162 GARDENING WITH BRAINS 



HUMAN TRAITS OF PANSIES 



Pansies are like humans in still another way. 

 Some are overbig and loud and commonplace 

 and vulgar I positively hate them. Strange 

 to say (or is it strange?) these coarse yellows 

 and purples are the ones which, in full bloom, 

 take up most of the room in the boxes of plants 

 sold by the thousands in early spring. For- 

 tunately, most people are not so fussy as I am. 

 Whenever I see one of these vulgar pansies in 

 my garden, out comes the whole plant. Its 

 room is more desirable than its presence. Tastes 

 differ, and doubtless some persons honestly 

 admire the glaring, insolent yellows I detest; 

 but I am glad to say they and the dull purples 

 are seldom to be found in the most expensive 

 mixtures, which shows that the pansy epicures 

 who raise the choicest seeds share my taste. 

 Some yellows are lovely especially those with a 

 light-greenish tinge. These are gems, ranking in 

 value with the snow white and coal black and 

 sky or dark navy blue and blood red and pink 

 and rose and bronzes and coppers and their end- 

 lessly varied combinations blotched, flaked, 

 and veined in contrasting colors. I know few 

 garden experiences so exciting and fascinating as 

 watching the pansies in a new mixed bed suc- 

 cessively unfolding and surprising us with novel 

 faces and color shades and contrasts. 



There are two reasons for not trying to raise 

 your own pansy seeds. If you let the blossoms 



