Garden delights

 Mr. Rabbit sits patiently in our garden next to a flower he knows isn't real. He's enjoying the view just the same, however, and so am I. Our garden received seventeen days of rain in July, then 8 days of intense heat, and, then, last night, another huge thunderstorm.

This is why the phrase, fresh as a daisy, makes sense. The purple flowers are a nice accent, don't you think?

Our garden gate is on the north side yard and on the other side of the arborvitae is our neighbor's house, now effectively screened out..not an easy feat on the small city lots in town.

 The wind chimes are under an arbor of climbing roses in the backyard. I have at least 4 wind chime sets and love to hear them out my bedroom window at night. That is one of the consolations of no air conditioning.

 The rain is  responsible for our garden looking so nice this year. That, and our landscaper, Jim Palinkas of Gardenport in Huron. My talent is letting Jim plant whatever he wants, wherever he wants, and whenever he wants. He has turned our small city lot into a garden of paradise.

I add the garden art and then nature does the rest!  Every day something new is in bloom. I haven't used any annuals except for a few begonias this year. I am not a gardener. I am one that admires gardens and that is a huge difference! It took me years to understand this and stop trying to make a garden when I dislike working in dirt, heat, etc. Paulette loves to garden and she can't quite understand why I am willing to pay someone else to do my gardening for me. Hmmm. I tell her they call it yard WORK for a reason. I actually love books on gardening, gardeners and so forth. In fact I have a large collection.

 

The first gardening book I read was May Sarton's Journal of Solitude. It isn't really about gardening, but, she was a passionate gardener living in Maine, and I noted that she had a gardener that carried out her master plan gardens.

I loved Onward and Upward in the Garden by Katharine S. White (E.B.'s wife) and also loved The 3,000 Mile Garden by Leslie Land (great name, huh.) The Lavender Lover's Handbook by Sarah Baden gives me ideas on adding to my collection of lavender plants.

 

Good friends, Bonnie and Scott Rose are master gardeners and Scott makes his living as a horticulturist. I look forward to seeing their new garden in Michigan. I enjoy walking through Paulette's small city garden...it suits her personality and I think that is why I love it so.

 

Ron put fairy lights in our trees and along our fences and the view at night is just as enchanting as the daytime. Come join us anytime for a walk about-it really only takes a few minutes, that is, unless you stop to smell the roses!