Woof and I planted strawberry plants yesterday. The two
of us worked together in the raised bed...me on my hands and knees with Woof's warm
hide right beside me chewing on an asparagus stem. I used to grow that in the
same place but by the time I'd get around to harvesting it would be three feet
tall. Growing strawberries at home is a challenge...between the birds loving
it, and trying to keep it watered and weeded...it's easier to buy it at Emma's
roadside stand. I used to try to grow corn also...but for all the space it takes
up...I was lucky to get a couple of ears. When Woof was a puppy she snatched an
ear once...and chewed it to bits...husk and all...underneath my Mom's
bed.
Woof and I still laugh about that.
We moved on to the flower garden after the strawberries were
planted...and at this glorious time of the year it's hard to know where to
begin. The gardenia's that I over wintered look pretty straggly, but they're
blooming like crazy and the scent is other worldly when we sit on the back
porch. We sit there a lot...Woof with her head on my lap, me with my feet up,
and I wonder if I ought to have a glass of white wine...but it's only 1:00.
Then I think of my wonderful friend Jane. Once when we were out for brunch and
the waiter asked what she would like to drink. Her reply was " It's really too
early to drink..so I'll just have a glass of white wine". I love Jane.
After my mid day refreshment, Woof and I moved on to
planting flowers. It's almost overwhelming to make any kind of decisions in the
nurseries these days. Eveything looks gorgeous...the colors are absolutely
brilliant, and all of my pre planning and winter designing flies right out of
the greenhouses. I always swear that I'm going to buy a flat of
snapdragons...go home and get them in the ground and then buy the next batch.
That never works. I inevitably end up with the back yard looking like a plant
sale.
None the less....this is the time of year when my spirit
soars, and I can't wait to get my hands into the dirt..."soil" sounds too
sophisticated for a gardener like me. My partner will "work in the yard", but
he doesn't "garden". One day when I was rushed and trying to wind up my
gardening at the cottage, I asked him if he'd stick three little pansy plants
into a window box. When I glanced out the window a few minutes later he was in
the process of pulling on huge rubber gloves...like I said...he doesn't really
"garden".
Woof is now standing in front of me with her head
cocked...VERY ready to get out into the sunshine and start a project. She said
yesterday that I ought to write this blog at night....after the sun goes down,
and we quit for the day...dirty fingernails, and dusty paws...and both agreeing
that it's been a wonderful day.
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