17S0 LANDSCAPE GARDENING 



LANDSCAPE GARDENING 



soape Architects, Ainericim Association nl' I'lirk Supor- 

 intt'iuicnts. Otlior societies are also related to laiidscaix' 

 .•irt, as the Aineriean (."ivio Assoeiation, Aiiu'rican t^cciiic 

 anil Historie IV'servation Society, and the lioiticullural 

 Innlies. The subject is also taught in collef;es in its 

 amateur aspects and in a few places professionally. The 

 discussion ol' cily-planninj; has now taken hold of the 

 public iiii:vginalion, although little has yet been done 

 to visuiUize the necessity of count ly-planning. 



The kinds of landscaix- gardens. 



The improved landscape, we have said, may be 

 hirj;e or small. It may also represent any condition of 

 n'sidence or of public use. The illustrations herewith 

 indicate, better than words, .some of the merits and 

 some of the iiossibilities in land.scai)e. (Many of the 

 illustrations have appeared in "(iarden and I'orest.") 

 The improvi\l or desipniHl landscape area should appro- 

 priate the pood views and scenes beyond itself or 

 adjacent to it. The distant view in Kig. 20()',) should not 

 be missed from any landscape garden if one is so for- 

 tunate !U3 to be in the region of sucOi an ofTsca])e. Even 

 fiuniliar objects, as a spire, a distant residence, a well- 

 proportioned bridge (Fig. 21)70), a noble tree, may add 

 much interest if brought into the home landsca])e by 

 means of vistas. It would be a s])ecial good fortune if 

 the landscape garden could lead into any kind of a wood 

 or forest, particularly into anything so distinctive as the 

 Jersey pines shown in Fig. 2071. In many places, the 

 grounds may lead olT naturally into an informal country 

 road (Fig. 2t)72), which is always interesting with its 

 irregular lines, variety of life, and stimulating .sugges- 

 tions. A stream is always an entertaining boundary, 

 particularly when a walk may follow it, as in Fig. 207;5. 



America excels in lantlscajje art apiilied to the rural 

 and garden cemetery. The first distinct movement 

 toward a rural cemetery was made in 182.5 by Jacob 

 Bigelow, of Boston, whose work was soon taken up by 

 the Massachusetts Horticultural Society. As a result 

 of the agitation by this admirable organization, Mt. 

 Auburn Cemetery, at Cambridge, was established and 

 incorporated in 1831. The consummation of this 

 cnterjirise gave to the world a cemetery distinct from 

 churchyards, removed from the city, and softened by the 

 gracious touch of nature; and thereby, also, the young 

 Massachusetts Horticultural Society set an example to 

 all simil.-ir organizations and achieved for it.self enduring 

 fame. The work of Repton and Loudon had not then 



eidivened and bidud<'iied the conceptions of landscape 

 gardening, and Mt. Auburn, whilst an excellent work 

 of its kind, is not a landseaiM'-garden cemetery. The 

 moilern art of gardeu-cemet<'rv making — in which, as in 

 the park, the continuous expanse of greensward is the 

 fundamental conception of the fabric — originated with 





2067. Plan of the Leasowes, the seat of Shenstone. 

 The residence is near the center. Page 177S. 



2068. Glimpse in Shenstone's Leasowes. Page 1778. 



Adolph Slrauch, who, in 1S.54. became superintendent 

 of Spring Grove Cemetery, Cincinnati. Strauch's 

 work at Spring C.rove ('emetery has justly given him 

 lasting fame, and his book (leseril)ing the ])lace nnist be 

 consulted by anyone who traces the evolution of the 

 garden-cemetery. The Board of Directors of the ceme- 

 tery said, at the time of his death, that "he had filled 

 the measure of his ambition by the consent of his pro- 

 fession, which ranked him as the equal of Repton and 

 Piiekler-Muskau as a master of art in landscape crea- 

 tion, which had been finally proved bj' him to be pos- 

 sible to be successfully applied in adorning and making 

 attractive the last resting- jjlaces of humanity." At 

 present, about one hundred or more burial-places in 

 various parts of North America can be said to be land- 

 scape-garden cemeteries. 



The successful practice of landscape gardening 

 deiiends, first, on an artistic temperament and an inher- 

 ent love of nature; second, on an intimate knowledge of 

 plants; and third, on familiarity with various arts and 

 handicrafts, as tlie making of roads, grading, draining, 

 enriching the land, and the like. Landscape gardening 

 must be sharply distinguished from gardening: the 

 former is the making of pictures with plants; the latter 

 is the growing of plants without reference to the pic- 

 ture. In one, thi^ interest centers in art : in the other it 

 centers in i)lants. Since landscape gardening is prima- 

 rily a matter of taste, it is imjiossible that it be domi- 

 nated by arbitrary rules. However, a few general pre- 

 cepts and suggestions may be useful. 



The motive of a true landscape garden, as .already 

 explained, is to make a picture. The picture should have 

 a landscape or nature-like effect. The place should be 

 one thing: it .shoukl empliasize some thought or feeling. 

 It should have one central or emphatic object, and 

 av<iid .scattered elTec-ts. In general, the advice is to 

 bunch or mass the planting. One nuist distinguish 

 shar[)ly between the fundamentals and the in<ndentals, 

 — those conceptions that are to give th<^ character or 

 tone to the |)lace, anrl those that are embellishments or 

 ornaments. In usual practice it is ess(>ntial to keep one 

 or more spaces open, and to plant the sides or bound- 

 aries with ma.s.ses. The use of single or individual i)lants 

 is only to einphasize or to heighten an effect, not to 

 give it'charac^ter: they are incidentals. ( )rnaiMent should 

 be an incident. l''oliage an<l verdun; is a fimdamental 

 requisite. In natural .sod regions, greensward is the 

 canva.s on which the picture is spread. IMiints are more 



