WOMEN IN THE HOME

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22195, 11 September 1937, Page 2

WOMEN IN THE HOME

GARDENING AS A HOBBY SELECTION OF FLOWERS Most home-loving women love their gardens. A familiar quotation from the writings of Sir William Temple reminds us that "gardening is the pastime of kings and the choice of philosophers," so we pursue our hobby in good company. The real garden-lover is conscious of a strange compelling instinct which cannot be resisted, and which is particularly urgent in the springtime. This force has the quality of enduring from year to year with undiminished power, and that is why we say once a gardener, always a gardener. One needs to feel the urge, to know the full dominance of it. It is possible for anyone to acquire an interest in gardening as a hobby, but only those who have the love of the soil really bred in them, come by it how they may, know the depth of I joy which can be experienced. This minimises the admittedly disappointing and disheartening hazards with which we sometimes deal, and strengthens us to make the sustained effort necessary to ultimate success. Some people say they adore flowers, but dislike gardening. What they really adore is beauty in its finished state. They miss, by their attitude of mind, a share in creating it. If you really love flowers, and have a little time and space to spare, you will find some means of growing them. You cannot help it. The cultivation of flowers and the creating of a garden as a background for a home are two different matters, and success, to be complete, combines the practical and the ideal. A garden in the true sense of the word is the result of a picture conceived in the mind of the gardener, towards the completion of which she works with the same clear vision as does an artist building up the component parts of a picture on canvas. The late Gertrude Jekyll, whose most interesting books never cease to inspire, wrote that the chief difference between a gardener and an artist is that the latter works with paint and brushes, and the gardener with living plants. This relationship is borne out in the common expression of praise—"the garden was a picture." When it is worthy of this exclamation, often by people who could not express their feelings more definitely, it means that by the subtle blending of colour, and arrangement and consideration of the features of the site, a scene of reposeful harmony has been achieved. It is, however, only when you know sufficient of the practical side of gardening that it is possible to appreciate fully all the care and the thought and planning entailed in creating this picture. Elimination In the evolution of a plan, there are many problems with which to do battle, not the least of which )S the tendency to excess, instead of exercising restraint in selection. This is a real problem, faced by everyone who loves plants for their own sakes just as much as for the part they may take in a picturesque scene. The process of elimination is very difficult. The flower-lover has yet to be born who, when presented with new and worthy plants, does not wander round the borders wondering where they will go. By ingenuity and by a knowledge of the habits of different plants, it is astonishing how many can be accommodated and used to good effect. There is no doubt that better results areSined by planting sufflcientnumbers of a particular flower. This exPlaTnswhv daffodils look so lonely when planted out singly. °n c , h " e - ° n r e there, nstead of being massed together perhaps under the trees or along the edges of a lawn Both positions suit them admirably as in such places they may grow undisturbed requiring little attention. The plea that affodils are untidy after flowering is no case for the deliberate elimination of them from a garden of any -size. In their graceful beauty they express he VnVracle of spring. Other flowers, such as tulips, are happy m more formal associations. Each flower has its own appeal and its place in the scheme of things. . The great joy of gardening as a pastime is that it not only gives very necessary physical exercise, but is also mentally satisfying to the keenest intellect. There are so many aspects to be exploited, and each attracts different people in different ways. The precise person finds satisfaction in concentrating on a particular flower and cultivating it to perfection. Add patient observation and skilful manipulation to precision, and you have the quality for a successful hybridiser. However, the everyday person who tries to grow too many varieties of flowers may assimilate more garden magic in the end. Every type of plant has its merits, some interesting characteristics, its own beauty, and its definite likes and dislikes. In the endeavour to discover what these are, the gardener is taken along all manner of byways, to the history of the plant, its discovery in the land of its choice, its old name and romance, and finally the specific name the botanists see fit to give it. Burdonsome as these names are, they exert a strange fascination once you have become accustomed to I them, and many give indications of 'the likely requirements of the plants. I It is not always wise to air these names tin the presence of people who may not have the same appreciation of them. A botanical dictionary is a very useful possession for those who have little Latin and less Greek. An Alpine Garden It is sometimes said that after gaining experience in the various branches of gardening, the growing of annuals, herbaceous plants, bulbs, lilies, shrubs, and the development of colour schemes, the hobbyist inevitably longs for an alpine garden. She wishes to climb the last pinnacle. This is not surprising, and is a fitting climax to aspiration. In garden literature and in travel books there is much to stimulate this desire. Alpine flowers have a special fascination and much has been written of the adventure of discovering them in their native haunts in the high alps of distant lands. The infectious enthusiasm of Farrar for these "difficult darlings" finds reflection in the hearts of those who try to grow them. Some are indeed difficult, but many are not, if their preferences are understood. In their original homes they developed form and habit suited to ensure survival against great odds, the rooting system being particularly adapted to the situation. The home gardener delights in providing something similar, so that these little denizens may become acclimatised in a strange land. CALEDONIAN HALL Special exhibition dance* by pupils of Miss Mavis Neate will be the attraction at the Caledonian Hall this evening. Old and new dances, lucky spots, and four cash Monte Carlos are also included on the programme, Geo. Bradford's orchestra providing the danoe musio.