AUTHOE'S PEEFACE. 



THEEE are few things in life which give us 

 more pleasure than the care of a garden ; 

 from our nursery days, when we took an absorb- 

 ing interest in growing mustard and cress upon a 

 piece of flannel, in a saucer of water, or presented 

 our nurse with radishes as large as walnuts, an- 

 nouncing with pride that they were the produce 

 of " our own garden," until our latest years, when 

 the peace and privacy of a garden are so highly 

 valued. 



To those who have a real fondness for flowers, 

 what can compare with the constant pleasure of 

 a garden always something beautiful to look at, 

 some fresh interest to watch, some little difficulty 

 to overcome, something that wants doing, in the 

 doing of which we forget many little worries, and 



