A Little Maryland Garden 141 
starting before by the fact that they are bi- 
ennials. I have wanted them fora longtime, 
and almost bought them from the florist. 
But who would buy a florist’s plants when he 
has the time and space to put in seeds? Who 
cares for the finest bed of petunias, bought 
in pots and set out in a day, in comparison 
with a bed of stocks, nursed through the cold 
of March, transplanted and cared for through 
April, set out with pride in their sturdy 
growth in May? Isnot every different shade 
of their pretty rosettes like a creation of 
one’s own, and their ‘‘summer spice”’ as much 
a source of pride as if it were of the gardener’s 
own compounding? They are like home 
children contrasted with foundlings, and 
loved accordingly. 
I have also started seeds of the yellow 
alyssum (Alyssum saxatile) , which I have seen 
much praised; some new Alleghany holly- 
hocks, to replace my rusty, worn-out stock; 
some rose-coloured flax (Linum perene) to 
make pink patches in the lower border; new 
sweet-williams; and last and most doubtful 
