The Secret Garden, written by Frances Hodgson Burnett is beyond a doubt one of the most celebrated works for children literature. It talks about an Indian girl called Mary who had a bad temper and a sour face. She was sent to a place named Misselthwaite Manor where her uncle lived after cholera broke out and killed her parents and Ayah. There, through fresh air, nourishing food, healthy exercise, and the discovery of a secret garden that has been locked up for 10 years, Mary’s temper slowly faded and she wasn’t sour-faced anymore. The book then focuses on the secret garden, which Mary helps revive with help from Dickon, an animal charmer. Afterwards, the book shifts to the recovery of Colin, who was Mary’s uncle’s son. He was always sick, had a bad temper, and always thought of dying. After encountering the secret garden, Mary, and Dickon however, Colin gradually heals and becomes healthy again. Throughout the book, the author describes the secret garden with vivid explanations that draw pictures into the reader’s mind. Now, I am going to give a mental tour of my dream garden to you.
My iron garden gates with golden lion statues atop it opens to a forest. As you walk on the cobblestone path, you look up and see lush green canopies of trees hanging above you, thick enough to block out excess sunlight, but thin enough for some light to shine through. You can see various types of birds flying through the tree-tops, perching on branches, and resting in hollows. You see Bohemian Waxwings with their plump little bodies and grayish brown crested head, Hyacinth Macaws with their brilliant blue color and yellow circles around their eyes, Keel-billed Toucans with their multicolored beaks, Blue Jays with their various shades of lapis lazuli and whitish bellies, Golden Pheasants with their brilliant colors on their bodies, Scarlet Macaws with their mix of blue, yellow, red and green colors, and much more. You also see snake-like vines on the trees, with some being real snakes, though not poisonous. You cross a river on a wooden bridge and see below you Wood Ducks swimming around and looking curiously at you as if asking for food, Mandarinfish with their brilliantly colored body, Clownfish with their orange and white stripes, and more. Mossy boulders are scattered on the banks, and you see lily pads floating on the calm river surface. Sometimes, you would see a small pond with a miniature waterfall here and there. As you walk on, the cobblestone path turns into stone staircases and you begin to ascend. When you have climbed up the hill, the forest opens into a grand platform: You’ve arrived at the center of the garden.
The floor of this platform is made of black and white marble, designed like a chess board. Here, there are no trees , so that the sun shines directly down on you. In the center is a huge man-made fountain also made of marble. Golden serpent heads shoot water out of their mouths into a pond encircling the fountain. These serpent heads are part of a Hydra statue. The Hydra is a multi-headed monster in Greek Mythology. There is also a ring of flowers surrounding the fountain like a clock. This “clock” is actually able to function despite the fact it is made of flowers. This is possible because certain flowers open in certain times of the day. For example, a flower that only opens from 3am to 5am is arranged in a group next to a group of flowers that only open from 6am to 8am. It is like cutting a pizza into separate parts, except each part is a different type of flower (the flowers I’m about to mention in the clock are all Linnaean Time. If you want a more modern one by modern horticulturists, use Eastern Standard Time). Our clock starts with the Yellow Goatsbeard, which opens from 3am to 5am and looks like a dandelion’s big brother. Next is the Canadian Hawkweed, which opens from 6am to 8am and looks like a smaller, less dense sunflower. Then is the Garden Lettuce which opens from 9am to 11am and looks similar to the Hawkweed aforementioned. After that comes the Marsh Sow Thistle which opens from noon to 2pm and looks pretty much like a dandelion flower. 3 to 5pm is the opening time for the Rough Hawkbit which looks exactly like a dandelion except with bracts on the stem. Up next is the European White Waterlily which opens from 6 to 8pm and has a yellow core surrounded by pure white petals. But here our clock unfortunately comes to an end. Linnaeus’s 1751 flower clock ends at 8 pm. You presently look at the “clock” and find that it’s getting late, so you begin to head back.
On your way to the center, you were mostly focused on animals, so on your return trip, you began to take interest in the flowers. You see Himalayan Poppies with their light blue petals, Peonies with their red petals forming a sort of bowl, Hydrangeas with their large, round, light blue flower head, Anemones with light pink petals and yellow centers, Daffodils with snow white petals, Japanese camellias with delicately layered pink petals, Balloon Flowers with purple petals that look like they had violet blood veins on them, Columbines that look like a Joker’s hat, Parrot Tulips that have pink stripes on white petals, and much more. The sky is now almost dark. Some of the flowers are already closed, waiting for the light of day. You take out your phone and turn on the light just as you caught some sort of green glow from elsewhere. You turn the light off again and notice that something was glowing on the tree branches. Upon closer inspection, you notice a cluster of small mushrooms that are emitting the green light. These are natural glow-in-the-dark mushrooms called Agaricus Gardneri. There are 71 known species of glowing mushrooms, but The Agaricus mushrooms are the brightest. as you wander on, you see not only glow-in-the-dark mushrooms, but also glow-in-the-dark pebbles. Sadly, these are man-made. Finally, after a long trek in the dark, you once again arrive at the gate. You have finished your tour.
In conclusion, The Secret Garden is certainly a good book to read, it has themes like healing, for example. Mostly, though, it has given me the basics to imagine about my own dream garden. There was also a lot of researching behind this, and it’s all thanks to The Secret Garden. Without it, I wouldn’t have known a garden could be so lavishly built. I always thought a garden was just for vegetables and a few plants or a place for pets to run around in. Of course, though, this imagination of my dream garden could never be accomplished in my lifetime, because these different kinds of plants and animals all live in different positions and habitats. They also need a certain climate or care so that they don’t break the ecosystem. My dream garden will definitely break the ecosystem. Some plants or animals will die because of less resources, others will try to completely take control. All of them consider others to be an invasive species. But it’s a DREAM garden. If it’s unrealistic in real life, it can be real in my imagination. The Secret Garden has inspired me to think about my own garden, and I hope it can inspire you as well.
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