The Canadian Horticulturist. 131 



A MODERN SUBURBAN LOT. 



A ROE places are not liable to be neglected. What we need 

 is to have the almost universal srnall places made useful 

 and attractive by true art. No place with a few feet of 

 ground is too small to be improved and made to exert a 

 pleasure-giving and refining influence. Too often we see 

 a house in the centre of a lot, with neither tree, shrub, vine 

 or other plant to indicate that the house and grounds do 

 not belong to the highway. Good taste is not a difficult 

 matter to acquire. Truth and simplicity are its foundation, but it does require 

 a little common sense. Places are laid out with a view to their use and enjoy- 

 ment. 



With this in mind let us consider what are some of the principal features 

 desirable in a small place. Let us imagine a small, inexpensive house upon an 

 averaged sized suburban lot, and near its northern boundary, that as much as 

 possible of available ground may be in one area on the southerly side of the 

 house. The living rooms should be in the southern part of the house, on 

 account of the warmth in winter, the pleasant southern breezes and the beauty 

 of the western sky at sundown. The entrance is upon the north side. Should 

 the ground slope considerably toward the south, the material excavated from 

 the cellar is formed into a terrace, on which the house rests. A small plant- 

 room, built out from the dining-room, is entirely enclosed in winter, but in 

 summer the sashes are removed from the sides, and awnings fixed upon the parts 

 supporting the roof, converting the place into a tea room, adorned with vine- 

 covered lattices. On the east of the terrace is a flower garden enclosed by a 

 low fence of spruce pole.s, covered with vines. On the lawn side of this are 

 masses of shrubbery to break the monotony of the fence line. The garden 

 design is a quadrangle. A straight path runs round it, eight feet from the 

 boundary ; of this space, six feet in width, is filled with all the old-fashioned 

 flowers. The clear space within the surrounding path is a grassy lawn, in which 

 a few beds are cut and kept filled with bright-colored plants, furnished from the 

 border, the highest growing kinds being in the central bed. To relieve the flat 

 effect of the garden, six pyramidal arbor vitae3 are planted, one in each corner, 

 and one in the centre of each long side. Their dark foliage gives fine contrast 

 to the bright flowers, and in winter saves the garden from desolation. 



The lawn runs up to the terrace, at the base of which are two or three 

 masses of shrubbery, varying in height. Vines run over the terrace wall, partly 

 hiding the stones. Except the lawn tennis portion, the lawn is modelled into 

 gentle undulations. If an unsightly object in the neighborhood is obtrusively 

 visible, the ground near the boundary in that direction should rise in a decided 

 swell, be thickly planted with shrubs, and at their rear several poplars push 



