I can’t get enough of the beauty of morning glories. Every day, I am treated to a new feast for the eyes.
They really are the most wonderful last-days-of-summer treat. The day lilies are gone. The coneflowers are drying up. A few roses are blooming, as well as the rudbeckia. The morning glories have taken over center stage, thrilling us with their magical, ephemeral beauty.
I never get tired of them. It always seems to take forever for them to grow and produce buds, but they are well worth the wait.
And my hyacinth bean vine, also slow-growing this year, has produced some flowers.
I existed for so many years without a garden. I lived in dorms and apartments and all sorts of rentals that either didn’t have the space for a garden or where planting anything was a no-no. It wasn’t until we rented our Craftsman bungalow in San Diego that I made my first stab at a garden. It was in the backyard – a little plot right by the back door. (The same door that I walked out one day, only to trip and fall and break my left ankle, which resulted in my wearing a cast on that ankle for my wedding. Oh, yes.)
Then we moved out east and lived in a rental cottage. After a year or so, I asked the owners if I could put in a little strip of a garden alongside the house and they said yes. It was quite lovely. I wonder if it’s still there? I also planted a lot of pachysandra under the big pine tree right outside the front door. I hooked a hose up to the bathroom sink and snaked it outside through the window in order to water the plants. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
When we bought this house and moved in – nine years ago on August 30th – I knew I would finally be able to plant and nuture my own gardens.
I was in my fifties.
It took a long time, but it was worth it. And I treasure every minute of it.
I’ve written about my favorite bookstore, the Strand, on Just Let Me Finish This Page. Stop by to see just why I love it so.
Happy Friday.
Are you ready to plant Iris if I send them next week? Just dig a shallow drench about two inches deep, drop them in, shovel some dirt over them. Don’t plant them too deep, they kind of like to be peeking through! Have you ever read Gardenweb.com? Go to their IRIS forum. Or, your local area gardening forum. Enjoy Fall, and glad you are feeling better!
You have to send them very, very soon, Dottie, as I’m leaving town on or around the 18th and then I won’t be able to plant them. Let me know!
Absolutely beautiful :-) In all my years of growing morning glories, I have never seen the huge number of healthy gorgeous green leaves mine have this year…in just a few weeks, hopefully the heat will will break and then I will get to enjoy the blossoms :-) I have surely enjoyed the lovely photos of yours.
Oh no–a cast on your ankle for your wedding–it must have been a good luck charm! I had a cast on my ankle for my senior prom…the sweetie who took me, ended up asking me to marry him and I said yes…so, those plaster casts must be good luck charms :-) We have both been blessed to have found the men of our dreams and lived happy lives with them. Who could ask for more than a good man and morning glories???
That combination sounds perfect, Jeannine. When I was worried and depressed about having to wear a cast on our wedding day, Don said, “It will be part of our story.”
I couldn’t have asked for anything better.
Love the blue of morning glories. Ours have not done well (in fact, have not done at all) for the pst several years. Not sure why. We used to have huge masses of them by our mailbox and on our patio. They have not come back and new seeds have not sprouted. Disappointing for sure! But, our hibiscus just began blooming this past week and is beautiful. Most everything else is waning very quickly.
Love hibiscus, Vera.
Love morning glories! I have to make plans for next Spring and a container garden!
Yes, they will be perfect for one – just have something they can climb up.
Beautiful morning glories…just loving that color! I have a spot for them I think…have to do some research! Enjoy your day! ;)
You too, Donnamae!
Oh, the Glories of the Morning!!! How I love them. Ours started blooming about a week or so ago and I can’t get enough. I’m not sure why mine bloom so late each year, but I love every day I have to view them. Keeping all body parts crossed that there isn’t an early frost this year.
When I was still working, some days I would just drive home to sit in the driveway and look at them as a way to catch my breath. The blue ones have always been my favorites!
Hope you have a glorious weekend. Supposed to have sun and mid 70’s this weekend. yay!!
I think we’re a day or so behind you – it’s pretty hot here today!
Gorgeous flowers and photos Claudia! Adore morning glories.
Happy weekend!
Same to you, Sally!
I love your stories! They are like a gratitude journal. You are a woman who is so grateful for the life she has been given. And you work to make your life happy, content and meaningful.
Oh, thank you so much, Tana.
At the apartment complex where I live, we have private entrance units and are very encouraged to plant in the prepared beds near the buildings, between the very nice landscaped shrubbery. Of course many people do hanging baskets at their entries and on their covered porches or balconies. The management even has a contest each Summer for the best garden among the residents. I usually do some container vegetables on my covered porch too, which luckily has a southern exposure. Grape tomatoes, thyme, basil, lemon verbena, chives, miniature sweet peppers etc. This year I bought a pre-planted container of Bibb and butter lettuces at the nursery. Have been enjoying the freshest salads and sandwich toppings ever. Should have done that long ago. Have a great weekend!
What a great complex you live in, Janet. Love, love their attitude!
I’ve tried growing Morning Glories several times, to no avail. Mother Nature has taken care of me, though…about 40 feet from my front yard there is a very old sinkhole with a forest grown up in the middle of it, and Morning Glories grow wild all around the edges! :)
How wonderful, Lori!
Just a thought I had when I bought this place..”I no longer have to ask permission to do things..I can do whatever I like and no one can say no”..That is a good feeling to have..A feeling of freedom is always a good thing..I love the way morning glory blooms are all twisted around and then slowly unwind their beauty for us to enjoy..Have a great weekend Claudia!
Isn’t that the best feeling?
I’m an official beach-bum, because in the photo of the Morning Glory, I clearly see a starfish!!!
I can see that starfish, too, Leslie Anne.
Claudia, I can so relate on many levels with this blog post…I’ve been a gardener my entire life, it’s just what I am, and do along with my love for photography.
When I was little I had my gardens, stolen spaces in my parents home, jury rigged greenhouses that fell down in the wind.
In my twenties, and 30’s I persevered with indoor gardens, and my growing career at the Garden Center, competing and winning medals at design competitions, but the garden wasn’t mine beyond the design ideas..
In my 40’s with my first real outdoor patio garden, 250 container plants, trees, and shrubs, I thought I had reached gardeners heaven.
But it is only now in my first bloom of 50’s that I have a truly mine, and only mine “real” garden that I get to do with as I please. I make the decisions, I plan the layout, I fight with Mother Nature to grow what she doesn’t think should prosper here…and I love it.
The love of a garden takes a place in our hearts that can only grow with time.
Waiting for the morning glories to bloom is worth the time it takes…mine have overtaken the birdhouses on the long poles, growing, and reaching the skies.. and that is as it should be.
Jen
Beautifully written, Jen. I, too, had lots of indoor plants for years. They were my gardens at the time. But, like you, having my very own space is absolutely priceless. I’m so glad that you have that, too.