CALIFORNIA GARDENS 



INTRODUCTION 



object of this book is to make it possible at small expense for 

 any one to have a well-arranged, artistic garden. This book is brief 

 it is right to the point it will help you wonderfully in the better- 

 ment and improvement of your property. 



A great many people who have lawns or back yards suitable for 

 gardens do not feel that they can afford the services of an expert landscape 

 architect in addition to the cost of the planting material required to trans- 

 form their surroundings into a place of beauty. With this book in hand this 

 obstacle is overcome, and any one, even those who have never had any expe- 

 rience before in garden making, should be able to have just as perfect a 

 garden as any expert gardener could produce. 



Most people who start in to plan a garden lay it out without any ref- 

 erence whatever to the general effect, crowding into a small space of ground 

 many kinds of plants, irrespective of their habit and suitability for the con- 

 ditions and the result is invariably very poor or a flat failure. 



A well-thought-out garden design and arrangement with a general 

 working plan to accompany it is the very last thing that most beginners think 

 of. If they were equipped with such a plan and a planting list of well- 

 selected plants suitable for their particular conditions and climate, if they 

 would only give a thought to the harmony and finished appearance of their 

 garden, if they had some sort of simple guide to show them exactly where 

 to put each plant to get the best effect and display, the result would be an 

 effective garden with harmonious color scheme and succession of bloom 

 throughout the season. 



California gardens are classed among the most beautiful in the world. 

 Many of the best gardens in Southern California and, in fact, the whole 

 state are remarkably unusual, not simply because palms and semi-tropical 

 plant life thrive in California, but because the general arrangement was 

 taken into consideration and each tree and plant set in its proper place. 



