Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-04-20

to use pieces of several important fur
niture periods together, whereas five
years ago this was frowned upon.
4
The battle of the formal versus the
informal goes on merrily in the garden.
Every one agrees that the Boxwood, the
Yew and the Arborvitae had better be
! left alone. No one considers it beauti-
full any longer TO trim them into the
shape of bears or cows or chickens.
An occasional specimen may amuSe or
liven up a corner, but it is enough.
Whether the garden as a whole had
better be formal or informal depends
in the last analysis on its size, shape,
the type of property it surrounds and
the amount of money the owner pos
SesseS. In some instances the formal is
more pleasing 10 most eyes, but often
the supremely informal may cost great
deal more to achieve in a given situa-
ton, and give better result.
The Boxwood chicken should ever be
| kept in minds eye as a warning to the
average gardener in the average home
garden. 1t appeared In an Estate, where
it was lost to some extent in an eX-
panse of shrubbery, trees, lawn, hedges,
etc
1t should warn the average house
holder not to attempt anything like it.
either in respect to shrubs or any other
matter. And thus the informal may be
said to win, for it is the informal which
stands the better chance of looking nat
ural in the small garden. And the
natural, after all, is the best.
4 x
Just as an Office desk may look too
neat, SO a garden will suffer from an
excess of zeal in cleaning up at this
time of year.
Have you not seen a garden so raked
and moved that it had positively a
scrubbed appearance?
1t will do no harm to allow a few
leaves to remain around the shrubs.
They like them. In their natural state
no person with Zest for outdoor physi-
cal exercise would insist on taking away
the covering.
Evergreens Of all sorts benefit from
permitting natural mulch to keep
their roots cool. 1t is well, therefore, if
the home gardener refrains from being
too ScrupulouS in removing all the Win
ter debris from the yard.
An exception may be made in regard
to the grass, but even here a too harsh
cleansing tends to give bare look and
depriyeS the grass plants Of such Sus-
tenance and protection as there may be
in the finer litter which has been on all
Winter
1t must not be forgotten, unless
the coming Summer is vastly wetter
than last that grass will need every bit
OF natural protection which it can re-
ceive. To rake the lawn too clean is to
remove this natural coat and permit
the Summer sun to burn in too deep.
Gardening in Washington and suburbs
seems farther advanced at this time
(mid-ApriD than at a similar time last
year. This, in view of the drought.
seems surprising. Perhaps it may make
US revise our estimate of the inherent
power in all plants to take care Of
themselves Lawns everywhere look
we'll; no doubt the lack of water put
grass on its own and made it tough TO
survive-that Is, it toughened it.
Hence the home gardener, in dealing
with his plants this season, will keep in
mind the natural battle which they
went through last year and will give
them every aid, even to the extent of
permitting few leaves to remain on.
A bit of untidiness is natural. If you
Ike the unnatural, go look at the sur
viving specimens Of the topiary art, and
be still.