An Episode of Sparrows by Rumer Godden

Author:Rumer Godden
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781681371092
Publisher: New York Review Books
Published: 2016-05-05T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER XV

“IT’S TOO late to plant seeds,” said Mr. Isbister.

“Even grass?” asked Lovejoy.

Mr. Isbister grunted, which meant “Even grass.”

“There, you see,” said Lovejoy bitterly to Tip, “that’s what you’ve done with your penance.”

Lovejoy was tenacious in getting her way, even with her mother—though there she had not been very successful—even with the Virgin Mary, and there she had been singularly successful. She believed she could bend most things to her will. “You can’t plant seeds now,” said Mr. Isbister.

“What if I will?” asked Lovejoy.

Mr. Isbister spat on the area ground before he answered. “In England,” he said, “there’s—five months when grass—will grow. April to September.” Lovejoy opened her lips. “But not in London,” said Mr. Isbister. “Least, not in Catford Street. Hot spell, ground bakes—hard as a plate unless you can water, sprinkle—the whole blasted time.”

“We can’t,” said Lovejoy. “How could we? There’s no water where we are.”

“Then leave grass alone,” said Mr. Isbister, “and for flowers get—seedlings.”

“Get seedlings.” Lovejoy was beginning to learn that, as a gardener, she was one of a confraternity, moving in rhythm; as needs arose, things appeared to match them. She would once have said that not much gardening went on round Catford Street; then why, in every greengrocer’s shop, on the counters at Woolworth’s, had boxes and boxes of seedlings appeared? She tried the patience of the shopgirls asking what they were; some of the plants had flowers on them, so that she knew them, pansies—she had a particular affection for pansies, with their wise faces—geraniums, double daisies, but the others were just clumps of green.

“What are those?”

“Alyssum.”

“What are those?”

“African marigolds.”

“What are those?”

“Antirrhinums, snapdragons.”

Lovejoy’s eyes raked the stiff, queer plants, trying to imagine what kind of flowers they would be.

After a great deal of hovering with Tip’s and the dinner sixpences, she bought two marigolds, two alyssums, a daisy, and a snapdragon.

“One?” said the shopgirl when Lovejoy bought the snapdragon. “We sell them by the dozen,” and, “Don’t ruin yourself,” said the girl when Lovejoy bought the daisy.

The garden was not ready, she had no pots, and she had to plant the seedlings out in tins, a golden syrup tin, two cocoa tins, and a child’s old seaside pail she found in a dustbin. “Just for now,” said Lovejoy. “Till we’re ready.” She looked at the long roots of the snapdragon. “When we put them in the beds, we’ll have to plant them deep,” she said. She brooded over them, and went to tell Mr. Isbister.

“Must take care of them,” said Mr. Isbister. “Young plants are the same—as babies; that’s why they call—a seedling bed—a nursery. They need—food and—warmth and quiet and—loving,” brought out Mr. Isbister.

“Loving?” asked Lovejoy, astounded. She had never thought of plants as being loved, but, “Yes,” said Mr. Isbister curtly.

He was giving a coat of green paint to an empty half-barrel in his barrel garden.

“Why is it empty?” asked Tip, looking at the way the other barrels were crowded. Nowadays Tip sometimes came with Lovejoy to see Mr. Isbister. “Why is that one empty?”

“That’s my summer holiday,” said Mr.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.