The Turned-Intos by Elizabeth Gordon: The Garden Folk

The Turned-Intos by Elizabeth Gordon and illustrated by Janet Laura Scott was first published in 1920 in Great Britain. I have a 1935 edition published by Wies-Parslow Company, New York.

The book was written to teach children about the fauna of the garden. In each chapter, Jane Elizabeth meets something new: a Swallow Tail butterfly and Humming-bird moths, frogs and toads, bumble-bees and honeybees, even hornets and spiders.

The chapter begins with a poem about the creature which is followed with a story in which Jane Elizabeth encounters it. Prince Tiger Swallow Tail butterfly introduces himself and his sister as Turned-Intos-- "when you start out in life one sort of thing and after a while, you turn into something very different and scarcely to be believed."

"Although Jane Elizabeth had a new book and very much wished to read it, having brought it into the garden with her, she had not been able to read much. The young robins had been so very funny, half flying and half flopping about, and Mother Robin had been so very anxious for them to do every little movement of the wings just right, and had made so much noise telling them how to fly, that it was much more interesting than a book, no matter how new it was."

Jane learns that all these creatures have a life cycle involving a physical change.

The lesson guide for the chapter on the Humming-Bird Moth begins, "Did you know that the government at Washington is helping farmers all over the country to fight insect pests? Some moths, such as the peach moth and the gypsy moth do great damage to trees. It may be that you have heard of the boll weevil and the Japanese beetle. Both of these insects caused a great deal of trouble for the farmers by destroying their crops. Uncle Sam had to fight these insect enemies for a good many years before he got them under control. Our government needs men and women to help in this insect war. Would you like to be one of the helpers? Choose one of the four pests you have just read about and write a fifty word composition on it."

The lesson plan calls Ladybugs the 'police force of the plant world' because it eats insect pests. "Immigrants coming to our shores must be carefully inspected. try to find out about some of our laws which require the inspection of fruits and vegetable and plants imported from other countries, or shipped from one state to another."

I love these illustrations!

A Year With the Fairies: The Insect Orchestra

The Insect OrchestraWhen we with our horns and out trombones appear,
All the birds gather round us to see and to hear;
While we're scraping and squeaking an picking the strings,
They applaud us all loudly by flapping their wings.

When the music begins they shout "hip,hip, hurrah,"
As they hear Strauss's waltz that goes "tra la la la,"
And the grasses enchanted are bending and swaying
To the swing of the music our orchestra's playing.

from A Year with the Fairies by Anna M. Scott, 1914

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It is that time of summer when the insects have taken over.

We have been deluged with Japanese Beetles, especially attracted to our new beautiful yellow rose. The buds and flowers of the second flowering have been eaten away. We also found the Japanese Beetles eating our flowering quince and apple trees.

The other evening a giant Stag Beetle was settled on the screen of our patio door. Lightning bugs flit about in the dusk.

It's hard to believe we are halfway through July. The kitchen remodel, and consequent trips to get away, have caused time to fly so quickly.

It's time to stop and listen to the insect orchestra. Apparently they play Strauss.