How to Make a Formal Garden at a Moderate Cost 257 



in a shallow basin as a water mirror, in which fishes, but not plants, can be 

 kept, but in which plants grown along the side will be reflected; or as a small 

 stream running from a spouting head into a basin in a wall, from which 

 it will drip to a lower basin with an outlet. If there be a column of water, 

 it should be continuous and strong. In the construction of basins, cement 

 is most serviceable and least expensive. Of course, in winter the water 



Bulb time in the formal garden 



should be shut ofT; but if, in the construction of the basins, the sides 

 are made flaring instead of perpendicular, the action of ice is not so 

 likely to burst them. 



A hedge as a boundary for a garden is appropriate; but, owing to the 

 amount of space it will ultimately occupy, its interference with the growth 

 of garden plants, the trouble of keeping it in good condition, and its lack 

 of flowers, it is usually best to substitute substantial brick or stone walls, 

 if the house be of brick or stone, or wooden fences if the house be of 

 wood. The objection to wood lies in the difficulty of repairing and 

 painting it when covered with vines. 



