Dear Liza,
Welcome to August! I can’t believe this summer is racing past so quickly.
The heat wave here in Portland has sort of upended my usual way of doing things. Since it is so hot in the afternoon, I go to the vegetable plot early to water and harvest the zucchinis, and to check on the tomatoes and pumpkins.
Some days it feels like a race to harvest and eat as fast as they are growing. My gardener friend Tonya has clued us in on how to freeze zucchini to use later, when it isn’t too hot to bake.
Inside the house, Auntie Bridgett’s Sundew (which she bought to eat the fungus flies…. Don’t get me started) is blooming! The perfect, delicate spiral is so pretty!
At Laurelhurst Park, the local Faerie Folk have been out improving their summer homes.
Morning Glories are creating some accidental beauty on telephone poles. They follow the spiral growth model, climbing around and around.
And last but definitely not least, the sunflower that has made this dead chestnut tree its new home. The tree was fatally pruned to a height of about ten feet. I am glad it is having a useful afterlife.
We should all be so fortunate.
Love,
Grandma Judy
Dear Liza 