96 PRACTICAL "tARDENIXG. 



will be perfect, and the box all alike the whole length. You 

 have then only to wheel the gravel in, and, with a narrow 

 roller, press it into its place without disturbing the box, the 

 figure of which, if kept properly preserved, will last unim- 

 paired many years. 



The principal points to attend to are — first, to roll all the 

 ground smooth, and see that it is level ; next, so mark your 

 figure as that you can see well what you are about, jDutting 

 out those marks which are mere surplusage, — that is, not 

 wanted ; all the marks that cross the walks and confuse the 

 figure, but which, nevertheless, like the crosses and marks on 

 the paper, come on the development of the figure, — so as to 

 leave the figure perfect and easy to decipher. Then clear out 

 a good spit deep all the centres of the paths, and throAv the 

 stuff on the centre of the beds if they are large ; but if they 

 are numerous and small, it may be necessary to get rid of it 

 by wheeling it away altogether ; generally, however, the beds 

 are large enough to take it, and only rise a little for it in the 

 middle. 



TVe have said nothing here about draining, because we pre- 

 sume upon that having been performed on every part of the 

 garden before you commence. The chopping out of the figure 

 is rendered very simple and easy, by removing the earth from 

 the middle of the paths ; but there is some ingenuity in press- 

 ing the soil of the sloping bank you form, so as to make it 

 firm. Gardeners who are used to the work press the back of 

 the spade against the part they leave, at the same time that 

 they take the other away ; on the correctness with which you 

 attend to the lines of the figure depends the entire beauty of 

 the flower garden up to the planting, which if ill-managed, will 

 destroy the best figure in the world, or at least mar the effect. 



It is necessary, first, to choose dwarf subjects that bloom as 

 close to the ground as possible ; secondly, to put the colours 

 in uniform, — that is, if six equal beds are round a centre, only 

 to attempt two colours or two mixtures, one each for the 

 alternate beds ; then three scarlets at triangles, and three 

 purples, yellows, whites, or blues at the points of the other 

 triangle. Some would think they met all the necessary uni- 

 formity by three different colours, one opposite the other, but 

 the magic of a well-balanced geometrical fig-ure is destroyed at 

 once, as will be seen in an instant by trying it on paper. 

 Thirdly, for the sake of saving trouble, use such subjects sls 



