Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1884-02-14
ORIENTAL GARDENING.
PigmY Trees and Miniature Land
Scapes of Japan and China.

PigmY Trees and Miniature land
scaPes of Japan and China.
In some ways the Chinese and Japan
ese gardeners are the nost successful Of
any in the world. They can control and
direct the growth Of plants to degree
that seems really marvellous until the
principle upon which it is doneis known,
when, as in many other matters, it be-
comes quite simple,
The Chinese have such strong liking
for the grotesque, and unnatural, that the
handiwork of their gardeners is not as
pleasing as that of the Japanese garden
ers The Chinese understand the dwarf
ing of trees; but their best work is in so
directing the growth Of tree or plant
that it will resemble some hideous ami
NAL which is only fit to exist in night
mare.
The Japanese, on the contrary, are re-
markable for their love of what is beau
tiful and graceful, and, consequently,
ugly forms find no favor with them.
Every Japanese has garden if it be
possible; but, as space is valuable in
Japan, only the very rich can have
grounds, and the family in moderate cir
cumstances must be content with gar
den often smaller in area than the floor
Of one of our hall bedrooms in narrow
city house.
Nevertheless, that small garden must
contain as many objects as the large gar
den, and, Of course, the only way Of ac-
comphshing the desired result is to have
everything in miniature. IF Is no un-
common thing to see whole landscape
contained in space no greater than the
top of your dining table. There will be
mountain, stream, lake, rocky grot-
toes, winding paths, bridges, lawns,
fruit trees, shrubs and flowers; all SO ar
tistically laid out as to resemble nature
itself. In the lake will swim wonderful,
filmy- -inned gold aud silver fish, and not
infrequently the tau form Of crane will
be seen moving majestisally about the
tiny landscape.
This seems wonderful enough; but
what will you think when 1 say that al
most the saafe landscape is reproduced
on SO small scale that the two pages of
st. Nicholas, as it lies open before you,
can cover It'll In this case, tiny house
is added; delicate green moss takes the
place Of grass, and glass covers the lake
where the water should be. Counterfeit
fish swim in the glass lake, and false
crane oyerlooks the whole scene, just as
the real crane does the larger land
scape. The mountain, winding walks
bridges and rock grottoes are in the little
landscape; and real trees, bearing fruit.
or covered with dainty blossoms, are in
their proper places
These trees are OF the right proportions
to fit the landscape, and they are, con-
sequently, so tiny that one is tempted to
doubt their reality; and more than one
stranger has slyly taken the
leaves or fruit between the fingers, in
order to make sure that the dwarfs
do truly live, and are not, like the
fish and crane, mere eounterfeits. These
miniature landscapes have been success
fully brought to this country; and on
used one of them as center-piece on the
table at dinner party, greatly to the
wonder and admiration of her guests.
who could scarcely be convinced that the
almost microscopic apples on the tree
were genuine fruit
And now comes the question-how is
the dwarfng donea The principle is
simple. The gardener merely thwarts
nature. He knows that, to grow prop
erly, tree requires sunlight, heat, mois-
ture, and nourishment from the soil. He
takes measures to let the tree have only
just enongh of these to enable it to keep
alive.
To begin, he takes a little Seeding or
cutting, about two inches high, and cuts
of its main root. He then puts the
plants in a shallow dish, with the cut
end of the root resting against stone,
to retard its growth by preventing nour-
ishment entering that way. Bits Of clay
the size of bean are put in the dish,
and are so regulated in kind and guam
tity as to afford the least possible food
for the little rootlets which have been
left on the poor little tree. Water, heat,
and light are furnished the struggling
plant in just sufficient quantities to hold
life in it without giving it enough to
thrive on. In addition, any ambitious
attempt to thrive, in spite Of these draw
backs, is checked by clipping with
sharp knife or soaring with red-hot
iron.
Z After from five to fifteen years Of such
treatment, the only wonder is that the
abused tree win consent even to live, to
say nothing of bearing fruit.-John r.
CoryeH, IN ST. Nicholas.
Singular.