3210. Shoo-fly flowers © Bruce Goodman 19 May 2025

Edwina took great pride in her garden. It was all flowers. Vegetables could be purchased for a fairly expensive price, but the price of flowers was through the roof. So it was flowers Edwina grew – for her own pleasure. Of course, not all flowers are good for cutting and putting in a vase. Nor were some of them particularly pretty but served some purpose in the garden. Shoo-fly flowers (such as they were popularly called) were always planted under a window to deter insects from entering. Their little purple flowers weren’t particularly pretty but they served some useful purpose with their fly-deterring scent. But Edwina’s hollyhocks and poppies and dahlias and … oh! you name it Edwina grew it. In fact, she had so many varieties of flowers that she ran out of space. “There’s only one thing for it,” said Edwina. “The Shoo-fly plants will have to go. I shall pull them out tomorrow.” Edwina thought she saw her Shoo-fly plants shiver. Tomorrow never came for Edwina. When he daughter visited the stench of fly-deterrent in the house was overpowering. Edwina lay on the carpet stifled to death. Contact Author Back to Index Next Story Previous Story