...or I see Dead Plants.
My mojo ain't working, and my get up and go got up and went. I've tried to keep a positive outlook about the drought, trying to find the good in the sad state of the garden. I have never been accused of being a Pollyana, and I seem to suffer the Summertime Blues every year about this time, but this year, it's a particularly severe case. I haven't set foot in a garden center in over a month, and that was to buy potting soil to top up containers the squirrels and chipmunks dug out. I know, I know, shut up and quit whining, there are others who have it worse. (That's another reason I've tried to look for and present the positives. No one likes a whiner.) Aside from the drought and the heat (6 degrees above normal for the month of July), there's the issue of things having come on too early, so that plants I would have been watching come into bloom now are on their way out. Then there are the dead birds that keep turning up in the yard. Some how, I'm the only one around here who sees them. (I'm feeling a lot like Haley Joel Osment's character in The Sixth Sense.) At least bicycle man disposes of the corpses once I point them out.
Am I the only who feels this way this year? Every year? Or is it just me?
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| Abies koreana 'Cis' showing serious drought damage. |
My mojo ain't working, and my get up and go got up and went. I've tried to keep a positive outlook about the drought, trying to find the good in the sad state of the garden. I have never been accused of being a Pollyana, and I seem to suffer the Summertime Blues every year about this time, but this year, it's a particularly severe case. I haven't set foot in a garden center in over a month, and that was to buy potting soil to top up containers the squirrels and chipmunks dug out. I know, I know, shut up and quit whining, there are others who have it worse. (That's another reason I've tried to look for and present the positives. No one likes a whiner.) Aside from the drought and the heat (6 degrees above normal for the month of July), there's the issue of things having come on too early, so that plants I would have been watching come into bloom now are on their way out. Then there are the dead birds that keep turning up in the yard. Some how, I'm the only one around here who sees them. (I'm feeling a lot like Haley Joel Osment's character in The Sixth Sense.) At least bicycle man disposes of the corpses once I point them out.
Am I the only who feels this way this year? Every year? Or is it just me?
10 comments:
It's not just you. I think that when everything changes and we look out the window and see a brown world, it takes our joy away. What was once green and thriving is suffering now...and we look forward, with a little dread, to next year... knowing that so many of our favorites might not make it.We are glued to the weather reports to see if rain will come. Deer have been eating my tomatoes as soon as they ripen. I can not be angry about this...it seems that this year they have to find food from new sources. We see corn fields with no corn on the stalk.We were promised rain last night...but just a drop fell.I'm getting depressed writing this. Here's hoping for some refreshing rain so our world greens up...
Balisha
Do not feel alone! All North American gardeners feel much the same. I need to get out there and deadhead and pull weeds but it's so hot and and muggy and the ground is like cement…..I've lost all the energy and enthusiasm I had in the spring.
BUT we are getting major rain this weekend and the garden is already looking better. And it's cooled off.
So maybe I will find the energy to get out there this weekend :)
You're not alone, MMD! In fact, you've just made me feel a little better knowing that I'm not the only one with little motivation this summer. I look out in the morning and notice all the shriveled up blooms on the daisies and think I really should deadhead them, but when it's in the 80's at 8 AM already, I really have no desire. On the positive side, a couple of the "weeds" I kept meaning to pull out started blooming and turned out to be flowers:)
One of these days it will be cooler--and hopefully raining--and our mojo will come back. We just need to hang in there.
What's up with your birds? That doesn't sound good.
It is terribly sad to see the dead plants in the garden and the heat has been unbearable! I feel better now that I have removed most of the dead things. I'd love to know what is happening to the birds.
I am not an end of summer fan either. This year is most depressing what with July being hotter and dryer than the dust bowl years.The final results of this will probably not be seen until next year. Woe are we.
You are definitely not the only feeling the blues. About this time of the year my little garden jungle looks very much worse for wear. The heat has taken its toll on both it an me. I am looking forward to fall and replacing some of the haggard plants with cool weather plants but done that yet. Getting my 'get up and go' back has been difficult.
Last summer we took a trip in late August and really didn't anticipate how dry it was before we left. I lost a lot of woody shrubs and small trees in my new garden. This year I have tried to tend to those newly planted babies a little better. It is frustrating to lose plant material.
I, too, dislike end of summer. Too hot, too humid, too many crispy fried plants. At least when it's cold, one can put layers on, or go underground, if you're a plant; when it's hot, you can't take it all off and neither can a plant!
I think this year's drought has everyone especially down in the dumps. All you can do is laugh or cry at this point. It looks like the weather pattern has changed here in Chicago, so I'm started to look at the bulb catalogs and think spring.
What is it about shared pain and disappointment that makes it easier to bear? Commiseration and empathy can be such a balm to the weary spirit. Keep the faith, fellow gardeners, it will get better. It's better already.
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