Special Features 219 



for the colors of their foliage and placed each by itself in a 

 separate bed. With a due regard, in the choice of plants, to 

 diversities of height and habit, to the periods of producing 

 flowers or berries, to the variegation or other conspicuous 

 peculiarity of the leaves, to dwarf edgings of another kind of 

 plant, and to all similar ornamental details, the winter garden 

 may be made very attractive both winter and summer. 



It is possible also to produce highly agreeable winter effects 

 in a less formal manner. Evergreens and shrubs with good 

 winter colors may be arranged in perfectly informal borders 

 or masses, just as other materials are planted for the ordinary, 

 purely naturalistic landscape effects. In such groupings there 

 may be used all shrubs with bright colored twigs, as the dog- 

 woods (Cornus stolonifera, C. siberica, etc.), the yellow willow 

 (Salix alba vitellina), Kerriajaponica, etc., also plants having 

 attractive fruits in winter; for example, the common bitter- 

 sweet, many roses, viburnums, etc. All the best nursery cata- 

 logues give good working lists of plants for these purposes. 



9. Playgrounds. — In the present artificial state of soci- 

 ety, with e\^ery species of business conducted in an anx- 

 ious and hurried manner, and so many persons devoting 

 themselves to mental or sedentary pursuits, all sorts of 

 out door exercise and amusement become additionally need- 

 ful and salutary. And it is gratifying to find that there is 

 a wise tendency towards harmless indulgence of the kind. 

 A demand, therefore, more frequently arises for a bowling 

 green, tennis court, croquet ground, or other play spot, as an 

 appendage to a garden. 



I believe the orthodox form of a bowling green is a square 

 of about forty yards each way, and that the best players pre- 

 fer to have the ground very slightly raised towards the center. 

 An oblong and narrower plot, however, will suffice for all 

 ordinary practice; and as it is in no way requisite that the 



