452 APPENDIX 



and shrubs about the borders. On the devious inner edges of these 

 border -groups, against the back-ground of foliage, is the place for 

 the flowers. The flowers are then a part of the structural design 

 of the picture, and their forms and colors are shown to the best 

 advantage. The sketches illustrate these remarks. Fig. 440 shows 

 a front yard set full of meaningless plants : it is a nursery. Fig. 

 441 shows the same yard with a dominating central idea and an 

 expanse of canvas or greensward : it is a picture. Fig. 442 shows 

 a planted flank, with its bold edgings of flowers. 



If there is only six feet between the school -house and the fence, 

 there is still room for a border of shrubs. This border should be 

 between the walk and the fence, — on the very boundary, — not be- 

 tween the walk and the building, for in the latter case the planting 

 divides the premises and weakens the effect. A space two feet wide 

 will allow of an irregular wall of bushes : and if the area is one 

 hundred feet long, thirty to fifty kinds of shrubs and flowers can be 

 grown to perfection, and the school -grounds will be practically no 

 smaller for the plantation. In country districts and large grounds, 

 effects like that in Fig. 442 can be obtained with little trouble. If 

 there is no money with which to buy shrubs, they can be got from 

 adjacent woods and fields and gardens ; and such plants usually 

 thrive best, because they are hardy and well adapted to the region. 

 One week's well-directed work in each year, by one man, coupled 

 with donations of plants from private yards, could make every school- 

 yard in the land a, little paradise. 



It is an easy matter to make the school premises shown in Fig. 

 443 to look like Fig. 444. The plan, Fig. 445, suggests the design 

 and method. The place could be still further improved by heavier 

 mass-plantings on the borders. Fig. 446 suggests a plan for a school- 

 yard upon a four-corners, which the pupils enter from three direc- 

 tions. The two playgrounds are separated by a broken group of 

 bushes extending from the building to the rear boundary ; but in 

 general, the spaces are kept open, and the heavy border-masses 

 clothe the place and make it home-like. The lineal extent of the 

 group-margins is astonishingly large, and along all these margins 

 flowers may be planted, if desired. A greater amount of effective 

 ornamentation can be secured by planting in narrow belts on these 

 margins than by covering half the entire area of the premises with 

 flowers. More detailed instructions for the planting of gardens may be 

 found in " Garden-Making", and in other horticultural books. 



