as then to take a
section of it and plant and care for that.

Katharine was to take the centre portion of grass and cannas. Now a
grass plot is very pleasing in a garden. It is restful to the eye and is
much more harmonious with the other colours in a garden than a mass of
brilliant blossoms. Cannas have some height, a delicate splash of colour
in the blossom and so work in well. It is always well to put some
tall-growing plant in the centre. The effect is that of working up to a
climax. One should not immediately jump from very low flowers in the
beds to a few tall ones in the centre. This is ludicrous. Make the
gradation gradual from low to high.

This garden of the girls may seem almost to violate this principle. Not
so, for the nasturtiums merely acted as a border. Then all around the
garden were the zinnias, poppies and marigolds a step up to the cannas.
One may buy tall or rather low growing cannas. These latter grow about
four feet high. They chose these low ones with yellow and orange in the
blossom to harmonize with the yellow and orange of the nasturtiums.

Note the proportional amount of grass space in the girls' garden.
Observe too that it is the centre of interest.

The nasturtium border was Elizabeth's. Zinnias were chosen by Helena,
and Katharine was to help in this work. Eloise loving the mignonette had
asked for it, poppies were Josephine's and marigold was for Dee. Ethel
wanted the border of sweet alyssum although it represented a long strip
to work.

[Illustration Diagram: Scale 1/8 in.-1 ft.

Note the proportional amount of grass space in the girls' garden.
Observe, too, that it is the centre of interest.]

If you think over this garden with its brilliant poppy colour, the
heavy yellow of the marigold, the lighter colour effect of yellow in the
nasturtium, the dark red zinnia--quite a splash of colour, was it not?
In order to have great masses of brilliant colour in the same garden one
must break them in some way. There are two possibilities that are good:
first, paths between beds, and second, borders of white or
inconspicuously coloured plants. Sweet alyssum is good for this purpose
and so too is mignonette. Mignonette has such a small and modest little
flower that one thinks always of mignonette in terms of green. The
mignonette was massed at the entrance of the garden for pleasing and
subdued effect.

In staking out a garden it is well first to put heavy stakes, like the
ones the boys m