With Mother’s Day this weekend, and landscapes beginning to bring us the colours of summer, these days there’s been a lot of chatter around our office and in social conversations about flowers.
It seems then, that since this blog is often dedicated to the sourcing of quality images collected around a particular theme, I will give you a heads up that you will be seeing some very pretty flower pictures courtesy of iPHOTOS.com.
Before then, however, I’d like to do some personal mental meandering through the gardens of my life.
When I think about flowers and the people who can make lovely outdoor spaces with them, my grandmothers are always the first to come to mind. While my dad’s mother was a farmwife, with land, lots of land, on which to create beauty in various spots on her designated plot of property around the house, my maternal grandmother transformed a spacious backyard into an oasis that served both an aesthetic and a practical purpose. It was this one then that most inspires my strongest memories.
For my cousin and me, it was a magical playground. Surrounded by a white picket fence, the heady fragrance of peonies greeted us as we passed through the gate. The perimeter was a riot of colour and texture, where towering gladioli held court with posh roses. Dahlias in every hue shouted their bold statement while varied irises put on a show of their own.
There were other more modest, but no less beguiling blooms, all quietly bringing their special beauty to the mix. Within their glory, we discovered the wonder of flora and fauna, searched for worms, snails and toads, studied bugs, bees and birds.
This delightful border enclosed an extensive vegetable and herb garden, where raspberry and strawberry bushes provided the best of summer treats. We ate peas right from the pod, carrots with mother earth still clinging to them.
Oddly, my mother inherited none of her mother’s horticultural abilities. Mom’s love of pretty things did not extend even to small flowerbeds which at our home were minimal in number and minimalist in the extreme when it came to content and level of required care.
As I grew older then, I discovered a little of each of these women’s gardening gene had taken root inside of me. Like my grandmother I want flowers around my home, though my thumb is sadly not nearly as green as hers was. Then on the flip side, is the hope that whatever my landscape design becomes it will require little maintenance or upkeep.
My knowledge has increased over the years. I have more understanding of the challenges of my property with its plethora of stately maples, and more information on the types of plants that will thrive in spite of this. Conversations and advice from friends have been absorbed and saved. And my flowerbeds are beginning to, if not compare to my grandmother’s, at least would not embarrass her if she was around today.
All of these, however, had been existing beds from when we purchased the home and to which I’ve had to adapt to the changing shade conditions. Now, with a new summer getaway, I’m looking forward to starting with a clean slate. After brainstorming with a friend, plus some advice from an expert at the nursery I’m hoping I can do my grandmothers proud on this project.
Besides the understanding of plants and their requirements to thrive, photos can go a long way in helping you determine what you’d like to see in your gardens. Enjoy this sampling from iPHOTOS.com
