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JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



of scarlet, blue and yellow, of geranium, lobelia and calceolaria, than 

 produce some of the hybrid atrocities which have recently been per- 

 petrated in this country under the name of Japanese Gardens. Chapter 

 II. deals with Stones, Ornaments and Fences, and Chapter III. with 

 Landscape Gardens ; and then follow chapters devoted to Nursery Gardens, 

 Dwarf Trees and Hachi-Niwa, the wonderful miniature landscape gardens 

 representing whole scenes within the space of a shallow dish. The night 

 fairs in Kyoto must be fascinating. Miss du Cane says of them : " On 

 April 1 the best night-market is held. The stalls will be covered with 

 tempting little flowering trees, their buds almost bursting and full of 

 promise of lovely blossoms to come ; sturdy little peach trees, their 

 branches thickly covered with soft velvet buds just tinged with pink ; 

 drooping cherries wreathed with red-brown buds ; slender Pyrus trained 

 into wonderful twisted shapes ; little groves of maple trees, their scarlet 

 or bronze leaves just unfurling ; or miniature forests of larch, shading 

 mossy ravines with rivers of white sand ; ancient pine trees spreading 

 their branches over rocky precipices rising from a bed of pebbles ; 

 sweet-scented Daphnes, golden-flowered Forsythias, and early Azaleas in 

 porcelain dishes, which are round or oval, shallow or deep, and of every 

 shade, from white through soft greys and blues to a deep green." 

 These treasures are to be bought at from a few sen to two or three 

 yen ! Then follow an interesting chapter on Temple Gardens, and a 

 delightful one on Summer Flowers. In May Miss du Cane visited 

 Matsushima, the land of the pine clad islands, and later Nikko, to see 

 the Azaleas, a gorgeous feast of colour. Her description of Lilium 

 auratum in its wild state is worth noting from a cultural point of view. 

 She says : " By the middle of July the big buds of Lilium auratum will 

 be fighting their way through the rank growth along the roadside, and 

 in a few days the air will be filled with their scent. Often I was attracted 

 by their fragrance, perhaps all the more remarkable in a land which 

 alas I is not famed for sweet smells, and then far above one's head, 

 hanging defiantly out of reach, could be seen a single splendid bloom of 

 this king among lilies. They seem to love the shelter and dampness of the 

 wood, where the falling leaves each autumn make a fresh covering for 

 their bulbs. Once I tried to see how deep in the earth the bulbs were 

 buried, but I did not succeed in getting down low enough, and could only 

 tell, from the mark on the stem of the lily which had been pulled, that 

 about 8 or 10 inches seemed to be the usual depth of the bulb." How 

 often gardeners in England fail to get Lilium auratum to grow, through 

 not planting it deep enough ! Other chapters deal with Peach, Plum and 

 Cherry blossom, Wistaria and Paeony, the Iris, the Chrysanthemum, 

 Maple, Pine and Bamboo, &c. 



" The Flowers and Gardens of Japan " is a book to read as well as to 

 look at, and, as has already been said, no apology for its production is 

 necessary. 



" The Florist's Bibliography." By C. Harman Payne. 8vo., 80 pp. 

 (Wesley, London, 1908.) 3s. Gd. net. 



This book has been prepared by a lover of books, and is a useful guide 

 to those forming a library dealing with florists, flowers, and the flower 

 garden. 



