This lonicera sums up my feelings here in late July: the exuberance and glory of summer combined with that fizzled, unkept, not-keeping-up dread.
In the spring I had the typical gardener's feeling of delight, of being able to do no wrong. Plants thrived wherever I planted them. The soil was always moist. Temps were forgiving. I felt like a conductor of a symphony, with well-trained musicians at my disposal. Lately, with the lingering dryness and the intense heat, I feel more like a doctor triaging patients in an ER (yarrow- you can wait; stop your whining, hydrangea; just hang on spruce, I'll get you some water). I wonder if I'm crazy to invest so much emotion and money and time in something as vulnerable as a garden.
My friend Amir called late summer "The Big Bake" when we gardened together in Brooklyn. It's easy to forget in spring that this cruel test will surely come.
It's raining a bit outside right now, but I don't trust the weather anymore.
I know what you mean. I feel like my garden is Norma Desmond and definitely NOT ready for her close-ups!
ReplyDeleteWe surely will get beneficial rain sometime... preferably soon. A couple of downpours this week, but mostly running off. I watered some beds today in hopes of getting some rain of some kind tonight - looks like it might try.
Hang in there. Fall is coming.