MONTHLY CALENDAR. 551 



appear to intensify each other's depth ; others equally beautiful in themselves, 

 lessen or destroy each other's beauty when placed in juxtaposition. Henco 

 has arisen the necessity of blending and arranging colours upon some 

 generallj'-received philosophic principle. 



1720. The effective disposition of masses of colour has long constituted the 

 chief art of painting. Now, making every exception arising from the nature 

 of the case, the same arrangement of colours that is pleasing and effective in 

 a landscape on canvas, would be equally so in a garden. The painter has a 

 deoided advantage in having entire control over his materials ; but the object 

 aimed at in both cases is identical; viz., so to arrange, contrast, blend, and 

 harmonize differing hues and shades of colour so as to produce a maximum 

 amount of beauty. However, disturbing causes are so numerous in garden- 

 ing, that there is a certain amount of truth in Mr. Eepton's remark, that " a 

 beautiful garden is not more defective because it would not look well on 

 canvas, than a didactic poem would be because it neither furnishes a subject 

 for the painter or musician." 



1721. The nature of the ground, shape of the beds, style of the garden, 

 character of the suri*ounding trees and shrubs, extent and size, all exert an 

 influence upon the proper quality and quantity of colour to be introduced. 

 The character, habit, and time of flowering of the plants used, are also points 

 of the utmost moment, and the best arrangements are often marred from 

 inattention to these oninutice. I will now lay down a few elementary prin- 

 ciples, and give some examples of effective arrangements. 



1722. It is well known that there are only three primary or simple colours, — 

 red, yellow, and blue, — and they are most effective when placed in the order 

 in which I have named them. But if a wafer of either of these colours be placed 

 on a sheet of white paper, it will appear in a few minutes to be surrounded with 

 a ring of a different colour ; and the colour thus formed is called a secondary, 

 compound, or complementary colour, and always looks well placed in juxta- 

 position with the primary colour producing it. For instance, place a red 

 wafer as indicated, it will appear surrounded with a circle of green; a blue, 

 the circle will be orange ; a yellow, the border will be purple : therefore 

 purple, orange, and green are the complementary colours of yellow, blue, and 

 red, and always look well placed beside them. Orange is also complementary 

 to blue, greenish yellow to violet, indigo to orange-yellow, and, of course, 

 vice versd. 



1723. In practice white generally takes the place of green, a green bed 

 seldom or never being admissible, except in scroll-work, or in a very small bed 

 on bright red gravel. Mi-. D. R. Hay observes,* that these contrasting colours 

 to the primaries produce harmony in opposition, in the same manner in 

 which it is effected in music by accompaniment, — the orange with the blue, 

 the purple with the yellow, and the green with the red. This neutralizing or 

 compensating power is the foundation of all agreement and harmony amongst 



* Laws of Harmonizing Colouring. W. Blackwood & Sons. 



