Can Words Describe the Fragrance

Can words describe the fragrance of the very breath of spring - that delicious commingling of the perfume of arbutus, the odor of pines, and the snow - soaked soil just warming into life.

Note: Today is the birthday of the nature writer and poet Neltje Blanchan, who was born on this day in 1865.  Neltje married Frank Doubleday, and their grandson, Nelson, would go on to be the president of the Doubleday publishing company.

Neltje wrote under the pen name Neltje Blanchon ("Nel-jah Blahn-chon"), and she especially loved wildflowers and birds. In 1897, she wrote a book called Bird Neighbors.

In 1907, Neltje Blanchan wrote that children should get to know birds.  She also wrote a book called The American Flower Garden and also one called Wild Flowers Worth Knowing.