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38 WINNETKA TALK March 10, 1928 News of the North Shore Clubs [| Miniature Gardens Feature of Exhibit Each Model to Illustrate Well Considered Plan for Home Ground Planting The miniature garden competition among garden clubs of the Chicago district which will be a feature of the Chicago Garden and Flower show in the Hotel Sherman, March 24 to April 1, is arousing keen interest. In addi- tion to being spectacular, this exhibit will be of the highest educational value, as each model will illustrate a well considered plan for planting the home grounds. Awards will be wholly at the discre- tion of the judges; but it is to be ex- pected they will be guided by the gen- erally accepted principles of land- scaping small home grounds. A brief statement of these principles may be of interest. First the area is divided into two or three parts, according to the pur- pose each is to serve. If two parts, they are the public area and private area. If three parts, the public, pri- vate, and service area. In the planting each should be screened from the other, and should be developed accord- ing to its purpose. The front yard is the public area. Here the planting should be restrained, expressing inviting dignity. The ef- fect in all seasons of the year is im- portant. Trees should frame the house, and fountain planting should be so ar- ranged as to harmonize with the archi- tecture, and emphasize its merits. In the service area, economy of space, ease of access to and from the kitchen entrance to the house, and ar- rangement of walks and planting which will be easily kept clean and in good order will be important. The private area is developed as the outdoor living room, in which is created the garden picture. Important points here are direct and inviting access from the living apartments of the house to the garden. The axis of the garden should be related to the house design, preferably leading direct- ly from the garden entrance. The garden may be developed in any manner which the club desires, in formal or natural style; but care should be taken to observe the laws of com- position. The garden picture is like any picture in this. A screen about the garden will undoubtedly be rated high; and ornaments and features which add interest to the picture should be used. It is announced the points on which the judging will be based are: Scale, design, planting, imagination. Every- thing must be in scale, that is, of a size which goes with the other parts of the model. Guard carefully against using trees too large, paths too wide and ornaments too tall to be properly in scale. Design will probably be tested by the fundamental laws of design. The planting will be examined to de- termine whether it is so planned as to be practical, and to give a succession of displays throughout the season. Imagination will undoubtedly consist of the originality and completeness of the conception which the model expresses. Committees working on these models will do well to obtain standard books on garden design and familiarize them- selves with the laws which are general- ly accepted by landscape designers, the Flower show 'committee announces. Model Used for Garden Club Competition HIS illustration shows the model house and tray, representing the yard, which is supplied to each garden club as .4 the basis for its work in the miniature garden competition which will be a feature of the Chicago Garden and Flower show in the Hotel Sherman. The tray, it is announced, cannot be altered in its plan dimensions, so that each model will be of the same area, representing a suburban lot 75 by 150 feet. The house may be altered and added to at the discre- tion of the club, it is announced. Garden Talks (Contributed by Wilmette Garden Club) At the meeting last Friday of the Wilmette Garden club at the home of Mrs. Dan Greene, much interest was shown in the first scrap book of the club begun in 1922 when the club was known as the Little Garden club. Most of the clippings in the early scrap book, just as in the later one, were taken from WiLmEerE Lire and showed the kindly interest which the village paper took in a small group of garden- ers who hoped in time to be of use to the community. Mrs. Edward Moore, who again will have charge of the Public Garden Market May 13, told of a poster com- petition to be held for that event, in the schools. Prizes will be given for the best posters made for the Public Garden Market by the school children. Announcement was made that those wishing to make reservations for the Wilmette luncheon Wednesday, March 28, at 1 o'clock at the Hotel Sherman, during the Chicago Garden and Flower Show, are to make them with Mrs. C. P. Berg, whose telephone is Wil- mette 1928. Mrs. Ralph Huff told of the garden books in the club's library and gave a brief review of several of them. This