The progress., 1904-08-27
TREES rAsLE oIRls sAMENTs
Japanese Gardeners starve Forest
sSssl diAnts n Youth 70 Make
Lilliputians.

The japanese propensity for "minia-
turizinr has OF late led to experiments
with many plants not native to the Flow
cry kingdom. and ar . result there are
shown heliotropes, impatiens, cacti, ETC.,
from one and half to four inches In
height which are not merely small exs
amples OF these different families, but
wizened growths, Of mature habits ana
proportion, perfect duplicates OF the
plants nature planned on scale severai
hundred times larger. 1.
The method BY which this emo 10
reached is nothing more nor Tess tnan
starvation, says. an authority. FOOT
soil, little water, and q ceasNess slipping
OF all new growth constitute the Spartan
treatment to which the plants aressup-
jected. AS in sheer desperation at sucn
thwarting Of their natural growth, they
flower profusely, doubly, continually.
The sturdy American oak, even, is un-
iergoing the same process that makes
the Japanese spruce or chabo boudoir
or dinner table ornament. In rev
years the tiny acorn seedlings that are
now subjected to this treatment VIII
doubtless be sold as drawing-room dec
orations. Imagine a mountain OAK OF
an arching elm. perfect. identical IN out
line with the giants Of forest or college
campus. and yet only six or II inches
in height! And this is what japanese
nurserymen are experimenting with to-
day Tiny trays, pans OF pebbles ana
miniature trees will then doubtless rep
resent famous American gardens and
homestead grounds, as the minute model
gardens now sold by the dfshful, one
might say, represent distorted gardens
In Japan.
Besides the dwarflng Of American
plants and forest trees, Japanese inge-
nuity is at work on training them at the
same time into the contortions SO dear
to the almond-eyed aesthetic. Thus tho
miniature elm. a century old. which Will
form the center piece of twenty-frst
century dinner table may occasionally
show its dropping branches in long
ringlets and inverted spirals. or the So
year-old spruce in its thimble-like pot
may display twigs trained in all the
twists and curves of Greek scroll.
Fine, thfeadlike wire Is used for this
purpose. The branch under training is
held in the desired position by one work
man, while the other threads its bonds
back and forth like network. And so
It stands until years Of starvation have
robbed the frail tissues of all desire or
ability to regain normal shape. The
acme of exquisite artifciality is the ideal
of the Japanese horticulturist, and SIM
pie, luxurious, natural growth has
small merit in his eyes
Though not Of an Interesting age"
there are, nevertheless, already some
samples OF this particular grating in
oriental ways on American growths, and
those who are interested in the curious
departure may find them among almost
any collection of japanese plants, or the
stock of any progressive nurserySnan.
This profession-for the nSive Of
Japan dignifies the work to that rank
is attracting rapidly increasing num-
ber of the mikado's subjects in this cour-
try. No other people have such patience
with the slowness or the vagaries of the
vegetable world. Not only has the
number of country places and even small
city gardens of Japanese landscape de-
sign grown astonishingly in the last few
years, but Japanese gardeners for Amer
lean grounds treated in American style
are greatly in demand. These people, in
deed, seem to have some secret under
standing with the vegetable world, and
to be peculiarly adapted to ferret out
its unsuspected possibilities.