International studio (19.1903)

taken of the ground, and both house and garden
gain accordingly; and, when the softening effect of
time has had more play and the early newness has
subsided into the calm growth of years, this
weiding of house and garden witl be stiil more
apparent.
A new garden, no matter how weli the things in
it may grow, even in a few years, cannot have that
subtie charm which time aione can bestow;
but few people realise how rapidly this charm <ra73
grow, or how much can be accompiished in a
short time when there is a centrai idea running
through the scheme, and care is exercised in the
initial choice of the hora. It is essential that
locai garden-craft shouid be considered, and that
Howers and fruit-trees are seiected with a view
to their adaptabiiity to the soii and surroundings.
It is hard to believe that this garden is the result
of less than two years' care, for how often is it
stated that " it takes years to make a garden "—
a belief which is possibly responsible for a good
deal of that which is slovenly and unkempt in the
gardens we see around us.
Successful garden-making largely depends upon

the shelter and seclusion afforded to the inmates, a
practical necessity which may well be taken ad-
vantage of, and turned to sesthetic account by
means of high boundary walls. In this case the
site formed the orchard of an old property,
and the hne old wall bounding the road was
already in existence, and has undoubtedly largely
contributed to the general success of the garden.
The initial expense of providing wall shelter is
often a deterrent, but it is an expense which is
well repaid. Amateur garden designers seldom
realise how essential shelter really is, and the
comparative failure of some gardens may be clearly
assigned to this cause.
The recent awakening in garden craft and
design, and the desire to bring the house into
more direct relation with the garden, have led to
some considerable inquiry into the garden design
of the past; but, unless the real needs and neces-
sities of modern life are thoroughly grasped, and
the garden is designed upon them, in the same spirit
as that in which the old garden gradually grew out
of the necessities of its time, there is a danger that
this revival, like others of an architectural character,


" THE ORCHARD," HARROW : GARDEN FRONT.
96

ARNOLD MITCHELL, ARCHITECT