What to Avoid 



39 



of its pursuits without attracting general notice; dogs and 

 other animals will have the run of the place; and the luxury 

 of cherishing song-birds must be relinquished, for they will 

 not frequent a garden that is so unsheltered. 



Nor is this all. Every beautiful flower that unfolds itself, 

 or shrub that spreads out its attractive berries about Christ- 

 mas time, affords so many temptations to pilfering for the 

 passers-by, among whom there will ordinarily be some, at 

 least, who will be unable to resist the inducement, and the 

 mortification of seeing the choicest and most admired favor- 

 ites thus stolen will be frequently incurred. 



7. Removal of Trees.— Where a garden is to be made on 

 land that has been planted at some previous period, and trees 

 of considerable magnitude exist upon it, especial care should 

 be used in reference to the removal of any of these, so as not 

 to render the place too open and bare; for where fine trees 

 are known to have stood, an air of nakedness and poverty of 

 the higher forms of vegetation will be all the more manifest 

 and displeasing. There is no subject on which greater delib- 

 eration is demanded than the cutting down or removal of 

 large trees, as nothing changes the character of a place more. 



8. Mixed Styles. — The adoption of too great a mixture 

 of styles in gardens is an error that should be specially 

 guarded against. It is the source of numberless little incon- 

 gruities and improprieties, and although, where the space is 

 very small, it may be somewhat difficult to attain any style 

 at all, yet a mixture of the formal and the free, the decorated 

 and the simple, the picturesque and the polished is some- 

 times seen attempted, and with the worst effects. Straight 

 and regular lines can rarely be blended with curved and flow- 

 ing ones nor can rough and broken forms be fitly associated 

 with such as are smooth and graceful. Things which have 

 no affinity in their character, or expression, should not, except 



