The Garden Center

We went to the Garden Center late this summer's morning. It's a very pleasant way to spend time- so much beauty and grace and potential all in one place. One can wander in and not buy anything, simply enjoy a garden and all that might be in our own back yard.

I adore fountains. Right now we have birdbaths in our garden, but not a formal flowing fountain. I want the perfect one and have found simply searching for what might work a pleasant exercise. No need to rush. Every year new fountains appear, some quite pleasing.

The Garden Center's courtyard has many different fountains- most filled and splashing so you feel like you are walking by a busy brook. Each fountain has its own sounds depending on its substance and construction... many different voices all of water all around. And one day one will be in my garden. One perfect fountain. If I ever find it...

The Garden Center was a wonderful escape. A journey into a thousand and one fantasies. A blend and blur of what has been with what might be. A field trip. Follies and foolishness or sensible tools, there is a bit of everything for everyone. Seeing all the intriguing flowers and plants we decided what the heck, our garden is getting crowded but there is always room for another plant... another whim- another dream to dream. Another herb.

My husband found some Perfect Mint (for tea) and I found some Lemon Verbena which we planted in the herb garden by our front door so I can rub my fingers into it and carry the fragrance inside.

The point of going today was we needed beetle traps. We found those... one went in beside my fairy garden


But the biggest whim we bought is a brilliant Fuchsia. We put it on the back terrace on a plant stand so I can see it from the kitchen windows and hopefully remember to water it.


Early this morning not long after dawn, I looked out the kitchen window and noticed my husband already busy at work, carefully creating a trellis system out of string for the morning glories to climb. He really is a very clever guy!

My husband designed and built our vegetable garden step by step- year by year, every year making it a little better.

Closeup the vegetable garden looks like a jungle. Although that garden is actually carefully controlled chaos- all our gardens are to a certain extent - but the vegetable garden gets the most attention, including a fence to keep rabbits and dogs and day dreaming poets out.

Our strawberry season is over but the cucumbers have bloomed with bright yellow star flowers hailing the start of the cucumber season- so now they are our garden snack. We do grow vegetables for specifically dinner and favorite recipes. But we also like to casually nibble out in the garden itself as the birds sing and the butterflies flit and the bees buzz and the sun shines.

Lemonade on a hot summers day on our back terrace with all the kids a few days ago (a garden party celebrating my mothers 76th birthday)

The Rose of Sharon is blooming now, alongside the vegetable garden.

One of my favorite 'wild flowers" is the larkspur up in our hillside garden. The first year it came in I had no idea what it was. We had planted many different seeds and out of that these tall slender things took over - until they bloomed and I knew their flower I called them "The Alien". We sometimes still call them that.

This week we have a borrowed dog, a playful terrier that likes that we dig...

Impatience

James patiently working on his custom made guitar, having sanded his guitar earlier today he is now taping it, prepping it so he can paint it

Bursting with bloom

From the upper garden one can look down into my fairy garden. Our neighbors next door on that side had a baby three weeks ago. A little girl. When she gets old enough to stand on tippy toes she will be able to peer out her bedroom window to see our fairy garden.

The Bachelor Buttons began to bloom this week too, another summer flower coming into its own. It was the Bachelor Buttons that first brought the Gold Finches into our yard. They feed upside down and we now have a feeder filled with thistle seeds for them.

With all the rain we have had this year, plus the time we have been able to garden, our garden is utterly amazing right now.

I know that right now in blogging this I should be looking for ways to tie this into Palestine- looking for links and such to bundle it up into one pretty PR package. But for now I really do not want to. There are many valiant efforts out there - many amazing people working tirelessly to try to do right by Palestine- and for Palestine.

For Palestine inspires....

• Growing Gardens for Palestine
• Planning a garden is one step towards planting it ...
• "Come, I'll tell you about Palestine"
• Honoring Arabic & Arabic Calligraphy
• Poem in Your Pocket Day is April 17th
• Poetry continued-
• Lavender ...
• Mosaics
• Bulbs & Birdhouses
• Carrots
• Getting distracted by snow geese
• Embroidered keepsakes
• Going Green for St. Patrick's Day
• Seeds of hope and connection
• A good priority
• Poppies & Palestine: 60 years of forced exile-Time for Return