is the season when garden books are being taken from the shelf and read. The Wilmette Public Library has a number of interesting garden books on its shelves. The speaker of the afternoon was Mrs. Maude Jacobs, whose delight- ful talks on gardening are given un- der the auspices of the West Park commissioners. Did you ever try to develop your own strain of a certain plant? Mrs. Jacobs suggested that all amateur gardeners would find this an in- tensely interesting experience and said that it was the amateur gardeners who had produced many of the choicest strains. Her subject for the afternoon was, "Growing Perennials from Seed." Her audience took notes as rapidly as each one could write, for her talk was so practical and useful that no one could afford to miss a word. The fate of future gardens hung in the balance. While most perennial seeds, she said, may be planted in April, certain ones require the winter's freezing and thaw- ing, and so must be planted in the fall. Among these are the hardy phlox, iris, peonies, blazing star, evening prim- rose, spiraea (so called) trollius, gas plant, hypericum and cassia. Many seeds are best planted as soon as they are ready to fall from the plant. A covering of small twigs makes a good covering for plants for the winter. She told how to make a seed bed in the open. One two or three feet square is large enough. It must be out of the way where it will not be dis- turbed. It may be elevated or level. Dig out two inches and fill in with good soil, the upper inch sifted. Plant the seeds in straight rows, each seed no deeper than its narrowest depth. Keep the seed bed covered with burlap until the seeds are well up. Among a number of interesting newer perennials she mentioned the Jersey Gem viola and the cynoglossum (Chinese forget-me-not) as two of the best. Pure white hesperis is an old- fashioned flower that combines beauti- fully with blue delphinium in a garden. To make it bloom as late as the del- phinium, she said, one pinches off the first white buds as they come. IN ONE-ACT PLAYS Players of the North Shore Theater guild recently co-operated with the Quadrangle club at the University of Chicago, and the Student Dramatic association in the production of four one-act plays presented in Mandel hall at the university for the benefit of the University Settlement at Forty-sixth street and Gross avenue. Among those of the Theater guild who took part were Mrs. Laird Bell and Mrs, Mal- colm Ward. OPENS HOME FOR MUSIC CLUB Mrs. John Hansel, Jr., will open her home at 1440 Tower road for the monthly meeting of the Winnetka Music club, which will be held March 12. The program, which will be of Italian music, will consist of singing by Mrs. Warner Robinson, soprano, and Mrs. Paul Seyl, soprano, and playing by Mrs. Everett Harris, pianist, and Mrs. Valona Brewer, violinist. Shawnee Country club is giving a formal party for its members and their friends this evening. David Owen Tells Woman's Club of Modern Stage-Craft The Winnetka Woman's club met Tuesday. March 6, with Mrs. Arthur T. Cushman presiding. The program was in charge of the art and literature committee, of which Mrs. E. V. L. Brown is chairman. David Owen, who is directing this season's performances of the North Shore Theater guild, gave a very in- teresting talk on "Art and Artifices of the Stage." He discussed in detail the problems of the scenic designer and technical director whose duty it is to establish the mood of the play and give us the illusion of reality. Mr. Owen thinks that the modern masters of stage-craft owe a great deal to that mechanically-minded genius of the nineties, Lincoln J. Carter, who originated the illusion of speeding trains and engines riding upon the spectators. It is a far cry from the melodrama of the ninties to the re- finement and sublety of modern stage- craft, but the principles established in those crude dramas are still used in our best producing circles. Mts. Sidney F. Beech to Address Catholic League "Gardens and Markets of the North- west" will be the subject of Mrs. Sidney F. Beech's talk at the meeting next Tuesday of the North Shore Catholic Woman's league. The meet- ing is to be held at the Winnetka Woman's club. Mrs. Beech is a mem- ber of the Glencoe Garden club, and has frequently given talks to it and to various other clubs. Mrs. William F. Brown of Winnetka will read a playlet, "The Flapper Takes Notice," by Mrs. E. V. L. Brown. This sketch is a most amusing one dealing with the question of voting. Mrs. Maurice Lieber's law class meets next Wednesday from 1:30 to 2:30, at Mrs. Beech's home, 253 Wal- den drive, Glencoe. This week's meet- ing was at Mrs. Lieber's home in Winnetka. Mrs. Jack Blumenstock of 495 Wil- low road was hostess at the last meet- ing of the North Shore Johanna com- mittee, Thursday. Luncheon was serv- ed at 12, with the business session afterwards.