October, 1910 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



115 



People in new countries always have copied 

 old countries, and they always will — until 

 they learn better. And all this talk about 

 the impracticality of most English effects 

 has simply advertised the beauty of English 

 gardens and made people more eager than 

 ever to copy them. So, when 1910 came, 

 my learned colleague said: "Let us not keep 

 preaching the American plants all the time 

 because the one thing that people are deter- 

 mined to do is to copy England. You have 

 talked enough about what we canH do. 

 Now let's tell about the few English effects 

 we can have. Our mission is to do the 

 constructive thing." Hence these articles 

 in 1910 on " Enghsh Effects We Can Have" 

 and "Practical Ideas from England." 



It is proper that we should look to Europe 

 for novelties, rarities and collections, but 

 eventually all the fruits and ornamental 

 stock intended for America should be grown 

 in America. As to big orders, the dealers 

 on both sides of the Atlantic must " fight it 

 out," as they always have done. It is a 

 question of iirms, not countries. The great 

 majority of the American amateurs have 

 always placed small bulb orders with Ameri- 

 can seedsmen. And we must confess some 

 sympathy with these dealers, because they 



have borne the expense of educating the 

 people to buy bulbs. Also their business is 

 a risky one. It is easy to incur a severe 

 loss, for it is impossible to foretell what 

 varieties will be demanded and in what 

 quantities. 



I wish I could say it is all wrong to copy 

 England, because it would be so simple and 

 easy. But the truth is it is about half 

 right and half wrong to do so. And since 

 the deadliest truths are half truths, I want to 

 tell what I believe to be the whole truth: 



IT IS RIGHT 



1. To copy the spirit 

 of English gardening, 

 e.g., privacy, outdoor 

 living, permanence, 

 good taste. 



2. But the best lesson 

 England can teach is 

 that every country 

 should rely mainly 

 on its own flora. 



IT IS WRONG 



1. To depend chiefly 

 on European materials 

 because they are, as a 

 rule, short-lived here. 



2. To use horticultural 

 varieties just because 

 they are showier. 

 White dogwood is in 

 better taste than pink. 



This whole situation comes to a climax 

 this month because everybody seems to be 

 looking toward Europe for bulbs. The 

 public does this for three reasons. First, 

 bulbs have always been grown there, and 

 our American seedsmen are, as 2 rule, 

 mainly dealers. Second, we now have a 



parcels post between Holland, England, and 

 America. Third, the new tariff is favorable. 

 Here is my advice to beginners about 

 bulbs: 



DO THESE THINGS 



1. Naturalize some 

 long-lived bulbs, and 

 make them look like 

 wild flowers. For 

 example, plant 1,000 

 d a f fo d i 1 s in wood, 

 meadow, orchard, or 

 shrubbery. 



2. Be a collector. Get 

 25 or 50 varieties of 

 daffodils or Darwins 

 or cottage tulips. 



3. Put clumps of bulbs 

 in your shrubbery or 

 hardy border. 



4. Find out whether 

 the kinds you want 

 are hardy in America 

 and reasonably long- 

 lived. 



DONT DO THESE 



1. Don't try to natu- 

 ralize tender or short- 

 lived plants, e.g., hya- 

 cinths, or anything 

 that is gardenesque, 

 e.g., Darwin or bed- 

 ding tulips. 



2. Don't try a little of 

 everything. Don't be 

 satisfied with a small 

 variety. Study; learn. 



3. Don't have a fancy 

 bulb bed in the middle 

 of the lawn. 



4. Don't buy Anemone 

 coronaria, Ranunculus 

 Asiaticus, Helleborus 

 orientalis, C alochortiis , 

 Pacific Coast lilies or 

 other tender bulbs. 



From now until November ist I will gladly 

 give you any help I can with the list of 

 bulbs you propose to buy, if you will do two 

 things: i. Take me into your confidence and 

 tell nae what you want to do. 2. Enclose a 

 stamped, self-addressed envelope. 



Impractical : — Anemone blanda in England. The best blue flowers of March, that we can naturalize are scillas and chionodoxas 



