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Category Archives: Flowers

A Memory of Andy’s Roses

When I came upon these roses at Faddegon’s, fresh from a rainy night and unfurling their petals in the morning light, I was instantly transported back to the summer of 2000, when I first met Andy. He grew roses in his garden, carefully tending and trimming them as necessary, occasionally clipping a bloom for his Mom or his living room. A man who knew his way around a garden was a good man indeed. That he took the time and care to share something beautiful with his Mom cemented the notion. 

He favored the perennial rose favorite ‘Peace’ and tried his hand at ‘Mrs. Lincoln’. There was also an extremely fragrant tiger variety that was a deep pink, marbled with fuchsia – its beauty matched only by its exquisitely potent fragrance. I remember walking into his living room one evening and wondering at the delicious perfume – all produced by a single bloom in a little vase. 

His prowess with roses was impressive, as it was one of the plants that always eluded my green thumb. He knew when to apply the fertilizer, when to protect the crowns for winter, and how to bring them all back to life each spring. Equally adept at preventing problems, he kept the aphids and beetles away, and managed to elude powdery mildew and rust, things that even the most skilled gardener can’t always keep at bay. 

I was content simply to enjoy the fruits of his labor, as every few summer nights a new rose would appear in a vase by the couch, gently perfuming the air, reminding us of the beauty of the world when you put in a little work. 

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Frills & Flairs

The fringed ends of the hybrid Shasta daisy petals shown here give these flowers the frills and flair required for standing out in this section of summer blooms. They remind me of my friend JoAnn, who hasn’t been here in about two years, but is scheduled to make a grand return in a few weeks. There is much to catch upon, and much has changed since we last enjoyed her company here. Summer is a time to reconnect, and a happy one at that. She loves daisies, and the small patch of them we have in our garden are just starting to bloom. I’m hoping they can slow down and save some smiles for when she arrives. We shall see…

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Magenta Magic

Sometimes the smallest flowers pack the biggest punch.

Here that is evidenced by the super-saturated (and unfiltered) magnificence of these Lychnis blooms. Small and spaced out among airy branches, they are offset by a rosette of wooly gray foliage – a subtle and quiet beginning that doesn’t quite properly prepare the world for the explosion of color atop each stem. I love such a journey – and such a payoff. 

I’m not exaggerating the potency of its color: from the further distance in the yard, these absolutely shout and scream and demand notice, even when they’re not undulating in and out of the sunlight like some siren-accompanied emergency beacon. Anything that so refuses to comply with its small stature is a feisty fight worthy of respect and admiration. This is an inspiration. 

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The Flower of the Maple

The flowering maple is not very much like the typical maple tree, starting with its vine-like form and climaxing with this vibrant floral exhibition. The last time I tried one of these, I potted it up and put it on our back patio, but it didn’t do much at first. Not one bloom could be coaxed out of it, but soon it started a long journey upwards, growing about seven feet by the end of the season, without ties or guides: it simply leaned against a pole and did its thing. 

Before the first frost arrived, I handed it off to my brother, and his fiancee took a photo of it a few later when it finally deigned to bloom in their sunny living room. 

This year I found a specimen already in bloom, and with a number of buds in the works. It’s less red and more orange than the original one I had, and this tinge of salmon is a lovely addition to our backyard. I can’t wait to see how high this one will go and whether it continues such a lovely parade. 

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June Is For roses

Lee Bailey once remarked that June is all about the roses, and that certainly seems to be the case this year, as around every corner there seems to be another bush aflame with flowers. We only have a Rosa rugosa in the garden right now, and it has not yet sent up any buds – hopefully they will be arriving later in the summer – the closest we may get to the beach for some time. 

Other than that, we will have to find our rose fixes in public spaces, and they are happily and largely available if you look in the right places. 

For me, the best part of a rose is the perfume. Not all roses have a scent, but the very best do, and it pervades and intoxicates like no other fragrance I’ve ever experienced. I love the hints of it in ‘Portrait of a Lady‘ or ‘Oud Fleur‘ or ‘Rose & Cuir‘. It’s still best straight from the blossom, on sunny summer days, and too soon gone with a breeze.

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White Peonies in a White Room

A simple bouquet of three white peony blooms makes for a magnificent scene in the attic loft. All this bright white and lack of distracting colors lends a harmonious peace and tranquility to the space, and it is precisely what we need during this late-spring episode of Mercury in retrograde motion. On a Friday night, when the world is about to get hot-hot-hot, and the work week takes its momentary leave, I sit in the light and pause to take it all in, with mindfulness and a little moment of meditation. 

I don’t recall the name of this particular white peony; the ‘Festiva Maxima’ variety, which I had as my wedding bouquet, contains flecks of bright fuchsia, and comes into bloom any day now. This plant is more delicate, with a sweeter perfume and smaller blooms. Each carries its own charm, and every peony has its own unique magic. 

