EVERGREENS IN THE LANDSCAPE 23 



wonders why so little use is made of this field, and so assorted 

 the results achieved. Good staging of dwarf evergreens will 

 make happy the home-lover and the nurseryman. Weeping 

 and irregular dwarf conifers give picturesque and Japanese 

 effects when properly placed for a special touch, but most 

 ungainly forms look crazier than ever because of poor placing. 



Irregular dwarf conifers, as the many forms of juniper and 

 chamsecyparis, are excellent ground-cover in poor soil in the 

 sun. For good land and under trees, the many forms of yew 

 of low habit, and for moist soils the dwarf loose varieties of 

 arbor-vitie, take the place of grass or low deciduous shrubs, 

 hiding soil and slope through the year. One species at a time, 

 in soil that suits it, with some broad-leaved evergreen shrubs 

 and perennials of good foliage, gives carpets of undulating 

 green that no other planting can duplicate. No soil is too dry 

 and sunny, shaded or damp, or the space too narrow, in regions 

 where homes are built, to prevent the use of this richest of 

 soil concealments. Small areas of definite outline, covered with 

 dwarf evergreens in definite plan, make evergreen gardens that 

 satisfy the eye the year through. 



Evergreen conifers, therefore, contribute in the landscape 

 picture the dark masses, the contrasts, the solid lines against 

 the sky, shelter in hedge, screen, and windbreak, the solitary 

 specimen, accents and adjuncts to garden accessories, the best 

 material for formal work, and permanent cover to hold and 

 hide the soil. Except such types as the pine, they are weakest 

 as parts of harmonious composition, for their chief purpose is 

 individual contrast, except in large plantations. 



A special use in modern plantings for conifers of low or 

 medium size (no trees) is for foundation and entrance plantings. 

 To connect house walls with lawn and topography, something 

 more permanent in appearance than salvia or deutzia is often 



