Talking to Hyacinths
Working in the flowers is mostly a pleasurable activity for me. The month of August, however, required a lot more sweat and drudgery from me, and much of that time I was on my knees. That is because in late July we were invited to be a late submission to an annual pond and garden event that raises money for a worthy cause.
The September weekend event may be timed to allow for more people to take part and more money to be raised. It isn't, however, timed to take advantage of the the more prolific garden colors. In fact,the majority of our colorful bloomers were past their zenith, and many had no blossoms at all.
This made me spend more time with some of the fall blooming plants. They were faithfully fertilized, dead-headed, and weeded daily.
The pond is entirely my husband's domain. The water-lilies had been stunned by a algae bloom problem earlier in the summer and had been "iffy" for several months. They would be a disappointment. But, the water hyacinths had spread across the pond. Although they weren't blooming, the waxy dark green plants were gorgeous.
One week before the event several hyacinths opened their translucent lavender blossoms. I was both excited and sad. Excited because they are so beautiful, and because they only bloom once every summer. Sad because the blossoms are short lived. Usually two or three days.
An unusual change in the weather occurred. The hot summery days became overcast and cooler for the next six days. We even had a windstorm two nights before the tour that downed trees in the neighborhood and had us scrambling the next day to clean up.
But the water hyacinths thrived. I stood by the pond every morning and told them how exquisite they were, and welcomed them with a lot of praise. I thanked them for their perseverance and their beauty.
The morning of the fund-raiser they continued to bloom. Everyone who toured the gardens fell in love with our hyacinths as no other pond that day was blessed with their magic.
Morning after morning, for over a month the hyacinths bloomed. I never tired of their magnificence.
The September weekend event may be timed to allow for more people to take part and more money to be raised. It isn't, however, timed to take advantage of the the more prolific garden colors. In fact,the majority of our colorful bloomers were past their zenith, and many had no blossoms at all.
This made me spend more time with some of the fall blooming plants. They were faithfully fertilized, dead-headed, and weeded daily.
The pond is entirely my husband's domain. The water-lilies had been stunned by a algae bloom problem earlier in the summer and had been "iffy" for several months. They would be a disappointment. But, the water hyacinths had spread across the pond. Although they weren't blooming, the waxy dark green plants were gorgeous.
One week before the event several hyacinths opened their translucent lavender blossoms. I was both excited and sad. Excited because they are so beautiful, and because they only bloom once every summer. Sad because the blossoms are short lived. Usually two or three days.
An unusual change in the weather occurred. The hot summery days became overcast and cooler for the next six days. We even had a windstorm two nights before the tour that downed trees in the neighborhood and had us scrambling the next day to clean up.
But the water hyacinths thrived. I stood by the pond every morning and told them how exquisite they were, and welcomed them with a lot of praise. I thanked them for their perseverance and their beauty.
The morning of the fund-raiser they continued to bloom. Everyone who toured the gardens fell in love with our hyacinths as no other pond that day was blessed with their magic.
Morning after morning, for over a month the hyacinths bloomed. I never tired of their magnificence.
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