Evening star., 1933-09-09
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

rains" Of which there is always 50 much
talk in advance.
If these fail to materialize, the lawn
maker will have to fall back upon the
! hose, always q friend in need.
He should not mind this very much,
for so far this year the hose has been
practically unnecessary in this vicinity.
September is q good month for NOV
ing shrubs around, II that task should
become necessary.
Landscape architecture, ON the small
grounds. mostly boils itself down to
removing shrubs and other permanent
paintings from the center to around the
rim
This is the fundamental Of q very
much elaborated subject. The gardener
can read many books, and in the end
not get beyond two principles, the one
stated above in its simplest form, and
one other.
The other is the principle of SYM
metry, of balance, or whatever one
chooses to call 1t.
1t can be worked out on an indoor
mantel as well as any place else. Put
two small and similar vases on the
shelf, one at either end. Then place
a slightly taller subject on the middle
Of the mantel
BY introducing one more object,
making four in all, the whole thing is
spoiled. as is quite evident to the most
inartistic eye.
Remove the fourth object, and imme-
diately the balance is restored.
Much the same thing applies in the
garden
Plants cannot be just stuck around
without plan, or the results will be
perfectly planless, and so evident to
the least critical But the symmetry
of garden subjects must be obtained
without effort, of the type permissible
in interior decoration. The balance
above a fireplace Is obviously man
made, the balance in the garden must
grow from the place itself. and be part
of 1t in the strictest sense. But the
very simple formula Of one here, and
one there, and one in the middle, can
be adapted to the garden, too, without
the spectator. whether he be familiar or
stranger. If other subjects are to be
added, they must be on the principle
of one here and one there, not Just
one here. 1t is because this is not
grasped that one sees so many lop-
! sided gardens which seem to be falling
over. These are distressing to the
eye, and to the inner spirit of garden
ing, which always yearrs for symmetry,
even in the most informal paintings.
That is why the better landscape ar
lists always plant in trios, one and one
and one, not just one here, and then
one some place else. The former has
balance because it has plan, the latter
! is unbalanced because it lacks plan.
x X
| Never be in too great hurry, in the
| garden at this season, to remove some
thing that Is dead or dying. or which
strikes you as under the necessity Of
| being removed
| Let it remain for q space.
! Take your time, and look the situa-
ton over we'll.
There is no real need for hurry. and
Nature has way Of doing things all
her own.
! She may surprise you by turning the
| failure into a success right before your
eyes.
Nobody ever can tell what Nature Is
/ going to do with something which seems
/ in the way, or which strikes the human
observer as under pain Of dismissal
| Nature is not man. and does not often
operate under his laws at all, but strictly
under her own. Do not be in too great
a hurry to say that she Is wrong.