DECEMBER, 1906 
the Spanish bayonet, which not only looks 
perfectly miserable in the embrace of ice and 
snow, but whose entire color is cold. The 
bare whip-like branches of the common 
broom—the result of centuries of exposure 
on windswept hills—make it a fitting com- 
panion. Five: The real winter gems, which 
by their color effects, harmonize with and 
form real miniature pictures on the snowy 
background. Among these, and the best 
examples, are the striped Pennsylvania 
maple and the white birch. 
HOW TO AVOID MONOTONY 
There is altogether too much sameness 
in our home grounds in winter. No one 
plants with an eye to winter beauty. The 
crude utilitarian rarely goes beyond planting 
a heavy screen of evergreens, to cut off the 
coldest winds. Sometimes, a little thought 
is given to the massing of shrubs which by 
reason of their red or yellow berries, carried 
well into the middle of winter or the beginning 
of the new year, have a beauty all their own. 
But I would ask your attention to quite an- 
other effect. The relations of light and 
shade, of mass and of line. What more 
beautiful than the elegance of the white 
birch scene as here pictured against a snow- 
covered slope? The white of the bark, 
barred irregularly with dashes and patches 
of black, is in the strictest harmony 
with the black and white touches pro- 
duced by the irregularities of the snow- 
fall on the surrounding ground. One can 
hardly appreciate the garden qualities of the 
white birch in the summer time. ‘Then, 
when its graceful foliage half obscures the 
satiny white bark, it is useful in the garden 
as a lightening object; whereas, looked at 
now, it appears to be a very part and parcel 
of nature’s whole scheme, relieving the 
dreariness of too much flat land, while at 
the same time carrying all the dignity of a 
living tree. The white birch stands alone 
in this quality of snow harmony. There is 
no other white barked tree that is a worthy 
competitor. 
A NOVEL IDEA: ‘‘ WINTER BEDDING PLANTS”’ 
In evergreen planting we seem to have 
forgotten the great possibilities that are 
offered by what may be called ‘‘ winter bed- 
ding.” ‘Thousands of dollars are expended 
every year by the well-to-do in planting out 
coleus, geraniums, and other more or less 
tender bedding plants for summer brilliancy. 
The various bulbs are relied upon to enliven 
the spring landscape, and are removed in 
due season to make room for the bedders. 
These fall before the onslaught of the early 
frosts; the beds are cleared, and the whole 
garden is usually put into a state of primness 
and uncomfortable tidiness, coupled with 
bareness, until the springtime awakens the 
tulips once more. This can be avoided 
and a most interesting and normal feature 
added to our gardens, if the hardier ever- 
greens are grown in pots, and planted in the 
beds for winter ornament. These dwarf 
evergreens may be retained in their pots, 
which during the summer time should be 
plunged in ashes or other cool material 
THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 
that is kept properly moistened. This treat- 
ment of the beds need not interfere with the 
use of the spring bulbs, as the winter bedding 
plants may be planted behind the space 
devoted to the flowers. 
SHIVERY EMPHASIS OF COLD 
Green foliage amid the snow may be ex- 
pressive of two different sentiments. On 
the one hand, the defiance of winter and its 
withering cold, on the other, an actual inter- 
pretation of the untoward conditions. Com- 
pare the illustrations at the top of the pre- 
ceding page. Does not the ink-berry stand 
out valiantly against the landscape, the very 
spirit of defiance, while the yucca, in the right 
hand picture, expresses the very opposite ? 
There is a lesson to be derived from this for 
the home gardener. Do not plant large 
quantities of the yucca close to the approach 
241 
to the house, or at all events where they will 
be conspicuously in view. 
As a group to be viewed through the 
window from the cozy surroundings of a 
well-furnished and comfortably heated lib- 
rary, they would have a justifiable place. 
There is a good deal of satisfaction to be 
derived from a proper emphasis of the differ- 
ence between indoors and outdoors, provided 
the observer is enjoying the luxuries. Very 
few plants lend themselves to this use, be- 
cause those that really look uncomfortable 
are generally so in fact, and rarely can with- 
stand the trials of the season. 
DEFIANT EVERGREENS 
The most defiant plant among the broad- 
leaved evergreens is unquestionably the 
rhododendron. It grows so freely, it makes 
such a dense mass, and positively enjoys its 
SLED DD bone 
The best tree for the winter effect of its bark. 
carrying out the same scheme of decoration—black patches on white. 
mens or in loosely arranged groups, where it can be seen easily. 
Note how it harmonizes with the snowy background, 
Shauld be planted as isolated speci-« 
The white birch (Befula alba) 
