The Wild Garden Or Our Groves and Gardens Made Beautiful by the Naturalisation of Hardy Exotic Plants; Being One Way Onwards from the Dark Ages

CHAPTER XV.

Chapter 5975 wordsPublic domain

SELECTIONS OF HARDY EXOTIC PLANTS FOR VARIOUS POSITIONS IN THE WILD GARDEN 163

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE

Colonies of Poet’s Narcissus and Broad–leaved Saxifrage, etc. _Frontispiece_

Columbine and Geraniums in meadow–grass v

Large flowered Meadow Rue in the Wild Garden, type of plant mostly excluded from the Garden 1

Night effect of large evening Primrose in the Wild Garden (Œnothera Lamarkiana) _To face page_ 4

A “mixed border” with tile edging, the way in which the beautiful hardy flowers of the world have been grown in gardens hitherto, when grown at all. (_Sketched in a large garden, 1878_) 5

Blue flowered Composite plant; fine foliage and habit; type of noble plants excluded from Gardens. (Mulgedium Plumieri) 6

Wood Anemone 8

Caucasian Comfrey in shrubbery 9

The Cretan Borage (Borago cretica) 12

Flowers of Geneva Bugle (Ajuga genevensis), Dwarf Boragewort 14

Star of Bethlehem in Grass 15

The association of exotic and British wild flowers in the Wild Garden.—The Bell–flowered Scilla, naturalised with our own Wood Hyacinth 16

The Turk’s Cap Lily, naturalised in the grass by wood–walk 19

Crocuses in turf, in grove of Summer leafing trees 20

Group of Globe flowers (Trollius) in marshy place; type of the nobler Northern flowers little cultivated in gardens 21

The Mountain Clematis (C. montana) 22

The White Japan Anemone in the Wild Garden 23

Anemones in the Riviera. Thrive equally well in any open soil here, only flowering later _To face page_ 24

The Green Hellebore in the Wild Garden 26

Tall perennial Larkspurs, naturalised in Shrubbery (1878) 28

Double Crimson Pæonies in grass 30

Eupatorium purpureum 32

The Giant Scabious (8 feet high). (Cephalaria procera) 32

Giant Cow parsnip. Type of Great Siberian herbaceous vegetation. For rough places only 35

Foliage of Dipsacus, on hedge–bank in spring 36

The large white Bindweed, type of nobler climbing plants, with annual stems. For copses, hedgerows, and shrubberies 39

The Nootka Bramble; type of free–growing flowering shrub. For copses and woods 40

The Yellow Allium (A. Moly) naturalised 42

Periploca græca (climber) 43

Large White Clematis on Yew tree at Great Tew. (C. montana grandiflora) 45

The way the climbing plants of the world are crucified in gardens—winter effect (_a faithful sketch_) 45

Climbing shrub (Celastrus), isolated on the grass; way of growing woody Climbers away from walls or other supports 47

A Liane in the North. Aristolochia and Deciduous Cypress 48

A beautiful accident.—A colony of Myrrhis odorata, established in shrubbery, with white Harebells here and there 51

Large White Achilleas spread into wide masses under shade of trees in shrubbery 53

Lilies coming up through carpet of White Arabis 56

Colony of Narcissus in properly spaced shrubbery 57

The American White Wood–Lily (Trillium grandiflorum) in Wild Garden, in wood bottom in leaf–mould _To face page_ 58

The Lily of the Valley in a copse 63

Solomon’s Seal and Herb Paris, in copse by streamlet 67

Colony of hardy exotic Flowers, naturalised by brook–side 70

Valley in Somersetshire, with Narcissi, Marsh Marigolds, and Primroses _To face page_ 70

Cyperus longus 73

The Cape Pond Weed in an English ditch in winter 75

Day Lily by margin of water 76

Marsh Marigold and Iris in early spring 78

The same spot as in previous sketch, with aftergrowth of Iris, Meadow Sweet, and Bindweed 79

Partridge Berry (Gaultheria) 80

Wild Rose growing on a Pollard Ash in Orchardleigh Park, Somerset 83

White Climbing Rose scrambling over old Catalpa Tree _To face page_ 84

Climbing Rose isolated on grass 87

Arenaria balearica, in a hole in wall at Great Tew 88

Cheddar Pink, Saxifrage, and Ferns, on cottage wall at Mells 89

The Yellow Fumitory on wall (Corydalis lutea) 91

Large Japan Sedum (S. spectabile) and Autumn Crocuses in the Wild Garden 92

Crane’s Bill, wild, in grass 94

Large–leafed Saxifrage in the Wild Garden 95

Tiger Lilies in Wild Garden at Great Tew _To face page_ 98

Large–flowered Clematis 102

Sun Roses (Cistus) and other exotic hardy plants among heather, on sandy slope _To face page_ 104

Wood and herbaceous Meadow–sweets grouped together in Mr. Hewittson’s garden 105

Woodruff and Ivy 108

Tailpiece 110

Dug and mutilated Shrubbery in St. James’s Park. _Sketched in winter of 1879_ 111

Colony of the Snowdrop–Anemone in Shrubbery not dug. Anemone taking the place of weeds or bare earth 115

Colony of the Summer Snowflake, on margin of shrubbery 119

The Monkshood, naturalised by wet ditch in wood 121

The white Narcissus–like Allium, in the orchards of Provence; type of family receiving little place in gardens which may be beautiful for a season in wild places 123

The Alpine Windflower (Anemone alpina) 124

Siberian Columbine in rocky place 126

Tall Asphodel in copse 127

The foliage of the Meadow Saffron in Spring 132

The White–flowered European Clematis (C. erecta) 133

Cyclamens in the Wild Garden; from nature 134

A South European Bindweed creeping up the stems of an Iris in an English garden 135

A Sea Holly; Eryngium 138

Groups of Funkia Sieboldi 140

A hardy Geranium 141

Snowdrops, wild, by streamlet in valley 142

Sun Rose on limestone rocks 144

White Lily in Wild Garden 146

Everlasting Pea, creeping up stem in shrubbery 148

Type of fine–leaved umbellate plants seldom grown in gardens 149

The Bee Balm, Monarda. American wood plant 150

The Great Japan Knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum). (Showing the plant in flower) 152

Phlomis. Type of handsome Labiates; admirably suited for the Wild Garden 153

The tall Ox–eye daisy (Pyrethrum serotinum) 154

The Great Reed of Southern Europe (Arundo Donax) 155

Telekia. Type of the Larger Composites, excluded from gardens proper 159

Group of Tritoma, in grass 160

A tall Mullein 161

Ophrys in grass 163

Rock steps with Omphalodes 175

Butterbur and Double Furze on margin of lake 176

THE WILD GARDEN.

ONE WAY ONWARDS FROM THE DARK AGES OF FLOWER–GARDENING.