Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

Do you ever start projects then get distracted and lose track of what you were working on? If not, please comment below with your secrets to avoiding this trap. I started this blog in May, but it was late at night and I promised myself I’d finish it the next day. Alas, life happened and I didn’t sit down to work on it again until August.

 
I have this insatiable need to plant, but I can’t say I have a green thumb. My grandparents both grew up on farms, and in his retirement my grandfather returned to the land with a garden that filled a large portion of the yard. Maybe the need to plant is in my genes.

The hydrangea doesn’t look so good these days.

Beautiful blooms that are now shriveled & brown.

I don’t have the time, energy, or space to have a vegetable garden like my grandfather did, but I do like to have a few fresh veggies. I’ve had success with tomatoes and herbs do well here, it’s everything else I struggle with. This is my third year trying to grow squash, but I don’t think I will be harvesting any produce from this plant. (By the end of May my squash plant had quite literally disintegrated.) Cucumbers, zucchini, and green beans have been unsuccessful as well. I can’t blame the soil since it’s the same dirt Papa had such success with.

The squash plant before it disintegrated.

Now it’s mid-August and I can tell you my tomatoes have failed, and my basil was fried by the intense heat, as were most of my lovely flowers. Even the lemon tree is void of any fruit. The weeds on the other hand are still flourishing. Prior to the heat cooking everything to a crispy brown, it was a joy to look out my back window and see the fruits of my labors. Now I keep the blinds closed to avoid the heartbreak of so many desolate spaces.

 
Working in the garden this spring did take away from my writing time, and the summer heat kept me indoors writing, so maybe it’s all part of the balance I need in my life. Joy from the garden, working with hands and nurturing growth shifted to the joy of writing and bringing to life characters that have become dear friends to me. Well, most of them have, there is one character whose neck I want to wring, but that’s part of a good story too.

• Fresh Foods
• The Garden