46 
House & Garden 
ARBORS, SUMMER-HOUSES and TRELLISES 
A Dis cussion of the General Principles Which Underlie Their Use—The Questions of Style , 
Location and Proper Emphasis in the Landscape Scheme 
GRACE TABOR 
The true arbor is never roofed to with¬ 
stand a real rain. Its very nature demands 
that it be open for free passage of bird 
or bee or breeze 
A sense of leafy shade on a sunny day, 
of freedom from the imposed convention¬ 
ality of a house, should characterize the 
well planned arbor 
F IRST come, first served, and so 
to first thoughts, which are usu¬ 
ally indicative of something. They 
are especially significant, I think, 
when they have to do with outdoors. 
So what is the first thought when one 
speaks of an arbor? 
To me there comes a sense of leafy 
shade on a summer day, of vagrant 
winds, sweet with all outdoors, of 
insect noises, of flickering wings and 
the importance of bug hunting and 
nest tending and w'hat-not; and 
above all else, freedom from the ever¬ 
lasting impositions of convention¬ 
ality as represented by a house. Pan 
and his court lurk sometimes near, 
if not within, the shadow of an ar¬ 
bor, I am sure. I am equally sure 
they never by any chance approach 
a house. 
There must be nothing about an 
arbor to dispel this sense of freedom, 
nothing —- continuing the fancy— 
that will alarm the timidest faun or 
nymph, or make them fearful of im¬ 
prisonment. Yet it must be a shelter 
and afford seclusion from the sun 
and heat; and even possibly from a 
little summer shower, though cer¬ 
tainly not roofed to withstand real 
rain. Where rain cannot go, dryads 
and satyrs never will! 
Then it must be so open that 
birds and bees and breezes may 
come and go at will; and it must be 
so completely in harmony with na¬ 
ture all around that both bees and 
birds will frequent it as freely as 
they do the trees. Within these 
specifications it may take any form 
(Continued on page 62) 
i 
Another use of trellis is 
found in the residence of J. 
R. Potter, Esq., Great Neck, 
L. I. Here it incloses an 
outdoor living room. Paid 
Hertwig, architect 
Gillies 
Where an individual plant 
needs support a trellis may 
serve a good purpose. But 
a random scattering of de¬ 
tached trellises should be 
avoided in every case 
North end 
