rabbit

Lesson from an incinerated garden: Soften your gaze

July 10, 2018 by Melodye Shore

Last week, a fire-breathing dragon swooped into my backyard garden, wreaking havoc.

It scalded these Meyer Lemons, which were just about ripe.

Sun-scalded Meyer Lemon, citrus

It was a relentless, record-breaking heatwave that scorched everything in reach.

Gardenia, heat-damaged gardenia

Healthy leaves curled in on themselves, and turned crispy brown. Rose petals got singed, and assumed grotesque shapes.

This week is all about digging up and pruning back, salvaging what I can and encouraging new growth. From here on, it’s a game of wait and see: a budding leaf, the subtle lift of a drooping plant. I’m optimistic, for the most part.

Sun-scorched camellia, high-fragrance camellia

A rascally rabbit has joined my clean-up crew–comic relief! Butterflies drift through the yard, laying eggs that will eventually replace the caterpillars that didn’t make it.

rabbit, bunny, rascally rabbit

The urge to reproduce is strong, isn’t it? The need to set things right. But dreams don’t often translate into reality overnight.

Lesson from an incinerated garden: Soften your gaze.

hummingbird, soften your gaze, Santa Barbara Sage

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A well-tended garden

March 31, 2018 by Melodye Shore

A well-tended garden is the sign of a happy heart. That’s what I think, anyway.

daisy, shasta daisy, flower, white flower

It welcomes visitors of all kinds,

rabbit, bunny, garden

and swings wide the gate to our most delicious memories. Juicy secrets, too.

tangerine, orange, garden, citrus

It heralds Spring’s arrival, and the turn of every season.

purple flower, Violet Churchu, Iochroma cranium

It’s where the seeds of our wildest dream take root, burrowing deep before they flower.

My own garden isn’t tightly curated, as you might guess. It’s a quasi-random blend of colors and textures–a joyful noise, like this blog, where order and chaos co-exist.

It’s at once a playground and a sanctuary–

garden, statue, angel, bird, garden statue

home, at the intersection of Elegant,

amaryllis, flower, garden, red flower

Everyday,

citrus, lemon, meyer lemon, raindrops

and Every-bit-as-beautiful.

goldfinch, lesser goldfinch

It makes my heart sing, when you drop by for a virtual visit! If it shows signs of neglect sometimes, it’s not because I’ve forgotten it–or you.

We’re sometimes called to tend a different garden for a while–it’s the rhythm of life, isn’t it? In this case, I was temporarily sidelined by an injury. I can’t wait to feel the grass underneath my feet again! But even from this distance, I can watch the hummingbirds feed their hatchlings. And as the milkweed sprouts new leaves, I can recreate, in my mind’s eye, the life cycle of the Monarch butterfly, from caterpillar to chrysalis.

boot, foot, cast

I wanted to plant bulbs and flowers on Easter weekend, and to gather the first rosebuds of the season.

“Not yet,” my doctor said. So I’m resurrecting my blog instead. Moving ever forward, in joy and without judgment …It’s the gardener’s way.

hummingbird, backyard, allen's hummingbird

So tell me: how does your garden grow?

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