In My Vicarage Garden 



to the luxuriance of growth and brilliancy of colour 

 that it has in Switzerland in July and August? 

 The Astrantia minor covers the rocks and short 

 grass in many places in Switzerland, but I never 

 knew any one who had really succeeded with it 

 in England. Even the Campanula barbata, which 

 covers acres and acres with its lovely blossoms at 

 many different elevations, will do well enough for 

 two or three seasons, and then will gradually dis- 

 appear. The fact is, as I suppose, that we can 

 easily give our plants the soil they require, but we 

 cannot give them the climate and atmosphere ; 

 and climate and atmosphere are of as much im- 

 portance to their well-being as carefully selected 

 soil. 



But the title of my paper is the Rock Garden, 

 and the growth of Alpines is with most people 

 closely connected with rockeries ; yet I wish to 

 speak of them not only or chiefly in connection 

 with Alpines, but with many other plants. I do 

 not entirely agree with those who say that nothing 

 is uglier than a rockery, for I have seen many 

 which were not only beautiful in themselves, but 

 beautiful and most useful additions to beautiful 

 gardens. But there are also many, and perhaps 

 the majority, which are absolutely hideous, but 

 even so they are, or may be, useful, and in some 

 form or other every one who wishes to grow a 

 good collection of plants must have them, for in 

 no other way, generally speaking, can he get the 

 protection, the shade without darkness, and the 



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