46 A GARDEN OF PLEASURE 



foot, is worthy of a better cause. The 

 sparrow's eye for colour (one would guess 

 that flaunting yellow would be their chosen 

 colour ! ) is not the same as the hive-bee's. 

 Bees seem to avoid the yellow Crocus, 

 while they love the white, the purple, and 

 the striped. I have watched them of late 

 when the sun has been warm and bright. 

 I do not know if hive-bees carry on into 

 the summer their objection to yellow ; it is 

 certain, however, that in sunflower time 

 the yellow sunflowers are visited by 

 Humble-bees only. One division of our 

 crocus enemies has been partly check- 

 mated by the simple plan of putting in the 

 bulbs very deep ; the mice do not quite so 

 easily get at them.* Numbers have also 

 been successfully trapped. Hares, on the 

 other hand, have annoyed us more than 

 usual. A long row of fine young wall- 

 flowers have been devoured by them, 

 besides scores of carnations in the Boccage 

 the hares and I agreeing in our love for 

 wallflowers, only their fancy is for the 



* A more successful plan is to stretch black thread 

 from little sticks across the flowers. 



