IN THE MAKING 17 



great strength of colour. Thus, Monkshood and Tiger 

 Lilies make a most splendid picture quite lacking the 

 rawness of Coreopsis and Delphinium though quite as 

 brilliant. Harmony, not contrast, or agreement, not 

 opposition, is a good rule for the garden colour schemer, 

 the great M. Chevreaul to the contrary, notwithstanding. 

 That eminent authority on colour in the section de- 

 voted to the arrangement of flowers in his book, "The 

 Principles of Harmony and Contrast of Colours," directs 

 us to place yellow flowers with red flowers, yellow with 

 blue, deep red with deep blue, and white with any and 

 all. But pink flowers must not approach rose flowers, 

 yellow must be wary of orange, and blue and pink must 

 not touch violet. Are we thus to be deprived of such 

 subtle and exquisite associations as Peach Blossoms and 

 purple Crocuses, lavender and pink China Roses, 

 lavender Phlox and blue Monkshood, dark-red Holly- 

 hocks and orange Lilies, sky-blue Flax and purple Iris, 

 and a thousand more? 



As I said before, the colour sense must ever be in- 

 dividual and one's expression of it original and personal, 

 but there are a few simple laws which have helped me 

 greatly in the harmonious disposition of my flowers. 

 Contrast between the primary colours, red, blue, and 

 yellow, is too harsh and sudden; contrast between the 

 secondary colours, green, violet, and orange, while strik- 

 ing, is not crude or raw. White is constantly spoken of 

 as a peacemaker and much used in gardens to separate 



