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ancient* too bad a venera_or high places. There were the marvelous Hanging Gardens of Babylon, built by Nebuchadneszar II, king of 'Babylon. Ho built these for his wife, who was home-sick for her mountain home I suspect she was his favorite wife.*, in a wonderful English book I found this description of these gardens—on a series of arches, .Some of them 75 feet high bulit vta the form of a square measuring 400 Greek feet. On these were gardens of trees aqd flowers. Water was raised by means of .screw.from the Euphrates to the. 'top Of this artificial mountain. ' These ‘gardens existed 600 B.C.' ’f A' garden is a beautiful setting for romSnce^ abd many stories of.such haye come <^wn through the ages. - '

In the middle ages we have the story of*Saint Radegonde, queen ofGlothair, who fled from the gay , court of Pqitiers 'Jfid founded a; nunnery and laid out a garden on ~ the sunny slopes under the walls of the city. Here she and the nuns toiled with their own hands. Fortunatus the Bishop-poet, sentviolets and other flowers to the queen and with th$ flowers he wrote: "H*. whp offers violets most in love>e ah eld to offer OX, all , the fragrant herbs % sepd none can compare in nobleness with the ;$urple violet. They shine in royal purple; perfume and beauty unite in their petals. May you show forth in your life what they represent.” 1 The earliest monastery garden of which we know, was that of Gan about the ninth century; The plan of this garden indicates the ‘Roman influence, the largest, space 'was for fruit trees-and-.a kitchen . garde if. The. .first* gardening book was written in this monastery— “The Little Garden,” by Walafred Strabo, a monk. It tells. of an old monk toiling in his garden. The early monastery gardens grew .many .herbs for healing; **sageof • good scent it is and full of virtue fop many ills, hue with is blue green leaves and short-stemmed flowers so placed that the sun and .

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