Category: Flowers

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1920s Flowers Poem

Legend of the Forget-Me-Not

Legend of the Forget-Me-Not

By Eva V. White
Annotations by Catherine Bowlin
White, Eva V. “Legend of the Forget-Me-Not.” The Brownies’ Book, ed. W. E. B. Du Bois, vol. 1, no. 7, New York, N.Y.: DuBois and Dill, July 1920. 220. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/22001351/>.
LONG years ago in Eden fair
A wealth of flowers blossomed there.
One day God to the garden came
And unto each one gave a name.

Each flower loved her pretty name
And vowed she’d live up to the same;
So when He came again, He’d see
Each one more like her name would be.

Once more God to the garden came
And asked each flower for her name.
Each one told Him as He came past,
Until he reached the very last.

A little blue flower hung her head.
She had forgotten hers, she said,
She begged amid her grief and shame
That He’d give her another name.

Each pretty flower tossed her head 
And unkind things about her said.
“A flower that forgets,” said they,
“Should be plucked up and thrown away.”

But God smiled kindly on her fears
And brushed away her pearly tears;
And as He turned to leave the spot
Said, “Good bye, dear. Forget Me not.” [1]
George Arents Collection, The New York Public Library. “Forget-me-nots.” New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed November 19, 2020. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e3-506b-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
White, Eva V. “Legend of the Forget-Me-Not.” The Brownies’ Book, ed. W. E. B. Du Bois, vol. 1, no. 7, New York, N.Y.: DuBois and Dill, July 1920. 220. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/22001351/>.

[1] Myosotis scorpioides, also known as Forget-Me-Nots

Contexts

Forget-me-not flowers (Myosotis scorpioides) grow on tall, hairy stems which sometimes grow two feet tall. Charming, five-petaled, blue blooms with yellow centers explode from the stems from May through October. Flower petals are sometimes pink. Forget-me-not plants often grow near brooks and streams and other bodies of water which offer the high humidity and moisture that is desirable to this species. The perennial forget-me-not flower spreads easily, freely self-seeding for more of the wildflower to grow and bloom in shady spots where the tiny seeds may fall. Forget-me-not flower care is minimal, as with most native wildflowers. Forget-me-not plants grow best in a damp, shady area, but can adapt to full sun.

Resources for Further Study
  • Olcott, Frances Jenkins and Milo Winter. The Wonder Garden; Nature Myths and Tales from All the World Over for Story-telling and Reading Aloud and for the Children’s Own Reading. 1919.
  • Wattam, W. E. L. “A legend of the Forget-me-not.” Naturalists’ Journal & Guide IX (1900): 47.
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