravine or 

 spur is sunken ratherthan raised, so as to 

 be invisible until quite near. Neither of 

 these bridges can be seen from the main 

 lawn, and they thus constitute some of 

 the "surprises" that always lend a charm 

 to one's place. 



The "spur" immediately under the 

 bridge is some twelve feet deep and 

 rapidly narrows and grows more shal- 

 low until it terminates some twenty feet 

 to the right. The bank shown in the 

 right hand corner is planted with self- 

 sown asters, golden rods, geraniums and 

 other native plants, while lower down 

 are groups of native wild roses, some 

 indigeneous, and others of similar species 

 placed there. From early spring, when 



the trilliums, hepaticas and a host of 

 other early blooming plants open up their 

 flowers, through June when the roses are 

 a bloom, and into fall when the golden 

 rods and asters assert themselves, one 

 can gaze on nature's gardening with a 

 satisfaction found in no other style of 

 planting. W. C. Egan. 



TALL GROWING HARDY FERNS. 



Passing by a neighbor's coach house 

 yesterday, it gave me much pleasure to 

 see his collection of hard y ferns, and what 

 good use he had made of what would 

 otherwise have been perhaps an unsightly 

 srot but for the f^rns occupying it. The 

 situation was on the northeast side of the 

 building, and between the building and 

 the carriage drive was a space of about 

 five feet, and it was this space which was 

 utilized for the ferns. There was one end 

 of the bed much damper than the other 

 and in it were wisely set such sorts as 

 onocleas, osmundas and other moisture 

 loving sorts, while the dryer end con- 

 tinued Dicksonia pilosiuscula, Aspidium 

 marginale and others not so clamorous 

 for a wet place. 



What pleased me most was the large 

 growing sorts, and thinking then what 

 little use is made of them, and how many 

 places there are where nothing would do 

 so well, I determined to note some of the 

 best for the benefit of the readers of Gar- 

 dening. 



Among aspidiums there are five partic- 

 ularly nice ones, and better yet, all are 

 evergreen. They are these, acrostichoides, 

 spinulosiini, Goldiamim, cristatum and 

 marginale. These are all bold looking 

 ferns. Acrostichoides perhaps is of the 

 most spreading growth, and it is the best 

 evergreen. Marginale is a grand fern. The 

 fronds are large and broad and spread 

 handsomely. This likes a rocky place, 

 while Goldiamim, a species with tall, dark 

 green fronds, likes deep, damp soil. 

 Cristatum, too, is of a dark green color, 



