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The habit of the plant is the next point to be considered, and it is by no means an unimportant one. Habit not only means shape, size, and general appearance, but also those special characters, which distinguish one plant from another. It may consist in mode of branching, texture of foliage, form of flower head, color of foliage, denseness or sparseness of blossom, or time of flowering in relation to leaf production (some plants, it is well known, put forth their flowers before their leaves, as the daphne, forsythia, etc.).

It is only when we know these details that we are in a position to use the plant to best advantage. It is important that garden plants should be allowed freedom of growth to develop their individual characters amongst outdoor statuary, indoor wall fountains that have been incorporated outdoors, or garden waterfalls that may be a part of the garden as well. Character in the plant is one of its greatest charms to those who regard it not merely as a means for producing blossom.

“Freedom of growth” refers to the growing of plants in a way to develop their special habit, instead of pinching and cutting them into some conventional form foreign to their nature. In a herbaceous border the best general effect is produced when there is no rigid system of grading the plants in height. Though the rule should be to put the taller and more robust plants to the back, it is essential to the best results from a picturesque point of view that this rule should be broken occasionally, by here and there reversing it.

One or more bold clumps of flower brought to the front at irregular intervals gives a character to the border that would be unobtainable in any other way. If you pride yourself on a tidy garden you may resent the intrusion of a massy clump upon the path or grass edge, and will keep it within bounds by ill-judged mutilation, till the poor intruder becomes a maimed wreck. It is by this kind of gardening that plants are shorn of their beauty, and the border is made a stiff and formal detail.

The next point is to see that each plant has sufficient elbow-room to develop without hindrance from its neighbors (including a potential outdoor fountain, wall water fountain, or piece of garden statuary). This does not imply a starved bed or border only that armed with the knowledge of the habit of each plant, the gardener allots it just sufficient room to grow centrifugally without check from its companions. Thus the taller plants may be separated by others of more moderate growth, and the former will have space above to expand their foliage unhindered.

Again, with a knowledge of plant habit we may associate bushy plants with those which tend to legginess — to use a term well known to the gardening fraternity — and thereby conceal the uninteresting view of a sheaf of bare stalks. Plants which throw up long narrow spikes of flower may keep company with others having a tufted habit, to their mutual advantage in the general effect.

Those with silvery, glaucous, or bronze foliage maybe placed where they will reinforce others whose flowers are best set off by contrast with these special kinds of foliage. Shrubs and plants which flower in advance of their leaves may be supported by evergreen or early leafing plants. Again, we may use the bold foliaged plant for association with those of sparse and inconspicuous habit.

The final result of care in these particulars will be a natural, informal effect, in which every individual plant appears to be, and is, at home in its surroundings, and in consequence is best conditioned for producing its maximum contribution to the aggregate picture. If some vigorous plant pushes forward beyond the boundary, begins to overshadow your large fountains, patio statuary, or garden water features, or some pretty trailer ignores the edging, it is a gain to the gardener and no fault of the planting. Such accidents should be within reason and can even be conspired for the special purpose of importing informality into the garden.

In the back row, variety of height is desirable, even when all are tall, for the plants will silhouette against the background, and an even row, like soldiers on parade, would be monotonous. In beds and groups of beds the same principles apply, but not quite in the same degree. You can group the tall plants in the centre and reserve the margin for others of smaller and more uniform size. Though you may plan on geometrical lines, you should, like the painter, endeavor to soften them. Your plants will do that for you if only you allow them.

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You should be aware that the end grain of wood takes too much stain. Consequently it becomes too dark unless you take extra care to prevent this extra absorption. The open ends of the tracheal vessels, or the tracheids in some woods, absorb very avidly water and stains in general.

Sometimes if you sponge the stain on to the end-grain and apply the stain while this part of the wood is wet, this will even up the color, just as it may do on sap-wood.

Some wood finishers prefer to apply a coat of very thin glue sizing to the end grain and sapwood, after they have performed a few experiments to determine the proportions of sizing glue and water that they need to have in the mixture.

