Sunday, June 28, 2009

JUNE BLOOMS


The humid days of summer have arrived so sitting out in the thick air of the evening the pleasure of scent is abundant. The closeness of the air holds the smell of the phlox, sweet bay magnolias, and whatever redolent bloom wafts into and lingers in the ether.


The real reason to have a garden is the fresh cut flowers you can bring in almost every day. "If I was a rich man" I would have fresh flowers all over the house, and clean, pressed sheets every night. I will have to settle for fresh cut flowers in the months of bloom. Today it was a big bunch of white phlox, I also could not resist mixing some of the blue and white mop head Hydrangias together. So now as I sit in front of the window wall looking over the garden watching an array of birds coming and going from the feeder and the birdbath, I am surrounded by the sweet scent and beautiful display of these vases.
There is an abundance of blooms open in the garden now.



Tuesday, June 23, 2009

WATCHING THE DAYS SHORTEN


The rains have stopped, at least temporarily. The sun is bright and things seem to be drying out. The mornings and evenings are delightful, a little less so during the day because of the humidity, but nothing to really complain about. The corn has shot up during the rain, and is now also enjoying the sun.
I have put some chairs out in the wooded part of the garden, in the shade of the London Plane tree. With bird feeders close by that becomes a perfect spot to sit quietly and watch all manner of bird fly in and out of cover in the late evening.
Fireflies are lighting up all over the fields, particular to the now dry wheat crop on the East side of the farm.
Did you realize we have pasted the longest day of the year?

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

WHEN IT RAINS IT POURS


Our weather has been marked by an abundance of rain, and mostly cool temperature. What one would think of as perfect garden growing. The garden is rich and abundant, for sure, but underneath the beauty lies the dark side. There is a rust on the Amelanchiers, and the contorted Mulberry, the heat loving, water intolerant pentstemon, lavender, thyme , and salvia are lovely, but up under their leaves the mildew and bacterial rot has started to show up.
Through the drought of last year and the year before, many plants struggled to survive the heat and dryness, now the plants that loved that weather are struggling. I guess that is how the garden is. Perfect one moment, and then poof, disaster.
It is hard for me to tell how jaded my view might be. Perhaps if I could stroll through the landscape, purged of the idea that it is my garden, I would see less flaws and more perfection. But, as I can not walk on the paths without stopping to pluck out a weed that always catches my eye, I am also unable to see just the beauty of what the rains have brought, without seeing the impending damage as well.