56 



JOUENAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



part of the wild garden is pre-eminently the place for those large types of 

 herbaceous vegetation, it is none the less generally wise that in it, as in 

 all other kinds of gardens, the iwominent positions should be furnished 

 only with those plants and shrubs of all kinds which have no such period 

 of ugliness in their year's growth. 



Sightliness throughout the year is, for such positions at least, more 

 important than is conspicuous beauty during one small part of it. Trees, 

 shrubs and plants which have only the latter are well worth growing ; 

 but a part of our best work, it seems to me, should be so to place them, 

 without need for shift, that at such times they may display and attract 

 attention to their beauty, while at other times they are out of view or are 

 at least in the background. 



One of the most valuable "groups " of plants for our purpose calling 

 for special mention is that of the Rosaceae, single Eoses and Rubus more 

 particularly. 



A beautiful wild garden might be made from them only, with or with- 

 out help from a few kinds of Conifers, from brake Fern, from Rhododen- 

 drons (well nigh indispensable), and the like. It would be equally a wild 

 garden whether confined to natm'al species, or at least to single forms, or 

 not. It would in my judgment be matter of taste only whether it 

 should be thus limited, or whether the 100 splendid garden forms of bush, 

 climbing and rambling Roses should be let in and placed where they may 

 ramble at pleasure. They should in any case be only naturally supported 

 — not staked — and planted in good and deep soil ; but the fact that the 

 soil has been made, if such be the case, should not be apparent. 



Than the wrinkled Rose of Japan {Rosa rugosa) in its many fine forms 

 it would be difficult to name a finer or more useful wild-garden plant, 

 beautiful in leaf, flower, and fruit seven months out of the twelve, and 

 succeeding in every soil. 



The allied group of Rubus again (mostly from the American Continent) 

 can nowhere be seen in better character than in the wild garden. The 

 ornamental cut-leaved blackberries make fine fence plants to any 

 enclosure. Ruhus spcctahilis is a beautiful April flowering shrub, as is 

 R. canadensis rosea a September one ; both contrast well with Berberis. 

 Rubus deliciosus from the Rocky Mountains, and R. nootkaensis are 

 exquisite if little seen species, and other good sorts will be found in my 

 appended lists. 



Plant Ferns and mossy Saxifrage in the shade and shelter of big bushes 

 of these Rubus, as of their brothers the Roses ; let brake Fern (not allowed, 

 however, to overpower them) spike up through and around them, and 

 let species Clematis and Vines and other climbers run over and through 

 them. 



A word generally as regards such creepers. Bear in mind that the 

 list of them must include tremendously strong growers like Clematis 

 montana and big Ampelopsis, and Aristolochias, and Honeysuckles, as well 

 as comparatively weak growers like Clematis (Atragene) alpina, C. 

 graveolens and C. flammula. If the garden will later be tended by a 

 gardener of the requisite knowledge, the whole of these can be planted 

 without much regard to then- strength, for he will cut in and repress 

 them pretty much as need arises. But if this is not so, we must have 



