PREFACE 



An unpretentious little volume, on the subject of 

 Plant -life and the ways and needs and doings of Plants, 

 is all that my book can claim to be. It is, indeed, in no 

 sense a Manual of Botany ; and it is meant for beginners, 

 whether older or younger, as well as for any who love 

 and are interested in trees and flowers. 



In the writing of it I have gained needed information 

 from many different sources; more especially from 

 The Natural History of Plants, by Kerner and Oliver. 

 Also generous help has been given to me by Mr. S. T. 

 Dunn of the Kew Gardens Staff, for which I am sincerely 

 grateful. Nor can I refrain from a warm mention of 

 the debt which I owe to my Father's early and unfor- 

 gettable teachings on this subject. 



In addition I thank Mr. Alfred Noyes, Mr. John 

 Masefield, and other poets of the day whose names 

 appear in footnotes, as well as their publishers, for kind 

 permission to quote from their writings. 



Many gardens, large and small, are in the world; 

 and our whole Earth may fairly be described as one 

 vast Garden, with its more beautiful and its more barren 

 parts. I have tried to bring some glimpses, some 

 visions, of that Garden and of what it really means, 

 before the imagination of my readers. 



This is intended to be a companion-volume to another 



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