MY GARDEN

Southland Times, Issue 24237, 21 September 1940, Page 15 (Supplement)

MY GARDEN

—PRIZE— One summer’s day I decided to tidy my garden. In it there are nasturtiums, mignonette, godetias, larkspurs, sweetpeas, stocks and grannybonnets. The mignonette sent its sweet smell into the cool air. The godetias were like little painted ladies and the stocks looked so pretty with their different colours in the bright sunshine. The sweetpeas, too, had a lovely scent. • As I was weeding, the flowers seemed to grow bigger or perhaps I grew smaller. They grew larger until at last they were high above my head. To my surprise the godetias spoke to me, thanking me for taking out the weeds. The flowers were whispering to each other and saying, “Isn t she kind, taking our enemies away? Now we will be free to grow and spread out our leaves.” The granny-bonnets, too, were nodding their heads to each other like little old grandmothers with their sun bonnets on. Suddenly there was silence, and down a bright ray of sunshine came a dainty little fairy in a moss green coach drawn by four Red Admiral butterflies. As she passed by, the flowers bowed their heads. The coach stopped by me and the grasshopper footmen opened the door and out stepped the little fairy. In a silvery voice she said: “Little Mortal, you have a kind heart, and as a reward your garden will look bright and gay all through the year. The weeds will not grow and the flowers will be free.” There was a tiny sound of trumpets, and whispering “Good-bye and good luck,” in a flash of the sun’s ray she was gone. I asked the flowers who she was, and they said her name was the Queen of Good Deeds. “She always helps people when they are in trouble,” said the grannybonnets with a nod. Looking down, I saw on the path a ring of gold and diamonds with these words on it: “Whoever wears this ring will have good luck.” I slipped it on my finger and it fitted perfectly. ' Suddenly the flowers became their right size, and I heard mother saying, “Come on in, Noelene, it is time for tea.” Then I noticed the ring on my finger—it was only a daisy chain I had made. While tidying my garden I must have fallen asleep. Still my garden is always beautiful and gay with flowers. —Prize of 1/6 to Cousin Noelene Holloway (9), 397 Herbert street. • —PRIZE— This year mother gave me a vegetable plot. It *is situated at the back of the house with a white escalonia hedge for shelter. Father dug it for me and I put lime all over it. I then raked and hoed it and after that I planted the vegetables. First, I planted cabbages and lettuce plants. I watched them every day, then one day when I went out to have a look at them, I saw my dog Snip running as fast as he could round the comer’ of the garage with a lettuce in his mouth, and two or three other lettuce lying on the garden. The next day I put in more lettuce plants, and Snip buried a shoe beside them. I also have one row of potatoes. This morning I was surprised to find they were all up and Snip had not disturbed them again. —Prize of 1/- to Cousin Ruby Robertson (9), Section 4, Wrights Bush-Glad-field R.D. —PRIZE— In my garden there are poppies, carnations, daffodils and match-heads. I have some pansy, aster and primrose seeds saved up ready to sow. Every now and then I weed it. I dig in it in autumn and spring. I often carry up fowl manure and dig it into the ground to, make the flowers grow better. When I am digging and weeding I have to be very careful not to disturb the roots or break the tender young shoots and buds. The best part of a garden is bringing in a big bunch of flowers to brighten up my room. —Prize of 1/- to Cousin Betty McNoe (8), Heddon Bush R.D., Winton.

—VERY HIGHLY COMMENDED—

I have a little garden of my own. At the beginning of the season Father digs it for me and I do the rest. It is around the front of the house. It has primroses, pansies, hyacinths, roses and daffodils

in it. My father is going to give me some aster seeds to plant later on in the summer. I water it with my watering can. It looks pretty when all the flowers are out. I always keep it weeded myself. —3 marks to Cousin Anne Friend (7), 75 Fox street. - « —VERY HIGHLY' COMMENDED— My garden is just a small plot in a corner of Father’s vegetable garden, but I try to make it pretty and keep it free from weeds. When Mothers sows her garden seeds, she always gives me a

few of each kind. I sow them and watch eagerly for the first tiny shoot. Soon they are big enough to plant out. I also have some bulbs in my garden. Just now there are violets, daffodils and a few primroses in flower. I have some snowdrops and crocuses but they have finished blooming this spring. —3 marks to Cousin Melva Lake, V.A.C. (9), Garston.

—HIGHLY COMMENDED—

During my school holidays, I asked Dad to dig over my garden as the ground was too hard for me to dig. When it was all turned over, I put some manure on it. I have planted some flower seeds which I hope will grow. As the ground is very dry underneath I keep putting water on them when I come home from school. —2 marks to Cousin Mavis Kemp (8), Winton Experimental Farm. HIGHLY COMMENDED— Last year I had a small piece of ground for a garden. First I dug the ■ ground and then raked it smooth. When it was ready I planted a row of peas and one of beans. Then I sowed some carrots and radishes.

When the peas were about six inches high I staked them. I thinned the carrots and parsnips and left only one about every inch. —2 marks to Cousin lan McEwen A.C. (9), 87 Morton street.

—HIGHLY COMMENDED—

At school last year I had a garden and I had sweetpeas and mignonette in it. It was for the agricultural competition. I looked after my plot well. I'thought I would win something for it. I did get quite a few marks but we didn’t receive any word about the certificates. I had about 20 stems with five blooms on each. After a while the sweetpeas died off because the frost killed them.

—2 marks to Cousin Margaret Scobie (10), Dale Downs, Otautau, Blackmount R.D.