Sunday, June 1, 2008

On This Overcast Day

Quite enjoyable is this cloudy and overcast cool-sorta-day, especially when one is working in the garden. There is great pleasure without the glare and heat of a summer day, and taking photos this morning offers a richness of color.

With any amount of forthcoming sunshine, the budded peony will soon emerge, just as the Bearded Iris and delicate white blossoms of Anthriscus sylvestris 'Raven's Wing' fade. The tri-colored creamy white, pink and green leaves of the mounding Salix integra 'Hakukro-nishiki' produce a delicate balance with its variegation in this area of great structure.

Off to the left, the lemon-lime color of the Carex elata 'Bowles Golden' offers a bright spot even in the darkest corner, and contrasts with the subtle pinks of the poppy (Papaver orientale) and foxglove (Digitalis purpurea). The delphiniums patiently await the soon-to-be warm days before sending forth their cobalt blue blossoms, and the deep burgundy leaves of the beech (Fagus sylvatica) loom densely overhead.

Gracing the edge of the path is the ever-blue (evergreen) Helictotrichon sempervirens, accompanied by the evergreen mound of Hebe 'Mrs Winder' and low mounding and airy panicles of 'Coral bells' (Heuchera).