I don’t know where last week went but here it is Monday of a new week and “Dallying” is still on my to do list. It was a mad week of planting, organizing and always a bit of weeding. I’m getting better. I have mulch ready to apply as soon as I have finished weeding a space. I do tend to be slow planting as I’m constantly forcing myself to sit back and admire the results of previous year’s efforts. These weeks are truly glorious in the garden. There are so many things covered in magnificent blooms that it’s almost impossible to notice the adjacent weeds. I’ll get to them when all the planting is done. The biggest problem these days is strolling around and discovering something that has just popped into bloom that day and realizing that it has just become your new favourite. The east side of the house is a laneway that is my work and staging area and as a result it is not the prettiest part of the yard. A few years ago, I built a trellis that screened much of it from the street and planted a Clematis that was chosen strictly because it shared its name with one of my daughters. It has turned out to be an amazingly good choice. Every year at this time, I can just stand and stare at it for considerable periods of time. The down side seems to be that it is so attractive that people want to come around and look at both sides of it and thus it actually brings people into my messy area rather than screening it from view.




Continuing with the joy and satisfaction theme, I can turn the corner and admire the many Peonies that are strutting their stuff. I know that I haven’t finished staking the heaviest ones as yet and I will regret that when they open but it is always a job that can be done tomorrow. Right now the strong stemmed single flowering types are at their peak and they don’t fall down, even in the wind and rain that is blowing outside my window right now. I remember the names of most of my Peonies and I attribute that to their longevity. Once you plant one, in late September, it stays put for many years, giving me the opportunity to enjoy if and to remember it. Out at the very front of the garden is my traffic stopper. A large single red Peony, America, grows there and stands in excess of 1.3 m (4') tall and this year I counted, (I know that’s silly but it’s just something I do,) 67 blooms on it. People stop on the street. About half want to know what variety of Peony it is and the other half just want to know what it is.