Ornamental Gardening for Americans; A Treatise on Beautifying Homes, Rural Districts, Towns, and Cemeteries (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1902 Excerpt: ... the crown, and in this way produce a good effect. At the edge of an abrupt bluff may be placed two or three Camperdown Elms or other bold weeping trees. Such kinds as love moisture, like the Willows and Alders may be effectively disposed by planting in similar clumps along the water's edge or in low places. Where it is desirable to plant trees along the sides of long garden walks and avenues, for shade, scattering them along irregularly, allowing some complete breaks here and there, will produce a better effect than to make formal lines with the trees at uniform distances apart. There is a striking illustration of this in the strong contrast afforded between the irregularly wooded north drives in Hyde Park, London, where along the sides for miles the trees are arranged in scattered groups, and similar avenues in other parks with formal lines of trees at their sides. The same idea is true generally of trees to be planted along the boundaries of large grounds. They will create a much better effect if grouped openly, as in figure 36, than if set, as is often done, in a straight Fig. 36.--PLANTING ON BOUNDARIES AND MOUNDS. line. It is seldom indeed the case, anywhere outside of narrow stieets, that formal lines might not well give way to informal scattering clusters. Throughout the grounds, open groups of large trees may jut out from heavy marginal plantations, or occupy places by themselves surrounded by the open lawn, or they may be in some parts brought in to form groves. Near the junctions of walks and drives, or in bends of these, are also suitable places for trees thus disposed. But the open grouping system of planting should never be confounded with the faulty "dot-a-tree-everywhere" system sometimes met with, and in which such essential garde...