THE SHRUBBERY, 



781 



effect, large plants are often employed, and be- 

 tween these smaller ones are thickly set ; and 

 so far this is all very well when mere screens 

 are desired; but in course of time, if great atten- 

 tion is not paid to judicious pruning and timely 

 thinning, the object in view is defeated, and the 

 shrubbery ceases to afford that shelter, effect, or 

 screen, for which it was originally planted. The 

 same holds good where the effect intended to be 

 pi'oduced is the full development of shrubs of a 

 rare or curious description ; the one encroach- 

 ing on the other prevents either from attaining 

 their full size or natural character. This is also 

 the case where the massed or grouped manner 

 of planting — that is, where one genus is planted 

 in groups following another analogous to it — is 

 followed, and also where attempts have been 

 made at systematic arrangement. In all these 

 cases the shrubbery presents a pleasant and 

 orderly aspect for the first few years, but after- 

 wards it becomes a mass of unintelligible con- 

 fusion. If there is one department in ornamen- 

 tal gardening more neglected than another, it is 

 assuredly this. As we find shrubberies in gen- 

 eral, they present nothing but an almost un- 

 broken surface of foliage, too often as uniform 

 in outline as if clipped with the garden shears ; 

 while below nothing is to be found but dead 

 branches, long naked poles, the remains of most 

 of the choicest kinds that the original planter 

 had thrust in, in a sort of pell-mell fashion, and 

 left to their fate ; and others present belts, or 

 screens, of the most heterogeneous materials that 

 can possibly be thought of 



Shrubberies, although almost entirely ex- 

 cluded from the geometrical style of flower- 

 garden, enter largely into what has been appro- 

 priately enough denominated the gardeuesque 

 style, and by others the picturesque style ; in- 

 deed, in both of these they constitute one of the 

 principal features. In the latter style, it matters 

 little what the individuala»be, provided they be 

 furnished with foliage, and present sufficient va- 

 riety of form^the commonest trees and shrubs 

 produce all that is required, and, correctly speak- 

 ing, only those indigenous to the country should 

 be employed, and these allowed to grow as nature 

 directs them. In the fonner, the case is differ- 

 ent; exotic trees and shrubs enter into its com- 

 position, and their arrangement at planting and 

 after-management must be guided by the hand 

 of man. The gardenesque style, if carried to its 

 fullest extent, scarcely admits of other than that 

 each tree or shrub should stand a distinct ob- 

 ject in itself^not that these, however, are'to be 

 so scattered as to leave large patches of un- 

 covered ground bare between them. Nor is the 

 grouping principle— that is, planting two or 

 more shrubs of the same species together— en- 

 tirely excluded from this style. It may be done 

 with great propriety and effect, and the more 

 so if the field of operation be upon an extensive 

 scale. The great object in the arrangement and 

 after-management is, that these groups be al- 

 lowed to assume their natural character, as each 

 individual would do if planted singly. A tho- 

 rough acquaintance with the material to be em- 

 ployed is here absolutely necessary in the first 

 aiTangement, so tjhat each tree or gi'oup may 

 VOL II. 



occupy the place in which, when fully devel- 

 oped, its natural character will best bear on the 

 general effect. In fact, a shrubbery planted in 

 the gardenesque style should, by the selection 

 and arrangement of the material, show evident 

 mai'ks of the " recognition of art," as much as 

 one in the picturesque style that of " a recog- 

 nition of nature." The great mistake committed 

 in the planting' of all shrubberies is planting too 

 thick, and never thinking afterwards of the 

 necessity of thinning. To produce what is called 

 immediate effect, in inexperienced hands, leads 

 to evils seldom if ever afterwards corrected. 

 Near to the house, and along the principal 

 walks, and in flower-garden borders, let each 

 tree or shrub stand perfectly clear of its neigh- 

 bour ; and if these are judiciously planted, by 

 placing a plant in front so that it shall cover the 

 space between the two immediately behind it, 

 and the border of sufficient breadth, a screen or 

 shelter can be as well attained as if they were 

 planted as thick as an Indian jungle. Here 

 " the recognition of art " should be apparent, 

 and every plant allowed so to grow that its in- 

 dividual form may be fully developed. The 

 sticklers for the picturesque wiU be alarmed at 

 the idea of any part of the surface being seen 

 between the plants; this may be covered by 

 planting it with various species of cotoneaster, 

 daphne, cytisus, clethra, spiraea, Vinca medea 

 and major, Juniperua prostrata, or similar low- 

 growing sinnibs ; but to the eye of the well- 

 informed critic in such matters, portions of the 

 neatly-kept naked surface will present no de- 

 formity whatever. 



Preparing the ground for planting. — In plant- 

 ing shrubberies, too many are content with 

 merely marking out the line of demarcation, and 

 thrusting the plants, as they come from the nur- 

 sery or elsewhere, into holes scarcely large 

 enough to hold their roots. Such a mode of 

 proceeding can never lead to satisfactory results. 

 The ground should be not only thoroughly 

 trenched from 2 to 3 feet in depth, but, if poor, 

 and more especially if recently covered with 

 trees, &c., it will require a moderate degree of 

 enrichment, even for the most common shrubs ; 

 while for American plants, which seldom thrive 

 if not planted in peat-soil, that ingredient should 

 be procured for them. It is found, however, 

 for the generality of these, that pits dug out 

 to the depth of 2 feet, and say 4 feet in dia- 

 meter, and filled with peat-soU, will be sufficient 

 to maintain the plants for ten or a dozen years : 

 but where the shrubbery is to be planted en- 

 tirely with such plants as rhododendrons, aza- 

 leas, &c., it were better to form it entirely of 

 this soil at once. Peat-soil is in many places 

 difficult to procure in such quantities as to form 

 entire borders for such plants, and this difficulty 

 has prevented many from being able to culti- 

 vate these to any extent, or with any degree of 

 satisfaction. We may mention, en passant, that 

 decayed tree-leaves, or completely decomposed 

 tanner's bark, mixed with sand, may be used 

 along with peat-soil in the proportion of three 

 to four, and that, in planting, large fragments of 

 sandstone may be advantageously used imbed- 

 ded in the soiL This we have often done with 



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