Surviving the garden doldrums of August

Many yard chores – such as weeding, mowing, and watering – raise the question, "Isn't gardening supposed to be fun?" By midsummer it certainly wasn't for me. When the heat and humidity were too much to bear, I simply ignored the garden and retreated guiltily into the house.

None of my gardening friends knew of my neglect – it was my own little secret. I imagined everyone still puttering away in his or her garden – feeding, weeding, watering, mowing, resowing, and pruning.

In my fantasy, others were starting seeds, or nurturing vegetable seedlings for their fall gardens – being the perfect gardener I obviously was not.

Then, one August day with temperature and humidity both hovering around 100, I stopped by to see a friend. No one answered the doorbell, so I went into the back garden. There she was, looking very contented in the shade as she lay in a hammock, dipping tuberous begonia petals into a lusciously cool peach-yogurt dip – a recipe I had given her – savoring each bite.

She was so relaxed yet intent on the beauty and sound of a two-tier birdbath/fountain that I must have startled her. She glanced around the garden and then stared at me with a look that implied both guilt and smugness.

I was rather appalled to see the state of neglect her garden was in. Then I began to laugh uncontrollably when it dawned on me that my own garden was in a similar state. We both shared the same little secret; however, we each dealt with it in a totally different manner.

By late summer many gardeners become burned out. They never feel they have enough time to accomplish all they want to. Yet, since late spring they have been trying to fit in as much work in the garden as they can.

Although both my friend and I were experiencing summer inertia, she seemed to embrace and make peace with her negligence.

My friend's attitude provided an eye-opening lesson: Accept the summer garden slump as an intrinsic part of the gardening year.

One way to overcome the August doldrums is to create a personal retreat, a spot in which you can sit down, relax, and enjoy your own small space in the garden, especially in the evening when the heat abates slightly.

Making a retreat isn't a major project, the type that you certainly wouldn't want to undertake in the hottest part of the year. Instead, you'll find that it generally requires only minor modifications to the existing landscape – alterations that add sound, shade, and comfort, making the garden a pleasanter place to be, however high the temperature climbs.

For example, instead of sitting poolside baking in the sun, seek out a place where the view is equally good but where you'll be surrounded by cooling evergreens, hedges, or trees. Investigate small nooks among well-spaced trees.

If there is little shade, consider innovative ways to make some. A beach or market umbrella casts ample shade for one person. Choose one with a swiveling top so the angle of the umbrella on the pole adjusts easily.

An inexpensive and practical alternative is to tie a sheet (any color will do, but white has the coolest look) to four tall bamboo stakes or other supports at least eight feet high to create a sideless tent. Stretched taut, the material has a rigid appearance; if loosened a bit, the slight billowing adds informal charm.

Consider adding fragrant night-blooming plants to the garden – maybe moonflower (Ipomoea alba), the night-blooming cousin of morning glory. At dusk, sit near the vine, watch the luminescent white, five-inch flowers slowly unfurl, and inhale their sweet perfume.

Angel's trumpet is one of the common names for two tropical plants – Datura species and Brugmansia. Both have six- to eight-inch-long trumpets. Datura trumpets face upward and last a single night. Brugmansia blooms hang like resonant bells and last for several days.

Page: 1 | 2