20 THE BOOK OF GARDEN DESIGN 



signer may be truly grateful. It enables any weak 

 spots which may exist in the plan to be corrected before 

 it is too late. Of course no one can determine the exact 

 effect which time will produce, and it is well we cannot, 

 for perhaps the greatest charm of garden design is its 

 delightful elusiveness, the uncertainty which exists as to 

 the manner in which flower and tree will disport itself. 

 But unless we attempt to see further than the mere out- 

 lines of the plan, we are trusting to chance to secure for 

 us the results we most desire. Especially are we liable 

 to err in the matter of colour effect, a consideration 

 which is outside the scope of the black and white plan. 

 Unrelieved stretches of turf become monotonous unless 

 afforded the foil of suitable foliage ; broad masses of 

 bright hued flowers demand the sober relief of grey 

 stonework or silvery leaved trees and plants. A certain 

 spot is often dull and unsatisfying, simply because it 

 lacks this element of colour ; a group of flowering 

 shrubs with bright hued blossoms or even a stone vase 

 filled with climbers may dispel all idea of monotony. In 

 the securing of suitable contrasts, work may be raised 

 above the merely mediocre, to a level of high artistic 

 merit. Easy transition of form and colour is no doubt 

 the safest course to pursue, but a certain boldness of 

 touch may in certain instances prove highly advantageous. 

 The shrubbery, often a tame and featureless affair, may 

 be rendered attractive by the sharply contrasting effects 

 of adjacent groups of deciduous trees, and the dark, 

 glistening foliage of evergreens. It is quite possible to 

 carry the practice of rounding and softening the corners 

 beyond reasonable limits, and we sigh for some pro- 

 minent feature to rivet our attention, if only for the 

 moment. 



