"Dwarf Trees" from Samuel Newsom's
Japanese Garden Construction


        Samuel Newsom (? - ?) spent several years at Kyoto making painstaking studies of the gardens.

 
      Japanese Garden Construction (1939):

      The Boke (Chaenomeles lagenaria, Koitz.) and the Kusaboke (Cydonia japonica, Lindl.), more commonly known as Flowering Quince, are used not only for gardens, but also for dwarfing and pot plants. (pg. 173)

      Kaido (Malus floribunda, Sieb.) is a most charming shrub, with delicate pink blossoms borne in clusters on graceful stems.  It is much used as a pot plant, and for dwarfing, having the strange habit of blooming well when its roots and branches are twisted.  Twisting the roots when it is being transplanted not only makes it stronger after replanting, but is the very best method if encouraging flowering.
      Azalea balsaminaeflora, double orange red, dwarf nature, good for pot culture and rockery.
      A. obtusum Kurume, the double azaleas planted in pots, and dwarfed.  Colors are white, rose, pink, lavender, red, mottled, veined, and all possible combinations of these.  (pg. 176)

      The Obai (Jasminum nudiflorum, Lindl.), with its tiny yellow trumpet-shaped flowers, is another favorite for the grower of dwarfed trees.  These plants, when confined in pots, completely cover themselves with a shower of color.  In the garden they are planted near low fences to add interest. (pg. 177)

      Moss means as much to a Japanese as turf to an Englishman.  Every garden cultivates it, poems are written about its beauty, and it is mentioned in the National Anthem.  Moss represents tradition, history, the tea ceremony, and gardens.  It is found in art, carefully drawn or painted in innumerable pictures.  The grower of dwarf trees would be lost without it, as certain tiny Mosses add the finishing touch of artistry to the earth placed around the miniature masterpieces.  Moss is beloved in Japan because it is one of the most beautiful natural features of that country.  The Kyoto district, the cradle of Japanese civilization, is especially famous for its dozens of exquisite varieties. (pg. 222)  1


NOTES

1      Newsom, Samuel   Japanese Garden Construction (Tokyo: Domoto, Kumagawa and Perkins, 1939.  1988 reprint by Apollo Book, Poughkeepsie, NY). A masterful book on all aspects: history, philosophy and planning, plants and stones and water, fences and lanterns, maintenance, etc.


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