ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF ROCK GARDENS 31 
of a flattened stick, taking care that they are pressed 
firmly home, with their roots well embedded in soil. The 
smaller the space at disposal for a rockery the less pre- 
tentious should be its design. To attempt to get elevations 
and deep depressions into a space of twenty or thirty 
square yards, is but to create a fiasco, but a gentle slope, 
with a few flattened pockets and slight undulations, will 
give us quite a presentable feature of the garden, as well 
as a comfortable home for the plants. Don’t tuck the 
rockery in the shadiest corner of the garden, bring it out 
in the sunlight. A few boulders may easily be manipulated 
in such a manner as to provide a little shady nook for 
such plants as cannot endure the full power of the sun, 
and moisture-loving plants can be provided for by building 
a few stones around a slight hollow, and by incorporating 
fibrous loam or peat in the soil. Keep in mind when 
building, the fact that it will frequently be necessary to 
gain easy access to every part of the rockery for purposes 
of weeding, slug hunting, and affording other attentions 
to the plants. A rugged stone pathway may meander 
through a rockery of fairly large dimensions, but even 
small constructions should have flat stepping stones 
distributed at convenient intervals, so that there is no 
necessity to tread upon plants or to risk sprained ankles 
by attempting to balance on a treacherous footing of 
sloping stone. 
The question of planting coniferze and shrubs on rockeries 
is one that must be decided by individual taste, with regard, 
of course, to the area at disposal. The pigmies among 
coniferous trees are possessed of a character and beauty 
