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30 chapters
IN GREEN OLD GARDENS
IN GREEN OLD GARDENS
Here may I live what life I please, Married and buried out of sight, Married to pleasure, and buried to pain, Hidden away amongst scenes like these Under the fans of the chestnut trees: Living my child-life over again, With the further hope of a fuller delight, Blithe as the birds and wise as the bees. In green old gardens hidden away From sight of revel, and sound of strife, Here have I leisure to breathe and move, And do my work in a nobler way; To sing my songs, and to say my say; To dream my
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COLOR-PLATES
COLOR-PLATES
Plates I, V, VII, and VIII were reproduced from photographs colored by Mrs. Herbert A. Raynes, the basis of which were autochrome photographs....
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HALF-TONE PLATES
HALF-TONE PLATES
Title-Page: East Hampton, L. I., Albert Herter, Esq . From a photograph by Jessie Tarbox Beals. "A garden was wonderful at night—a place of strange silences and yet stranger sound: trees darkly guarding mysterious paths that ran into caverns of darkness; the scents of flowers rising from damp earth heavy with dew; flowers that were weary with the dust and noise of the day and slept gently, gratefully, with their heads drooping to the soil, their petals closed by the tender hands of the spirits o
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FOREWORD
FOREWORD
Books and magazines written by and for American architects usually show in their illustrations fine imitations of lovely French, English, and Italian formalism and works of art in marble or other stone ornamenting the gardens of great mansions in this country. The object of this book is to present, more particularly, another type of garden, demonstrating the cultured American's love of beauty expressed through plant life rather than in stone; showing the development of his ideal in more original
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A GARDEN
A GARDEN
Come not with careless feet To tread my garden's unfrequented ways. No highroad this, no busy clanging street, No place of petty shows and fond displays. Here there are blossoms sweet That shrink and pine from inconsiderate gaze; And here the birds repeat Only to loving ears their truest lays. Hither I can retreat And drink of peace where peace unravished stays. Herein are streams of sorrow no man knows— Herein a well of joy inviolate flows; Come not with careless feet To soil my garden's sanctu
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THE GARDEN AND ITS MEANING
THE GARDEN AND ITS MEANING
A world without flowers! What would it be? Among those who know, such a question needs no answer—and we are not seeking a reply from the uninitiated who, for lack of understanding and sympathy, can but gaze at us with wondering pity, when our gardens cause us to overlook so much that to them means life. But is there any life more real than the life in the garden for those who actually take part in its creation and nurture it carefully week by week and year by year? If, owing to this absorbing oc
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CLIMATE IN AMERICA
CLIMATE IN AMERICA
Few subjects are more bewildering than that of climate in the United States, and its effect on gardens in different sections is an ever interesting study. Replying to the question as to which locality in the East might be said to have the longest continued flowering period, an expert in the Agricultural Department writes: "The question of plant life in relation to climate is a very large one and one about which it is hard to generalize without close study in the various parts of the country. Som
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NEW ENGLAND
NEW ENGLAND
With dreams of the English gardens ever before them, our Pilgrim fathers and mothers brought flower and vegetable seeds to the new land, and the earliest entries in old Plymouth records contain mention of "garden plotes." [1] John Josselyn, fifty years later, wrote a book called "New England Rarities Discovered," including a list of plants originally brought from old England, mentioning those suitable or not for this climate, and showing that our ancestors had lost no time in planting not only v
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MAINE
MAINE
At Bar Harbor on the island of Mount Desert, Maine, as in other places of this latitude, the season, of course, begins later and ends sooner than near New York City. The flowering period is from five to six weeks shorter at Bar Harbor. However, the wonderful summer climate somewhat atones for this briefer season, and the gardens of Maine can boast of unusual luxuriance, in richness of color and size of plants, with but little heat or prolonged drought to affect their best development. The hardie
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NEW HAMPSHIRE AND VERMONT
NEW HAMPSHIRE AND VERMONT
