The weather this week is not pleasant. In less than three days 11 inches of rain fell here, much of it torrential, causing damage to my plants. Those of you who follow me on Facebook and Instagram saw the pictures. I considered writing a blog posting about the devastation, until I picked up Cheryl Wilfong's book on mindfulness, Garden Wisdom: 365 Days. I read Cheryl's July 26 entry:
' The first step is mindfulness. Let's begin here today by walking through our gardens and examining what is: noticing the pleasant and noticing the unpleasant.'I took a 'mindful' walk with my camera. I decided to focus on the pleasant as I had already documented the unpleasant. In spite of the storm damage, there is much beauty. I delight in the morning glories that I allow to bloom in all the places they reseed. My two favorites are shown in the picture above. The dark purple and white-with-purple ones climb the arbor near the patio. They perfectly complement each other.
I find beauty in hydrangeas, daylilies, and clematis:
Three of my hydrangeas: top - 'Pinky Winky', bottom left - 'Limelight', right - mophead H. sp. |
Daylilies Hermerocallis 'Chicago Apache' and h. 'Siloam Bo Peep' |
Several clematis are blooming. (I don't remember the names of these two.) |
I am surprised and happy that the torrential rain didn't batter down Joe Pye. In the same border, my new favorite plant, sea holly, is now surrounded by the cheerful blooms of cleome. You can see why I call this border The Abundance Garden.
Eupatorium dubium Joe Pye Weed 'Baby Joe.' |
Sea holly Eryngium giganteum 'Miss Wilmott's Ghost' and cleome. |
Hostas have been glorious this year, and several continue to strut their stuff in Serenity Garden.
Two of my many hostas, bravely surviving both the weather and the deers' nibblings |
After their blooms are spent, hostas continue to please with the beauty of their foliage. I often choose plants for their leaves: While the canna, 'Striata', has striking blooms, I picked it for its (almost translucent) striped foliage. The red leaves of the banana tree are stunning. Every gardener knows what it is that makes coleus so lovely.
Top: coleus; bottom left: hosta sp.; bottom right, canna 'Striata' with banana tree |
Foliage also dominates the container garden, enhanced by some bursts of color from annual begonia.
Containers in the Stone Garden |
Turks' cap lilies |
I ended my stroll around the garden by basking in the warmth of the Turks' cap lilies. I inherited these marvelous native plants from my mother-in-law. A stand of them nod their heads over the fence to passers-by. You will find them in another bed near the entrance to the Woodland Walk.
I am grateful to Cheryl for sending me a complimentary copy of her book. I recommend you check out her blog, The Meditative Gardener. When I finished my walk, I realized there was so much more 'pleasant' than 'unpleasant' in my storm-ravaged gardens. Practicing mindfulness is very rewarding.
Love,
Pamela x
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