Vol. II. No. 20.] 



THE GARDEN BEAUTIFUL. 

 HOME LANDSCAPE AND HOME 

 WOODS. TREES BY WATER. 

 In most of the talk about garden design 

 of recent years, the right planting of the 

 country place is overlooked, and even 

 those who care most for good planting 

 are apt to neglect the waterside, and 

 we see vast stretches of shoreland with- 

 out any of the lovely effects which 

 well-chosen riverside trees give. Some 

 things come of themselves, such as Osier 

 and Withy ; but they have rarely any 

 good effect,form,or colour. Often beau- 

 tiful views are shut out by these weedy 

 things, and where the house is not in a 

 commanding position they may do in- 

 finite harm. One of the most beautiful 

 of situations for a house is upon a bluff 

 beside a river, as atNuneham; and even 

 if there is no bluff,asatLevens,the river 

 may be a great aid in fine planting, and 

 careful thought should be given to what 

 gives much beauty at trifling cost. The 

 best waterside materials are often those 

 of our own country and easily procured, 

 fine in colour, and good in form. There 

 are certain gains in waterside planting 

 which we do not often find elsewhere ; 

 we get air, and light, shade and breadth 

 from the water itself, which prevents the 



[Monthly. 



dotting of plants over the whole area 

 which is too common a result. Again 

 there is often good land beside rivers 

 liable to flood, which we cannot plant 

 and happily cannot wisely build upon, 

 and these give us those rich levels that 

 are such a gain in breadth to lowland 

 landscape when fringed by noble plant- 

 ing. Flooding is in no way against the 

 trees themselves if planted rightly upon 

 islands, lake margins, and riversides. 

 Some of the best trees, like the Willows, 

 are used to floods, and even trees that we 

 more often associate with hot, dry soils 

 — like the Eastern Plane — seem happy 

 in such conditions, as we may see upon 

 the waterside in the Thames valley. As 

 it is important to fix upon the trees 

 which give us fine form and colour be- 

 side water, we omit in these notes the 

 many shrubs and herbaceous plants 

 which also yield good effect in low land. 



Of all sites for planting there are 

 none in which we have clearer guidance 

 as towhat is bestthanwehaveforislands 

 and the margins of water, be it lake or 

 river. The vegetation should be mostly 

 of a spiry character ; Willows in many 

 forms, often beautiful in colour both in 

 summer and winter,with Dogwoods and 

 Poplars. Even the Willows of Europe 



X 



FLORA 



AND 5YLVA. 



NOVEMBER, 190 4. 



