HANDBOOKS OF PRACTICAL GARDENING—XVIII EDITED BY HARRY ROBERTS THE BOOK OF TOPIARY [Illustration: VIEW IN LEVENS GARDENS SHOWING GARDENER’S HOUSE ] THE BOOK OF TOPIARY BY CHARLES H. CURTIS, F.R.H.S. ASSISTANT EDITOR OF THE “GARDENERS’ MAGAZINE”; PREVIOUSLY ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY’S GARDENS, CHISWICK; AND FORMERLY AT THE ROYAL GARDENS, KEW AND W. GIBSON HEAD GARDENER AT LEVENS HALL, WESTMORELAND “The man who sneers at me for admiring, as I do, a well cut peacock, may take my assurance in advance that I will neither kick him nor abuse him; but pity him I must.” SHIRLEY HIBBERD. JOHN LANE: THE BODLEY HEAD LONDON AND NEW YORK. MCMIV _Turnbull & Spears, Printers, Edinburgh_ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ CONTENTS PAGE INTRODUCTION 1 TOPIARY 4 EARLY HISTORY 6 GOLDEN AGE OF TOPIARY 12 CRUSADE AGAINST TOPIARY 21 ADDISON AND POPE 24 REVIVAL OF THE ART 32 THE FORMATION OF A TOPIARY GARDEN 37 PLANTING AND MANURING 44 MANAGEMENT OF OLD TREES 50 THE MANAGEMENT AND TRAINING OF YOUNG TREES 58 THE GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF A TOPIARY GARDEN 70 INDEX 79 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS VIEW IN LEVENS GARDENS: SHOWING GARDENER’S HOUSE _Frontispiece_ BOX TREE COTTAGE, RUSTINGTON _To face page_ 2 (_From a drawing by Mr W. Graham Robertson_) A PIG IN BOX AT COMPTON WYNYATES 〃 〃 4 (_Photo. by Mr F. Goode_) A FARM-YARD FOWL AT COMPTON WYNYATES 〃 〃 6 (_Photo. by Mr F. Goode_) A LEATHERN BOTTEL IN BOX AT COMPTON WYNYATES 〃 〃 6 (_Photo. by Mr F. Goode_) LEVENS GARDENS: THE BROAD WALK 〃 〃 8 BOATS, PYRAMIDS, AND PEACOCKS 〃 〃 10 (_By courtesy of Messrs Cheal_)