THE ALPINE GARDEN 103 



the upland Alpine pasture is that here the grasses 

 grow too rank and tall ; the only ones therefore 

 that should be employed are the smallest of the wiry- 

 leaved kinds, such as the short Sheep's Fescue with 

 the tufted base. 



A true Alpine garden, it should be understood, is 

 a place where plants native to the Alps alone are 

 grown. It should not be confused with a general 

 rock-garden where we have mountain and other 

 plants from the whole temperate world. 



Besides those that one generally classes as plants, 

 meaning flowering plants, there will be many of the 

 beautiful small Ferns of the Alps to [be considered, 

 and the small shrubs whose presence is so important 

 in the more prominent eminences of our rock-gardens 

 and the tops of our rock-walls. Of the latter, in the 

 true Alpine garden, the most important are the dwarf 

 Rhododendrons, and nothing could be so fitting a 

 groundwork or setting for the little bright-blossomed 

 jewels that will be their companions. Especially in 

 the mass and when out of flower, their compact form 

 and dark rich colouring are extremely helpful in 

 securing a feeling of repose in the composition of the 

 main blocks of the rocky region, while their beautiful 

 bloom makes them, when in flower, some of the 

 loveliest of dwarf shrubs. 



Here again it must be noticed that care must be 

 taken to suit each kind with its geological require- 

 ment. The genus Rhododendron is represented by 

 three species in the Alps ; in those of Switzerland 



