WHILE THE KETTLE BOILS

New Zealand Listener, Volume 2, Issue 29, 12 January 1940, Page 43

WHILE THE KETTLE BOILS

Dear Friends, Well, our playtime is over. The last Christmas carol has been sung, the echo of the New Year chimes are already dim in our ears. All the stars and the spangles and the festive array are laid away for another twelve months. Most of us have put our holiday moods behind us and are facing the New Year in earnest. I want to tell you of a very pleasant experience I had over the holidays-it may offer an inspiration to some of my readers in, the decoration of their own homes. I was invited by a friend to visit a very lovely home just outside Wellington. It would take too long here to describe the house in detail, but there was one room that I specially marked out, and of which, I think, you will be interested to hear. This sunny lounge-room had cream colour-washed walls hung with a few choice pastels and etchings. The carpet was a lovely vivid wine colour, and the curtains that outlined the curved bay-window were of linen tweed run through here and there with a line of jade green. The cushions heaped on the cream-coloured Chesterfield suite were covered in jade linen-with one large cushion repeating the wine toning of the carpet. ' But it was the bay-window that caught my eye, for circling it was a glowing indoor garden. The effect was exquisite. Tawny nasturtiums and morning glories growing side by side. Fuschias and Martha Washington geraniums like gaily painted butterflies. Carnations springing from a mist of green fern. In the centre of all this was one of those fascinating miniature Chinese lakes, complete with tiny bridge, pagodas, and dwarf trees. The whole thing was so compact, so beautifully planned, that it seemed incredible so much could be achieved in such a limited space. The boxes were all metal-lined and covered with the same wood as the window fittings, so that they became part of the general scheme. At each end of the garden were two lovely hanging baskets of English ivy. My hostess assured me it is the easiest form of gardening and the most successful, as accidents of weather are practically eliminated. She allows a certain amount of fresh air and sunlight to her garden each day, and the metal-lined tubs conserve all moisture. She gives her flowers the correct amount of watering, and the result is an exquisite garden always within view. I have often wondered why more homes do not favour these indoor gardens. In our variable climate they should enjoy a wider popularity. One could experiment with all kinds of different plants and garden schemes. This fascinating hobby need not be confined to the living-rooms. For a bedroom a fragrant garden of aromatic herbs is an inspiration. Night-scented stocks, the sweet-smelling rose, or nutmeg geranium, the spicy fragrance of basil, thyme, and the eversweet mignonette-all wooing one to perfumed slumber. For the kitchen a culinary herb garden is both artistic and practical. Instead of having to run out to the garden every time you require parsley or herbs, all you need do is to reach out and pluck them from your window-box, Apart from the artistic effect of these indoorgardens, they really make a fascinating hobby-and if father insists on the outside garden being his own particular domain, well, mother can go one better with her own little garden within the home. Yours cordially,

Cynthia