20 THE BOOK OF GARDEN DESIGN 
signer may be truly grateful. It enables any weak 
spots which may exist in the plan to be corrected before 
it is too late. Of course no one can determine the exact 
effect which time will produce, and it is well we cannot, 
for perhaps the greatest charm of garden design is its 
delightful elusiveness, the uncertainty which exists as to 
the manner in which flower and tree will disport itself. 
But unless we attempt to see further than the mere out- 
lines of the plan, we are trusting to chance to secure for 
us the results we most desire. Especially are we liable 
to err in the matter of colour effect, a consideration 
which is outside the scope of the black and white plan. 
Unrelieved stretches of turf become monotonous unless 
afforded the foil of suitable foliage; broad masses of 
bright hued flowers demand the sober relief of grey 
stonework or silvery leaved trees and plants. A certain 
spot is often dull and unsatisfying, simply because it 
lacks this element of colour; a group of flowering 
shrubs with bright hued blossoms or even a stone vase 
filled with climbers may dispel all idea of monotony. In 
the securing of suitable contrasts, work may be raised 
above the merely mediocre, to a level of high artistic 
merit. Easy transition of form and colour is no doubt 
the safest course to pursue, but a certain boldness of 
touch may in certain instances prove highly advantageous. 
The shrubbery, often a tame and featureless affair, may 
be rendered attractive by the sharply contrasting effects 
of adjacent groups of deciduous trees, and the dark, 
glistening foliage of evergreens. It is quite possible to 
carry the practice of rounding and softening the corners 
beyond reasonable limits, and we sigh for some pro- 
minent feature to rivet our attention, if only for the 
moment. 
