Friday, August 05, 2005

Casa Blanca Morning

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We enjoyed a cool night last, and so I slept without a fan on. This meant that I knew before I open my eyes how right the forecast for high humidity would be for today. I was happy to get out to the garden with my first precious cup of coffee and discover there was a lovely breeze to provide some relief. But as the morning has continued, you can tell it won't be much help in a little while.

My favorite of all the lilies, the oriental Casa Blanca began blooming this morning, a lovely thing to behold, despite some damage due to the much-discussed lily leaf beetles. The striped stamens are especially something on this one. As much as I understand the need to trim them off to prevent pollen stains when cutting for arrangements, it'd be a sad thing to emasculate this massive beauty.

With such a hot day on tap, I doubled the watering this morning (Rain in the forecast? Don't make me laugh. They say maybe next week.) and also took care of some much-needed dead-heading duties. Having started so early, there was plenty of time, too, for just stopping and looking, really the best part of being a gardener, if you can make yourself stand still for a moment or two. It was a nice morning for sitting and listening to the birds waking up (even they seem slow to start on this humid day).

Eartlier this week, I started loosening the sod for a new bed in the back garden. This will be where I move all the rootbound irises from various gardens around the house, as I divide them, in hopes of seeing some blooms next spring. But that's definitely not hot weather work, so I'll let the sun dry to soil there a bit, which will make the task a little simpler when I do get back to it.

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