garden — Page 52

Day Eighty-Five

June 6, 2020 at 9:31 am by Claudia

Wild Roses – their scent is everywhere this morning.

Nature stories, all of which happened this morning:

• The other day I noticed that one of the ‘entrances’ that Henry used to go under the shed no longer had leaves blocking the opening. Some little creature had been cleaning up. I showed it to Don and said ‘Let’s keep an eye out.’ When one groundhog vacates his home, another often moves in. This morning, Don opened the door to make his trek up to the back forty to see the sun rise and there, on the ramp of the shed was a groundhog. Both of them were startled and the groundhog ran under the shed. When I got up Don told me about his encounter, saying it was a big, fat groundhog. Later, as I was sipping coffee, Don called out to me to look out the window and there was the groundhog, eating the grass. At one point he got on his hind legs to munch on some plants (thankfully, by the shed instead of in my garden, but it’s clearly time to keep a vigilant eye out for mischief.) He was last seen on the lilac side of the lawn. We’re pretty sure this isn’t Henry as he seemed a bit too spry. We’re not saying that definitively, but I think Henry would have made an appearance before now. This guy might be our new tenant. I also saw a deer running through the woods beyond the shed.

• Don went for a walk and after I finished what I was reading, I went out to the front porch to sit for a bit on the glider. I heard a loud whirring noise, couldn’t figure out what it was, looked up, and there was a hummingbird dining on my hanging plant.

• I got up, walked over to the garden and a big fat bumblebee was dining on the catmint. One of the biggest I’ve ever seen.

• Don came back. I made our second cup of coffee. We sat on the sofa in the living room. Don said that he saw something running up on the back forty. Maybe it was a cat? A fox? I got up to look, and saw a flash of something running – maybe a dog? If so, it was just a bit bigger than Scoutie had been. I went outside to the Secret Garden to get a peek, thinking if it was dog, it might need rescuing. I saw a large deer standing there placidly, staring at me. That was when I realized that the little animal running was a very young fawn. The fawn was running back and forth, very fast, just like a puppy does. We’d see it tear around a corner, disappear, then switch directions. Don used the word ‘gamboling.’ It was extraordinary. I’ve seen lots of young deer around here, but I’ve never seen one that young playing like that, gleefully running back and forth while Mom waited nearby. Oh my heavens, it just made my day. I’ll treasure that image for a long time.

I am always appreciative of where we live but never more so than on a morning like this. It’s going to be hot and humid later today, but this morning has been a gift.

Stay safe.

Happy Saturday.

Day Eighty-Four

June 5, 2020 at 9:37 am by Claudia

I mistakenly titled yesterdays’s post as Day Eighty-Four and then realized mid-afternoon that it was Day Eighty-Three so I edited the title. Just in case you’re confused. I guess the seemingly endless number of days in lockdown is taking its toll!

I took this photo this morning. It’s rainy and humid and we’re getting thunderstorms later on. I want to share this, my favorite time in the Secret Garden. The wildflowers (Dame’s Rocket) are blooming, and the wild roses have just emerged (the scent is heavenly.) This week or two when all is in bloom is just gorgeous.

We did next to nothing with this area for about ten of the almost-fifteen years we’ve lived here. Then, during a time Don was away, I gathered a bunch of old cinderblocks that were up in the woods and dragged them, one at a time, to make that little wall between the wild area and the grass. I did it because I was worried that the ‘wild’ might get closer and closer to the house. The next year, I bought those vintage pots from an antique dealer and came up with a choice of shade loving plants; coleus, vines, and little white flowers. This is the third year (I think) that we’ve had the pots. Then, later that summer, I bought the vintage furniture from the same antique dealer. I had already cleared a path to the crabapple tree that blooms in early Spring. This year, Don really expanded that path and cut back a lot more of the brambles and weeds. He put down some stepping stones and some bark, and that’s where we are today.

It’s one of my favorite places on the property. Don has been busy creating other paths and little clearings up in the woods. Eventually, we’d love to find old benches to put in each of the clearings and at the base of the crabapple tree in the Secret Garden. But that will have to wait until we have the freedom to shop and the money to spend.

I worked outside yesterday for about 3 hours; transplanting some ferns that were crowding other plants (fingers crossed that it works,) weeding the big garden bed, weed whacking, edging the big garden bed with large stones that Don found up in the woods, and then I mowed the lilac side of the front lawn. A lot of work, but it felt good – until I came in and sat down and crashed. But isn’t that always the way?

And I finished this. It’s so lovely, this intricate and beautiful piece of art by Mucha. Lush in the way that only Art Nouveau can be. If you don’t know French, these are the seasons: Summer, Spring, Autumn, and Winter.

I’ll leave it up until this afternoon when I’ll break it down and start another puzzle.

I’ve also got three Inspector Maigrets on deck.

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.

Day Eighty-Three

June 4, 2020 at 8:12 am by Claudia

I’m writing this earlier than usual as it’s going to be a hot one today and I have some work to do in the gardens.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you so much for your supportive comments on yesterday’s post. After a long day, I sat here in my chair prepared to write replies as usual, and I confess, I teared up. Bless you for being here.

We did watch about a half hour of Rachel Maddow, but when we switched channels about a half hour into the show, I turned to Don and told him I can’t watch it at night anymore. I can catch up during the day with snippets of the previous night’s show, but I can’t take all this to bed with me. He agreed. And I ended up sleeping very well, as if a load had been taken off my shoulders. The horror show continues and I will stay informed, but I have to take control of my waking hours, deciding just when to expose myself to the news and when to stay away. This is nothing I haven’t said before; in fact, it’s what we’ve been doing, save for the last three days when we broke our normal ‘protocol.’ Lesson relearned. (My life story.)

Nearly done. I should finish today. This puzzle is so gorgeous, it’s been a treat to work on it every day. I’ve always loved Mucha’s work and this one is exquisite.

I ordered three more Inspector Maigret novels. Two arrived yesterday. One will arrive today. They are so well written! They take place in Paris, so what’s not to love? And they’re relatively short, making them the perfect thing for me to read right now. Since Georges Simenon wrote 75 of them, I should have lots of reading matter for the months to come.

I’m so glad we have Andrew Cuomo as our governor. He is being very cautious about reopening businesses. When I see the way other governors ceased lockdown too early (and the numbers are already spiking in those states) I am doubly glad we have Cuomo at the helm. Whenever he does open things up for our little area (not all that far from NYC) Don and I will continue to wear masks, to limit our shopping. Basically, we will continue to do what we have been doing. And of course, we are fortunate that we are at the stage in life where we can do that – that goes without saying.

Okay. Have to go make that second cup of coffee. Don will be returning from his morning walk!

Stay safe.

Happy Thursday.

Day Eighty-Five

Day Eighty-Three

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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