66 THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



distant views over the country, the whole suggestive of good effect 

 from simple hardy materials both in trees and flowers, but the elevation 

 is such that no half hardy exotics are likely to succeed, and therefore 

 hardy things give us our best chances of success. 



A sunken fence separates the lawn from some park-like meadow 

 with fine Oaks and Firs ; and beyond, the country north of London 

 opens up, without any building visible on either side or in the fore- 

 ground. From almost every other point of view these trees seem to 

 form a picturesque group, and afford a welcome shade in summer. 

 In front of the house is an open lawn, which one can get on to at once 

 from any point. Being on a gentle rise, some would no doubt have 

 urged this as a reason for making some kind of fortification in the 

 shape of walls, which would have destroyed the repose, verdure, and 

 the freedom of the spot. Now the only drawback if drawback it be 

 to such perfect freedom and breadth of airy foreground is the fact 

 that it offers a temptation to unthinking people to dot it over with 

 shrubs, or evergreen trees, and many places, well laid out, are spoiled 

 by this thoughtless dotting about of objects of poor form. The 

 question of flowers is the greatest difficulty, because people are so well 

 accustomed to have all their flowers gathered in front of the house, that 

 if abundant provision is not made for them elsewhere, the carpet is 

 apt, some day or other, to be dissected into a number of ugly flower- 

 beds. The best way to guard against this in lawn gardens is to pro- 

 vide abundance of simple beds elsewhere which, half seen peeping 

 through the trees, or met with in groups here and there at no great 

 distance from the house, may afford better effects than if all the beds 

 are under the windows. Thus where the foreground is a pleasant 

 lawn it is often well to have another site for the flower garden ; and 

 good large beds or groups of beds, in which fine things can be grown. 

 To have in one spot a group of large beds, simple in outline 

 with Roses and smaller plants surfacing the ground ; next in some 

 isolated nook, large beds of Lilies, separated by a group of low shrubs 

 and flowering Yuccas from a few beds of hardy flowers ; then a varied 

 flower garden partially cut off and embowered by trees these and the 

 like are in certain situations likely to give that variety of treatment 

 which it is the aim of this chapter to secure. 



TOTLEY HALL, NEAR SHEFFIELD, YORKS. This fine old country 

 house stands beside the old coach road from Sheffield to Chatsworth 

 and Haddon Hall, on an elevation with good and extensive views. 

 Over the front door is the date 1623, about the time when Gerard's 

 Herbhal was published, and six years before Parkinson's Paradisus 

 of 1629. Built in such a flower-loving epoch it seems fitting that 

 it should be a flowery place to-day. Inside the entrance hall there 

 is some fine old oak carving and staircase, and there was formerly 



