Social distancing ~ looking forward

Last week I was fortunate enough to get all of the trees trimmed. I usually have this done earlier but so much is different this year with the virus. Things were really getting overgrown and it is important to get trees pruned before the heat of summer sets in. One big job was the very large orange tree you see in the picture below. It is a lovely specimen but needs yearly attention to keep its shape,  the tree is so prolific I was worried the weight of the excess fruit would cause branches to break. This picture was taken after it was pruned.

Under the tree trailing across the little bridge is the wonderful landscape rose Climbing Pinkie.

Today I picked the first of the sweetpeas, I planted them late last fall and it has taken them a very long time to produce flowers. Now they will require cutting frequently to keep them blooming and not setting seed. There is nothing to add fragrance to a room like a bouquet of freshly cut sweetpeas. To me they are the epitome of charm and seemed perfect to 'plop' casually in this teapot on the kitchen counter.

A very nice friend wrote on her Facebook page recently about a family recipe, this really struck a cord with me as I have always thought how important it is to archive in some manner all the recipes enjoyed and loved by our families - in my family we are still mourning my Aunt's cheesecake recipe that was lost when she passed away. Food invokes memories, enjoyment and love. My collection of family favorites, stained, torn and shabby, copied by hand or in well worn cookbooks have been copied down by my children and are seeing their third generation. I can't imagine a Thanksgiving dinner without the ubiquitous string bean casserole but for us what makes it really good is the addition of sliced water-chestnuts, an addition in my Mother-in-laws recipe, a minor thing but it wouldn't taste the same without it. I hope this is something you have found the time to do.

And last, I leave you with a picture of the foxgloves blooming along one of the back garden pathways. I love foxgloves they seem so magical to me. Here they they are treated as annuals, our summers are just too hot for them to get through. I usually plant them from 6 packs but I am thinking about trying some seeds for next year, the variety Foxy, which you see here, bloom the first year, most of the other foxgloves are biennials. They do not like warm weather and so do not last long but well worth it even for a short time.

I hope that you are doing well during this difficult time. It seems that things are slowly, and I hope safely, opening up. Today I got an email that my local Armstrong's nursery will be open, with restrictions of course - nothing would make me happier than putting on my mask, keeping social distancing, and paying them a visit.

Thank you for visiting

Take care and stay well

Adrienne