THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
July 
194 
may add, that in every such instance of rival display, 
ono bouquet shall almost invariably be most strik¬ 
ingly more beautiful than the other. In this there 
is really nothing more surprising than there is in the 
similar result of experience, that two painters, with 
the same colours, canvas, and pencils, invariably will 
produce pictures on the same subject essentially and 
strikingly different. In both cases—the arrangement 
of the cut flowers and the composition of the two 
pictures—diversity of taste and of judgment prevail, 
yet both may have some degree of beauty. It is, 
therefore, not a pointless question which now lies be¬ 
fore us, “ Are there any rules for the arrangement of 
cut flowers ? ” 
Beyond all doubt there are some general rules for 
such arrangement, which may be followed with a 
certainty of producing pleasing results, and we will 
commence by repeating, as we stated on a former 
occasion, that flowers may be arranged either accord¬ 
ing to the harmony or the conti’ast of colours. Red 
harmonizes to orange, orange to yellow, violet to red, 
indigo to violet, blue to indigo, and green to blue. 
Green is the contrast to red, sky-blue to orange, 
yellow to violet, blue to orange red, indigo to orange 
yellow, and violet to bluish-green. To find the con¬ 
trast of any flower, cut a small circular piece of one 
of its petals, place it upon white paper, look at it 
steadily with one eye for a few seconds, without allow r - 
ing the eyelid to close, then look from the coloured 
circle to another part of the white paper, when a 
circle of another colour will be apparent. This circle 
is called the spectrum, and is the true complementary 
colour or contrast required. 
There is no doubt that arranging flowers according 
to their contrast or complementary colours is more 
pleasing to the eye than placing them according to 
their harmonies. Consequently, a blue flower should 
be placed next an orange flower, a yellow near a 
violet, and a red or a white should have plants with 
abundant foliage near them. “White,” says Dr. 
Bindley, “ suits blues and oranges, and better still 
reds and roses, but it tarnishes yellows and violets. 
In all cases, however, when colours do not agree, 
placing white between them restores the effect.” 
These dictates are frequently available in flower- 
borders, and always in the exhibition of dahlias and 
ranunculuses, as well as for cut flowers; and it is 
quite certain that such contrasts are as effective in 
promoting the beauty of flowers as an orange dress 
is in rendering a fair face ghastly, or as blue is in 
making a brunette sallow. 
Form has very considerable influence over the 
beauty of the arrangement of a bouquet. If the vase 
is high, the flowers must be arranged in a pyramidal 
form, with the tallest in the centre ; but if they have 
to be arranged in a tazza, or flat vessel, the nearer 
the mass of flowers approaches to a flattened seg¬ 
ment of a sphere or globe, the more agreeable. In 
every case, whether the vase be an upright Etruscan 
or of tazza form, it should be very considerably con¬ 
cealed by the flowers : in the first case, by drooping 
flowers, such as fuchsias, onosmas, stephanotis, and 
others of that habit; and in the case of the vase 
being of a flat form, by green leaves of the ivy or 
rose clustering around it. Dark leaves, such as 
these and of the camellia, always contrast better 
with the flowers in bouquets than any foliage of a 
lighter hue. 
Perhaps the most important rule relative to th.e 
arrangement of bouquets is, do not crowd the flowers. 
One of the most vulgar-looking, oppressive objects to 
look upon, is the tightly-bound huge conglomeration 
of flowers stuck into a pitcher of water, and called by 
its tasteless accumulator, “ a nosegay.” Such a mass 
of flowers usually contains a number sufficient for 
furnishing a dozen tastefully disposed bouquets, for 
flowers in these can scarcely be arranged too lightly 
and sprinklingly; for if the arranger finds it needful 
to introduce even a sprig, to fill up or to conceal any 
objectionable spot, that part is most usually a failure—• 
it looks crowded, and the flowers appear as if without 
room sufficient to display themselves. 
Flowers for vase bouquets should be always cut 
from the parent branches, and with a sharp knife; for 
the less is the injury done to the vessels of the stalk, 
the longer do these vessels retain the power of draw¬ 
ing in the necessary moisture. Even when the flow¬ 
ers begin to droop, they will often revive if the ends 
of the stalks be cut off. 
Wetted sand is much better for arranging flowers 
in than water only, for the stems can be thrust into 
it so as to retain the flower at any desired inclination. 
