The Japanese Garden 
By John Johnson, Massachusetts. 
THROUGH the ages both Japanese and Chinese 
gardeners have excelled in the novel art of 
dwarfing trees. The system of training and 
stunting the growth of various evergreen and deciduous 
:trees involves really more patience than skill ; as the 
whole art of growing pigmy trees lies in checking the 
sap flow, removing strong growths, and rigorous con- 
finement of the root system. Nevertheless the study is 
interesting. 
On account of much maltreatment the young plants 
receive and subsequent slow growth made, it is easy to 
understand that the production of pigmy trees is a pro- 
tracted business. 
The object of this article, however, is not to associate 
readers with cultural data of these curiosities, since 
curiosities they become when grown as one often sees 
them in isolated numbers in either pot or tub. Rather 
would I attempt to outline an environment giving them 
justice and assign to these plants a position to which alone 
they are suited and where instead of being items of mere 
curiosity they become significant and of more than pass- 
ing interest. 
A Japanese garden suggests itself. Although by no 
means common in this country this type of garden is 
now an established feature in the make-up of leading 
European domains. With the trend of time there is 
hope of its popularity here. 
We seem to have reached the time when equal recog- 
nition is given the natural free as the formal layout. 
Formal gardens have a place and rightly so, and are 
sometimes more to be desired than the landscape type. 
'I he grounds attached to the residence not always afford 
scope for good landscape effects. This renders almost 
imperative a garden of geometrical design made in con- 
formity with the adjacent architecture. But where space 
allows and surrounding" landscape favors there can be no 
more pleasing layout than a well-planned Japanese gar- 
den. This scheme of planning and planting embraces 
the most enchanting elements possible to conceive in the 
best of nature's own landscape — a verdure of grassy 
slopes and trees, and flowers amid ravine, rill and pool 
bespeaks the true formation. So that reproduced in 
miniature we have an expanse of landscape beauty. 
The species adaptable for such a scheme of planting 
are legion. In addition to a general line of dwarfed 
trees to which I have alluded, anything that will thrive 
in the shrubbery, perennial border, rockery or bog gar- 
den will be quite at home in the Japanese garden. With 
the aid of a natural stream much that is desired may be 
successfully accomplished. The aesthetic individual is 
not easy to satisfy, and aptly perhaps is it suggested that 
much may be accomplished provided this natural facility 
exist. The stream could be diverted into numerous 
water channels and these widened in places to make 
pools for the reception of aquatic plants. Contrary, the 
course of the stream may be so broken as to form islands 
in miniature. If the site is a naturally precipitous grade 
so much the better, as then cascades may be introduced 
at a nominal cost of labor. 
It will be seen that water is fundamental in making 
a Japanese garden. Of equal importance is a rugged 
strata. All such conditions are seldom at hand and 
A }}'cll Planned Japanese Garden Ideal in Its General Planting Scheme. 
505 
