120 THE VILLA GARDENER. 



alone, which will grow in the shade better than in the free air, we have only 

 to point to the lists of Californian plants given in this work. (See Index.) 



182. Planting the front garden. — To return to our plan {fg. 50), each house 

 consists of a vestibule (t?), hall and staircase (e), dining-rooni (/), and draw- 

 ing-room (g), communicating with the conservatory (c). In the garden at h, 

 are shown flower-beds on each side of the entrance-walk; and these, to 

 harmonise with the green housej may be symmetrically planted, the two 

 central circles with fuchsias; the two beds i i with variegated pelargoniums 

 (geraniums) ; and the remaining four beds with scarlet pelargoniums. These 

 will continue in bloom during the whole summer; and, in order that the beds 

 may not every year present the same appeai'ance, heliotropes, rose-scented 

 pelargoniums, celsias, and calceolarias may be employed in succession ; or, 

 instead of these kinds planted in the free ground, the green-house plants may 

 be plunged in the beds in their pots ; being symmetrically arranged with 

 regard to size and foliage, so as still to maintain the rule laid down in p. 57; 

 viz. that symmetry of form in the beds requires symmetry in the form, colour, 

 or arrangement, of the plants. It would, for example, be contrary to sym- 

 metry of arrangement, to plant two of these beds with green-house plants, 

 and two with the common hardy kinds; though, by choosing plants of the 

 same size, symmetry of form might be produced. If it were desired still 

 further to vary these beds, they might be planted, for a year or two, with 

 roses ; a standard rose being placed in the central bed, surrounded by migno- 

 nette, and dwarf roses planted in the other beds ; or the centre bed might be 

 occupied by climbing roses trained over a cone formed by a framework of 

 rods; or there might be an arch of iron rods thrown from one central bed to 

 the other, across the walk, and covered with climbing roses, or with a coboea, 

 or some other ornamental climber. The beds may be edged with wire-work, 

 to which mignonette may be trained ; or with ivy, trained to an iron rod 

 raised 6 in. above the surface ; or they may be bordered with any very low- 

 growing evergreen shrub, such as the evergreen iberis, thyme, &c. ; or they 

 may be edged with tiles or slates, or with cast-iron or wooden edgings. In 

 short, these beds may be planted and edged in a different manner every year, 

 during the whole period of a lease ; and, in addition to the summer planting, 

 they may be filled every autumn with bulbs, so as to produce a brilliant show 

 in early spring. 



183. In the back gardeii, the borders may be planted with a mixture of 

 China rosef5, or of rhododendrons and azaleas, selected so as to present a 

 bloom from April to August; with some clethras and Ceanothus aziireus, to 

 continue to bloom till November; or they may be planted with a mixture of 

 herbaceous plants and bulbs, so selected as to present some species in flower 

 during every floral month in the year. Against the basement wall of the 

 green-house, in this design, chrysanthemums may be planted, and carefully 

 trained ; in which situation they will flower beautifully : and against the 

 lower part of the house Cydonia japonica may be planted, which, in that 

 situation, would flower throughout the winter ; while, in such other parts as 

 did not interfere with the windows, Lonicera japonica, ./asminum officinale, 

 climbing roses, and other ornamental flowering creepers, might be planted, 

 for their show and their fragrance. In the green-house, there ought to be 

 vines or creepers trained on the piers between the windows, and under the 



