"Mattie Edwards Hewitt 
Rock Gardens 
HE rock-garden has several very excellent reasons for its exis¬ 
tence and popularity. In the first place it provides a means of 
developing attractively the steep slope or bank which is too 
difficult for the lawn mower. Also, a great many lovely flowering 
things which naturally grow on rocky ledges or in damp alpine meadows 
take more kindly to cultivation in the rock-garden. Then again the rock- 
garden satisfies to a more or less extent the longing many of us have for a 
bit of nature on our own premises. It carries us as if by some sort of magic 
to the wild windswept gardens of the mountain tops or to a tiny singing 
brook deep in the woods bordered by ferns and wild flowers. A rock- 
garden or wild-garden also makes an ideal home for the little treasures 
which are brought back from delightful trips to the North Woods or Pine 
Barrens. 
Informal pools are an interesting feature in most rock-gardens and 
are beloved by frogs and birds. Many beautiful bog loving plants may be 
happily grown at the edges of the pool and are doubly effective with their 
flowers reflected in the water. 
Closely akin to the rock-garden is the retaining wall, which 
makes an ideal place for growing many of the lovely rock plants. A dry 
wall, that is one that is layed up without concrete, is very often used to 
hold a steep bank or to form a terrace in the garden or on the lawn. Such 
a wall dripping with masses of various colored flowers is a sight to behold. 
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