Photo: childhoodtrophy (flickr)
Beautix Potter lived at “Hill Top” in the Lake District of England, near where William Wordsworth saw that host of golden daffodils, immortalized in his poetry.
Children, the world over, have learned about the enchanting things that can happen in gardens because of Beatrix Potter’s descriptions of Mr. McGregor’s garden and the adventures Peter Rabbit and his friends had in it.
Tourists can visit Beatrix Potter’s garden at Hill Top, which has been restored to look just like the photographs taken when she lived there. The garden is full of old-fashioned flowers such as lambs ears which children love to touch, hollyhocks which can be used as skirts for dolls and sweet William which has such an enticing scent. There is even the same variety of gooseberry bush where Peter Rabbit got tangled up in the netting. This is a magical place maintained by the National Trust.
In Bloomington Indiana, closer to home, there is a children’s garden, called “Hilltop” where children experience the joy of caring for plants and reaping the harvest of nature and nurture. It is a habitat where children, as well as plants, can grow.
Communities that invest in children’s garden programs, as well as parents who read Beatrix Potter’s stories to their children, share the magic of a garden.