ROCK AND ALPINE GARDENS 5 



dicular rock faces. To outward appearance they must 

 exist on such food and moisture as can be obtained from 

 the atmosphere. Yet if we break away pieces of the 

 shaly rock, we shall find small white rootlets thrusting 

 themselves into minute crevices through which a drop 

 of water could hardly percolate. Were it possible to 

 extract one of these roots whole, we should probably find 

 that it was some feet in length. So that even in these 

 barren regions, the forces of Nature have been, and are, 

 slowly disintegrating huge rocks, grinding them down 

 into particles from which a plant, but an inch high, may 

 draw life and sustenance. 



This simple fact should be of most practical assistance 

 to growers of small plants in rock gardens. In itself it 

 explains why, without apparent reason, small Alpines are 

 constantly dying. That they should have been starved 

 for lack of necessary plant food is the last thought to 

 occur ; Alpines are credited with extraordinary powers of 

 endurance. Rich soil they certainly do not need ; under 

 natural conditions the roots are found in that of the poorest 

 quality, a mixture of sand, coarse grit, and earthy particles. 

 But even in the most unlikely places where Alpines are 

 found, there is soil of some description, and if at any 

 reasonable depth the roots will find it. Otherwise plant 

 life, except of the most restricted nature, would not be 

 found. Unless the designer understands and appreciates 

 the conditions under which rock plants occur, he cannot 

 hope to make a garden home in which these transplanted 

 wildings will flourish and multiply. 



In the placing of stones forming the rock garden, 

 valuable lessons may be gained from a study of Nature. 

 Not that we want to imitate natural features or erect a 

 miniature Alps in a small garden, but because Nature's 

 arrangement of rocks is nearly always best suited to the 

 growth of plants. If we notice a particularly vigorous 

 outgrowth of vivid mosses, small plants and ferns, 



