33 2 Old Time Gardens 
branches of young Birch. Grape tendrils, too, 
have an acid zest, as do Sorrel leaves. Wild Rose 
hips and the drupes of dwarf Cornel are chewed. 
The leaf buds of Spruce and Linden are also tasted. 
I hear that some children in some places eat the 
young fronds of Cinnamon Fern, but I never saw it 
done. Seeds of Pumpkins and Sunflowers were edi- 
ble, as well as Hollyhock cheeses. There was one 
Slippery Elm tree which we know in our town, and 
we took ample toll of it. Cherry gum and Plum 
gum are chewed, as well as the gum of Spruce trees. 
There was a boy who used sometimes to intrude on 
our girl’s paradise, since he was the son of a neigh- 
bor, and he said he ate raw Turnips, and some- 
thing he called Pig-nuts — I wonder what' they 
were. 
Those childish customs linger long in our minds, 
or rather in our subconsciousness. I never walk 
through an old garden without wishing to nibble and 
browse on the leaves and stems which I ate as a child, 
without sucking a drop of honey from certain flow- 
ers. I do it not with intent, but I waken to realiza- 
tion with the petal of Trumpet Honeysuckle in my 
hand and its drop of ambrosia on my lips. 
Children care far less for scent and perfection in a 
flower than they do for color, and, above all, for 
desirability and adaptability of form, this desirability 
being afforded by the fitness of the flower for the tra- 
ditional games and plays. The favorite flowers of my 
childhood were three noble creatures, Hollyhocks, 
Canterbury Bells, and Foxgloves, all three were 
scentless. I cannot think of a child’s summer in a 
