40 THE BOOK OF GARDEN DESIGN 



umbrellas, and other stupid shapes. There are many 

 reasons, some practical, others sentimental, for refrain- 

 ing from this barbarous practice, which is carried on 

 mainly at the instigation of the architect, who is appar- 

 ently ashamed of associating his walls and terraces with 

 any but mutilated forms of plant life. The cost of 

 maintenance, as in the case of clipped hedges, is an item 

 not to be disparaged ; the loss of form and individual 

 character is scant compensation for well matched regu- 

 larity ; and by the absence of varied colour, the rich 

 tints of maturity and the delicate green of budding 

 branch, the clipped tree is reduced to the level of an 

 unresponsive object, dull and inanimate. If formality 

 is needed, why not make use of such trees as have a 

 naturally well-defined outline the Irish yew, cupressus, 

 and the hardy junipers, they give a better effect with a 

 tithe of the trouble. 



The bower walks, once so favoured, are now seldom 

 made in gardens, though as an example of formal plant- 

 ing they are not without a certain charm. Adequate 

 protection from hot sun and cold winds is afforded at 

 all times, and the garden scenes are not hidden from 

 view, as is the case with evergreen hedges. In the 

 neighbourhood of the orchard, a filbert walk would be 

 a pleasing object, and even on poor soils, heavy crops 

 of nuts may be obtained after a few years. 



The " mirthful maze " is but a stupid survival, and 

 has no place in gardens intended for other purposes than 

 beanfeasts, or for the edification of any who would not 

 derive equal satisfaction from a Punch and Judy show. 

 The pity is that places which have none too much space 

 for flowers and the rational arrangement of trees and 

 shrubs, should be cumbered with anything so utterly 

 unproductive of either beauty or satisfactory achieve- 

 ment. 



Natural planting as opposed to that which is guided 



