6.5.02 ~ The beginning of June and we are already extremely dry. It seemed for a couple weeks we were getting a rainfall every couple of days and that was very nice after the drought fall and winter we had. The summer thunderstorms are going around us - which may be a good thing because in C'ville they had tornado and hail yesterday. The grass is turning brown already though and dust swirls from the hoe when weeding in the vegetable garden. Fortunately this year with my new well i have sufficient amounts of water for my vegetables and i have been using it.

My gardening practice is predominantly perennials and for years like this i am very fortunate. They are able to withstand longer periods of dry because the roots are deep and they have mulch holding in what is there. The blooms suffer from this however and the plants aren't quite as full as they normally would be, but none of my perennials are being watered. I do however water my expensive shrubs (as i have all winter) - they are only a couple years old and they were VERY EXPENSIVE. And my water lotuses have been getting water also, but that is normal.

So what is blooming now...the oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia) is putting on a gorgeous display in the front yard and the white blooms against the brick are very striking. The calla lillies are rivaling them this year also. There is one of orange and red and it is very beautiful - those get picked and brought inside to be enjoyed. The pink astilbe blooming is faboulous and i may need to move it however because it is taking up half of my bench. (picture to follow). But i guess this is part of my 'style' of gardening. I like for people to be able to move within my flowers and plants to experience them completely - the smell, the touch, the sight and for some the taste. And in some cases the flower think they can move within my space too -as in taking over half my bench with their blooms. But it is worth the beautiful display.

The most suprising bloomer for me right now is my Calycanthus floridus or 'sweetshrub' as my grandmother calls it. It has maroon colored flowers that are decent to look at, but the smell is what is so great about it - it is a sweet smelling shrub. The suprising thing though is it is still blooming as it has been since early spring. I don't remember my grandmothers blooming that long, but my soil is much more enriched then what she had hers planted in so that may be a factor.

The Madonna Lilies (Lilium candidum) are blooming next to the St. Johns Wort (hypericum perforatum)- hmmmm, that must be the spiritual part of my garden. But that is probably good because it is next to the catnip - which is a narcotic to cats and my cats probably need the intervention when they get into it and get all goofy. :)

The vegetable garden is looking dry. Much abundance of water will be going on it the next couple of days. The peas have one more picking over and the beans are blooming - again. The first blooms were knocked off by a freak frost the 20th of May - unheard of by many old-timers!!! The corn is coming along nicely - this year i am trying a new variety 'Peaches-n-Cream'- a gold/silver mixture that is suppose to be sweet. YUM!!

Enjoy and check back often for updates!! Pictures coming soon.