INTRODUCTION xiii 



these pages, many gentlefolk settle upon the land to 

 carry on the business of a smallholding, combining 

 flower, vegetable, and fruit culture with the care of 

 animals, they will then have even greater ties than those 

 who are solely gardeners by profession. Animals need 

 attention early and late, whilst any negligence in the 

 matter of feeding is quickly noticeable. 



The importance of continued vigilance on a small- 

 holding has been brought much to my notice lately 

 because I have joined forces with Mrs. Peete Musgrave 

 in having one at Massetts Place, Scaynes Hill, Sussex. 

 The young women who come to us there for a training 

 have this impressed upon them, and in the mornings the 

 sound of the goats' bleating is as early a rdveilld as was 

 in my old home at Ragged Lands, Glynde, the gardener's 

 bell that told of work well started. 



In this book I have only sought to make suggestions. 

 Some few of these are upon a large scale adapted to big 

 places, but the majority are such as could be economically 

 carried out in gardens of varying size. The question of 

 food-production will continue to absorb our attention for 

 many years, and so the pleasant relaxation of beautifying 

 our gardens must be financially a measured one. 



I have scarcely touched upon details such as the height 

 and width of pergolas, the size of paths, their structure, 

 the kinds of stone to be used for rock gardens, the various 

 ways of obtaining water — wells, springs, or the motor- 

 power of pumping-engines. Such work is to be found 

 carefully described in the technical books relating to each 

 subject. Garden design is complicated because it is 

 hardly -possible to lay down any fixed rules of proportion. 

 These have all to be decided according to the site, and 

 after due consideration of the special requirements of the 

 family, the house, the formation of the ground, and the 

 natural scenery that surrounds the place. 



