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The Boy's Flower Garden

Of course every boy who cares about gardening will have a little flower garden. That is the first thing he is likely to attempt, and, perhaps, on the whole, that which he may attempt with the greatest certainty of success. A nice little varied flower garden is a source of interest and pleasant exercise for a boy nine months out of twelve. But it is not by imitating the common style of flower garden that a boy can make his little piece pretty and interesting for the length of time we have named. Nothing can be more bald and awkward-looking, more miserable in aspect, than most flower gardens he is likely to see at the present day; and therefore he must not attempt to imitate them, but follow the instructions to be presently given. The reason why the greater number of flower gardens of the present time are bad and miserably vulgar-looking, is that those who arrange them simply use a few sorts of plants, and many of them in great excess, so that an oppressive kind of monotony is produced, which is anything but agreeable in the flower garden; and, besides, nearly every flower garden you enter is very like every other--no life or interest to be seen in them as a rule; but, on the other hand, a great deal of mere gaudiness.

In addition to these demerits, the ordinary type of flower garden is usually filled with tender plants--plants which must be put out in the ground when the frosts are quite gone, in the beginning of June, and taken up again as soon as they reappear in autumn--leaving the ground bare for the winter and long spring. Now, even if this were the most beautiful way of managing a flower garden, it would not suit the boy gardener. He has, as a rule, no time to attend to tender plants, and if he once plants his garden, keeps it clean, and adds a new member to it now and then, it is perhaps as much as can be expected, considering how many other things he has to do. Besides, he goes away to school now and then, and what is to become of his tender plants then? Most boys will be proud to take care of their own things, and will be much better satisfied with a hardy little plant, which cannot suffer when they go away for six weeks at a time, than with one that may go off with the first frost. Clearly the best thing for the young gardener to do is to cultivate the most interesting and pretty of the hardy flowers of all seasons. Usually these are infinitely more interesting than the tender exotics of the grand flower garden. Many of them are English plants, notably the beautiful lily of the valley, the pink, the carnation, the graceful Solomon's seal, the various lovely primroses and polyanthuses, and a host of others. Yes, you will do most wisely by adopting all those charming old inmates of our gardens, which, independently of their associations, are not to be surpassed for their beauty by any tenderlings. It will be our pleasant duty to point out to you the kind that you may grow with the greatest ease, and pick out for you the most beautiful kinds known. It is most essential to be very careful about the plants you put in your little flower garden, for your space is generally small, and there is in consequence the greater necessity to take care that every spot of it is occupied with a "good thing," as gardeners are wont to say. There are hundreds of plants mentioned in garden books, and sold in nurseries, that are little better than weeds, and which would, therefore, sadly disfigure your garden. Presently we shall write you a list, which may be implicitly depended upon--every plant being beautiful, hardy, and in all respects suited to your wants.

As boys are usually allotted but a small portion of border for their flower garden, it is better to adopt the mixed border system, that is, a mixture of different kinds, tastefully arranged, and have nothing to do with what is called "bedding out," or planting great masses of one thing. By the mixed system, you will be enabled to enjoy a little of everything, and at all seasons, from the time that the crocus opens its brightly-burnished golden blossoms in early spring, till the Christmas rose ventures to show its large white flowers in the depth of winter. Do you like exquisitely coloured little flowers in the dawn of spring--little brightly blue things that "come before the swallow dares?" You can grow such without expense or trouble in your little parterre. The charming bushes of dwarf shrubs, and large border flowers, which bloom in May, must have charms for you as for all of us, and these too you may have in perfection; while the roses of June and July, the lilies of August, and the grand gladiolus of the autumn, will all be perfectly at home in your borders, as will every good and beautiful flower garden plant. In laying out your small patch of flower garden, it is best to confine yourself to a central bed (which may be square, round, or oval), and borders around that, and not to attempt anything elaborate in the way of laying. Attempts to lay out small bits of ground in a geometrically elaborate or Liliputian imitation of the natural style, is almost sure to end in the production of something ridiculous or cockneyfied. Confine your attention chiefly to the plants, laying out the ground in a convenient manner. Let the design be subordinate altogether to the plants. All trivial artificial ornaments, in the way of shells, coloured gravel, statuettes, sundials, &c. should be left out of the plan altogether. The most beautiful gardens are those in which plant-beauty, and that alone, is conspicuous. If you can make the visitor forget all about design--forget everything but the fact that he is in a beautiful and varied garden, with nature's own gems, free and healthy, on every side, you will attain the highest success of which the ancient art of gardening is capable.

