VARIOUS GARDENS 



the sky-line and to desired screen effects. In this 

 I am greatly aided also by the thalictrums and 

 native ferns. Out of beds of the last-named come 

 up many daffodils, tulips, and lilies. The peonies 

 allow the larkspurs as well as the Dutch bulbs to 

 retire and hide their unsightliness after they have 

 bloomed. By the aid of the lasting foliage and 

 difference in height of these plants, I am able 

 also to obtain a varied and pleasing sky-line and 

 to keep the ground from showing bare or unsightly 

 spots. I have had more difficulty in treating the 

 garden picture as regards these things than in 

 matters relating to flowers and color in the 

 garden. 



"My way of treating the garden for succes- 

 sional bloom and for continuous sightliness in- 

 volves planting many crops in the same space. 

 No plant has any exclusive preserve in my gar- 

 den. All are set in irregular groups or drifts, one 

 kind crowded on top of another. In the same 

 space the various kinds come up, put forth leaves 

 and branches, bloom, and die down, or serve as 

 ground screen all in their allotted times, and 

 according to their respective habits. This pro- 

 miscuous commingling and crowding of races in- 

 volves a "struggle for existence'; but since things 



249 



