June is such a lovely month for gardens. Out here in the Idaho rangelands, July & August tend to be extremely hot & extremely dry, & while there are some very lovely hot weather flowers such as day lilies & sunflowers, I think the real peak starts sometime in May & last well into June. It’s the time for lilacs & poppies & columbine & geraniums & roses & calendula & California poppies (which last very well thru the hotter weather), all following the fruit blossoms of mid-May. The weather is warm enough, & can even be a bit warmer than one might ideally like, but it’s not the dead oppressive heat of late summer, when a 90-degree day feels cool, & temperatures rise to 100 or better on many days.
The songbirds are flocking to the feeders & to the shrubbery & the willows—goldfinches, blackheaded grosbeaks, redwing & yellow-headed blackbirds, lazuli buntings, cowbirds & all the sparrows—white-crowned, English, chipping & song! The evenings are very long—not only are we close to the 45th parallel, but we’re also in the extreme western part of Mountain Time—places to the east of us in north Idaho are actually on Pacific Time (an hour earlier), so there’s still daylight after 10:30 p.m. (of course this will seem much more remarkable to our friends to the south & probably pretty humdrum to our Canadian friends & friends in the British Isles).
In celebration of the peak garden season, here are some photos of Eberle’s garden, which I think is extraordinarily beautiful this year, even by her very high gardening standards. There’s also a slideshow with yet more pictures, & with background music by Eberle herself—an accordion piece titled “The Picnic” from our 2008 Moominpappa at Sea soundtrack.
Enjoy!
The columbines have hybridized & created some lovely colors.
Calendula - part of the xeriscape garden that Eberle has planted next to the south wall of the house. All the plants there like harsh desert-like conditions.
Wild rose - part of a hedge you can see out the music room window. You can also sit amongst this hedge on a cedar bench I made, or in some metal lawn furniture. Morning coffee, anyone?
More columbines!
A lovely & delicate flower called Snow on the Mountain, presumably because when it blooms there still is snow at the highest elevations.
Lovely music, flowers, words. I certainly enjoyed seeing Eberle's garden!
ReplyDeletevery beautiful... this blooming world!
ReplyDelete(I don't know if it's your video or my computer but the sound kept cutting out.)
Lovely presentation - I particularly like the colour of that one iris (the rusty red one). Oh, and by the way, my copy of Moominpapa's Memoirs arrived at the library, and I picked it up last night, along with Sandburg's Rootabaga Stories. Now I'll finally know what Moominpapa is all about.
ReplyDeleteLovely photos and music. I love gardens, flowers/vegetables. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteHi Lizzy, René, Sandra & Linda:
ReplyDeleteLizzy: So glad you enjoyed !
René: I think the vid is ok-- sometimes the persnickety computer can't keep up with the video. But thanks for those kind words-- based on what I've seen on your blog, your garden's pretty darned nice too.
Sandra: I love that color iris. It's planted up against our old house, but Eberle has transplanted some into the xeriscape garden. They seem to be thriving, but won't bloom there till next year. I think you'll really enjoy Moominpappa & Rootabaga!
Linda: Thanks a lot!
Pretty flowers. Aren't columbine so lovely? Wispy and dainty? Eberle certainly has the green thumb.
ReplyDeleteWonderful garden shots and music. I enjoyed seeing the random sculptures also, of course I think no garden is complete without random sculptures.
ReplyDeleteI am wondering if you know the J walk blog, he is all about banjos...
http://j-walkblog.com/
Hi Willow & ArtSparker:
ReplyDeleteWillow: Yes, the columbines are lovely, & it's cool that they appear in so many different colors.
ArtSparker: Thanks for stopping by! Eberle was really pleased to hear you liked her garden & her scupltures (mostly made from stuff we scavenged at the local landfill). Eberle, like me, was really taken by your work on both ArtSpark Theatre & Tiny Theatre. Yeah, I do know the J-Walk blog, & he does include a fair amount of banjo info. Lots of post per day from that one. Thanks again.
you guys are so cool - very interesting folks with diverse interests and talents.
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice visit to your garden this morning. Nice work Eberle. And the music is lovely. I was particularly intrigued by the hill behind one of the photos. It looks like a great place to run up on top of and watch the stars, or get a view. A place to look at your house and your lives. Be well.
ReplyDeleteThe garden is exquisite! I love poppies especially but all the blossoms are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteNice vid with a soundtrack and everything! Thanks!
Hi Jen & Randy & Reya:
ReplyDeleteThanks to you all!