BETTER GARDENS-HOW ARE WE TO GET THEM 



RE\'I\'AL of gardening would bring 

 health, happiness and profit to Ca- 

 ll^ nadian homes. Let us see what is 

 "^^^^^ the best way to reach this end so 

 that the first summer suns of the country 

 may see a blossoming forth of our neglected 

 home grounds. Much would be gained if 

 the officers of horticultural societies, who 

 may happen to read this, would make it a 

 dutv to rouse their members to make efforts 



Fig. 1976. Architecture in the G.arden 

 "Garden of Pompeii." 



in this direction. We will try to make some 

 useful suggestions as to principles, which, 

 if followed, w'ill give better results in gar- 

 dening than we now have. First of all, 

 gardening is varied, and we must have in- 

 dividuality and variety in it. As a picture 

 is better if it be an expression of some phase 

 of mind of the painter, so a garden is far 

 more pleasing and interesting if it shows the 

 tastes of the owner. Let us not grow any 

 kind of flower because our neighbors culti- 

 vate it, but let us grow the plants of which 

 we ourselves are the fondest, or which have 

 old associations to us. Let those who are 

 fond of quiet and seclusion have their gar- 



dens closely hedged or fenced, and let those 

 who wish to make a display have ground 

 with no fences, such as one sees in Ameri- 

 can towns. Few people have a faint idea 

 of the number of desirable features that can 

 be used in garden-making. We give some 

 illustrations of great gardens of the world, 

 from which we may learn what means peo- 

 ple in other times and countries have used 

 to enrich their pleasure grounds. First, let 

 the first cut show a garden of 

 ^0r ancient Rome. The embellish- 



ments are chiefly architectural, 

 pillars and such like. Such orna- 

 mentation would be out of place 

 in this climate, but the architec- 

 tural enrichment of rustic bridges, 

 summer houses and seats is some- 

 thing of which we might have 

 more. Sundials are a verv ap- 

 propriate garden ornament. The 

 next cut is of the garden of the 

 Generalife in Spain, and illustrates 

 the beauty that may be gained by 

 a large use of greenery and water. 

 Water is an ornamental feature 

 which is very seldom used in 

 Canadian gardens, but there is 

 hardly anything gives more charm to the 

 landscape. One way in which it may be 

 introduced is to have reserv^oir supplied with 

 water by a windmill. Many farms have 

 such windmills, and could not be any very 

 great trouble to use them for this. These 

 basins might be very quickly planted with 

 hyacinths and other quiet plants. In many 

 places the lands might be drained so as to 

 form a pond near the house. This, if stocked 

 fish, would be very profitable as well as or- 

 namental. The Government has been mak- 

 ing efl"orts to encourage the raising of fish in 

 ponds, but the farmers seem very slow to 

 take it up. A pond at the Agricultural Col- 



