Growth is the only evidence of life. ~John Henry Newman, Apologia pro vita sua, 1864
When we moved from California, I left behind 3 gardens: a bulb garden where I had planted about 350 bulbs that would bloom from spring through summer, a cutting garden which produced lovely bouquets for our home, and a small vegetable garden. As much as I hated leaving behind friends and family, I ached over leaving my gardens on the cusp of blooming.
Moving to Colorado and learning how to work the hard clay soil in a desert (yes, desert) climate has been a challenge. It’s taken years of adjusting plans and amendments. I’ve played with different plants and moved many more than once. In addition to your standard garden insects, I’ve battled invasive, obnoxious bunnies, skunks, squirrels, and raccoons that steal produce. In essence, I’ve become Mr. McGregor. Nonetheless, the excitement I feel when the first sprout breaks through the earth or a bud appears on a rose-bush never grows old.
I think that’s the greatest gift my garden offers me; year after year, there’s a reminder of the excitement found in growth. Like parenting, growth takes nurturing, and planning, and is sometimes uncomfortable but, from growth, comes beauty and abundance.
This morning, I invite you to think about growth as you visit my summer garden.
by Mary Lanzavecchia 
I miss being home, when I could tend to my garden like this. Slipping out for few minutes to pull a few weeds and water here and there. Thanks for sharing your with me today!
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What a lovely garden you have, Mary. There’s something about a garden, and the fact that its survival is strongly dependent upon the gardener that brings such joy. Working in my garden brings me such peace, even if it’s a day of cutting and weeding and just general clean-up. For me it truly is a place to pause and smile and reflect on all that is taking place in life. Now I understand why my grandfather founds such tranquility in his garden; it was one of those lessons that I was learning, but not understanding until I was the gardener. Thanks for guiding me to reflect on that concept.
Again….. a lovely story!
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That is lovely! I would want to spend my days reading in the garden and drinking strawberry lemonade.
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Thanks, Robbie. I’ll set out another glass and I have many books to offer. Come set a spell. 🙂
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How beautiful! Thank you for inviting us in…
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Thanks for coming, Elin!
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Gorgeous. I don’t have a green thumb at all, and I totally envy anyone who can grow such beauty.
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It’s been and still is quite the labor of love, Lois. When we bought the house, both the front and backyards were over grown with weeds and diseased trees. My husband designed and built the playhouse/swing set first, then the guest cottage, and then I could get to work on garden design. Aside from the seasonal vegetables and flowerpots, I don’t really need to do anything at this point since I’ve planted perennials throughout. We have green belt/open space right behind us with a lawn maintained by the city, so no lawn mowing here!
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Oh my, you have come such a long way since I first saw your plain dirt backyard many years ago!! It’s gorgeous, Mary, on so many levels. Much love.
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You have had a front row seat to so many of my transitions. Thank you, thank you, thank you for always sharing and supporting me along the way, Ashi! We still need to get that date scheduled. Much love back! xo
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Your garden is beautiful. I think it is amazing how different areas of our great country can offer such unique and different kinds of beauty in plants and flowers and all things nature. Even if the plants you now have are “unfamiliar” they are lovely and you are sharing that beauty with everyone who walks by your lovely garden or gets invited in. Even the “pests”. My biggest pests right now are the deer who are nibbling everything including the pumpkins I have out for decoration. 🙂
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Discovering what is most happy in my yard has been a blessing and a (curse-filled) challenge at times. Nonetheless, I agree, though, there is an abundance of beauty here. We have a few lilac bushes that I didn’t have in California but my mother, who grew up in the Midwest, knew them and loved them. Every year, when the scent of lilac fills the air, I feel her arms wrap around me.
Deer are a huge problem for some. Thankfully, we don’t have deer in our area. Coyote? Fox? Yes. But its the squirrels that do the majority of damage around here now, including eating my pumpkins (on the vine and on the porch.)
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