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almost eight hundred in spite of losses due to vandalism, careless- 
ness on the part of visitors, and lack of adaptability to our condi- 
tions on the part of some of the alpines. 
What is called a “moraine garden” was constructed in 1917 
to care for some of the more capricious alpines. It was made by 
excavating the soil over a small area of the rock garden to a depth 
of eighteen inches or two feet, and replacing it with a mixture of 
three-quarter inch crushed stone, five parts; sand, one part; and 
leaf mould, one part. This sounds like a hungry and unpromising 
mixture for plant culture but it provides perfect drainage, and 
encourages the roots to penetrate deeply where it is cool anc 
moist, a most important point in the cultivation of alpines. I 
_ 
or 
also insures perfect ripening of the top growth, enabling the 
plants better to withstand the vagaries of our winters. Among 
the subjects planted in the moraine are the more difficult species 
of Androsace, Saxifraga, Primula, and Asperula. Their growth 
was so encouraging that in the fall of 1922 a further area was 
excavated, more than trebling the size of the moraine. 
The Rock Garden was further extended in 1921 by construc- 
tion on the east side of the main walk. 
The general idea in making the garden was that of representing 
a boulder-strewn slope. This design, of necessity, was modified 
in places to provide proper cultural conditions as to drainage, depth 
of soil, and shade. The desirability of walks or trails, so that 
visitors might get near enough to the plants to appreciate their 
beauty, was another factor which prevented the idea of a boulder- 
strewn slope being carried out in its entirety. The provision of 
ae plants in a rock garden which 
— 
adequate facilities for viewing t 
is open to the public is always a problem when a naturalistic effect 
is desired. Jf the walks and trails are constructed of rocks similar 
in character to those used in the body of the garden, and made 
without definite boundaries so as to merge into the garden, many 
plants are doomed to destruction by the feet of visitors. 
As it was decided that easy accessibility to the plants was of 
greater importance than maintaining intact the idea of a stony 
slope, our garden is well provided with walks and trails. These 
are made of broken flagstones, laid informally, and, in the case 
of the small trails, with a stepping-stone effect. There is very 
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