SOBER SUMMER 



127 



thrush, and all day — until the later days of the 

 month — may hear the songs of many birds. 



But I cannot wholly abandon my growing gar- 

 den. At least twice during the month I return to 

 enjoy the change, to revel in the dehcious and 

 uncanned fruit of the vegetable-garden, and to 

 keep "tab" on the place generally. As I have 

 previously written, the garden is planned to 

 reserve its best until we are again home, in Sep- 

 tember; yet Nature is so kind to the growing 

 garden that August is a bloom month as well as a 

 fruit month and a vegetable month. 



One August there had been a week or more of 

 unusually cool and wet weather, which resulted in 

 finding the roses enjoying new vigor, when I came 

 home on the eleventh day of the month. Hot, 

 dry weather does not prove congenial to the queen 

 of flowers, and August is usually of that sort. 

 The hateful "black spot" has removed most of the 

 leaves, in several such seasons, and mildew is also 

 destroyingly in evidence. Spraying does not get 

 so well done in this gardenerless garden when the 

 "boss" is away, and it is difficult indeed to keep 

 the roses, particularly the hybrid teas, healthy 

 and growing. At such seasons I envy England's 

 rose climate of cool nights and continual moisture. 



Another year, the first August visit showed me 



