Hi, it's been a second since my last post.* As in, the entire month of June. And while the beginning of summer has happily found me in the garden much more often, it has also meant the breadth of 'chores' to be done has left little time (or energy? That may be more the culprit) for writing. Trade-offs. We're used to it as gardeners (as people) because when is there really time to get it all done? Never. So we might as well take a moment to be still and enjoy some of the tasks we managed to get to.
I don't know about you but 'next year' is a common thought when I'm working in the garden. It used to really bother me, running out of time or completely forgetting to do a task until it was too late or, the most vexing, having a sudden *brilliant* idea for a space only to quickly realize it isn't feasible until....next year. It felt like I was missing out, or worse yet, messing up.
It took some time before I could come to peace with a couple of things: I'm only one person trying to maintain a garden alongside all that other stuff, and gardens are not a fixed thing. It's in their nature to evolve over time and for each season to bring new, different layers to them. So just as it's often not advisable for us humans to have a fixed mindset, the same can be true for our gardens. We're all works in progress. Nature's plan will be revealed...in time. Or whenever you can get around to it. Both work.
Typically the beginning of summer in San Francisco also brings with it the marine layer, a fun term for a horrible, evil thing: a solid blanket of windy grey that covers the city for the entirety of summer. I'm not kidding, it's days and weeks at a time of not seeing blue sky or stars. It's dismal. And would make for a good argument to run away from the coast if it weren't for the fact that the other three seasons of the year are actually fairly amazing.
But our typical 'June gloom' did not really transpire this year. We had a day or two here and there but for the most part the month was cool (ish) and SUNNY. Windy sure, but SUNNY. The word SUNNY does require capitalization I assure you, because it is that much a miracle.
Who knows what July will have in store but the sun rose about a half hour ago as I write this, and the sky is blue. Consider my mind blown and the garden beckoning. Time to head out, see how everyone slept last night, and add to my 'next year' list.
*And now, it's been a moment since I've written this post. Eight days, in fact. And yes, the fog arrived two days ago. I’ll remember you always, blue sky.
A few garden cuties:
Plant feature: