i. 



ON THE STUDY OF NATURAL SCENERY. 



N the practice of the art of landscape gardening, 

 which chiefly aims to create natural scenery 

 by natural means and methods, or to restore 

 the oi'iginal beauty in places where it has 

 been destroyed through some cause or other, 

 a thorough study of nature is imperative. The landscape 

 gardener, in the higher realms of bis art, should attempt no 

 artificial effects ; all the products of his thoughts and labor 

 must appeal' to have sprung from the bosom of nature itself 

 without effort or external interference. The plants used 

 should be of sufficiently sturdy kinds to root and spread 

 under natural conditions without constant aid and culture, 

 and all the elements introduced must be of so harmonious a 

 character as not to interfere with individual development, 

 or to cause disturbance in the whole, through such develop- 

 ment. Naturally, this requires an intimate knowledge, not 

 only of every herb and tree used, but also an insight into 

 the secret methods of nature, which cannot be taught by 

 books, — the artist must sit down humbly at the knees of 

 Mother Nature and learn. It is not so much grandeur as 



