GEO. W. PARK FRIENDSHIP GARDEN 
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# Dear Friends: Please give me some advice and suggestions for a perennial garden, for I wish, f 
i to start a fine permanent Geo. W. Park Garden in our neighborhood. Louis F. Meltz, Orleans Co., N. Y. ? 
NOTE. This letter with its fine thoughts we pass on to you. i 
CARNATIONS. "If I were limited to a half dozen perennial flowers one of these would be • 
the improved Large-flowered Carnation." Geo. W. Park. 
Below are described Mr. Park's Choice "Half Dozen" 
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CARNATION. The Hybrid Carnations, represent¬ 
ed in the Chabaud, Margaret, and other races, are 
among the most desirable of garden, as well as win¬ 
dow flowers. The plants are very easily started from 
seeds, are vigorous 
and hardy in growth, 
and begin to bloom 
in from 4 to 6 months 
after the seeds are 
sown. The flowers 
are large, double, 
rich and varied in 
color, deliciously 
fragrant, and contin¬ 
uously produced the 
entire season, if not 
allowed to exhaust 
themselves in over¬ 
bearing flowers and 
seeds. The improved 
varieties are of spe¬ 
cial beauty, the 
plants being of a 
dwarf, compact 
growth, healthy, free- 
blooming and hardy. 
Propagated from 
seeds during July 
aud August the lit¬ 
tle plants become 
strong and well es¬ 
tablished before 
winter, and safely endure the severe frosts, begin¬ 
ning to bloom early the following season. Those 
who start a bed of them this summer, as suggested, 
will feel thankful that their attention was called 
to these fine Carnations in these remarks. 
ORIENTAL Poppies. These glorious hardy gar¬ 
den perennials have magnificent green foliage and 
strong stems which rise two feet high, bearing enor¬ 
mous brilliant flowers at their summit. The French 
have perfected these blooms until we now have them 
in many lovely shades from pure white to deep 
crimson. Oriental Poppies are not difficult to start 
from seeds, and when once established the plants 
increase in size and grandeur for many years. 
WAHLENBERGIA or Chinese Bell Flower, 
known also as 
Platycodon, is 
one of the most 
hardy, reliable 
and easily 
grown herba¬ 
ceous perenni¬ 
als. A choice 
garden plant 
not easily over¬ 
praised. The 
large, open, up¬ 
right bells of 
white or rich 
blue, held upon 
erect stems ten 
or twelve inches 
high, are lovely 
in the garden or 
used as a cut flower. Very choice 
AQUILEGIA (Columbine). When once a gar¬ 
dener has acquired this 
beautiful herbaceous per¬ 
ennial he will not be with¬ 
out it. The plants are gener¬ 
ally hardy, like moist, well- 
drained soil and partial 
shade, and require very lit¬ 
tle attention. The colors 
range from pure white to 
rich red; from delicate lav¬ 
ender to royal purple; and 
from cream to golden yel¬ 
low. All are easily grown 
from seed, and the plants will soon form large, hand¬ 
some clumps, waving their graceful, nodding blooms 
in profusion during late spring and early summer. 
DELPHINIUM. The new hybrid varieties of per¬ 
ennial Larkspur are among 
the finest of garden flow- 
ers. The plants will grow 
six feet or more in height 
and display immense 
spikes of charming blue 
flowers in many shades. 
Every garden should con¬ 
tain a clump of these. 
They enhance the beauty of 
the garden and are exqui¬ 
site to mix with pink Glad¬ 
ioli for house decoration. 
DIGITALIS, The Shirley. This splendid Fox¬ 
glove is a hardy biennial 
easily raised from seeds. 
The plants attain a height 
of three feet and produce 
racemes of lovely flowers 
of great size, in an endless 
variety of colors, charm¬ 
ingly spotted. The plants 
do well in almost any soil, 
but assume a luxuriant 
appearance in a good 
loamy one. A very desir¬ 
able garden plant bloom¬ 
ing from July to Septem¬ 
ber. 
For a perennial garden one may have a wide 
range of choice. The following lists may be help¬ 
ful in planning the method of grouping. 
BACKGROUND Plants: Delphinum, Digitalis, 
Echinops, Hollyhocks, Heracleum Wilhelmsii and 
Verbascum Harkness Hybrids. 
CENTRAL Bedding Plants: Achilleas, Aquile- 
gias, Carnations, Catananche Bicolor, Campanula 
Medium, Cheiranthus Allioni, Gaillardia Grandi- 
flora, Leucanthemum, Nierembergia Frutescens, 
Oriental Poppies, Platycodon, Pyrethrum, Sweet 
Williams, and Wallflowers. 
Edgings: Armeria, Thrift, Alyssum Saxatile Com- 
pactum, Aubrietia, Anthemis Macedonica, Calam- 
intha Alpina, Cerastium Biebersteini, Gentiana 
Acaulis, Iberis Sempervirens, Prunella Grandiflora, 
Silene Schafta, Spergula Pilifera Aurea, Stellaria 
Graminea Aurea, and Veronica Amethystina. 