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Sunset Calla

Perfectly anointed as the ‘Sunset’ calla, this beautiful calla lily called out for me to take its picture as I passed it in the garden center the other day. A fitting name for such a pretty flower. ‘Summer’ would have worked well too, but this is slightly more specific to its exquisite shading. As Gloria Estefan would say, ‘the words get in the way’…

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Floral Vibrance

When you need a jolt of inspiration, sometimes a strongly-hued flower will do. These colorful daisies – not sure of variety or scientific name – did that for me when the skies rolled gray and the light dimmed with the lateness of the day. They say more, and say it more eloquently, than these cumbersome words ever could. 

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Lilacs-Come-Lately

Withstanding such cool temperatures this late in the season (we have long since passed the frost-free date, but it feels like every night could threaten to dip below freezing) has but one benefit: flowers that would typically bloom and expire quickly in the heat have lasted far longer than usual. Daffodils in particular have been in bloom for weeks, showing no signs of expiration or deterioration. Add the lilacs to this extended parade of perfume and prettiness, and the cooler weather suddenly doesn’t feel so bad. 

Andy asked if we could get one more bouquet out of this season’s crop, so I went out early in the morning and clipped these from one of the descendants of the original Lilac bush that his Mom gifted to us two decades ago. From that single bush in our backyard, we now have several patches of them, and their suckers are ever-encroaching on the lawn. This variety, a double for more perfume and pizzazz, seems to do particularly well in this area. I may transplant a few more to the side yard, part of a sunny bank where not much else grows well. We have to use our pretty warriors to our advantage. 

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From the Valley of Perfume

A favorite fragrance of my Grandmother, these lilies of the valley make for a poignantly-perfumed bouquet. Even its small size and stature emits a potent scent that carries on the slightest breeze, or fills a small room of the house. It’s a tenacious ground-cover, colonizing and expanding, particularly if it finds fertile and hospitable soil, such as often occupies a garden. For that reason, I try to keep it on the outskirts of our backyard, as I do with mint. 

These sweetly-scented sprawlers will take over their allotted space, and then reach for more. I admire such strength, as much as I appreciate the fragrance they produce at this tender time of the year. To make an impact, they must be used en masse. 

In a little vase, and viewed up close, they become the central figures of today’s story – a story rooted in the scent of memory

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Cherry Blossoms in the Sky

These cherry blossoms, daring to bloom at such an early and treacherous time, are always susceptible to wind and rain and the roughest of spring weather, but before they get torn from their perches I usually manage to get a few pictures of their beauty. For this post, I’m pairing them with a song by Air, a gentle way to end a weekend.

I don’t want to be shy
Can’t stand it anymore
I just want to say ‘Hi’
To the one I love
Cherry blossom girl

I just want to be sure
When I will come to you
When the time will be gone
You will be by my side
Cherry Blossom Girl

Tell me why can’t it be true
I’ll never love again
Can I say that to you
Will you run away
If I try to be true
Cherry blossom girl

Cherry blossom girl
I’ll always be there for you
That means no time to waste
Whenever there’s a chance
Cherry blossom girl
Tell me why can’t it be true
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Lilac Wine

The only thing missing from this post – practically perfect with its views of lilacs and the voice of Nina Simone – is the perfume from these beautiful flowers. Even in this terrible world, even in this wonderful world, one need not get lost to be found. The appeal of losing myself to such intoxication has faded with the passing years. I remember the empty magic of diving under, but I do not miss it. A song is enough to get close to that enchantment. 

I lost myself on a cool damp night
I gave myself in that misty light
Was hypnotized by a strange delight
Under a lilac tree

Flowers and music, so perfectly paired, remind me of The Flower Clock. And the start of summer.

I made wine from the lilac tree
Put my heart in its recipe
It makes me see what I want to see
And be what I want to be

When I think more than I want to think
I do things I never should do
I drink much more that I ought to drink
Because it brings me back you

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Lilacs

May: the lilacs are in bloom. Forget yourself. ~ Marty Rubin

Winter is on my head, but eternal spring is in my heart; I breathe at this hour the fragrance of the lilacs, the violets, and the roses, as at twenty years ago. ~ Victor Hugo

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Blossoms of Cherry

Starting in shadows only possible by sunlight, the cherry blossom parade began its march in the cold, grim gray around which spring sometimes surrounds us. A cruel few days of wind threaten their duration and perfection, hastening their exquisite show in a spring that has proven unwieldy and wild. 

This cherry tree moves quickly – its blooms barely noticeable one day, then suddenly bursting open with the first drip of rain. Up until the last week or so it’s been a dry spring. These were just waiting for the water, and they don’t care whether it’s sunny or gray when they bloom. It will happen when it happens. 

Instead of enjoying them on the branch, while the wind bit at my face, I hurriedly stole these pictures. Looking at them now, I feel a residual echo of their beauty and grace. This year, that will have to be enough. 

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The Happy Hibiscus

Circus peanut orange is a color I don’t particularly seek for my own garden, but every now and then, such as on a rainy, dim day, I love seeing it cheer a gloomy nook of a local greenhouse, as it does on this cheerful hibiscus. A ruby throat is a decadent addition – little slip of fire at the heart of creamsicle sweetness. 

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