Awesome Agapanthus August
Despite it being Awesome August, PupperJack’s not forgetting that predators lurk everywhere!
Lobelia comes in many sizes, forms and colours. The above is Lobelia cardinalis. The more familiar lobelia is the blue, trailing version, which is also in full bloom just now (see below).
If I don’t manage to get much planting done in the spring, I do always at least try to plant some trailing lobelia as in the pot above. It’s so brilliant for hanging baskets and troughs and makes everything look more fluffy and summery with its myriad small flowers.
PupperJack is always conscious of predators. They are everywhere. Everywhere!
So much so, that when a single rose had the temerity to bloom outside of a nondescript-looking thicket, he approached it with great caution.
You just can’t be too careful. It might have been a rogue rose.
Mallows (above left) and hypericum are in full flower now. In fact, hypericum are far too enthusiastic and all gardeners in the area spend quite some time every year pulling them out.
Hypericum is also known as St John’s Wort — traditionally, an extract of this has been used to treat depression.
All the roads around here have something or other common to their houses that is different to the other roads.
The road we ventured up today has much wider front doors. (Above right.) Some people have kept the original double doors — above red — and some have converted to normal-sized doors with an extra panel down the side — above teal.
That must be useful when manoeuvring pianos, large court cupboards, or big, squashy sofas in or out of the house.
It’s gladioli time! Gladioli are also known as sword lilies. They grow from a corm rather than a bulb. Corms are swollen stem bases, while bulbs are modified leaves that store nutrients.
They are the official flower of August and represent integrity, power and passion.
There are some amazing gladiolus colours around now, as well as the usual range.
A white spider! I don’t think I’ve ever seen a white spider before.
So, of course, I looked it up — it’s a ‘white death spider’.
Eek!
Although venomous, I gather the amount of poison in a bite isn’t enough to finish off a human. However, I shall still take avoiding action next time I see one.
Unfortunately, though, one of their favourite snacks is bumblebee. Noooo … Bumblebees ….
This rambling wisteria at the end of my road blooms in May/June. This year it has decided to have a quick burst of blossoming in August, too.
Of course, flowers can’t be restrained at all in August. They’re leaping up all over the place. Fox example, ‘Agapanthus Fireworks’ (above left) — this is the first time I’ve seen a blue and white agapanthus — also known as ‘Lily of the Nile’.
Hydrangeas in many forms abound and, one of my favourite flowers, whatever the model — daisies!
“Simplify Your Life Week is observed during August of each year. This holiday encourages those who need to refocus their lives and declutter — that doesn’t just mean objects. The idea is to eliminate anything that causes stress or anxiety. Most of us have a tendency to clutter up our lives, both physically and psychologically.”
Dogs are good at de-stressing. They meditate on things. They appreciate things. They revel in things. They enjoy life.
The painting above (titled: ‘… the lonely sea and the sky’) of Doggo gazing out to sea — or meditating — is the one I tend to use to illustrate serenity — also, my favourite poem, which is ‘Sea Fever’ by John Masefield.
Dogs are good at simplifying their lives, too. Quite often, all that’s required for contentment is a sofa.
We could learn a lot from them.
Dennett started the Photo-a-Day Challenge to help combat the pandemic blues.
Since then many others kindly share their week with us:
Erika Burkhalter, Anne Bonfert, Tracy Aston, Lisa Bolin, Juan O. Aguilera, David Wade Chambers, June Nguyen, Mia Verita, LensAfield, Barbara Radisavljevic, Diana Lotti, Barb Dalton, Kim Zuch, K. Barrett, Penny Grubb, Ellie Jacobson, Shruthi Sundaram, Jillian Amatt — Artistic Voyages, Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles
(If your name should, or should not, be on this list, please let me know.)
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