48 THE BOOK OF GARDEN DESIGN 



these would be considerable. Tar walks, though 

 entirely objectionable in the flower garden, are some- 

 times tolerated here, and are both durable and fairly 

 satisfactory. A good gravel path lasts a long time if 

 kept constantly in repair, but the main considerations are 

 good gravel and plenty of it. Kitchen-garden paths 

 should always be of fair width, though in a small place 

 every available inch of ground must be pressed into 

 service for cropping purposes. A wide walk possesses 

 many advantages it enables barrows and carts to pass 

 without the necessity of one or other being taken back, 

 and generally facilitates those operations which are in a 

 sense peculiar to the vegetable department. 



Next to the pathway on the inner side, a smaller 

 border for herbaceous plants may be made. From these 

 plants the chief supplies of cut flowers for the house 

 would be obtained, as it is often undesirable to denude 

 the garden borders for the purpose. A four-foot 

 border would be sufficient, and when filled with gay 

 perennials would prove a charming and useful feature 

 of the design. Behind this border a suitable opportunity 

 occurs for a row of espalier fruit-trees, and these might 

 be continued round each division of the garden, with 

 suitable breaks at intervals for obtaining access to the 

 ground behind them. The smaller the garden, the 

 more suitable would be the espalier method of training, 

 as it occupies the minimum of space, allows the fruit to 

 ripen freely, and gives opportunity for those cultural 

 details which are with difficulty performed on standard 

 or bush trees. The usual style of fence is one formed 

 of iron uprights and strained wires, but this is not so 

 picturesque as a combination of wood and wire. If in 

 addition to wooden posts, a top rail is added, the effect 

 of the whole when covered with branches in full blossom 

 is beautiful in the extreme. In suitable situations, 

 notably short pathways leading from one part of the 