We will suppose, then, that you have selected your little bit of ground. The next thing to do is to prepare it thoroughly. Now, in ordinary cases this is not half done. We are going to recommend you to plant permanent things, plants which will not require removal for many years, and you will not have a thorough opportunity of preparing the ground after you once plant. Therefore, the preparation of the ground is of tenfold greater importance in your case than in that of the ordinary gardener, whose beds of geraniums, or suchlike, are empty in winter, so that he has an opportunity of dressing and digging them every year.

Before marking the walks or anything of the kind, when, in fact, your little piece of ground comes into your hands at first, remove all matters from its surface, add manure to it in abundance, and have the whole dug as deep as you can go, without bringing up the bad subsoil at the bottom. If the ground be sandy, so much the better; then all you have do is to give it plenty of cow, or any other rich manure that comes to hand. If, on the other hand, it be of a clayey, stiff, tenacious nature, like much of the ground to the north side of London, you must act quite differently. Most pretty border plants like a light, warm, free or sandy soil, and abhor a heavy, wet one. The way to cure, if we may so speak, or, in other words, improve the very stiff soil, is to add plenty of sand, leaf-mould, horse manure, or gritty scrapings from roads, or any other loosening material of this kind that you can obtain. Dig it in deep, and dig the ground over again, so that it may be thoroughly incorporated with the soil. All this should be done in autumn, if you have the time--in early autumn, if possible. When well done, and the ground levelled, then you may mark your little walks--with a line--and your central bed; and if in this operation you can get the gardener to assist you, do so by all means. In many cases the gardener gets ready the boys' garden, and presents it to him ready for planting, and that is the best way; for the planting and attention required afterwards will be as much as you can do, if you do it well. A word or two as to edgings for the borders and the bed. Don't have anything to do with those nasty stone edgings, so much advertised of late, as they look very ugly and out of place in in a garden. The neat little edging of box is, perhaps, the prettiest as well as the oldest in existence. But we are inclined to think that little edgings of plants that flower are the best for your case. Try to be original with your edging as with everything else, if possible, and whatever may be used as an edging near your garden, avoid, and have something distinct. We know of about one hundred pretty plants for making edgings, but can only mention such here as you are likely to be able to obtain without difficulty. The best are the rosy thrift (Armeria vulgaris rubra), a lovely spring plant; the pretty little white and blue campanula pumila, and its white variety; the large blue gentian of the Alps (G. aculis), this is plentiful in Scotland, but not about London; the pretty little blue aubrietia, to be obtained everywhere; the variegated cocksfoot grass (Dactylis glomerata variegata;--what a pity it is that we are obliged to use such names); and the double daisy in various colours. Should you make a box edging, use the dwarfest and best kind; and if you happen to notice any other dwarf hardy plants that make tasteful edgings, use any you fancy, by all means. The more variety we have the better, and the only thing that it is particularly desirable you should avoid is any forms of those crockery wares, or artificial stone edgings, as they are all as bad and ugly as need be. We will now follow with a list of the most suitable plants for your garden. To each plant a figure will be attached, to indicate the position it should occupy in your beds or borders. We will, for convenience sake, throw the various heights of the plants used into three classes--1, for the smallest plants, or those fitted for the front of the border; 2, for the medium-sized, or those suitable for the middle parts; and finally, 3, for the taller kinds, which require to be placed at the back, or near the back of the border. Doubtless you will make a point of growing the rose; that is deservedly everybody's favourite. You may plant the rose either in the back part of your border, as a standard in the middle, as a dwarf bush, or on the front edge, pegged down close to the earth--not a bad way of growing it, by the way. But avoid the standard rose, if you can; it is ugly, awkward, and by no means so satisfactory as a rose "growing upon its own roots:" that means, a kind not grafted upon another, but quite on its own resources. Roses generally are grafted upon free growing common kinds, known as stocks. The most pleasing in the end, and by far the most satisfactory, are the roses upon their own roots. They make dwarf but long-lived and vigorous bushes--the very best things you can employ in the middle parts of your borders. If there be sufficient room, have a dozen kinds of roses, each different. Every spring, from deaths during the winter, and changes of one kind or another, you will have to look over your borders to fill up vacancies. It is best done about the end of May, when you may exactly see the state of the plants in the border, by filling up the majority of these vacancies with the better kinds of bedding plants, &c. By doing so you may enjoy both phases of gardening--the beautiful and interesting hardy flowers, to be presently named, and the brillant and common flowers of the summer parterre, the pretty kinds of verbenas, the dwarf and neat lobelias, the variegated and other geraniums, and in fact, any kind of bedding plant that comes to hand.

