We are in the midst of a heatwave-slash-drought. The grass in the neighbourhood is crunchy and yellow, and not a little bit pokey when stepped on with bare feet. The air is heavy with unrealized humidity, and forest fire occurences are more frequent this July than last. The humidex rating pushes us above 35 celsius almost every day.
Baby, it’s hot outside.
I know I’ve mentioned before how much I love a summer thunderstorm… Well, it’s been two weeks since our last rainfall (I’m not counting yesterday’s drizzle, which lasted about four minutes and evaporated as it fell), and ages since our last storm… I’m hoping for a deluge.
So are my plants. I am proud to say that I now have two cute front garden beds, and -as my pride and joy- they are getting the bulk of my watering time. The perennials are doing fine now, but I’m worried about the possibilities of a water ban… There are a lot of dollars in flowers & foliage at stake.
This ornamental pepper is an annual that has purple leaves… Love it for a pop of colour against my giant rock!
Coneflowers are great because they take no work whatsoever, and they bloom constantly… great height; great colour!
I decided to go non-flower for my containers… I love coleus, so I chose a couple of giant ones for the pots, and some wee ones (along with licorice vines etc) for the railing box. I’ve discovered that I love astilbe (sitting to the left of the drainpipe), and the hyssop is blooming nicely as of today. The day lilies are a maroon colour, which is a lovely change from the typical butter-yellow.
I bought a pre-made pot of gerbera daisies (complete with a spike!) in May, and they have been growing and blooming constantly for weeks and weeks. Yeah, so they need a litre or two of water a day; no matter.
My vine-and-coleus-and-stuff-filled railing box. Provides a lot of privacy on the porch.
Coleus that grows like plants in Jurassic Park… Luckily no raptor sightings.
I decided that the Kelvin instagram finish was a good option for my garden pictures because that’s how hot it feels when you’re out there. It’s like the bit in Riddick where they have to hide in the shadows as the sun comes up because they’ll burn alive if they’re not careful.
Well, that might be an exaggeration.
Sort of.
~S
Cezanne's Rainbow 