ATTRACTIVE BORDERS

Evening Star, Issue 22086, 20 July 1935, Page 23

ATTRACTIVE BORDERS

SELECTING COLOUR SCHEME Perhaps no colours other than green are so serviceable in the garden as silver and grey. A border well furnished with foliage plants of this type, and with a small number of flowering plants, carefully chosen and placed, will bo a joy at all seasons, even in the winter, as" even then some of the silver-leaved plants will retain their charms (says the ‘ Auckland Herald’s ’ gardening contributor). There is a wide choice of material, much of which is easily purchased at little cost. Senecio greyii, one of our own native plants, is one of the best in this respect. It is a shrub of spreading habit, not obtrusive to an inconvenient degree, and its golden yellow daisy-like (lowers arc a strong recommendation. The foliage is a shade of silver grey, and is particularly cheerful in winter, when it sparkles in the pale sunshine ns if covered with hoar frost. Apart from its use in the border, a group in a sunny corner is at all times a cheery and striking addition to the garden. This fine plant may form the backbone or foundation of the border if used in groups of three nr more, in accordance with the requirements of space. A DELIGHTFUL COMBINATION. The great wormwood, artemesia lactiflora, is not strictly a grey plant, for its elegant foliage is green, with a silvery quality. However, it deserves a place in the grey border. Tlie flowers are creamy white, carried on stout stems; placed in the rear it will combine delightfully with the scheme. There are several of these wormwoods in more definite silvery tones, and these may also be used to advantage. Among the best are artemesia stelleriana, A. cana, A. lanta pedemontana, and A. maritima. All are of hardy character where there is not .too much frost, and look very attractive in small groups. For permanent effect a bush or two of the dwarf French lavender is excel-

lent, and will bring a welcome fragrance to the garden. The elegant hoariness of the cotton lavender, santolina chamaicyparissus is _ indispensable. Perowskia atriplicifolia is a blue flowered shrub with elegant grey foliage; allowed to grow naturally it will ornament a wall most beautifully, or pruned annually it is a neat and effective border plant. An edging of old English pinks is appropriate at all seasons, and there is nothing more lovely when it is covered with the sweet white blossoms. CARNATION BORDERS.

Border carnations will enter this scheme quite easily, especially the free growing varieties. Sedum spectabile should be in groups near the front and also the silvery veronica incana, with brilliant foliage and spikes of purple flowers. The hoary leaves and rosy beads of the sedum make a wonderful combination in the late summer and autumn.

I'n a large border a plant or two of the giant French globe artichoke, Cynara, will lend dignity to the sclienie. This is a good specimen plant for other positions also. Pink flowered dahlias will blend perfectly with grey plants, and a group or two of a delicate pink shade will be charming. Towards the front a grouping of salvia patens will prove effective. The purity of its colour is splendid, and the green of its leaves is a tone approaching grey. Even pink pelargoniums of the zonal and ivy-leaved type may contribute tlieir share to the general effect, and a host of other plants will suggest themselves to the keen schemer. “ HALF-HARDY ” PLANTS. All the plants so far mentioned are hardy and permanent subjects, but it is as well to leave space for the introduction of half-hardy < plants for summer effect. Cineraria maritima and leucopliyton brownii are of this order. Both are effective and pretty in the foliage of silver colouring, and aro easily wintered in a cold frame. Preparations for si grey garden may be pushed forward in favourable weather during winter. Deep cultivation should lie practised and the soil suitably enriched for the best results. It is as well to remember that the permanent subjects may occupy the same positions for some years, lienee the necessity for a good beginning.