The Blue Flower Border 255 



border of all colors far too well to do that. Here, 

 as everywhere in my garden, should be white flowers, 

 especially tall white flowers : white Foxgloves, white 

 Delphinium, white Lupine, white Hollyhock, white 

 Bell-flower, nor should I object to a few spires at 

 one end of the bed of sulphur-yellow Lupines, or 

 yellow Hollyhocks, or a group of Paris Daisies. 

 I have seen a great Oriental Poppy growing in 

 wonderful beauty near a mass of pale blue Lark- 

 spur, and Shirley Poppies are a delight with blues ; 

 and any one could arrange the pompadour tints of 

 pink and blue in a garden who could in a gown. 



Let me name some of the favorites of the Blue 

 Border. The earliest but not the eldest is the pretty 

 spicy Scilla in several varieties, and most satisfactory 

 it is in perfection of tint, length of bloom, and great 

 hardiness. It would be welcomed as we eagerly 

 greet all the early spring blooms, even if it were 

 not the perfect little blossom that is pictured on 

 page 254, the very little Scilla that grew in my 

 mother's garden. 



The early spring blooming of the beloved Grape 

 Hyacinth gives us an overflowing bowl of " blue 

 principle " ; the whole plant is imbued and fairly 

 exudes blue. Ruskin gave the beautiful and 

 appropriate term " blue-flushing " to this plant and 

 others, which at the time of their blossoming send 

 out through their veins their blue color into the 

 surrounding leaves and the stem ; he says they 

 "breathe out" their color, and tells of a "saturated 

 purple " tint. 



Not content with the confines of the garden 



