98 The Wild Garden 



early flowers belong, give us the precious gift of earli- 

 ness ; crocus, narcissus, and scilla, all come before our 

 own early flowers awake, while nearly all are as hardy 

 as our own native flowers. Then there are many 

 hardy climbers which, if we planted them among trees, 

 would be quite as beautiful as any native climbers, 

 of which the number is too small. The Indian 

 Mountain Clematis is hardy, and as easy to establish 

 as our native Clematis, while it is more beautiful, and 

 there are other beautiful plants one may add to our 

 own, though, generally, it will be safer to trust to our 

 native flora by drives. The prettiest brake of shrubs 

 I ever saw was an immense group of the common 

 Barberry at Compton Winyates, laden with berries 

 weeping down with glowing colour. 



Much may be done in the direction of Grass walks 

 to take them not only where the views and landscape 

 charm us, but also where the native flora shows itself 

 best. Very often our common ferns in the west country 

 and in moist districts make themselves great ferneries 

 which ought to be seen. The idea that the fernery can 

 only be made with heaps of old stone or other rubbish 

 is too absurd to be worth disputing. The plants rarely 

 grow naturally in that way, and the most vigorous and 

 effective of ferns, which make evergreen covert and 

 give such cool and beautiful effects, certainly do not. 

 There are also numbers of fine hardy North American 

 and other ferns tempting us to naturalize them, but for 

 all artistic ends our native ferns are sufficient. 



