THE TECHNICS OF GARDENING. 167 



Of the shapes of the beds it were of little avail 

 to speak, and the diagrams here given are only of use 

 where the conditions of the ground properly admit 

 of their application. The geometrical garden is 

 capable of great variety of handling. A fair size for 

 a geometrical garden is 1 20 ft. by 60 ft. This size 

 will allow of a main central walk of seven feet that 

 shall divide the panel into two equal parts and lead 

 down to the next level. The space may have a 

 balustrade along its length on the two sides, and on 

 the garden side of the balustrade a flower-bed of 

 mixed flowers and choice low-growing shrubs, backed 

 with hollyhocks, tritoma, lilies, golden-rod, etc. The 

 width of the border will correspond with the space 

 required for the steps that descend from the upper 

 terrace. For obtaining pleasant proportions in the 

 design, the walks in the garden will be of two sizes, 

 gravelled like the rest the wider walk, say, three 

 feet, the smaller, one foot nine inches. The centre 

 of the garden device on each side may be a raised 

 bed with a stone kerb and an ornamental shrub in the 

 middle, and the space around with, say, periwinkle 

 or stonecrop, mixed with white harebells, or low 

 creepers. Or, should there be no wide main walk, 

 and the garden-plot be treated as one composition, 

 the central bed will have a statue, sundial, fountain, 

 or other architectural feature. Each bed will be 

 edged with box or chamfered stone, or terra-cotta 

 edging. Or the formal garden may be sunk below 

 the level of the paths, and filled either with flowers 

 or with dwarf coniferae. 



