464 LANDSCAPE GARDENING. 



" Prodigue de genie," 



and has a perception of the natural beauty which he 

 desires to imitate. 



The rockwork once formed, choice trailing, creeping, and 

 alpine plants, such as delight naturally in similar situations, 

 may be planted in the soil which fills the interstices between 

 the rocks : when these grow to fill their proper places, 

 partly concealing and adorning the rocks with their neat 

 green foliage and pretty blossoms, the effect of the whole, 

 if properly done, will be like some exquisite portion of a 

 rocky bank in wild scenery, and will be found to give an 

 air at once striking and picturesque to the little scene 

 where it is situated. 



In small places where the grounds are extremely limited, 

 and the owner wishes to form a rockwork for the growth 

 of alpine and other similar plants, if there are no natural 

 indications of a rocky surface, a rockwork may sometimes 

 be introduced without violating good taste by preparing 

 natural indications artificially, if we may use such a term. 

 If a few of the rocks to be employed in the rockwork are 

 sunk half or three-fourths their depth in the soil near the 

 site of the proposed rockwork, so as to have the ap- 

 pearance of a rocky ridge just cropping out, as the 

 geologists say, then the rockwork will, to the eye of a 

 spectator, seem to be connected with, and growing out of 

 this rocky spur or ridge below : or, in other words, there 

 will be an obvious reason for its being situated there, 

 instead of its presenting a wholly artificial appearance. 



In a previous page, when treating of the banks of pieces 

 of water formed by art, we endeavored to show how tlie 

 natural appearance of such banks would be improved by 

 the iudicious introduction of rocks partially imbedded into 