The end grain usually requires more glue in the sizing mixture than does sapwood. You should wait until the sizing has dried in the pores before you start applying the stain and if necessary do some resanding of the wood, regardless of whether the wood will be used for plinth blocks, door toppers, or corner guards.

Knots and different kinds of wood which are laid side by side sometimes require special treatment, but some variation of the methods suggested for end grain and sapwood are ordinarily used.

The end grain of woods with large open pores especially is sometimes treated with a coat of paste wood filler to prevent the stain from soaking in too much. None of the filler should be allowed to run over on the faces and edges, or you will have lighter spots or streaks in places where they are not wanted.

When you use brushes to apply water stains, they should not be kept standing in the stains, because soaking will cause the bristles to become too soft and “moppy” for good work. They can be washed in water and dried and in this way, you can keep them in better condition for future work on fireplace mantles, wood fireplace inserts, or ornamental pediment!

A fitch brush about 2½” wide, set with a rubber ferrule, is the type of brush frequently used for water staining.  Polar-bear bristles, which should be rubberset, are also preferred for some kinds of work.

A rather soft brush will do good work in staining a closely grained wood, but, for wood with large open pores, a stiff bristle brush is superior because it can reach and cover the bottoms of the cell openings. Stiff brushes give a flatter or more even tone than flaccid brushes in staining porous wood.

A soft brush, if used on wood with large open pores, leaves light specks in the cell cavities because stain thus applied docs not penetrate sufficiently into the tiny openings. Glue-set brushes cannot be used for any length of time in water stains because the bristles will come out when the glue softens.

Either oval or flat brushes are satisfactory, but in any case a rather large size is preferable to a smaller size brush. On large piece of wood, it is best to use a 3″ or 4″ brush because it holds more stain and this will make the work of staining less tedious.

is wet, this will even up the color, just as it may do on sap-wood.

Some wood finishers prefer to apply a coat of very thin glue sizing to the end grain and sapwood, after they have performed a few experiments to determine the proportions of sizing glue and water that they need to have in the mixture.

The end grain usually requires more glue in the sizing mixture than does sapwood. You should wait until the sizing has dried in the pores before you start applying the stain and if necessary do some resanding of the wood, regardless of whether the wood will be used for plinth blocks, door toppers, or corner guards.

Knots and different kinds of wood which are laid side by side sometimes require special treatment, but some variation of the methods suggested for end grain and sapwood are ordinarily used.

The end grain of woods with large open pores especially is sometimes treated with a coat of paste wood filler to prevent the stain from soaking in too much. None of the filler should be allowed to run over on the faces and edges, or you will have lighter spots or streaks in places where they are not wanted.

When you use brushes to apply water stains, they should not be kept standing in the stains, because soaking will cause the bristles to become too soft and “moppy” for good work. They can be washed in water and dried and in this way, you can keep them in better condition for future work on fireplace mantles, wood fireplace inserts, or ornamental pediment!

A fitch brush about 2½” wide, set with a rubber ferrule, is the type of brush frequently used for water staining.  Polar-bear bristles, which should be rubberset, are also preferred for some kinds of work.

A rather soft brush will do good work in staining a closely grained wood, but, for wood with large open pores, a stiff bristle brush is superior because it can reach and cover the bottoms of the cell openings. Stiff brushes give a flatter or more even tone than flaccid brushes in staining porous wood.

A soft brush, if used on wood with large open pores, leaves light specks in the cell cavities because stain thus applied docs not penetrate sufficiently into the tiny openings. Glue-set brushes cannot be used for any length of time in water stains because the bristles will come out when the glue softens.

Either oval or flat brushes are satisfactory, but in any case a rather large size is preferable to a smaller size brush. On large piece of wood, it is best to use a 3″ or 4″ brush because it holds more stain and this will make the work of staining less tedious.

