Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1895-04-24
ART IN GARDENING.
Making the Most Profitable Use
of Space.
ARTISTIC COLOR IN FLOWER BEDS
The Proper Grouping Of Flowers Neces-
sary to Make Good Display-The
Mixing of Colors.

ones, Notwithstanding the latter's
superiority in color. 1t seems as
though a revival of art in gardening
might present these flower colors in
way which would make them irresisti-
bly, attractive.
We cannot measure beauty with a
yard stick, and, what is more. every
one has his own opinion about what
is ideally beautiful; SO it would be
difficult matter for an artist to explain
to botanist why the garden flower
is incomparably superior to the wild
flower from an esthetio point of view.
Those who love color mus love
flower garden, and the glory of the
garden is its color; there is nothing
like it in the artists paint box; there
is nothing equal to it on the meadow.
The beauty of color is it's extreme
purity; its charm lies in its wavering
color. and to produce it mix our pig
ments until they become dull and life
less. Natures esthetic color is found
in the mourning bride, nasturtium,
petunia, salpiglossis and cineraria I'M
dimmed and perfect.
We do not place enough value on
white; it is the one color except green
which harmonizes with all others.
To every two or three pink flowers
there should be double the number of
white ones, and these should stand be-
tween the pink and neighboring colors.
The pink peony is an exception to the
rule; but, the peony is an instance
of color harmony in istelf, and it is not
nearly SO necessary to guard it with
white as it is to place it where its
bushy form and bold foliage may be
plainly seen; the pink phlox, with a
poor support Of green, is in much
greater need of a white neighbor. If
all towering plants grew like peonies,
with plenty Of foliage and isolated
blooms, we would not need to give so
much attention to the separation of
conflicting color.
The true gardener is true artist,
and he is inevitably follower of
nature. There is nothing suggestive
of nature in color pattern denied by
flowers. If one insists upon having
ga pattern" in mind, why not work it
vertically instead of horizontally?
There are ways Of relieving lilies and
gladioli against oydonia japonica and
weigela bushes, and sunfowers against
dark foliage backgrounds. White
lilies (the candidum Variety relieved
against compact and symmetrical
hedgerows are more interesting than
are grass plats patterned with colors
and geraniums.
On the proper selection and group
ing together of plants, shrubs, vines
and trees the artistic appearance of the
garden depends. 1t must also be borne
in mind that flower garden is not
worthy of the name unless it contains
effective masses of color. Green should
be considered as the background or set
ting on which the flower colors are to
find relief; group Of white lilies
needs an undisturbed background Of
soft shady green; but not so the rose,
whose foliags furnishes certain
amount of detail in line as we'll as
broken color, altogether admirable as
the setting for the complicated struc-
ture of the flower. Yet rose bushes are
often planted where spreading back
ground of green destroys all detail, and
the flowers look like so many shapeless
spots of pink, red or white.
The graceful outlines Of white lilies
can scarcely be lost in such setting;
ON the contrary, the wilderness is likely
to show itself in splendid relief. 1t is
obvious. then, that there must be GER
tain methods practiced in laying out
the garden so its flowers will be
brought into the proper environment.
The figure of the dwarf French mari
gold is compact and symmetrical, and
needs separation from all surroundings
of the beauty Of the individual plant
is to be ssen. 1t is mistake to bury
the dwarf Gamma and the airy nicotiana
affinis in masses Of green; they need
relief, but with ranunculus, peoples,
escholtzias, phloxes, bachelor buttons,
coreopsis and candy tuft we have moth
ing to consider so far as form is con-
cerned, unless it is the conjunction of
these spreading, slender limbed plants
with others which form some contrast
There is no lack of material which
will do this. There are slim, straight
gladioli, conventional lupins. spreading
castor-oil plants, symmetrical asters,
compact oalendulas, struggling and
climbing nasturtiums, bushy petunias
and graceful nicotiana; in fact, there
is no excuse for ignoring the individ-
uality of plants and forcing them into
solid masses of color which will define
some pattern; that is not an artist
work, it is the work Of mechanic.
The marigold and aster are SO per-
feotly balanced in figure that their
foliage attracts attention as we'll as
their flowers. Larkspurs, hollyhocks
and irises have "full-length" figures
which must be arranged to contrast
with such compact plants as dwarf
nasturtiums, asters and calendulas; for
that matter, variety in form and color
is quite necessary on vertical lines, and