Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Walking Iten's Acres: Nuance July 29, 2014

The last couple of days have been nuanced walks at The Acres. Misty rain, sunshine, shadows as it slips behind a bank of clouds, slate gray as a storm moves in to erase, temporarily, any hint of light. Beautiful changes--almost minute by minute. As always--rain or shine--there is color everywhere. Double orange day lilies everywhere--all along the front of the property, in some of the beds near the house, by the pond, along the driveway, in the meadow and the wild. Other day lilies as well--reds, maroons, creams, whites. Mom's tiger lilies are "kicking in" along the property line. The bog has its mallows and monkey flowers. The gladiolas--what a perfect name for a flower--are really starting to make glad The Acres. Such rich colors and height. Impossible to ignore, not that you would want to. The blue of the balloon flowers--everywhere. Cone flowers--such a subtle variety of pinks and reds are scattered in many places. I especially like the little pockets of them in the wild area. Their pink companions liatris are everywhere as well, in the beds and in the wild--tall, "fuzzy" pinks that bloom slowly from the top down. Still some bee balm--shades of purple. Roses blooming again--white, pink, yellow. Phlox--less than normal--but still plentiful, every shade of pink and white. Even have a couple patches of them in the wild area. Sunflowers and black-eyed Susans add the yellow. Queen Anne's lace dominates any open area. Mom's planter garden grows more luscious hour by hour I think. Somehow a hosta ended up in one of them. Rose of Sharon are starting to bloom as well--mostly pink and double pinks from Mom's to The Acres--special delivery. Morning glories living up to their name on the early walks, and rainy days fool them into thinking it's an all day morning. No complaints here. Expectations: hibiscus by the dozens, obedient flowers, magic lilies by the house, butterfly bush (surprised it survived the vortex), lobelia, cardinal flowers. They should all be blooming before I return to school--except for the cardinal and lobelia perhaps.
I even encountered a fawn yesterday. Seemed small, young--all spots still. Curious. No mom in sight. Eventually, he bounced into the thicket between Dennis' place and mine. And, of course, now that I am wise to them--the pond is sprinkled in gold. A nice colony of turtles as well. And the bull frog men's choir. Singing lustily each night to the cadence of their living strobe lights--the lightning bugs. July is almost gone. August will be here in a moment. The beauty of The Acres needs no calendar. They bloom when ready--the nuances of nature's loveliness, no apologies given, or necessary.

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