《養花》是我國現代著名作家老舍先生 1956年12月12日發表在《文匯報》上的一篇散文。文中講述了“我”養花的情形，從中感受到養花既須勞動，有長知識，能給人們帶來樂趣，抒發了“我”愛花、愛養花，熱愛生活的思想感情。
養花 老舍
On Growing Flowers Lao She
我愛花，所以也愛養花。我可還沒成為養花專家，因為沒有工夫去作研究與試驗。我只把養花當作生活中的一種樂趣，花開得大小好壞都不計較，只要花開，我就高興。在我的小院中，到夏天，滿是花草，小貓兒們只好上房去玩耍，地上沒有它們的運動場。
I love flowers and hence have taken to growing them. But, short of time to do re-search and experiment in flower cultivation, I am no gardener at all. I merely take flower cultivation as a joy of life. I really don't care whether or not my flowers will put forth plump and nice looking blossoms. I'll be delighted as long as they can blossom. In summer, flowers and plants growing in luxuriance in my small courtyard will leave little open space as a playground for the little cats, so they have to sport about in our rooms instead.
花雖多，但無奇花異草。珍貴的花草不易養活，看著一棵好花生病欲死是件難過的事。我不願時時落淚。北京的氣候，對養花來說，不算很好。冬天冷，春天多風，夏天不是乾旱就是大雨傾盆，秋天最好，可是忽然會鬧霜凍，在這種氣候裡，想把南方的花養活，我還沒有那麼大的本事。因此，我只養些好種易活、自己會奮鬥的花草。
I grow many flowers, but none of them are exotic or rare ones. It is difficult to grow a precious flower species. And I feel bad to see a good flower dying of illness. I don't want often to shed tears over that. But Beijing's climate is more or less unfit for the growing flowers. Freezing in winter, windy in spring, and either too dry or too often visited by rain-storms in summer. While autumn is the best of all, it is often plagued by a sudden frost. In a climate like this, it is far beyond my capacity to grow precious flowers of southern breed. Therefore, I only grow flowers and plants that are hardy and enjoy a high survival rate.
不過，儘管花草自己會奮鬥，我若置之不理，任其自生自滅，它們多數還是會死了的.。我得天天照管它們，像好朋友似的關切它們。一來二去我摸著一些門道：有的喜陰，就別放在太陽地裡，有的喜幹，就別多澆水。這是個樂趣，摸住門道，花草養活了，而且三年五載老活著，開花，多麼有意思呀!不是亂吹，這就是知識呀!多得些知識，一定不是壞事。
Although such flowers are able to weather through by themselves, I, however, never ignore them or abandon them to their own fate, for otherwise most of them will probably end up dead. I have to care for them every day as if they were my close friends. Thus, in the course of time, I've somehow got the knack of flower cultivation. Some flowers which are accustomed to growing in the shade should not be too much exposed to the sun. Those which prefer dryness should not be watered too often. It gives me much pleasure to know the right way of handling them. How interesting it is to be able to keep my flowers and plants alive and watch them thrive and bloom year in year out! It is no exaggeration to say that there is much knowledge involved in this! And the more knowledge one acquires, the better it is of course.
我不是有腿病嗎，不但不利於行，也不利於久坐。我不知道花草們受我的照顧，感謝我不感謝;我可得感謝它們。在我工作的時候，我總是寫了幾十個字，就到院中去看看，澆澆這棵，搬搬那盆，然後回到屋中再寫一點，然後再出去，如此迴圈，把腦力勞動與體力勞動結合到一起，有益身心，勝於吃藥。要是趕上狂風暴雨或天氣突變哪，就得全家動員，搶救花草，十分緊張。幾百盆花，都要很快地搶到屋裡去，使人腰痠腿疼，熱汗直流。第二天，天氣好轉，又得把花兒都搬出去，就又一次腰痠腿疼，熱汗直流。可是，這多麼有意思呀!不勞動，連棵花兒也養不活，這難道不是真理麼?
As I have some trouble with my leg, I can't move around easily, nor can I sit too long. I don't know if the flowers under my care are grateful to me or not. However, I for my part wish to acknowledge my thanks to them. I often leave off sedentary work after writing a few dozen words and go to the courtyard to take a look at the flowers, watering them and moving about the potted ones. Then I' 11 return to my room to write a bit more. I'll go through the same back-and-forth process again and again, thus combining mental with manual labour. This is a better way to keep me fit in mind and body than taking medicine. In case of a violent storm or a sudden change of weather, however, the whole family will have to turn out to salvage the flowers and plants. Everybody will then feel keyed up. By the time when we have managed to move the several hundred potted flowers to the rooms in a hurry, we will be dog-tired and wet with perspiration. The next day, when the weather is fine, we will have another round of being dog-tired and wet with perspiration in taking all the flowers out to the courtyard again. How interesting it is! Isn’t it true that without doing manual labour, we couldn’t even keep a single flower alive?
送牛奶的同志進門就誇"好香"!這使我們全家都感到驕傲。趕到曇花開放的時候，約幾位朋友來看看，更有秉燭夜遊的神氣——曇花總在夜裡放芯。花兒分根了，一棵分為數棵，就贈給朋友們一些;看著友人拿走自己的勞動果實，心裡自然特別喜歡。
It filled the whole family with pride whenever the milkman exclaims on entering our gate, "What a sweet smell!" When the night-blooming cereuses are about to be in flower, we will invite some friends to visit us in the evening to feast their eyes on them in an atmosphere smacking of nocturnal merry-making under candle lights. When the cereuses have branched out, we will pick some of the flowers and give them as a present to our friends. We are of course especially happy to see them take away our fruits of labour.
當然，也有傷心的時候。今年夏天就有這麼一回。三百株菊秧還在地上(沒到移入盆中的時候)，下了暴雨。鄰家的牆倒了下來，菊秧被砸死者約三十多種，一百多棵!全家都幾天沒有笑容!
Of course, there is a time to feel sad too. Last summer, a rainstorm hit us when 300 chrysanthemum seedlings in the courtyard were about to be transplanted to pots. Suddenly, the wall of our neighbour collapsed and rushed more than 100 seedlings of 30 varieties. The whole family were sad-faced for quite a few days!
有喜有憂，有笑有淚，有花有實，有香有色，既須勞動，又長見識，這就是養花的樂趣。
Joy and sorrow, laughter and tears, flowers and fruit, fragrance and colour, manual labour and increased knowledge ---all these make up the joy of flower cultivation.
