Grand Rapids herald. [volume] (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 1892-1959, 1892-10-30
BUDS OF THE SOUTH
A Pretty Tennessee Garden on
Michigan Soil
SOCIETY is DULL AND STUPID
The Week Marked by no Particular Re-
suits OF Brllancy-Whst the Gay
Folks Have Been Doing.

FOLKS nave Been DS4DS.
When God created flowers he added
the finishing touches 10 a world other
wise perfect. lie drew a delicate
tracery of vines and fern fronds and
condensed sunshine in the form OF
flowers. To their colors and 10 their
shapes there 10 no end, and the inven-
tive genius of the flower loving gard
ener is constantly adding 10 the Inst.
The gardener is true benefactor, for
ne causes two blades of grass to grow
where but one grew before. The
breath of single rose Is waited over
the face of another rose and. 10, new
variety is created. The pollen of one
perfected blossom sinks into the heart
of another, and In some inscrutable
manner a new kind of flower finds
form. In his delicate work of produc-
ing new species the gardener is aided,
or is he hlndered Oh by the bees which
go about from flower 90 flower slpping
hOhtt anu Soi' AhS thO ~ ~ - a AZ '"
organization on their bewaxed feet.
Without the bee many flowers would
wither and fade without perfectng
seed. There is the pansy, which Is So
constructed that it needs the attention
of the bee for the proper dissemination
of pollen, and not any kind OF bee
viii answer for the purpose either. IL
must be a humble bee. His honey
Al n Va m m ia ~ tha
and shape 20 manipulate the pansy
blossom. A pansy bed will remain
seedless though honey bees and other
lovers of sweets hover over 1t If the
humble bee be absent.
They Laugh at Jack Frost
To many readers this may seem an
inausplcious time for the consideration
of flowers. They say the frost has cut
the flowers down, and so 1t has cut
down many of the tender varieties.
But there are blossoms which defy the
blight of Jack Frost's touch and laugh
at the icy breath of autumnal winds.
Though the nights be cold, few hours
of warm sunshine each day bring into
perfection hardy flowers unknown to
the whitening heat of midsummer. A
beautiful illustration of this may be
seen in the we'll kept garden back of
vi. l.. Bocher's home at No. 400 East
Fulton street.
Mr.. Bocher isl southerner. He is a ma
tive of Tennessee, that state of smooth,
vclvetv lawns and rIotous color-blaziDg
flower gardens. His ain was to repro
duce a Tennessee garden at his home
IN Grand Rapids, and so the spacious
grounds back of the house were en-
closed bv a high whitewashed fence.
Just within and forming continuous
row about the garden is line of man.
moth sunfiowers, their immense leaves
aud tail sta ks almost hiding the fence
which peeps through Its snowy surface
dlmmed with the shade. Then came
the flower beds. 1t would be impossible
to describe them, as II would be impos-
sible to decide which is the prettiest.
All summe. long the petals have I'M
folded and their dew kissed faces have
blushed when the keen gaze of the
morning sun was directed to them.
The flowers were of every conceivable
variety and the colors discountenanced
the rainbow.
Interminable Varieties.
There was hedge of sweet peas, n
bed of Nlolets, rows OF plnks and other
June sweets. Nasturtlums and petu-
Mas climbed over each other and
clambered up the sweet pea and morn
ing glory trelllses In their eagerness TO
unfold their buds to the sunshine.
MarrIgolds N profuslon, dahlIas, roses
and pansies all doomed freely tended
by Martin, the blue-eyed, ilowerloving
gardner from the Netherlands. What
ever he plants grows. Every tiny seed
softened by esrth's forces and warmed
| by spring and summer sunshine feels
| the stir of life within II and sends up
its small cntyledon TO be followed later
10y the leaf and bud characteristic of the
plant. So the garden thrIved. Flowers
by the bushel and flowers by the
wagon load were scnt 10 friends on
| gaia occasions and at times of sorrow.
The pretty blooms found their way
| into the hospitals. into the homes of
| the poor, 10y the beds of the sick. and
| their bright faces cheered the despond-
| ent. The true flower lover is always
generous with his treasures, so Mr.. and
Mrs. Bocher have shared the beauty of
| their garden with others. Now that
| the frOsts have come and cut down the
| tender plants, there remains only the
hardy ones upon which the finger of
frost rests lightly. But these form a
blaze of glory amid all the gorgeous
colorng of autumn. The msrg Ids
were never more brilliant IN color or
perfect IN torn. The deep orange
heads stand closely together and
| form gay clumps. The nsstur-
! tium vines are full of bloom
and the stately cosmos from its alutud-
nous height sends no myrisds OF snow
white and pink quantity turreted bios
/ SONS. In the slckls-shsped bed on the
1 lawn row of choice roses unfold an
occasional blossom. as Il to compete
/ for the TILE of the lsst rose Of summer.
| The geraniums are gay with masses of
/ scarlet. and the dahlies perfect rosette-
/ shaped flowers each dsy. Even the
sweet pea vines. though greatly ener-
I waited bv = long season Of continuous
bloom. send ont few blossoms as # TO
show that death and decay have not
! vet tie mastery.
Ia the effort 90 transplant southern
garden from = Tennessee plantation 10
Michigan acre M. B0cher has been
/ Thoroughly successful sD1 the q q sd-
1 age that flower WI grow for one
that loves & b. amply proven