A pond of water-lilies is a possibility for anyone who can give two square feet of water surface in a sunny spot, and it should be near at hand so that you can easily see the flowers when they are at their best. All the hardy water-lilies must be enjoyed in the morning or early afternoon; for the flowers close at specific times for each kind, varying from noon to four, or at the latest five, o’clock. The tender kinds fall within two distinct classes, there being both day bloomers and night bloomers.

Half a barrel will make a thoroughly practical” lily-pond” for the smallest garden! Cut this to a depth of eighteen inches, fill two-thirds with a rich, heavy soil, and sink so that the bottom is three inches below the level of the ground, for though the leaves and flowers love sunshine, the black ooze in which the roots naturally live is always cool.

But one need not stop here. Only space and inclination limit the number of barrels that may be utilized for this purpose. Arrange them so that the whole will form a figure of irregular outline and leave some space between the individual barrels. These spaces, perhaps a foot to eighteen inches wide, offer situations well suited to the needs of a variety of water-loving plants, such as forget-menots, Lysimachia and others, which will form a framework to set off the beauties of the water-lilies.

Not all the barrels need contain waterlilies, however. One or two may be devoted to other plants such as water hyacinths, water poppies and the like, while taller plants, like Cyperus Papyrus and nelumbiums tend to relieve the flatness necessarily incident to a water garden. The latter, however, grow quite tall and can be used most effectively in large gardens; and they also look best in masses.

A very satisfactory water garden was half a kerosene barrel, sunk in the ground at the southwest corner of a house, where a rain pipe from the roof emptied into it. Here the water hyacinth (Eichhornia speciosa) grew and flowered, to the delight of all beholders. The tub was nearly full of earth in which the plants anchored themselves by their roots and were able to resist the tremendous floods of water from the roof. All through the summer there was a succession of spikes of big azure flowers, each one with a yellow eye-spot; and the glossy, heartshaped leaves, with their stout, spongy petioles, were themselves an ornament and a curiosity. More than a tubful of the plants was thinned out during the season.

The fault of this garden, aside from its smallness, was the irregularity and violence of the water supply. No other plant, except perhaps a cattail (Typha), could have stood the strain. A kerosene barrel sawed in half will furnish two tubs, each big enough for one lily. The tubs should be well washed out and soaked for some time in water, in order to remove as much as possible of the oil and the glue which is put on to render the vessel tight. Three or four days to a week will suffice for this.

The difference between a barrel and a brewer’s hogshead is but one of degree. The hogshead is about six feet in diameter, and may be bought for about five dollars. This modest expenditure makes us the proud possessors of two ponds, each of which may harbour as many as five or six water-lily plants. These two ponds are, of course, formed from the ends of the hogshead, sawed off to a depth of eighteen inches. Having placed the larger ponds in position, the smaller barrel ends can be arranged in respect to them. The nelumbium and Papyrus barrels must find a place at the back, and where they will not prevent the direct sun light from reaching the water-lilies. Taller growing terrestrial plants with bold various coloured foliage, such as certain varieties of castor bean and cannas, will form an excellent background for the whole.

One great advantage of the barrels for making a water garden is that they are not only successful with hardy nympheas, but are especially well adapted to the requirements of the tender kinds, because the water, being limited to a small receptacle, attains a higher temperature from the sun heat. Danger of the water becoming stagnant is eliminated when the barrels are flushed once a week with the garden hose, and some arrangement should be made for this.

The successful artificial water garden will conform as nearly as possible to the conditions under which Nature herself constructs lagoons and pools. It is surely common sense that it be placed at the foot of a terrace, not on top; also, let the ground slope down to it on all sides, if possible.

If it is to stand in a broad, sloping plain, grade down the upper side as much as is necessary to bring the lower side about on the natural level of the ground.

It is essentially artificial to find anything like a long dam or terrace descending from the margin of a pond.