PREFACE. 



THIS book is written with a view to assist the newly- 

 awakened taste for something more than mere colour in 

 the flower-garden, by enumerating, describing, indicating 

 the best positions for, and giving the culture of, all our 

 materials for what is called " subtropical gardening." 

 This not very happy, not very descriptive name, is 

 adopted from its popularity only; fortunately for our 

 gardens numbers of subjects not from subtropical climes 

 may be employed with great advantage. Subtropical 

 gardening means the culture of plants with large and 

 graceful or remarkable foliage or habit, and the associa- 

 tion of them with the usually low-growing and brilliant 

 flowering-plants now so common in our gardens, and 

 which frequently eradicate every trace of beauty of form 

 therein, making the flower-garden a thing of large masses 

 of colour only. 



The guiding aim in this book has been the selection of 

 really suitable subjects, and the rejection of many that 

 have been recommended and tried for this purpose. 

 This point is more important than at first sight would 



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