(The garden) is a place of safety and comfort, an old forgiving friend who is always there for me, who protects and embraces me. ~Sydney Eddison
I have been trying to rediscover my old friends in the garden this summer. I had hoped with retirement I would have more time to visit with these friends daily and see them grow. Old friends are such a comfort. They bring back special memories that act like a cocoon to wrap me with their loving arms.
But my retirement has been postponed. It is too hard to go into why here, but it is the right thing for the moment. My mom is still coming to visit and I am ecstatic. And even without retirement happening right now, I am still determined to continue to discover old friends.
Besides the plants, there are many other old friends to see in the garden. The frogs, butterflies, bees, spiders, and a host of birds; parents and juveniles growing as they feed upon the garden.
And I especially look forward to seeing old friends and family I have been missing because of my work schedule. They make up their own special garden. I hope to visit them in the coming months with a few trips whether I am retired or not.
So on this Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day, hosted by Carol@ May Dreams Gardens, let’s remember old friends.
Here are some old friends that are showing up in my garden this July…..
**I have included the meaning of each flower in italics.
Roses
Love (red) and Friendship (pink)
Hydrangeas
Thank you for understanding
Daylilies
Coquetry
First daylilies blooming are yellow and orange
Lilies
Purity, modesty
Asiatics
Allium
You’re perfect & elegant
Later blooming allium caeruleum or ‘Azure Allium’
Sweet William
Gallantry
Blooming in the meadow.
Yarrow
Healing
Iris
Your friendship means so much to me.
Native flag iris are up in the pond.
Echinacea
Strength, Immunity
Watching echinacea carefully for ‘asters yellow disease’. Pulled a few already in the back gardens. These are Echinacea ‘Pixie Meadowbrite’ doing OK in the front gardens.
Lavender
Serenity, Grace, Calmness
New friends in the garden are the foliage of the veg garden as it takes center stage….I am celebrating foliage with Pam@Digging for her Foliage Follow Up on the 16th, and Christina@Creating my own garden of the Hesperides for her Garden Bloggers Foliage Day on the 22nd.
Healthy lush green pepper foliage. These were kept under cover in our cool June weather.
‘All Blue’ potatoes growing like crazy in my grow bags. The purple stems and blue flowers make a great stand of vegetable plants this summer.
I am growing okra ‘Burgundy’ for the first time. I love the contrast of the stems with the leaves. These are nestled between the peppers and eggplant.
I love the look and smell of dill. This self seeded in the pea/bean bed. It is huge with a very thick stem and already 2.5 feet tall.
What old friends are showing up in your garden this summer?
“The serene philosophy of the pink rose is steadying. Its fragrant, delicate petals open fully and are ready to fall, without regret or disillusion, after only a day in the sun. It is so every summer. One can almost hear their pink, fragrant murmur as they settle down upon the grass: ‘Summer, summer, it will always be summer.” ~ Rachel Peden
Next up on the blog: Next week I have an interesting Garden Book Review. Hope you will drop by to read all about foraging for food in your backyard.
I am linking in with Michelle@Rambling Woods for her Nature Notes meme. It is a great way to see what is happening in nature around the world every Wednesday.
I hope you will join me for my posts once a month at Beautiful Wildlife Garden. See my most current post now. Most recent post is up.
As always, I’ll be joining Tootsie Time’s Fertilizer Friday.
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