Spring and Summer Vegetation 



no interference there, except such as con- 

 stitutes an advantage. That rich carpet 

 of Anemone, Violet, and Primrose might 

 be choked by the thick undergrowth if it 

 bloomed in the summer time, or be too 

 much veiled by the foliage of the trees if 

 that were developed earlier. But as it is, 

 in early spring the slight shade of the 

 naked boughs gives warmth and protec- 

 tion, so that the flowers can come forth 

 sooner, and possess a beauty which is 

 wanting in less sheltered spots. Look, 

 for instance, at those splendid Violets, 

 large-flowered, long-stalked, which we find 

 growing in the woods, or compare the 

 wide-eyed woodland Anemones, in all 

 their ethereal loveliness, with those which 

 blossom in the open fields. 



Then, again, the full summer heat has a 

 mischievous influence upon many of the 

 woodland plants. We notice, for example, 

 in a garden that the much-exposed Prim- 

 roses are often damaged in the summer, 

 and never have the same beautiful appear- 

 ance as those which grow under proper 

 cover. So it has been wisely arranged 

 that the leafy canopy of the woods shall 



greatly increased, but they have become of far less abso- 

 lute importance, are crowded by the other plants, and 

 never can rival the beauty of the April meadow-flower. 

 191 



