122 



THE VILLA GAEDENER. 



walk. These beds we shall suppose 

 to be planted in masses of one kind 

 in a bed ; the object being to make a 

 gi-eat display of colour from the win- 

 dows of the house, and from the walk 

 from the street entrance to the front 

 door, and yet to preserve in the 

 colours the symmetry shown in the 

 forms and disposition of the beds. 

 The border («) we would plant with 

 rhododendrons, and other low ever- 

 greens, to form a dark backgroimd to 

 the flowers on the lawn ; intermixing 

 the rhododendrons with laurustinuses, 

 autumn and spring flowering meze- 

 reons, and Cydonia japonica, for late 

 and early flowers ; and planting the 

 wall with ivy. The border next the 

 street may have three variegated 

 hollies planted in it, to break the view 

 of the street from the house ; or one holly, one scarlet-flowered arbutus, 

 and one variegated tree box may be chosen for this purpose. The border 

 beneath the pai'lour window may have myrtles, camellias, maurandyas, 

 passion-flowers, sollyas, &c., planted against the house, and some dwarf half- 

 hardy flowering shrubs, such as escallonias, Ceanothus azureus, fuchsias, 

 Cestrum nocturnum, a dwarf fan palm, &c., planted in the border, so as to 

 create a necessity for winter protection. We shall show different modes of 

 planting the beds ; previously noticing how statuary ornaments may be 

 introduced in them._ 



185. Introduction of statuary ornaments in front gardens. — The centre bed 

 (6) may have a sun-dial in the middle, rising from the base, surrounded by 

 rockwork (the manner of forming which will be given hereafter), planted 

 with select creeping plants ; and there may be a vase for plants on a pedestal 

 in each of the beds c and d; the pedestal being surrounded by climbers, to 

 be trained to it, but not higher than the base of the vase. Throughout the 

 floral months, these vases might be filled with pots of plants in flower, and 

 throughout the winter with evergreens. Tlie beds e e may then be filled 

 with i-ed-flowering low plants, allowing an equal number for every floral 

 month ;//, with white-flowering plants; g g, with blue- flowering plants ; 

 and h h, with yellow-flowering plants. The small beds may have crocuses 

 I'oimd their margins and in the centre mignonette. As this plant is never 

 fragrant except in poor soil, these beds should consist almost entirely of lime 

 rubbish, except round the margins where the crocuses were planted. Among 

 the shrubs we would plant bulbs of as many low-growing kinds as room 

 could be found for, but no fibrous-rooted herbaceous plants whatever. Bulbs 

 among evergreens make a very fine appearance in spring; and, as their 

 foliage dies off" altogether in summer, they have not that littery, disorderly 

 appearance which herbaceous perennials in shrubberies usually have when 

 lliey have done flowering. 



lUij. Planting tvith bulbs, to be succeeded by showy annuals. — Instead of 



