Vernon Parish Democrat. (Leesville, La.) 1917-193?, 1919-06-07

FAAJp 80 1SAAAyS SSAA~A@y9 S@A y As%-e-A-Ae
(Ry Ellen Eddy Shaw, Curator, Brook
Iyn Botanic Garden.)
Ally. Di, Sonny. Johnny, and Will
lam. 1t is lovely to have a big family,
isn't ftp The summer flower family
is a great big family, oh, so much
larger than just the few children Of
the other seasons. | think any boy or
girl can see why it is easier to have a
big family in summer. 1t is because
then you can keep them all outdoors,
and in other seasons of the year you
have to have the children in the house.
You know how it is.
Now, who are these children called
ALI, Di, Sonny. Johnny, and William?
| will tell you all about them. Ally
is the incest little girl you ever saw
and never causes any trouble. Mother
buys you a small package of dwarf
sweet alyssum seeds, as sweet alyssum
is our little Ally. and you place the
seeds one by one about an inch apart,
and one-haIf an inch deep in your gar
den bed. By and by up will come lit
tie plants, and they will grow about
six or eight inches high. In five or
six weeks Ally will have white blos-
som just like a little white head.
When it gets toward the middle of
the summer give Ally hair cut. Cut
little Ally down within two inches of
the ground and what do you suppose
will happen2 She will come up again
and will have her same little white
head all through the fall!
Who is DIP Di is also little girl,
but she is larger than Ally. Her long
name is dianthus, and sometimes we
call her pink. Di is an old-fashioned
child. You plant the seeds of dian
thus just as you did those Of sweet
alyssum, but dianthus grows much tall
er and has pink blossoms, or white
ones. and smells as sweet as can be,
Sonny, sometimes called Sunflower,
has great big seeds. You pick one up
very carefully and you plant it an inch
deep in the ground, and you plant am
other one foot away. By and by up
grows this big, strong boy, and later
on in the summer Sonny has a yellow
head huge yellow head with a
Dutch hair cut. Now just you watch
and seel
Johnny is different kind Of boy
from Sonny. He is a quick little chap,
sometimes called little Johnny Jump
Up" and by some people called Pansy.
But like the name of "Johnny-Jump
Up" best, don't you2 Ask Mother to
buy you some Pansy plants. and as they
blossom pick the blossoms as fast as
you can, because then you will have
more and more. think Johnny.
JumpUp" is one of the smartest of oul
children.
We have one child left in our sum.
mer flower-family, William. Sweet
William is a slow boy. He is so slow
that he generally refuses to have any
blossoms at all until the second sum.
mer, and so you have to wait a whole
year before you see his face. Plan
William seeds just as you did the sweet
aIyssum, and the plants will come UP
in the spring. but very slowly, By faI
Sweet William may have one blossom
but he probably will not have any.
Before Jack Frost arrives, gather
lot Of dry leaves and cover your Swee
William and Pansy plants all over, lay
ing few sticks on top. Next sprinl
up will come Pansy and Sweet William
and 10 and behold, Sweet William vii
have a blossom, sweet in odor. and a
soft as velvet cushion.
Do you not like these chiIdrenp
do. Then do not forget to have on
or more children this summer. 70
can choose Ally. Di, Sonny, Johnny
or slow little William. Which one ar
you going to have2
h IF you are little city boy or gil
and have no outdoor garden, you ma
plant all Of these summer children e1
cept Sweet William and SunfIower
box. Sunflower is too tall and Swe,
William too slow. but Ally, Di. an
II Johnny will blossom just as well in
window box as in a garden