THE ALPINE FLORA 



advocated this policy in committee 1 , with the result that 

 a long period of fumbling ended and the garden of accli- 

 matisation 2 was founded at Plainpalais. For eighteen 

 years this garden distributed plants and seeds throughout 

 the world; in 1902 it was removed to Chene, where un- 

 der the name Tloraire, taken from the Latin Florarium, 

 it has been reorganised on a commercial basis. 



The Geneva association has done a great work in 

 preaching the protection of rare plants. It was the first 

 to lift a warning voice on behalf of species whose exis- 

 tence was threatened and to give a practical turn to 

 the talk about acclimatisation by promoting the founda- 

 tion of the gardens mentioned. A tide of popularity set 

 in, which is spreading the artificial rock-garden and 

 alpinum over the civilised world. How rapidly this fash- 

 ion, which has an artistic no less than a scientific and 

 horticultural side, has extended, may be measured by the 

 following fact. In May 1887 the writer, who was culti- 

 vating alpines in his property at Yverdon (Vaud), exhib- 

 ited a small collection at the spring show of the Geneva 

 Horticultural Society. The exhibit caused great surprise, 

 and the Committee was hard put to know in what class 

 it should be placed. Two years later Geneva counted 

 more than fifty rockeries devoted to alpines. At the 

 present day these plants have a place assigned to them in 

 all shows on the continent, in England and the United 

 States. Their culture is the subject of many conferences 

 and lectures, both popular and esoteric for the instruction 

 of professional gardeners. Botanical gardens, with few 

 exceptions, have their alpina or at least their alpine rock- 

 eries. In a word the cult has won its position as a 



1 Bulletin no. 2 of the Association for the protection of plants. (Ge- 

 neva, 1884.) 



2 Bulletin no. 20 of the Association for the protection of plants. (Ge- 

 neva, 1884.) 



