92 FLOWER GARDENING 



take, say, one or two hundred small cards and 

 from catalogues and garden books pick out the 

 same number of plants of tested hardiness that 

 seem best suited to the required purpose. Write 

 at the top of each card both the botanical and 

 the common name. Then add, on separate lines, 

 the time of blooming, as nearly as you can as- 

 certain for your section of the country, and its aver- 

 age duration, the height of foliage as well as bloom 

 wherever possible; the general character of the 

 plant, whether creeping, sprawling, bushy or mar- 

 kedly erect and, finally, the color. It is best thus 

 to segregate the color memorandum, because this 

 should include not only the color, or range of colors, 

 of the blossoms, but like notes as to the foliage. 

 Make a clear differentiation of the many foliage 

 shades and if the leaves are evergreen say so. It 

 is well also to keep in mind, as to color, that the 

 matter of blossoms and leaves being loose or com- 

 pact may make a material difference in their use 

 for garden pictures. 



Next, sort the cards according to season of 

 bloom going by the month or, better still, by 

 fortnights; they cover better the average period 

 of perfection. Lay the resultant packs of cards, 

 chronologically, in a line on a table and see if there 

 are any distinct breaks in the succession or any 

 fortnights that do not admit of enough choice. 

 Should these deficiencies exist, return to the cat- 

 alogues and garden books for additional material, 

 before proceeding. 



