152 THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



districts, it is a mistake to place this artificial rock under conditions 

 where rock of any kind does not occur in nature. It would be much 

 better, as far as alpine and rock plants are concerned, to dispense with 

 much of this ugly artificial rockwork, and take advantage of the fact 

 that many of these plants grow perfectly well on raised borders and 

 on fully exposed low banks. 



ALPINE PLANTS IN GROUPS. Many vigorous alpine flowers 

 will do perfectly well on level ground in our cool climate, if they 

 are not overrun by coarser plants. Where there are natural rocks 

 or good artificial ones it is best to plant them properly ; but people 

 who are particular would often be better without artificial " rockwork " 

 if they wished to grow these plants in simpler ways. There is not 

 the slightest occasion to have what is called " rockwork " for these 

 flowers. I do not speak only of things like the beautiful Gentianella, 

 which for many years has been grown in our gardens, but of the 

 Rockfoils, the Stonecrops, and the true alpine plants in great numbers. 

 Then, for the sake of securing the benefits of the refreshing rains, 

 it would often be best, in the south of England at least, to avoid 

 the dusty pockets hitherto built for rock flowers. In proof of what 

 may be done in this way there is a little alpine garden, made in quite a 

 level place in the worst possible soil for growing the plant, the hot 

 Bagshot sand, where the soil is always fit for working after heavy rain, 

 but in hot summer is almost like ashes. By making the soil rather 

 deep, and by burying a few stones among the plants to prevent 

 dryness, this flower, which naturally thrives in loamy soil, grew well, 

 and the plan suits many alpine plants. 



The next point is the great superiority of natural grouping over 

 the botanical or labelled style of little single specimens of a great 

 number of plants. In a few yards of border, in the ordinary way, 

 there would be fifty or more kinds, but nothing pretty for those who 

 have ever seen the beautiful mountain gardens. Many rightly con- 

 tend that, in a sense, Nature includes all, and that therefore the 

 term " natural " may be misapplied, but is a perfectly just one 

 when used in the sense of Nature's way of arranging flowers as 

 opposed to the lines, circles, and other set patlerns so commonly 

 followed by man. Through bold and natural grouping we may get 

 fine colour without a trace of formality. But most gardeners find it 

 difficult to group in this natural way, because so used to setting 

 things out in formal lines. But a little attention to natural objects 

 will help us to get away from set patterns, and let things intermingle 

 here and there and run into each other to form groups such as we 

 may see among the rocks by alpine paths. After a little time the 

 plants themselves begin to help us, and an excellent way is, if a num- 

 ber of plants are set out too formally as in most cases they are to 