Side by side, these twin States have much in common—climate, mountains, and old historical associations included. Owing to the short, cool summers of this latitude and altitude, there may be less attention given to flowers than in other parts of New England. But the few illustrations in the following pages are fine evidences of garden art, at least in the region of Cornish, the abode of artists, and where gardens are plentiful. The season opens about four weeks later than near New York City, and
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MASSACHUSETTS
MASSACHUSETTS
Probably no other section of the Union contains as many gardens, old and new, as does this fertile State, combining the advantages natural to the altitude of the beautiful Berkshires with the favorable climate of the coast. People representing nearly every State help to form the summer colonies of New England, more especially in Massachusetts. Everywhere the luxuriance of bloom is very marked and most noticeable on the coast, where all plants, especially certain less long-lived annuals like Popp
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RHODE ISLAND
RHODE ISLAND
Limited space permits but a suggestion of the various types of planting along the Atlantic coast, which promises to become almost a continuous garden by the sea from New Jersey to Maine. Rhode Island contains some of the most magnificent places in the country, the majority of them situated near bay or sea, where they thrive in congenial environment. The quality of the climate as it affects plant life will be easily realized after reading of the climatic conditions of Massachusetts as well as of
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CONNECTICUT
CONNECTICUT
Connecticut gardens are many, both inland and along the shores of the Sound. Those of the hilly western section have the advantage of a somewhat cooler altitude. Otherwise it is unnecessary to give further details as to climatic conditions, [3] as the northern boundary is about a hundred miles distant from northern New Jersey and the temperatures differ but little, although of course every hundred miles northward makes gardening a somewhat simpler proposition, because of slightly cooler conditio
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NEW YORK
NEW YORK
There are gardens, old and new, around the many wealthy cities of this great State, through the upper section, near Buffalo, Utica, Syracuse, Albany, etc., as well as to the south. It must suffice to give a few of the most picturesque views obtainable, almost all of which belong to places within one hundred miles of New York City. The garden at Auburn offers a vision of flowers in glorious profusion, combined with perfect order, which latter condition is not always easily attainable when plants
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LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK
LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK
In considering the gardens belonging to the State of New York, its most favored garden centre is undoubtedly Long Island. Here soil and climate combine to encourage both vegetables and flowers. And on the shores, particularly of the south side and eastern end, the most satisfactory bloom is obtainable as a rule with less trouble than is expended upon the flowers of the interior. Not that Long Island is secure from periods of drought and visitations of rose-bugs, but on the whole the plants weath
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NEW JERSEY
NEW JERSEY
It would take much time and long travel to discover the State possessing the greatest number of fine gardens, but there is little risk of misstatement in placing New Jersey as fourth or fifth on the list; New York, including Long Island, in the lead, then Massachusetts, and possibly Pennsylvania or California next. Near the sea the climate is, of course, an especial incentive to flower-growing, and along the Jersey coast, especially in Monmouth County, there are numerous gardens. Many excellent
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PENNSYLVANIA
PENNSYLVANIA
The most zealous advocate of gardening in the early days was William Penn, the original proprietor of the State, who persistently urged his Quaker followers to plant gardens around the homesteads. With numerous old ones and an ever-increasing number of new gardens the State stands among the foremost as a garden centre. In olden times the Quaker ideas against extravagant appearances resulted in the making of simpler places than those built by the people who settled in the Southern States; but the
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MARYLAND
MARYLAND
Flower gardens adorn many of the places in Maryland, most of them of the old-fashioned kind so characteristic of the Southern States, and others of a more recent date. The latter, though less elaborate than those of New England, are quite as attractive in the studied simplicity of their design. Conspicuous often are the Ivy-edged paths sometimes replacing the low Box border, and the great growths of Box and rare shrubs, once imported luxuries from old England, speak the prosperity of early days.
