SUMMER IN THE GARDEN 163 



affect the Madonna lily less severely than many of 

 the lilies, and I attribute the unsatisfactory 

 condition of the foliage to late frosts. Whatever 

 the origin of the mischief, there is some comfort in 

 the fact that the flowers themselves are not upset. 

 A glance at the illustration will reveal this — leaves 

 certainly tainted, but the snow-white flowers crowd 

 the strong thick stems. 



Writing of the white lily reminds me of a 

 delightful contrast — the wild delphinium, with 

 flowers of the bluest of blue colouring, and the 

 former. I have such an association in my cottage 

 garden ; the bulbs are planted between the posts 

 of the pergola, and I have never seen, I think, a 

 happier association of these two pure colours. 



Other gardening thoughts than those of the 

 borders occur to mind in the summer days, and 

 surely one thinks now of the wealth of beautiful 

 trees and shrubs covered with the flowers one 

 looks forward to year by year. Before spring 

 has flown the cherries are huge snowdrifts of 

 blossom, and then the thorns, the golden rain of 

 the laburnum, the mock oranges, the fuchsias, 

 the tulip tree, the wistarias, and many other 

 beautiful trees and shrubs are in beauty. Our 

 love is not too strong for the rarer species and 



