The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1920-03-27
THE JOY OF
HAVING A GARDEN

ing, whether inherent, cultivated or
suddenly acquired, is a blessing. It
is the simplest and purest of life s
pleasures; one Of the few that leave
behind them no sting of regret or NJ
safety; "one companionship which
can never harm or pall;' one JOY
which is abiding and knows not age
or time; but only grows the deeper
with the years.
A home without a garden is not a
home; 1t is merely temporary habi-
tation. Show me well ordered gar
den and I will show you a genial
home but one cannot be without
the other, they are inseparable and
each must complete the other.
A proper garden is one that is in
closed, shut away from the noise and
glare Of the street, secluded, still and
sweet, and sheltered from the curious
gaze of passers-by by tall shrubbery
and trees, where birds may nest, Sc
, cure from harm. 1t is filled with
beauty cherished for its. own. sake,
from the time Of the first darlings Of
spring the snowdrop and the for
sythia's golden bells, through the
glory of summers bloom and au-
tumn's foliage to the bright berries
and colored twigs of winter, with the
delicate tracery of bare branches
/ etched against the sky. And all Of
this is possible on a city lot.
The first requisite of having a sue
cessful garden is to want one; to
want it for its own sake and not be-
cause someone else has one. II a
house is planned from the inside out
that is, to be lived init will be a
good one. II a garden is planned to
be lived in rather than to be seen in,
it, too, will be good, for a garden is
essentially an outdoor living room.
( A house need not be pretentious to
be Handicapped; very small house
and plot Of ground may be rare
picture, joy, provided it is planned
with sympathetic understanding Of its
possibilities and its limitations for
every site has its pecularities. which
must be studied carefully and the
whole planned just as successful
house is planned, studied in relation
to scale and fitness, for what is ap-
/, propriate for level piece of ground
may be wholly out Of place on rough
land; an Alpine garden has no bust
ness on fiat country, and a Japanese
garden Of stunted trees and NINA
ture waterfalls with a colonial house
is crime.
Native trees and shrubs will do
more to tie garden and house to
their environment than will imported
ones Plan your garden as though
you were going to paint a picture,
plant in masses and flowing lines
rather than In individual units and
spottiness, and consider the structur-
a! lines of the whole before doing
anything, for nothing can be accom-
plished by haphazard planting, anil
the whole scheme should be thought
out before shrub Is ordered or a
sod turned. A plan Of the property
drawn to scale, even though rough
one will aid materially In visualiz-
ing the completed effect. The true
garden is a place Of slow and meas
ured growth, and while, OF course, we
want some things for immediate eff
feet, something should be left for fu
ture development, else we will be de-
prived of the Joy Of looking forward
Study 1t as a whole and add to 1t bit
by bit till the picture Is complete.
Do not attempt so much that you
will be discouraged, for keeping a
beautiful garden up to its beautiful
best is not by any means lazy mans
job, but realize that one gets out Of
anything only so much as he puts In
to Il; that the only real or lasting
happiness in life is from loved work
we'll done; and that IL you bring tina,
spirit to your garden you will find
pleasures that nowhere else were
found, and all Elysium In a plot Of
ground Alice Walton, In Miami
Herald.