Next, for the selection of the more valuable and more uncommon hardy flowers, leaving out all such as are difficult to obtain. Among all the flowers of spring, few are better known than some of the anemones--apennina (1), fulgens (1), coronata (1), sylvestris (1), and Honorine Iobert (2), are the very best. Among them we have the sweetest blue, the brightest scarlet, and the purest white. Of the columbines (Aquilegias), the best for your purposes are the common border varieties. They are mostly fitted for the central line of the border. Of the magnificent delphiniums, so richly blue, tall, and stately, there are many beautiful new kinds--so many that I need not enumerate them, but most nurseryman are pretty sure to have varieties of them. Being tall, they are mostly suited for the back, or nearly the back portions of the borders: if you have a central bed, they will also look very well towards the middle of it. By the way, the middle of such bed might well be devoted to a choice shrub or two, say a good rhododendron or kalmia--that is, if the soil would suit such. The peony is almost too big for such little gardens; but a plant or two may be ventured in some unimportant spot. The yellow bachelor's button (Ranunculus acris, fl. pl. 2), is very pretty, and so exceedingly is Dielytra spectabilis (2). Baptisia australis (3). Coronilla varia (2). Galega officinalis alba (3). Lathyrus grandiflorus (3), a climbing plant, very fine for going up a low trellis. The white and red everlasting peas (3), also climbers. Orobus vernus (2). The perennial Lupin (3). Achillea aegyptiacum (2), A. aurea (1), A. Eupatorium (3), and A. millefolium roseum (2)--all fine and free. Of Michaelmas daisies (Asters), A. versicolor (1), elegans (3), turbinellus (2), Amellus (2), will be found highly beautiful. The Pyrethum in fine variety of beautiful color and size: they have been raised of late years in great quantity by Mr. Salter of the Hammersmith nurseries, and admirably suited to the middle line of borders, therefore the figure 2 will indicate their position to a T; their colour is rich and distinct in the extreme. The fine autumnal flowering Phlox (3) is also sold in great and beautiful variety, and should have a place in every good collection. Six or eight of the best kinds should be in the boy's garden. Nearly every nurseryman supplies them cheap. In the harebell family (Campanulas) we will find some very fine, particularly pumila (1), carpatica (1), persicifolia (3), and P. alba (3), grandis (2), macrantha (3), rotundifolia (2). The fleur-de-lis, or Iris, has some beautiful varieties, of which the best are germanica (2), florentina (2), pallida (2), De Bergii (2), pumila (1). Tritoma grandis (3), and glaucescens (3), are noble things for the back of a border. The double wallflowers (2), the alpine wallflower (1) (Cheiranthus alpinus). The Potentillas (2). Veronica amethystina (2), and corymbosa (2). The Virginian tradescantia (2); the crimson loose-strife (3); Lythrum roseum superbum. I give you the hard names so that you may have the less difficulty in procuring the plants, for many may know them by their Latin name, who would not know them by their common one, and vice versa. The American cowslip (1) : this being a very chaste and pretty plant, have as much as you can of it. Salvia argentea (2). This plant has grand silvery leaves, and should be in every collection. Perennial candy tuft, 1 (Iberis). There are three kinds of this--corraeafolia, saxatilis, and Garrexiana, all good, hardy, and beautiful. Arabis alpina (1); Aubrietia purpurea (1); Alyssum saxatile (1): all three very easy to grow, and very common. The beautiful little Hepaticas in various colours, blue, white, and red. you must secure a stock of these, above all things; they are among the prettiest of spring flowers, and will "set off" charmingly the front parts of your borders. There is a fine new kind of hepatica (H. angulosa), a noble kind, which you will also do well to obtain: give it a rather shady position in light soil. One or two tufts of the Christmas rose will be quite enough. When this begins to show its flowers, a few weeks before Christmas, you will do well to cover the plant with a hand-glass, leaving a little air at the top. This will prevent the flowers from being injured or hurt by rain; they will grow very much larger and whiter than if left exposed. Of Pentstemons (2), a good variety should be grown, especially if the soil be light and good, such as they delight in. Sedum fabaria (2), is a fine autumnal flowering plant, which must not be forgotten. Rudbeckia Newmannii (3), a very fine autumnal bloomer. Lithospermum fruticosum (1), a wonderfully pretty plant for the fronts of borders. Any kind of pink (1) that you can conveniently obtain, should be grown; they are sweet, hardy, neat, and, in a word, perfect for your purposes. They are considerably varied of late years, and highly useful for cutting for bouquets, &c. The front of the border is the best place for them. Immediately behind them, and scarcely so far back as the line of the second row, is the place for the carnations and picotees, which of course you will be sure to cultivate. There is nothing more beautiful in our gardens than many of these, so beautifully and richly coloured, and so delicately and exquisitely margined and striped. Linum narbonense (2), and Perenne album (2), noble kinds of hardy flax, are also good. The CEnothera tribe will furnish some beauty: notably the sweetly coloured CE. acaulis (1), which opens its very large flowers in the evening, and keeps them open till nearly breakfast-time in the morning; the noble yellow macrocarpa; and the large evening primrose (CE. Lamarkiana). Some dwarf tiny shrubs, that flower freely, will look beautiful in your border, and of such you cannot find one more beautiful than the early spring flowering heath, 1 (Erica carnea); it is a mass of handsome bloom, and very hardy and neat in habit. Other capital little shrubs are Daphne Cneorum, sweet and pretty--various dwarf kinds of native heaths, and Genista tinctoria (1), and sagittalis (1).

