THE WILD GARDEN. 33 



that they seem a reflection of the sky, or the 

 celandine lies in sunny patches on a bank, or 

 the primrose and violet come up here and there v 

 at the foot of old forest-trees. Sometimes, too, 

 less common flowers, which have been planted 

 years ago, and have spread as it has pleased 

 them, give an effect of even greater beauty. We 

 remember one large shrubbery all blue with 

 hepaticas, and another golden with the winter 

 aconite. Other plants, such as the anchusa or 

 the Petasites fragrans, may be trusted to take 

 care of themselves, and are well worth some 

 half-wild corner. On the other hand, it is not 

 well to attempt to grow native plants when the 

 conditions of their new life would be unfavour- 

 able. It is almost sad to see some bee-orchis, 

 or grass of Parnassus, or mountain auricula, or 

 other rare British plant, transplanted into a 

 shrubbery border. It is far better to leave these 

 " wildings of nature," as Campbell calls them, 

 in their native haunts, and to experience for 

 oneself a new pleasure in finding them growing 

 wild and vigorous on down, or bog, or hilly 



D 



