GARDENING NOTES

New Zealand Tablet, 10 December 1914, Page 47

GARDENING NOTES

(By Mr. J. Joyce, Landscape Gardener, Christchurch.)

FLORAL DECORATIONS FOR THE HOUSE. Plants and flowers tastefully arranged give a room a very pleasing and comfortable appearance. It is astonishing the effect that a good display . of flowers gives to a drawing-room when judiciously placed so that the colors and plants harmonise with the other ornaments of the room. A person coming into a room without a plant or a flower will better see and appreciate the improvement which is added to the surroundings by paying it a visit after it has been adorned with a tasteful display of flowers and plants. To decorate a fair-sized drawing-room needs more than a few plants and flowers placed indiscriminately about. I have had considerable experience in this branch of my profession, having been in charge of the floral decorations of Government House when Lord and Lady Ranfurly occupied Elmwood during their long stay in Christchurch. I have been head gardener at Elmwood for twelve years, and have all that time had to do with floral decorations ; so that I ought to know a little about what I am writing about. I am making these few remarks, as, perhaps some person may say that this is more of a lady’s work than a man’s. Well, 1 admit it is a lady’s work to see and carry out the beautifying of her drawingroom. But when there are extensive decorations to be carried out it would be too laborious for a lady to undertake the work, and then it falls to the gardener to carry it out. It is a part of the professional gardener’s duty to learn to carry out decorations on a large scale when occasion requires, especially in the Home countries at receptions, etc., of distinguished guests. And now to come to the point. I think I cannot do better than describe as closely as I can the decorations carried out at Elmwood. I might say that there was no shortage of flowers and plants, as the gardens are very extensive and well supplied with all the necessary appliancessuch as conservatories, greenhouses, etc. The Drawing-Room. This was a very large apartment, so that it took a great quantity of flowers and plants to fill up the allotted spaces. With Lady Ranfurly’s great and passionate love for flowers, the work of decorating was no small item. Every plant and vase of flowers had to be placed in such a manner that it would harmonise with the objects near it. The vases were mostly of a large type, and the flowers placed therein of the same variety, and generally of one color. When the colors were mixed they had to be.of the same species, so that the blending always harmonised. The flowers were, not bunched up thickly, but every spike stood out from the others, and looked as natural as though growing on the plant. - The evergreens, which were mixed with the flowers in the vase, were generally, if possible, their own foliage—provided the foliage was suitable for the position—if not, a substitute was always provided as near as possible to the foliage of the plant. Then there were large pot plants such as palms, tree ferns, cabbage trees, flax— green and variegatedand a selection from the conservatory of flowering plants according to the season, such as cinerarias, calceolerias, azaleas, - camellias, fuchsias, geraniums of many colors, and a. host of plants too numerous to mention. A selection of the choicest of these plants was interspersed throughout the room in suitable positions, and every available space was made use of, such as small'tables, brackets on the walls, mantelshelf, fireplace, etc. Some of the plants were very large, and the effect they created should be seen to be appreciated. The pot plants were not placed singly- throughout the room but were arranged in groups on stands to give effect. They were usually hidden with evergreens, so that each group looked as though' growing. Then occasionally large branches of trees .were placed in the corners of the room and in the chimney 'recesses., - They were usually placed in a large

vase and secured 'to the corners. All the plants and flowers had to be placed so that the colors would blend, such as red, white, blue, yellow, etc. No two colors, such as white and yellow, or red and yellow, were allowed to offend the eye. This work had to be undone every other day, and arranged in a different style each time, the time occupied being usually half a day, taken up with cutting and placing the flowers and pot plants and changing the water in the vases. It was really surprising how the decorations improved the appearance of the room. So much floral display made the room resemble a beautifully decorated summer-house. In my next notes I will describe the dinner table and hall decorations. Christmas being now near at hand, and as most people go in largely for decorating their rooms, I thought a few hints on the subject would be appropriate to the occasion.