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There are no hard and fast rules that one can lay down in forming 

 a pleasure garden therefore the selection of trees and shrubs should 

 be very carefully done as so much depends on individual requirements, 

 locality, nature of the land, surrounding scenery and many other points 

 which have to be constantly kept in view. Plants which are known 

 not to succeed in the locality should he given special provisions such 

 as soil and position and should not be given permanent positions until 

 it has been proved that they will succeed under such conditions. 



Great care should be taken not to overcrowd the garden with tall 

 growing trees as they soon form a dense thicket and apart from exclud- 

 ing the air and light from the house, ruin the smaller shrubs and 

 plants underneath. 



This should however always be performed with due regard to shade 

 and local conditions. One of the » features of a well proportioned 

 garden should be an open expanse of grass lawn and this should not be 

 sacrificed by the inclusion of too many single plants or beds. A few- 

 beds carefully placed, of bright flowering or ornamental shrubs should, 

 where possible, be introduced on the lawns. These when judiciously 

 selected are always a feature of a well arranged garden and have the 

 advantage of lasting for a considerable time without requiring renew- 

 ing. In fact I would recommend shrubs for beds in preference to 

 flowering annuals which are always objects of pity in this climate 

 and last so short a time. Another very important point in arranging 

 a garden is the blending of colours and shades and great care should 

 be taken in selecting positions that plants are not in combination or 

 close together whose colours clash. 



Considerable care should also be taken in planting that each tree 

 or shrub receives the position most suited to its requirements. 

 Certain flowering shrubs require full sun, others require partial shade, 

 whilst to be successfully grown most foliage trees and shrubs should 

 be given full sun; but these are matters which can only he learnt by 

 constant observations and experiments. Planting should be conducted 

 so as to prove effective at all seasons. A very effective arrangement is 

 to have a border of mixed flowering and foliage shrubs, and a position 

 for such can be obtained in most gardens, for example, in front of a 

 strip of jungle, or along a boundary fence or wall or by the side of a 

 carriage drive. To get the best effect the border should not be too 

 wide, but this will depend on the length of the border, the size of the 

 garden and the amount of space available in front. 



In selecting plants for a border of this kind care should be taken 

 to plant the taller subjects at the back and the dwarfer growers in 

 the foreground. Here again the danger of clashing shades and colours 

 should be avoided. A border is in many cases to be recommended 

 especially in a comparatively small space as it prevents the necessity 

 of cutting up the lawn in front into small beds which is not always to 

 be advised where space is limited and it should always be borne in 

 mind that good gardening depends on the judgment exercised in the 

 first instance by disposing of the material and space at hand to the 

 best advantage. 



The foregoing must only be taken as a few general remarks on the 

 selecting and arranging of trees and shrubs to the best advantage. 



