74 Hardy Plants for Cottage Gardens 



range from scarlet and orange scarlet into crimson and bluish 

 tones of magenta and solferino. The result is fatal if these are 

 mixed indiscriminately together; but, using the pure red as a 

 central note, a border may gradually merge either into the 

 yellow-reds or the purplish-reds, and if plenty of green is used 

 to separate the plants, the effect is gorgeous. A proper ad- 

 mixture of light airy plants such as Gypsophila paniculata, 

 Asperula hexaphylla, Gaura Lindheimeri, meadow rue, gar- 

 den heliotrope, Sterna serrata, Galium boreale, wild carrot and 

 caraway will add loveliness to brilliant reds. 



A successful red bed, or one of any given color, is not the 

 product of a season. One must begin by assembling the 

 plants, and arrange them theoretically; but each year will 

 witness removals and new combinations. It may be well to 

 make a note, while plants are still in bloom, of any change to 

 be made in the autumn; for, in the reconstructing days, de- 

 tails are apt to be overlooked and plans forgotten. Most 

 perennials are benefited by occasional lifting, and the larger 

 the plant, the more likely it is to require division after a few 

 years. Of course shrubs are exceptions to this rule. If a 

 number of plants of mixed unknown colors, say of phlox, are 

 planted at once, they may be marked when they bloom by the 

 color code I have indicated for marking seeds, and in the au- 

 tumn can be redistributed according to their precise color. 



A most careful study should be made of the character of 

 plants, their relative size, height, and time of blooming; also 

 the duration of bloom. Tall plants should be placed in the 

 rear, and low ones toward the front of beds or borders; or the 

 tall ones may be planted in the center of large areas. In re- 

 moving a plant think twice before digging it up, and thrice be- 

 fore resetting it. Have the new location already prepared, 

 with a bucket of water at hand, and soil adapted to the needs 

 of the new occupant dug over and mellowed considerably 



