Stopping and smelling the flowers

I garden like I cook: throw everything together and end up pleasantly surprised at success.

So it is that I find myself happy with the late-summer surprises in my garden, abloom with colorful flowers that I didn't expect to see at this time of year.

The garden usually looks good in spring but has fizzled out by mid-summer. It's a challenge to plant because although one part gets a decent amount of sun, it is laid out under pine trees that create acidic and shady conditions.

This year a friend helped choose and plant flowers that would do well in the shade and provide blooms late into the summer. If you don't look too closely at the weeds that I have been unable to keep up with, the garden looks pretty good.

I like to sit at my kitchen table and look out at the flowers. I got a desk for an upstairs office space, but I am happiest downstairs writing while I look out through French doors. And it's especially rewarding to easily find enough flowers to make a colorful arrangement for the kitchen table.

I went out the other day and was happy to have so many choices. After putting the flowers in a vase, I channeled my mother, who always thought her arrangements were not full enough. And using as a guide and inspiration a framed photo of her arranging flowers for my 50th birthday party, I went out and added some more flowers until I was satisfied.

Just as Diane and I appreciated my mother's arrangements, Katie appreciates mine. I missed being able to show her. But due to the wonders of Facebook, she'll see this post when she wakes up and, I hope, appreciate the garden from all the way in Spain.