306 



' GARDENING. 



July 



are not as large as elsewhere in the park, 

 as none are of natural growth. All have 

 been planted since the Centennial year, 

 1876. The pretty tree shown on the left 

 of the bed is a European plane, a tree 

 which grows well and looks well here. 

 The two on the right are the native lin- 

 den, Tilia Americana, another valuable 

 tree, well fitted for positions where a very 

 large-growing one is required. 

 Philadelphia. Joseph Meehan. 



ORNAMENTAL BEDDING. 



PART VI. 



Count the carpet and design beds all 

 over the land, and you will find the .Mal- 

 tese crosses and stars to be the leaders. 

 A star is easily laid out, yet an old florist 

 told me, speaking of a five-pointed star, 

 that it was an easy matter to get the four 

 points, but the fifth one always gave him 

 trouble and made him nervous; and 

 another old gardener had to ask a car- 



Fig. 26. 



penterto make a pattern of strips once, 

 when he was requested to make a star. 



For a five-pointed star draw a circle of 

 the desired diameter, divide in five equal 

 parts, set pegs, tie twine between alter- 

 nate points until you return to the first 

 one as per Fig. 26. Or if you do not 



Fig. 27. 



want the points so narrow, especially if 

 it is a small bed, draw a smaller concen- 

 tric circle, mark the inside points on this 

 by stretching the twine from the outside 

 points past the center, and where the 

 twine crosses the smaller circle, put in 

 your pegs. Fig. 27 shows such a star; 

 it also shows a little variation in the 

 planting. The rule given for the Maltese 

 cross about distribution of colors holds 

 good for stars; the points should not be 

 planted in different colors. 



The six-pointed star is laid out in much 

 the same way as the cross, being divided 



in six parts. Here we can vary the plant- 

 ing, considering the design as two tri- 

 angles, one laid on top of the other. The 



Fig. 28. 



stars can be laid out in circular or other 

 beds as part of the design. Fig. 28 put in 

 a circular bed may be planted thus: Tri- 

 angle 11, Coleus Golden Bedder, bordered 

 with achyranthes; points, b, Coleus Black 

 Hero; c, Santolina incana, and a border 

 of Alternanthera paronychioides major 

 around the whole thing; make the bed 

 altogether twelve feet in diameter, and 

 you have quite an effective bed very easily 

 laid out. 



The crescent is another popular design 

 from the astral regions, and easily laid 

 out, as Fig. 29 shows; all you want is 

 two centers and from them curves with 

 suitable radius. If the radius from center 

 h is five feet and you draw a five-pointed 

 star as Fig. 27 with a radius of three feet 

 six inches with b as center, you have a 

 star and a crescent, which look nice when 

 cut out in the lawn. 



Fig. 30 is another easy bed to lay 

 out, and even if only planted with scarlet 

 geraniums, bordered with Mme. Salleroi, 

 it is a welcome change from the circles 

 and diamonds. It can also be planted 

 with coleus, etc., and it can be improved 

 a little by laying it out as suggested on 

 the two sides; no difficulty in doing it and 

 it looks neat. Suppose the circle in which 

 the center lies is drawn within a radius 

 often feet six inches and the sides of the 

 bed are drawn from the five centers with 

 a radius of six feet six inches, it can be 

 planted for about the same price as a ten- 

 foot circle, and it makes more show. 



Fig. 31. 



Fig. 31 is a design of similar construc- 

 tion. When laid out on a generous scale, 

 say that the circular part is sixteen feet, 

 planted with red French cannas, with a 

 double border of John Good geraniums, 

 the points filled with Coleus Verschafliltii, 



*^--W 



Fig. jo. 



wTui 



Fig. 32. 



bordered with C. ('.olden Bedder; spread- 

 ing thirty-two feet from point to point, 

 it makes a very bold and effective impres- 

 sion on a large lawn. 



While I have now given directions as 



