A common man marvels at uncommon things. A wise man marvels at the commonplace. CONFUCIUS

Friday 16 May 2014

Garden Diary (2)

Zen pond. From left to right: petunia, nasturtium, azalea, hosta, Buddha.

The middle of May — probably my favourite month — and I'm feeling giddy with the colour and beauty and freshness of it all. A few warm sunny days in a row and everything is bursting with vigorous life. The swifts have returned from Africa and are skydiving over house and garden. It's such a joy to see them again. And a barbecue tomorrow — how good is that! I'm relishing it while it lasts. Focusing on each day as it comes, but trying not to cling too much, as all is transient.

The first rose.

Allium alley.

Hot rhododendron.

9 comments:

George said...

All beautiful, Robert, and the laughing Buddha brings a smile to my face.

Ruth said...

The colors, forms, backdrops and appointments are very pleasing and inviting. I envy your bbq guests.

Susan Scheid said...

Oh, lovely! We had our first BBQ just recently, though now all is gray and rainy . . . making your color-filled, laughing Buddha post all the more inviting!

The Solitary Walker said...

That laughing Buddha is a delight, George! We couldn't resist buying it in the garden centre recently.

Thanks, Ruth. I was really pleased with the food in the end — having been slightly worried, as I hadn't cooked BBQ food for ages. We had quality burgers, sausages and two kinds of chicken kebab (a Moroccan lemony one and a spicy Mexican one) from our fabulous local butcher, plus foil-wrapped sweetcorn and peppers, and Carmen made two kinds of salad to accompany: one with minted Jersey Royal new potatoes, and one with tomatoes, basil, garlic and lemon. All grilled on proper bio-charcoal topped with beech wood chips. No artificial or manufactured fire lighters — just paper and an oil-soaked cotton wick.

Hi Susan. Hope more sun-filled BBQ days arrive on your doorstep soon!

Dominic Rivron said...

Trying not to cling to much... I know what you mean. We were sitting in our garden this afternoon and I found myself saying, "this is about as good as life gets".

Heidrun Khokhar, KleinsteMotte said...

Just beautiful colours. Zen is truly a nice calm feeling. Enjoy the BBQ. Last Sunday we had one in Bromlet with daughter and SIL. We are back in Markham now and are just getting foliage no. We are 6 weeks behind the norm this year;( Poor farmers!

The Solitary Walker said...

Thanks for your comments, Dominic and Heidrun.

Goat said...

Good to see your garden again, SW. I've become quite a fan of hostas lately. Never grown them before - they're not suited to Brisbane, I think - but it's rare to see a garden tree trunk here Upstate that isn't ringed with them.

We've got them all over the yard here, both the plain and the variegated, and three once-trees in the neglected front yard are now long gone, leaving only circular thickets of hosta smothering their stumps. And they're so easy to transplant!

The Solitary Walker said...

I think hostas are great! No trouble providing they're not permanently in full sun and protected from slugs.