X PREFACE 



and Lilacs of yesterday still possess their charms 

 of colour and form and perfume, charms that a 

 Burbank with all his magic has been unable to 

 dissipate, and these our grandchildren will enjoy 

 as much as their grandfathers enjoyed them. 



If anyone should use the suggestions set forth 

 in Common Sense Gardens and be dissatisfied with 

 the results that are obtained, the defects may be 

 easily remedied: call in a nurseryman or a land- 

 scape gardener and give him carte blanche to im- 

 prove your grounds with pergolas, rustic benches, 

 wire arches, rare trees and plants, and so forth; 

 a great transformation may be worked in a short 

 time. Of two evils the lesser should always 

 be chosen, but in any event your wife and chil- 

 dren should have a garden in which to work and 

 play. 



The illustrations in Common Sense Gardens are 

 for the most part from photographs that I have 

 taken from time to time in my own and other 

 gardens. The figures of walls, arches, fences, 

 gates and so forth, are reproductions of those 

 found in old gardens, and were designed under my 

 supervision for the book; the plan of planting is 

 of my own garden. Acknowledgment is made to 

 Country Life (English) for pictures of English gar- 

 dens; and to House and Garden for the picture of 

 an old garden at Camden, South Carolina. I de- 



