GAY GARDENS.

Waikato Times, Volume 114, Issue 19010, 29 July 1933, Page 15 (Supplement)

GAY GARDENS.

SPRING MORNING.

Lo, I have seen A trumpeter clad in green This very mornl Bight gallant and gay he stood Alone In a windy wood Winding his' horn. But who is he

That maketh strange melody When all Is still? Who hath awakened the Spring By his joyous trumpeting?—> A Daffodil I

—Honor F. Leeke. (Sent,by “Fairy Dimples.’’)

A PRETTY POND.

Barbara has sent us Buoh an interesting letter about her pond. Lota of us would like .to have one, but there is not always room or water. Peter Is sure you will love to hear abOut Barabara’s, and its quaint inhabitants. .

I think you would like to hear about our pond and its inhabitants, so I will tell you about them. » . > Our pond Is about three and a-half feet aoross with a fountain in the centre of it. It is not very deep, and sometimes in the summer we paddle In it. It only comes up to our knees. A .handle, something like the handle of a tap, must be turned before the water will shoot out of the fountain. , “\ A ■ • Its first inhabitant was a peroh from the Lake. Strangely enough, we named It Peter Pan, and later when I reoeived a goldfish for my birthday I called It Wendy. A few days after a friend gave us seven fish about two inohes long. About two weeks after, my father noticed some tiny fish about half an Inch long. There were about twenty of them, and unless the sun shone on the pond we could not seb them. During the summer time a frog lives in the pond. He comes every summer, so we gave him the name Freddy the Frog. In the winter he goes to sleep in the hollow border of concrete round the pond. W* would know his croak anywhere, as It is different from other frogs. THINGS I SEE. Peter wondered last week who would see the first daffodil, and when, he went out he saw a great bunoh of them. sinoe then he has even had one in bis own garden. x * •; * • p * -f. . There are some warm looking red-hot poker* out, tool, Just now. Peter doesn’t know what their proper name is, but be think* red-hot poker suits them very well, **'* • K B -Quite often;-there are lots of stocks to be Seen, They seem td have suoh pretty pale colours, don’t you think? *•••**! The camella trees are beautiful Just now, aren’t they? pome people don’t like oamelias, but Peter does. * * * * j* M; Peter has not seen very many snowdrops this season. Mostly 1 yellow Jonquils and narcissi. . Perhaps the snowdrops were, very *hyl ;

WHAT MEMBERS SAY— 'WR

June McLaren saysr.Our. garden has Hardly got a flower In It. There are just one or two snowflakes, one paper-white, and one poppy, so that’s not much or a garden, is It?

Mary Craig says: Oar garden* are loolf ing brighter, as the jonquil* and sno\w drops have made their appearances. TM veronica has also started to blossom, an*, the violets have shown themselves. ]

lan Wilton aayt:—Last summer I had a small vegetable garden all or my own. I planted some beans which Dad said were hut they turned out to be runners and ran all over my garden and then my garden was “rull or beans."

Mary MoDonnell says: What a wet day! it was to-day, but It will help all the llttla spring bulbs to flower and no the garden such a lot or good. Daddy threw lime on our garden on Friday, and the rain has washed It all in; he is going to set som* cabbages and lettuces to he ready bjj spring time.

Mavlt Lookley says: One or the wattle trees at school Is a mass of perfectly gorgeous gold blossoms dusted 1 with golden pollen ,and It looks ever so brilliant. The other wattle tree Is in bud, but will soon be In Tull bloom. I think a wattle tree In Its glowing gown of gold is one or the most beautirul things on earth, don’t you, Peter?

Ruth Barrett says: I enjoy especially* reading the Flower Corner. My friend and 1 have a small garden or primroses, violets, pretty little pink tipped daisies, s native creeper called mlrf-mirl, a little plot or malden-halr and a hush or briar, roses in a little group or native bush near our homes. Also, we have a big plot with a row ot very bare gooseberry plants, * clump or Rosemary, several rows or sweet Prince or Wales violets, some nice carna-< tion slips which are progressing very welL a small clump or “ egg and bacon ’’ naw clssl bulbs, and some primroses., v\(e are both rond or gardening and flowers. Lately I have noticed in the orchard a large poorman orange tree laden to, the ground, as well as an abundance or violets, together with some anemones coming out at the same time as the daffodil, ranunculi and hyacinth. Well, Peter, | think 1 had better stop now. ,

Margaret Craig says:—Now our garden has quite a lot or snowdrops, jonquils and violets which are blooming steadily. We have also got two cream primroses in bloom. This morning we bad a very heavy frost which Is the first we have had Tor two or three weeks. I am looking forward to Arbor Day, when we will take up some lucernes which we have In a box already. Last year we took up some Calirornlan redwoods, cryptomenas and tanekahas, which were nearly all cheweddown by rabbits.

JENNIFER JOAN AND ANTONY ALAN.

Last week Jenne and Tony were just having a lazy time while they waited for things to come up, so there wasn’t anything to tell you about them, but this week there was great excitement when the first seeds came up. What do you t’hink they were? In Jenne’s garden it was the linaria and Tony was very proud to find he had two kinds, both cabbages and cauliflowers. Perhaps you will wonder how they knewAvhioh plants were up. I’ll tell you about it. As neither of them were very good gardeners they thought that (they would put little stakes with the names >of the seeds they had planted at the end of each row. >So of course, when the seeds came up they had no doubts at all 1. It happened that one Saturday, morning they went out to enjoy the sun and -explore mother’s garden and of course that led them to their own and it was then they saw the little green shoots above the steaming earth. How they squeaked with excitement and delight I Daddy and Mummy came running out to see what was the matter and the birds who were breakfasting on the blrdstand, hopped on one leg with surprise. Of course that put an end to their lmpatlenoe, because even if they were still waiting for the other seeds they could watch the little shoots growing, and they found that the the best fun in the world. Next week I shall be able to tell you what else has come up.