IRISH GARDENING. 



59 



and WL'il mixed with cuais^' i-hip.s. Given a pro- 

 perly ijrepured fomidatiun, as :l were, it is liieii 

 [)ossible 10 give speeial preparation to eercaiii 

 |)()i-lvets ill wiiieli are to ))e planted choice or rare 

 s^fecies. 



Here again, liowever, we eonie to another piiase 

 of alpine gardening. The mention ot dilticuit 

 species at once brings to mind the moraine. (Ji 

 recent years tlie moraine lias been much talked 

 of, and undoubtedly many plants hitherto looked 

 upon as almost hopeless have found a congenial 

 home in its gritty depths. Many plants which 

 detest surface moisture, that is, lymjj on or about 

 their leaves, flourish better in the moraine than 

 I'lsewhere, because the drainage is so sharp that 

 surface moisture soon soaks away, leaving the 

 plant dry above but with its roots in the cool 

 clei)ths below. One is often asked how deep a 

 moraine shoidd be; well in our climate 1 tliink 

 two feet ample, the bottom nint; inches being of 

 fairly large stones and the remainder of loam and 

 Jeaf soil, mixed with shari) ehips in the propor- 

 tion of one of the former to three of the latter. I 

 refer, of course, to a moraine without any artificial 

 water supply. Many who advocate laying on water 

 \\ould say that the proportion of chips should be 

 increased, but I see no need for laying on water 

 and I am sure that at the depth I have 

 suggested there is little fear of the infants suffer- 

 ing from drought. The moraine should, if possible, 

 be on a slope facing south or south-west, and it 

 may be made of granite chips, limestone, or any 

 other kind of rock available, the principle being 

 to get sharp drainage and a deep root-run for such 

 plants as require it. Some coarse chips may be 

 scattered on the surface to finish off and conserve 

 the moisture. It may be noted that many alpines 

 which in nature grow in chinks and crannies of 

 huge rocks, sending their roots far into the damp 

 recesses, find a happy home in the moraine, where 

 the conditions are very similar. For instance, 

 some of the Saponarias flourish in the moraine 

 l)etter than anywhere else. Of these I may mention 

 Saponaria c^spitosa, with umbels of rose- 

 coloured flowers; S. lutea, yellow; S. pulvinaris, 

 dwarf and tufted, with red flowers, and Sunder* 

 maniiii and Weinmanniana, with pinkish flowers. 

 Convolvulus incanus, a creeper with silvery 

 leaves and pink flowers, grows rampant in the 

 moraine, and frequently sulks elsewhere. C, 

 nitidus, an even daintier plant, is difficult except 

 in moraine conditions, and some of the Saxifragas 

 will flourish there when a sufficient number of 

 I'hinks is not available elsewhere. S. burseriana 

 and some of its forms make fine cushions, flower 

 freely and assume that hard prickly appearance 

 which denotes good health. The dwarf Artemisias. 

 such as pedemontana, spicata, Baumgarteni, and 

 nuitellina; also such Campanulas as excisa, Tom- 

 masiniana, inacrorrhiza and the true Raineri, a 

 dainty little gem with large pale blue flowers, all 

 delight in deep, gritty soil. 



The more compact growing Androsaces are rare 

 alpines and thrive in the moraine, and such 

 species as A. hedreantha, lu^lvetica, pubescens and 

 argentea should be given a trial. Raouli australis, 

 a low creeper with silvery leaves, makes a bea iti- 

 ful carpet and spreads freely. There is hardly any 

 limit to the number and kind of plant that will 

 flourish in the moraine, and any plant that lias 

 l-roved difficult elsewhere may, -with every hope (f 

 success, be tried there. The most striking f';'at;-ie 

 of moraine grown plants is the close, firm, com- 

 pact growtli they make, exactly like what we are 

 told they do In their native habitats . 



As a companion to the moraine the alpine bog 

 is an esential feature of an up-to-date aliiine gar- 

 den. Many of our best plants require moister 

 conditions than are obtainable in the ordinary 

 soil of the rockery. The alpine bog may be 

 imagined as a hollow high up on the mountains, 

 and which has become filled with decayed veget- 

 able matter forming a black humus. It is moist 

 from the absorbent nature of tlie material, but is 

 nevertheless always losing moisture through being 

 high up and therefore naturally drained. The 

 alpine iKtg is quite distinct from the bog gard(!n, 

 wnich is mainiy intended for the larger growing 

 herbaceous plants, which require more than 

 ordinary moist conditions. In the Alpine bog we 

 may grow such delightful alpines as Primula 

 fannosa, P. frondosa, scotica, involucrata, cock- 

 burniana, BuUeyana, Veitchii, saxatilis, cortu- 

 soides, muscarioides and Littoniana and many 

 others which do not flom'ish well in the ordinary 

 loam and chips mixture. Then we have the beau- 

 tiful alpine Kammculuses, such as K. montanus, 

 with beautiful yellow flowers; R. alpestris, white, 

 and Kerneri, pink. Here, too. Orchises and Soldan- 

 ellas flourish with the dwarf er growing Mecon- 

 opses like integrifolia, racemosa, aculeata, rudis 

 and others. Soldanellas, it may be urged, often 

 grow freely Init do not flower, and this is undoubt- 

 edly so, due, I believe, to the want of a complete 

 rest in winter. In nature they are covered with 

 snow and frost-bound for months, and are then 

 completely at rest. With the melting of the snow 

 in spring they immediately commence to flower, 

 and it seems as if they should be covered with 

 glass or slates in autumn and kept as dry as 

 possible through the winter. This theory is con- 

 firmed by the fact that pot grown plants kept dry 

 in a covered frame during winter invariably flower 

 more freely than those planted out. The compost 

 for an alpine bog may consist of flbry peat, leaf 

 soil, loam and coarse sand in equal proportions. 

 A total depth of eighteen inches should be ample, 

 with a six inch layer of rough stones in the bottom. 

 Thus briefly I have touched on two methods of 

 catering for plants requiring special conditions, 

 and in quoting a few plants in each case I have 

 merely indicated the particular use of these 

 methods. There are many other plants suitable 

 for both, but it depends greatly on the climate and 

 district which plants will require to l)e specially 

 catered for. Certain plants may grow wt>ll in one 

 district without special preparation and refuse to 

 grow in another without a deal of trouble, and the 

 grower must experiment until he finds out the 

 treatment necessary in his own particular circum- 

 stances. Fortunately, however, there is an abund- 

 ant supply of plants wdiich will grow and flower 

 freely under what may be called ordinary condi- 

 tions, that is, in gritty, well drained soil'. Some 

 enjoy full sun and others shade, and some seem 

 indifferent, and all these conditions can usually 

 be provided in any Alpine garden, large or small. 

 Let us see what plants there are suitable for a 

 sunny bank. There are many of them, especially 

 those with glaucous or silvery leaves. I will only 

 mention a few. Achillea Kellereri, A. clavennse, A. 

 serbica, Anthemis macedonica, Pyrethrum den- 

 sum. Chnsanthemuni argenteum, all silvery- 

 leaved plants with white or yellow flowers. 

 Alyssum spinosum, spiny plant with white flowers, 

 and there is a variety with rose-coloured flowers; 

 Antennaria dioica, with several varieties, the 

 leaves small, mostly grey, and with heads of white 

 or pink flow\n-s; Lithospermum petrgeum, a grey- 

 leaved Gromwell, with beautiful light-blue flowers; 