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Spirit Varnishes

The old types of spirit and volatile oil varnishes, such as shellac and dammar varnish, are still used for numerous purposes. They are made cold or without great heat by dissolving the resin in its best solvent, such as grain alcohol for shellac and turpentine or more commonly a turpentine substitute for dammar and mastic.

Shellac substitutes, which are cheap, inferior finishes, also belong in this group if they contain alcohol as a solvent. Some of the new synthetic gums similar to those used in lacquers are also soluble in volatile oils and varnishes from them belong in this group because they dry by evaporation, which is ideal for wood plinth blocks, wooden bar rails, or wood door toppers.

The user of shellac 40 or 50 years ago bought orange flake shellac in the form of thin scales varying in size up to about three-quarters of an inch in diameter. wood alcohol was the solvent which the shop finisher used in preparing his orange shellac. White shellac was made from
chunks of bleached shellac which dissolved with difficulty in wood alcohol, especially if the shellac was old and had been exposed to the air for some time.

Today, either orange or white shellac in liquid form of various strengths dissolved in denatured grain alcohol can be obtained from almost any dealer in finishing supplies. Some of the cheaper liquid shellacs of today are made with a solvent which is a mixture of grain and wood alcohol. Such shellac produces a disagreeable odor when it is being applied.

Shellac varnishes may be thinned with cold denatured alcohol and can then be used in a very short time. Coatings of shellac varnish dry very quickly and produce a low gloss or semi lustrous finish. Shellac varnish is often used on floors, corner guards, plinth blocks, door toppers, and for some other similar wood finishes. Shellac coatings will turn white if exposed to the weather or spotted with water.

Contractors often prefer shellac as a floor finish because it is easy to apply, dries quickly, and produces a good effect. Shellac is generally unsatisfactory for floors because it does not wear long or well and turns white if water comes in contact with it. Shellac, somewhat diluted, is often used for an undercoat or as a sealer. It should be sanded well before another finish is applied over it in order to secure smoothness and aid in the adhesion of the next coating.

Oil Varnishes with Linseed Oil

Varnishes made from fossil resins, ester gum, or treated rosin, which can be melted to liquid form at great heat and then combined with linseed oil in large part, have been the standard slow drying varnishes that have been in use in some of their forms for centuries. Metallic driers of several types have usually been added in small amounts to speed-up drying or oxidation.

An excess of drier cannot be added to increase the drying speed even for wood surfaces such as window toppers, fireplace mantels, or even plinth blocks because of various difficulties that are impossible to overcome. In the old oil or oleoresinous varnishes, turpentine was placed in the mixture as a thinner or volatile solvent; but, for some years, this excellent solvent has been replaced very largely by some mineral spirit or a cheap petroleum volatile oil.

It is through the evaporation of the thinner or solvent and the slower changes in the drying oil, which the chemists say is largely oxidation that a linseed oil varnish including fossil resins dries out and changes from a liquid to a solid film. There is a rather marked chemical change during the oxidation of drying oils, such as linseed oil, and the new substance formed has molecules which contain additional atoms of oxygen.

The oxidation of a varnish film begins at the surface, which forms a skin on the outside and dries out more slowly inside because of greater difficulty in obtaining oxygen from the air about the film. For fireplace inserts, ornamental pediment, and wood fireplace mantels, this is ideal due to the necessity for quick drying on the immediate surface. The standard thinner for practically all of the high grade oil varnishes of the hard fossil gum type was turpentine, which almost entirely dried out by evaporation, leaving only a very small residue.

Other volatile thinners have more recently been substituted for turpentine with success since Congo resin and kauri have become scarce and expensive and other resins have replaced the hard fossil resins at least in part.

Great variations in the speed for drying of linseed oil varnishes made with hard fossil gums are possible. Quick drying or four-hour varnishes, however, are not produced from these materials. The drying times of most fossil gum varnishes vary from about two days to about a year.

The very slow drying type is sometimes used on fish rods in order to secure a very flexible finish. Heat treatments of the linseed-oil produce great changes in the oil, and variations in the speed in drying of varnishes made from oils of different heat treatments are very great.

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