68 MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN BULLETIN 
conifers and cycads fit best. The Japanese art of garden- 
ing, as practised at the present time, is the result of cen- 
turies of horticultural effort so influenced by religious beliefs 
that every part of the garden has come to have some special 
significance. Strangely enough, rocks and stones are ap- 
parently of as much importance in such a garden as plants. 
Among the latter, however, which are characteristic of 
Japanese gardens, should be mentioned the Japanese iris 
—without which no Japanese garden can be truly said to 
be complete, the cycads, and the conifers. For the time 
being the indoor collection of irises referred to elsewhere in 
the BULLETIN will also be shown in this house and will add | 
to the general Japanese effect produced by the little pools, 
the walks of stepping stones, the arched bridges, and the 
miniature mountains. 
Entering this wing from the fern house and viewing the 
whole garden from this point of vantage, a striking effect 
of distance, accomplished wholly by the plantations, will 
be noticed. All the larger trees and plants and the higher 
elevations are in the foreground, with the smaller specimens 
and the lower elevations in the distance. Even the stones in 
the path diminish in size as the path approaches the 
farther end of the house. The windings of the walks, while 
apparently aimless, have a real significance to the Japanese. 
Five distinct elevations characterize the garden, two 
of which are on either side of the center line, the fifth one, 
known as the “Sunset hill,” being on the line and at the 
west end of the house. The large stone at the base of 
the Sunset hill and near the walk is called the ‘Moon- 
shadow stone.” To the east of the small bridge in the west 
end of the garden is a small island upon which is a stone 
known as the “Worshipping stone.” This little island is 
connected with the shore by a single rock and almost oppo- 
site the latter is another flat stone, known as the ‘‘Seat-of- 
honor stone.” The “Guardian stone” is on the right side 
of the cascade and can easily be seen from the steps upon 
entering the garden. The “Water-tray stone” is on the south 
side of the small pool and not far from the cascade. A stone 
near the first bridge is the “Perfect-view stone.” 
The Japanese garden has aptly been described as a land- 
scape in miniature, and in order to enjoy perfectly its differ- 
ent parts one must imagine that the mounds of earth are in 
ae good-sized hills, that the small stream is a river, 
and that the small pools are mountain lakes. The dwarfed 
trees and the well-grown cyeads, too, are important, because 
they represent years of patient effort. 
