Sunday, September 26, 2010

"When God sorts out the weather and sends rain"

It is no use to grumble and complain; It's just as cheap and easy to rejoice; 
When God sorts out the weather and sends rain - Why, rain's my choice. 
James Whitcomb Riley

Rain is definitely my choice!  As I write this, the rain is falling and I'm rejoicing.  Yesterday I spent the afternoon planting some coreopsis and blanket flower in anticipation of today's rain.  It was at least 95 degrees and the gnats were relentless. The ground was dry at least a foot down.  But today I feel rewarded - and the forecast calls for more rain over the next two days. 
I always have plenty of pictures to download after a weekend working in the garden.  I'm often distracted from my work by something and have to run get the camera.  (Even though it's a small camera, it bothers me to carry it around with me in my pocket.)

The early morning sun seemed to be shining a spotlight on the verbena bonariensis.
The New England asters have burst into bloom and the mums are ready to.
I have perennial mistflower in abundance, but much of it looks ragged from powdery mildew and chewed leaves.  This one may be the only one that's blemish free - I reminds me of why I love it.
Next to the mistflower, the coleus has sprouted a bloom.  Normally I don't care for blooming coleus, but this one is pretty.  You can see that it's struggled with the dry conditions and poor soil where I have it planted.
This plant with the dainty pink bloom volunteered itself in my bed of impatiens.  Does anyone recognize it?  Is it a noxious weed in disguise?
The birdbath in  the birdbath garden is nearly hidden by the late-planted zinnias.  Tricolor Sedum and pentas are blooming, too, but the main attraction is the hot lips salvia.  The hummingbirds and bumble bees love it.  But even in the midst of the salvia, the hummingbird enjoys a drink from the feeder from time to time.
At the end of the birdbath garden, the fireworks clematis and snow fountains guara continue to bloom, though not as vigorously as they did earlier in the season.
With the rain the temperature has dropped.  I'm sitting by the open window listening to the rainfall, enjoying the cool air, and feeling thankful. 

13 comments:

Carla said...

Love the photos of your flowers. This reminds me to plant mums; a flower I love and have not planted in years. They always looks so pretty in the fall.

The weather is hot, hot, hot here today. Around 103, your rain shower would be a welcome surprise for me.
Carla

Floridagirl said...

Your mystery bloom is Pale Meadow Beauty (Rhexia mariana), a native of our fine land. If you do a "search" on my site, you'll find a few past mentions of it. I am in love with this "weed"!

Gary said...

Hi Ginny,
Some lovely pictures of stuff in your garden. I love the close up of the hummingbird.
Take care..Gary

Diana Studer said...

Pale Meadow Beauty - what an enchanting name!

Kate @ Gardening and Gardens said...

Hi Ginny
Its been raining here for a few days too, so it was nice to see the photos of your flowers on a sunny day. That mistflower is gorgeous! I haven't seen that before.

Karin / Southern Meadows said...

Your photos are great! Love the hummingbird too. I smiled reading about having to run to get your camera while gardening. I do the same thing. I always seem to stumble upon something interesting to photograph when my hand are full of dirt.

Chloe m said...

I keep a little camera in my pocket a lot of the time. It doesn't take fabulous photos, but it does in a pinch.
Your photos are great! I like your Clematis. I just have to get some growing.

Carolyn ♥ said...

Isn't rain magical? So glad your garden received some! And yes, I do feel very blessed.

joey said...

Love the rain (non-stop here today ... so good for our gardens) and your lovely post. Happy Autumn gardening :)

debsgarden said...

Hooray for rain and cooler temperatures! I'm glad you got much needed rain, as we did. Your flowers are lovely!

sweetbay said...

We have Pale Meadow Beauty here too. It's a wonderful wildflower!

7.5" is a LOT of rain. Raining again today and the plants are loving it.

Paul said...

It's overcast and threatening rain in Sydney at the moment. Just in time for a long weekend. Oh well. Can't grumble. It will be so hot in a month or two we'll be begging for rain.

Thanks for the tips on my pot. I'm getting a mental image on how it's going to be.

Karen said...

When it hasn't rained for awhile, I get so anxious...especially when the soil gets so dry. I love to sit on my porch and watch and listen and even 'smell' it rain. It's so soothing and watching the garden soak it up is amazing. Thank you for this post, a great reminder of the joy of rain.