In addition to the above, it need hardly be added, that such universally esteemed plants as the lily of the valley (1), the primrose (1), and the polyanthus, should be well represented. Latterly there have been raised considerably varied kinds of primrose and polyanthus, and nothing can be more charming than mixed masses of such. From a packet of seed of each (ask for that of the ordinary mixed kinds), you may raise a considerable variety of beautiful kinds. Double daisies (1), too, in various colours, will be found very pretty in the spring, as will the numerous kinds of pansy (1), the gentian, and the forget-me-not. By the way, you must not forget some tufts of of the common forget-me-not; it does very well as a border plant in all but the driest soils. At Trentham it is tastefully employed to form a margin round some pretty little gardens, dedicated to the various younger members of the family; and we have known people to be so full of gratitude to a departed dog, as to plant a ring of it round the little monumental slab which indicated his place of burial in the garden border. The various pretty and very dwarf kinds of saxifrage (1), and Sedum (1), too, you will find neat and distinct for the very front your border, in which you will of course arrange the dwarfest plants.

One word more. It would be a pity to confine you to this or any other selection. The more varied your garden is, and the more distinct from that of your friends or neighbours, the better. The selection above given is as good as can be made, and may save you from getting a lot of ugly weeds in your garden, under the name of flowers; but in addition of these, you would do well to add any other pretty plant met with in your rambles, and which seems to you worthy of a place; while with friends who cultivate plants, you may exchange any that you have plenty of, for new varieties, or anything that you may fancy.