THE GARDEN 684 HOW TO MAKE A ROOF GARDEN By THE HON. FRANCES WOLSELEY Principal 0/ Glynde School for Lady Gardeners in Sussex Illustrations by Miss M. G. Campion How to Make a RooE Garden in a Big City— Trellis— Ths Boxes— The Best Soil— Water and Drainage— Plants That May be Used— A Roof Bower "yHERE are one or two houses in the City •'• where business men adopt the foreign fashion of having little loggias on the roof, where they can sit on hot, stuffy evenings after a hard day's work. Here are wafted sweet scents of stocks, heliotrope, or verbena, which flourish in the painted wooden boxes that are provided for them. Somewhat of the rest and peace of country is found here, and, with Matthew Arnold, we can say : " Calm soul of all things ! make it mine To feel, amid the ciiy's jar. That there abides a peace of thine Man did not make, and cannot mar. The will to neither strive nor cry. The power to feel with others, give. Calm, calm me more ; nor let me die Before I have begun to live." Wherever rooms look upon an ugly space of root, if a true love of flowers exists, even if the space to grow them in be limited, there is an op- portunity for a roof garden. The example that a great firm has given, by having a large tea-garden above their shop in Ox- ford Street proves that the idea is worth con- sideration. The sug- gestions that A roof garden which shows the charming possibilities of a town dwelling I am about to give are very simple ones, and they apply equally to London, its suburbs, or to a country- town. They are mostly taken from notes made in Genoa, that city of palaces, where the buildings are large, and stand so close to each other that there remains no room for gardens on the ground level. The Gardens of Genoa All are on the roofs. From above the amphitheatre of hills upon which the town stands you look down upon roof gardens. It seems like one hanging garden of flowers and foUage, varied by shadow houses, rose bowers, festoons of roses, and pergolas of colour. The Londoner may plead that it is impossible to achieve anything to approach such beauty in his heavy, smoke-laden atmos- phere, but, by choosing only creepers and plants that thrive without pure air, a great deal can be done. The sketch here given is typical of the outlook from many a town window. It can, of course, be adapted to any require- ments. We will imagine that the tall chimney is on the north side of the little lead-floored or tiled piazza — consequently a wooden box filled with good soil, placed at its foot, will be a home for a somewhat tender creeper. Warmed by sun and with heat rising from the chimney in winter, this should be an ideal spot for a favourite plant. A square- mesh creo- s o t e d or painted trellis can easil}^ be obtained. Empty paraf- fin tubs or old disused grocers' boxes or wine boxes may be placed at intervals, and if given three coats of good paint, they will last a long time. It is well to tar or burn them inside, as then they do not decay quickly from contact with the soil. Climbers of different sorts can be care- fully planted at the back of these boxes, and in addition spring or summer bedding can be put in front. Take care that the drainage be good, and for this plenty of crocks must be put at the bottom, and good soil on the top of them. On no account use sour soil, and do not let it become so. It is well to renew the top spit each year for this reason, and probably some well-decayed manure added to it will act as a stimulant. A Roof Rock Garden Should it not be possible, for any reason, to fix the wooden trellis to the chimney or walls, it will be found equally effective to fasten
