Oh summer...
I'm just getting used to you, and somehow it has become the end of August.
The garden is full to bursting from an incredible monsoon season.
Lucky for us, summer lasts until Halloween here.
But this morning, the air was distinctly different, cool with a delicious breeze.
The clouds have been otherworldly, the rain divine.
The roses decided it was time to come out from their summer slumber, because the weather was utterly sublime.
Who would want to miss that?
Mrs. Swallowtail reminded me that autumn is but a month away.
With her tattered wings, I can only wonder and imagine what she has been through during this summer two-week life of hers.
Dear little thing <3
My freshly painted cabinet and columns have become the most perfect place to dry flowers.
Although, I do leave many in the garden to admire as I stroll through.
The rain has turned the garden into an absolute jungle.
My entire childhood I had this deep fascination with Miss Havisham, in her forgotten Paradiso Perduto.
With overgrown magical gardens, a tattered mansion and all manner of cobweb covered treasures.
I think reading that novel, and visualizing all the details as a child, created this deep love for old worn and forgotten places.
I love watching all those videos on YouTube of old mansions and castles, still filled with treasures, but totally overgrown and abandoned.
I can't imagine having a place like that in my family and not racing to it.
I'll link to a YouTube channel that features these places at the end of my post.
The funny thing is, I find that the things you love and admire when you are young are somehow drawn into your life as you grow up.
And here I find myself, with my own overgrown wild garden.
Funny how that happens, isn't it?
Now, our sweet Theodore Laurence was born for the garden.
He adores everything about it and loves to nibble the non-toxic plants.
I feel he was a master gardener in his past life, because he seems to know which plants are okay.
Although, I do keep my eye on him like a hawk.
He has a great love for zinnias, giving them a tiny nibble at any chance.
Luckily, they are edible and non-toxic to him and to us.
He's quite the trooper.
I let him get as dirty as he wants because he lets me wash him off, just standing there patiently, not fighting me at all.
Then he goes to his towels and rolls around drying off.
He's so good like that, plus he's a master cuddler.
I never thought in a million years that Teddy would have such a gorgeous personality.
He has absolutely amazed me.
I really needed him to smother me with love, and boy does he ever.
And bonus, he loves the garden.
He's very interested in all the vegetables and everything I am up to.
And goodness do we have a lot of vegetables this year.
Yesterday I was walking by the butterfly bush and admiring the purple flowers with orange centers.
The colors are so deep and beautiful.
I also love admiring the sunlight going through the leaves and illuminating the veins.
Such stunning patterns, just incredible really.
I have begun pruning the garden a lot, even though it doubled in size overnight from all the rain.
I haven't had to water hardly at all for a month.
I love how last year's arugula spreads seeds that comes to life during monsoon season.
There's spicy buttery arugula growing here and there and everywhere now, I love to pick it in the evenings.
The roses also burst into the air, making their way over the chickenless chicken coop greenhouse.
It's really exciting to see how the garden transforms from season to season.
I love bringing in a few, but as I said, I also leave many outside to admire.
I have cleared this sea of zinnias path below several times.
I love that the roses are going over both twin arbors.
Almost making the curve at the top, soon they will.
One arbor is a bit farther up the hill and this one is midway down the hill.
I can see a morning glory or two have self-seeded from last year and are also winding their way up.
Can't wait for their beautiful blue trumpet flowers to emerge.
How we love to just stroll through here...
I wonder where Teddy is?
Oh there he is, always my his mum's side.
Helping me prune and harvest.
Taking large flower stems away just as quickly as I can cut them.
I hadn't checked the zucchini for a few days because we had so much of it inside...
But also, because it was raining so much, and my sister was visiting.
In that short time, they managed to grow almost the size of Teddy.
You really have to see them in person to understand the gigantic size and weight.
I know people like to harvest them young, but these don't really get woody or dry despite their size.
They're still delicioso, despite their hugeness.
There's my swallowtail friend again.
Enjoying the fruits of the garden and the gifts of the vast rain.
(New Dawn rose)
What a lovely summer indeed.
I have no real complaints thus far, as I have enjoyed every moment.
Even the ant bites, well, maybe not those.
I have started making this spicy zucchini dish that is really yummy.
The thing about zucchini is that it really absorbs flavors well.
Do you have a zucchini dish that you love?
I would really like to try other dishes, other than my 4 go to.
Grilled, sauteed, baked, zoodled.
I have ordered some garden fencing pieces to help hold up some of the flowers.
I need to do a huge pruning job as the flowers will only continue to pour in as the weather cools.
November is actually the most floriferous month in my garden.
I have enjoyed a handful of wonderful rain days pruning at the country house as well, throwing open the windows.
Listen to the tapping of those raindrops, ahh, such bliss.
The river was full and rushing, the desert is super green.
The funny thing is, so many people ask me if I'm in Ireland or where I am at.
Especially during monsoon season.
People are so surprised to hear Arizona, but I think many don't realize that Arizona has 4 vast landscapes.
Some are lower desert, some are mid then high desert, and others are evergreen forests.
I am at a higher elevation, especially at the country house.
There we are at 3100 ft., on a ridge beneath a huge mountain that is a forest at 9100 ft., called Mt. Lemmon.
So, that makes a huge difference.
Such a beautiful state, I absolutely adore Jerome and Prescott Arizona, just to name two.
So many charming little towns and places in Arizona.
Well, I must be off for now as my chores are mounting.
Hope you are doing extra well.
See you soon.
Love, Vanessa
ps: Speaking of Paradiso Perduto...
Do you remember the 1998 Great Expectations movie?
I really loved it, here is a link to the trailer...
pps:
Here is the channel of one of the many content creators that travel to abandoned old castles and mansions all over the world
