JOUENAL 



OF THE 



Royal HomcuLiuRAL Society. 



Vol. XXXII. 1907. 



A JAPANESE GAEDEN IN ENGLAND. 

 By James Hudson, V.M.H. 

 [Lecture given on April 25, 1905.] 



It was at the suggestion of Mr. Leopold de Rothschild that the 

 Japanese garden was arranged at Gunnersbury, the great interest that 

 he takes in every phase of gardening being well known to all the horti- 

 cultural community. The idea originated from some photographs taken at 

 one of the beautiful gardens upon the Bellaggio side of the Lake of Como, 

 where there is a similar garden. These photographs were taken by Mr. 

 Lionel de Rothschild, who also is a keen patron of gardening. From 

 these photographs I worked out the Gunnersbury Japanese garden, 

 following the lines as nearly as possible, rather than those laid down 

 by some authorities on Japanese gardens. 



Japanese Gabdens, or Gardens composed chiefly of 

 Japanese Plants. 



The primary consideration in the formation of any garden should be 

 the suitability of the site for the specific purpose in view. If greater 

 attention were paid to this, the instances of failure or of unsatisfactory 

 progress would be far less frequent. Having chosen the site, then adapt 

 it in the best possible way for the object intended. 



It is now well known that exposure to the keen biting winds of both 

 winter and spring is oftentimes more conducive to failure than frost 

 itself. To this essential point due regard must be paid in the case 

 of many plants indigenous to Japan ; such, for instance, as bamboos and 

 palms ; even the maples and some of the coniferas require shelter from 

 cold winds such as we experience in most parts of England. Shelter 

 must therefore be provided, if not already existing in a sufiicient degree. 

 In our case we had scarcely any provision to make in this respect, being 

 well screened by evergreens, walls, and tall trees. 



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