Chapter I: Preface

IT is just a year ago since this Essay on “The English Flower Garden” was published in the _Quarterly Review_.

It was written with a twofold object: to give in the smallest compass an outline history of English gardens, and to show once again what makes the true charm and happiness of a garden. Many—perhaps too partial—friends have urged me to reprint this article. They have reminded me that, when the immediate circulation of any one number of a Review has ceased, its articles are virtually lost and buried, and they assure me that there are readers who may not have already seen, and who would yet care to read, this Essay. I hardly know how this may be, but I do know how very much I am indebted to the proprietor of the _Quarterly_ for his great kindness in allowing me the opportunity of this reprint. Should this little book succeed in retaining the friends that _A Year in a Lancashire Garden_ was happy enough to make, it will indeed be fortunate. It has been to me a matter of no little surprise (as, naturally, of pleasure) to find from the generous notices of the Press and from numerous private letters from owners of gardens, to whom I am entirely a stranger, that the views I have expressed as to the necessity of a reform in our gardens are very widely held. So long as a garden is only regarded as a means for displaying masses of gay colouring, half the delight and all the real interest of it are gone. It is only when we learn to make friends of individual plants, and recall their history and associations, that a garden becomes a pleasure for the intellect as well as for the senses. But I do not wish to carry my opinions to any extravagant length. It is Voltaire, I think, who says that “a man may have preferences but no exclusions,” and I certainly would exclude nothing that is good in the present system. Bedding-out is occasionally very effective and sometimes necessary; and, on the other hand, a garden—such as I saw suggested somewhere the other day—which should contain only flowers known to Chaucer, would be extremely disappointing. However, bedding-out can take very good care of itself, and Chaucerian gardens will not be largely popular. Meanwhile, I sincerely hope that flowering shrubs and hardy herbaceous plants may be far more generally grown and cared for than they are at present.

It has seemed on the whole best to leave this Essay as it was written. I have made a few verbal corrections and inserted one or two short sentences, and that is all. I have, however, added illustrative Notes on points which seemed of some little interest.

CONTENTS.

PAGE

LOVE OF GARDENING 1

EARLY ENGLISH GARDENS 3

TOPIARIAN WORK 8

LANDSCAPE GARDENERS 11

BEDDING-OUT 16

CARPET-BEDDING 23

SPRING GARDENING 26

THE SEMI-TROPICAL GARDEN 27

THE ALPINE GARDEN 29

FOUNTAINS 31

THE WILD GARDEN 32

THE SHRUBBERY 35

HARDY SHRUBS 39

THE WALLED GARDEN 43

OLD HERBALS 45

FLOWERS OF WINTER 47

SPRING FLOWERS 49

ROSES 51

SUMMER FLOWERS 52

BIRDS AND BUTTERFLIES 55

EXPLORERS 57

BOTANISTS 60

GARDEN ASSOCIATIONS 65

FLOWER PAINTING 67

FLOWER SHOWS 71

THE INTEREST OF THE GARDEN 74

NOTES.

I. THE GARDENER BOWER-BIRD 78