August Images

Today the sky was hot and heavy, like a sultry woman breathing too close to the earth.

There was a sprinkling of rain, just enough to add moisture to the thick air. It is what is expected of August in Alabama. Yet August is different from July. Still hot summer, yes, but a month of transitional images. 

August shows some age. There are signs of things passing, flowers dying or plants heading into dormancy:

I notice the weathered wood:

And rocks that have been here far longer than we:

But the year is not yet old. There are still things growing and green:

And flowers with bright colors:August weeds also grow quickly. The rabbit I have shown in other posts has become a friend, for he has a taste for weeds in my lawn. The rabbit is the most eco friendly way I know to get rid of them, so I don't bother him. He doesn't seem too afraid of me, as long as I keep a respectful distance. These shots were taken with a telephoto lens:

'Tropicana' canna lily leaves are spectacular this month:

'Tropicana' has amazing seed pods, too:
And August holds promise of things to be. Look close to see the ants working in the first photo below:Despite today's heat, tomorrow will have flowers.'Fuyu' persimmons will ripen by November.Burford holly berries will be red by Christmas.

My birthday is this week. I am showing some age, depending on the body part, but life still has a lot going on and plenty of promise of things to come. 

Happy August!

Summer Skies

I like to watch the sky. Summer skies can be crystal blue or gray or white hot, and sometimes all in the same day. I can get lost in the clouds, dreaming of heavenly worlds or mystical creatures that float above the earth. Sometimes I search for angels. I have never seen one, but I know a man who says he once did.

As a gardener, it's one of the first things I do every day: open the door and look up to evaluate the weather. The summer sky is ever shifting, and as the day progresses, I watch the horizon.

Will it rain today? Is the hazy sky a prelude to afternoon thunderstorms? Will those black clouds bring hail and high winds?

Here in Helena we get about sixty inches of rain each year. Last week we had a fierce storm which brought down a large dead limb from an oak tree. I had eyed that limb before. It was up very high, and I knew someday it would come crashing to earth. It was about twenty feet long, and it landed in the middle of a path, just missing all the nearby hydrangea shrubs.

The days are long now, but around eight o'clock in the evening a pink and golden glow begins to spread from the west. It shines over the garden and house, tinting the world in rosy tones, a gentle hint at first, then more fervently painting the end of day.I like to walk in the garden then, listening to the rise and fall of cricket song and watching the lightening bugs twinkle in the fading light. Soon it will be time to go inside, to prepare for another day.

May beautiful skies shine over you and bring blessings to your land.   Deborah