Alpine Garden Should at www.japanese-home-gardens.com

The alpine poppy (Papaver nudicaule, P. alpinum, or P. Burseri) is one of those flowers that gives joy wherever it grows. It will easily self-sow without becoming a pest. The taproot is long so it does not transplant with ease. Blossoms are white, orange, yellow, or orange-red and have a sweet fragrance. Every alpine garden should have a few phlox, and Phlox subulata 'Sneewichen', 3 by 9 inches, is one of the best. While many of its cousins have too-bright colors for a small garden, this one bears tiny, snow-white flowers. Picea glauca 'Echiniformis', 7 by 9 inches, is another dwarf conifer that makes a fine focal point—albeit a small one—in the alpine bed.

•are plant that was thought only to grow at the cliff's edge). Because most alpine plants are small in stature, Budd was able to ;row some 600 species of unusual and often rare alpines (starting most )f the plants from seed) in an area of about 50 by 50 feet. And by using :he natural terrain of his sloped back yard, and a bulldozer hired for me day, he created the most fitting environment without resorting to mporting rocks. I learned much from his garden: how to get the correct soil mix, :he best way to use rocks with the least effort, how many societies :here were in the world that had seed exchanges, and a true apprecia. Two fine plants for an alpine garden are pictured on the opposite page: an alpine poppy in bloom, its satiny petals in direct contrast to the almost black leaves of the cultivar 'Arabicus' belonging to the genus Ophiopogon.

—33 East Minor Street, Emmaus, Pennsylvania 18049. The Texas Gardener was bound to happen in a state the size of Texas. Flower and vegetable gardening is covered with an emphasis on native state plants. A yearly subscription is $15. —P.O. Box 9005, Waco, Texas 76714. In addition to the above, there are many decorating magazines on the market. Most, like House & Garden, have garden features and columns; a few, such as Architectural Digest, feature well-known gardens both here and abroad. The following organizations all have publications and/or seed exchanges of great diversity. Many are overseas, but do not let that stop you from joining: The mails go through, albeit slowly. Alpine Garden Society is mainly concerned with alpine and rock garden plants. Its quarterly bulletin is stocked with valuable information and photos of rare plants. The seed exchange is annual and lists well over 4,000 species. Both are available to members for $15 per year but varies with the exchange rates.