WILD GARDENING 



took some effort to make up my mind 

 to dig up all these dear lilies and cardi- 

 nals, for neither of them take at all 

 kindly to moving, and resent it for some 

 time afterwards; but if I was ever to 

 fill my bed, now was the time to do it, 

 so I shut my eyes to their reproachful 

 looks, and performed the distressing opera- 

 tion as considerately as I could, and I 

 think in the end they will own that after 

 all it was for the best! 



And so my lily and cardinal bed became 

 a reality at last; and although it is still 

 far from finished, it is already so beautiful, 

 shining out against the sombre background 

 of evergreens, that it more than repays all 

 my care. Late every autumn I lift and 

 divide a plant here and there, and add a 

 little to the size of the bed. And since I 

 have discovered how well the lilies grow 

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