The James River Plantation Belt 



glory and a joy to her generation, and it is as she maintained it 

 that I shall try to describe it now. If not, strictly speaking, a 

 colonial garden, it at least preserves an old-world air — a sense 

 of rest and permanence pervades its scented walks, in spite of 

 present neglect and almost abandonment. 



The house stands in a large yard — hardly a lawn — where 

 magnificent trees have within the last few years gone down before 

 successive storms. A large box circle, four or five feet high, oc- 

 cupied the center. Formal beds of tulips were dotted here and 

 there, while a border of peonies lined the fence. A walk passed 

 the front porch and led to the rose arbour which sheltered the 

 garden gate, and four box-trees guarded this walk — only one of 

 which survives. The garden covered a large area, some of which 

 was later taken into the orchard, leaving about an acre and a half 

 in flowers, vegetables and small fruits. A plan accompanies this 

 description. Center, a magnolia tree. Around this, a circular 

 box-hedge, and in the space between, lilies of the valley. Inter- 

 secting walks — wide enough for a cart to drive along — that ferti- 

 lizers might the better be handled and spread — passed through 

 the garden, with flower borders on either hand. These borders 

 also ran along walks following the line of fence. In the center of 

 each square were vegetables, strawberries or ornamental fruit and 

 nut-trees. Trellises held grapes, and there were two rose-covered 

 arbours. At intervals rosebushes stood, and still stand, for that 

 matter, seven and eight feet tall, a riot of bloom in May and early 

 June. In the autumn they bloom again with surpassing beauty. 

 Huge syringas stand at the angles, with spiraea and calycanthus. 

 The borders were edged with violets and spice-pinks. Back of 

 these are remembered among other plants snowdrops, tulips, butter- 

 and-eggs, hyacinths, night shade, lavender, bay, Poet's laurel, 

 Madonna lilies, yellow day lilies, citronella, star-jessamine and 

 peonies. Behind these, lilacs, pyrus japonica, golden honeysuckle, 

 flowering almond and, always, roses, and again — roses. 



Formal scarlet geraniums came out of their cold-frames at 



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