CHAPTER IV 



THE GARDEN DELL 



Nothing so puffs up the gardener with pride as his ability to 

 say, " I made this high where once it was low." 



A GARDEN that is flat misses much of the joy of life, and 

 its possessor some of the joy of living. It has to be 

 laid out in a more or less conventional fashion, but 

 one that has little hills and shallow hollows why, there 

 is no laying it out ; it just makes itself, and carries 

 the gardener with it. He spends no time in planning 

 this bed or that border, but makes the walks wherever 

 he can, between banks here, circling a mound there, and 

 hiding behind a hillock somewhere else. He no longer 

 controls the going of the garden, but just adapts his 

 methods to the ground. Perhaps, after all, this is the 

 way to make a garden that shall breathe the true spirit 

 of a home of flowers. And what variety of aspect is 

 thus offered to the flower grower for favourites that 

 love either sunshine or shade, dry soil or wet soil, wind 

 or shelter ! What chances are his if only he will make 

 the most of them ! 



But how few of us possess a garden with a real dell 

 already made ! That is, however, no reason why we 



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