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VIRGINIA
VIRGINIA
Virginia was the first of the States to adopt a luxurious mode of living. Its early men and women, so recently English, were not many of them of the strictly Puritan type, but rather the ease and pleasure loving class, and shortly their fertile plantations, developed by countless slaves, yielded rich results, and Virginia, followed soon by the neighboring States, became famous for homes and gardens on an extensive scale. One of the earliest and best of these estates was Mount Vernon, so well pre
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SOUTH CAROLINA
SOUTH CAROLINA
There are few new gardens in South Carolina, but an untold number of old ones deserving to be revived. Around Charleston, especially, old-time mansions, quaint walls, and gateways abound that are an inspiration to lovers of graceful antiquities. To restore an abandoned garden must be indeed a joy to one with enough imagination to recreate flower places fitted to the surroundings. The illustrations in this chapter give some idea of the richness of the early gardens laid out by the wealthy owners
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GEORGIA AND FLORIDA
GEORGIA AND FLORIDA
Summer gardens, on account of the climate, are not attempted in the States of the far South; but as popular winter and spring resorts the grounds at these seasons about the villas and hotels are adorned with Palms, Roses, and other plants adapted to the climate. Charming spring gardens in formal designs are found in Georgia, where, because of its somewhat cooler climate and better soil, there are a greater number of private estates than in Florida. The former State doubtless suffered more than a
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TENNESSEE AND MISSOURI
TENNESSEE AND MISSOURI
From Tennessee the following description of its garden life is agreeably presented: "Here in the South interest in this subject is always increasing. We have many old and beautiful gardens full of sentiment. The mistress of the place is always head gardener, and in no instance does she relinquish her position to another. I am filled with enthusiasm in garden matters, and would preach the gospel of the garden to all women." Daffodils appear in February, Lilies-of-the-Valley and Cottage Tulips in
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ILLINOIS AND INDIANA
ILLINOIS AND INDIANA
Illinois, with its claim to countless fine estates, includes a plentiful share of gardens, and more especially in the lake region, where luxuriant growths of trees tell of congenial soil and climate. As a background the great lake stretches like a sea beyond many of the beautiful flower-borders, which bloom almost as richly as those near the distant ocean. Unfortunately some of the finest plantings are not illustrated in this book, which is limited to gardens of a formal design, and the type cha
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OHIO
OHIO
The difference is slight between the climate of Ohio and other States of its latitude in the East and middle West. While there is no mountainous region, northern Ohio has the advantage of a great lake as its border. On a line with central Connecticut, the temperature of Cleveland is similarly favorable to flower growing, and garden enthusiasts are increasing. Like most of the Middle States, the country is rather flat and the soil fertile as a rule. But, except on the lake shore, the gardens suff
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MICHIGAN AND WISCONSIN
MICHIGAN AND WISCONSIN
Favored indeed are the gardens of these States, which border on the Great Lakes, some five hundred and eighty feet above sea-level. The country in most parts is fertile and flat, with a climate superior to that of New England in summer, and winters equally as cold. To quote our well known garden friend, Mrs. Francis King, of Alma, in central Michigan: "We have a very fine summer climate, most favorable to gardening; no humidity whatsoever, but dry and bracing, and while a short summer, a merry o
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NEW MEXICO
NEW MEXICO
The mountainous States of the West, from Montana to New Mexico, from Colorado almost to the Pacific, have a climate of their own, varying naturally according to latitude. A resident of Las Cruces, New Mexico, writes: "The first killing frost is usually to be expected from the 7th to the 25th of October, very often it is much later, and we have had tomatoes till December with the slightest possible protection. Many flowers in a sheltered position bloom in winter, such as Calendula, Violets, Wallf
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CALIFORNIA
CALIFORNIA
The garden section of this State extends the length of its coast, and possibly fifty miles inland, and much is conveyed in a few words when it is described as one garden throughout this whole region. In the hill country mountains are admirable settings to tropical gardens, and from there to the sandy shores a delectable climate with prevailing westerly sea-winds encourages phenomenal growth of the choicest plants. Southern California is particularly blessed with a clear, dry, and balmy climate.
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OREGON AND WASHINGTON
OREGON AND WASHINGTON
In this coast region of the Northwest, shrubs, trees, and vines develop rapidly and give sooner to the garden the appearance of completeness than is the case in the drier climates. An authority from Portland says: "The growing season is long, lasting from March 1 to November 1, and in the places where lawns are well kept they are green throughout the entire winter. At this period, however, the grass does not grow enough to require clipping. Several shrubs, such as the Laurestinus, remain in foli
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ALASKA
ALASKA
Last , but not least, comes Alaska; even if last to arrive on the map of the Union, yet not least in size of territory or in flowers, and with still another condition of climate to be considered. Alaskan gardens are as yet but tiny modest plots against the gray log cabins, suggesting the homes of our Pilgrim fathers on the milder New England coast so long ago, and as we think of the stone and marble pergolas in modern New England, there comes the suggestion: "Then why not Alaska likewise some da
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VANCOUVER ISLAND
VANCOUVER ISLAND
The lure of the far-famed gardens of the island so close to our shores is enticing enough to make a happy excuse for giving the space of a page to one of its smaller gardens. In the heart of this fair garden, in the country of the Englishman, at the end of this book on American gardens, the author, though a proud American, unhesitatingly admits that usually it is the Englishman who has inspired us to make gardens as nearly as possible like those of the mother country. Is it the old blood that is
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