Between Our Steps: Yesterday and Today
The gardens are thriving, the storms took the old maples down, and the dogs decide when the walk ends. Notes on a restful, laborious July.
COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTION
Twice recently, when I was walking the dogs, I saw people watering their gardens. One day was unforgivable because we had a hard steady rain the afternoon before. The other might have been understandable given that the next big rain was forecast for the next week.
Except that to my eye, plants look happy. My tomato plants are the biggest I have ever had. My raspberry patch is thick. Flowers are blooming profusely in my garden and everywhere I walk. Yes, it’s been hot. And yes, in May we had a couple of dry spells. But July rains have been bountiful.
The environment around me feels restful. In contrast to last summer, when everywhere I looked I could see signs of stress from the lack of moisture, this summer the land feels healthy.
There is an exception. I must acknowledge that winds have been a challenge. The storms around Canada Day took down old trees. And after every storm, after every windy day, there are leaves and branches scattered everywhere. In my neighbourhood, maple trees suffered the most from the big storms and birch from the other windy days.
And we’ve all had to work to manage the heat. People walk their dogs early when the day is still relatively cool. My guys have often been panting by the time we are on the home stretch even if we did not go on a really long walk. I think it is the humidity that gets to them.
I tried a couple of afternoon walks, and they went as far as the nearest park and indicated they had had enough. So mostly, I let them out in the backyard and let them in as soon as they ask. My Mexican rescue finds a place on the grass and stretches out, letting the sun soak into his brown and black coat. My wheaten terrier heads for the shade beside the door to the inside, wants nothing to do with the sun. (He doesn’t like rain either. Snow is his thing.)
Me, I will sit in the sun for a while then head inside and watch for the moment when my rescue wants back in.
The other way I cope with the heat is by cutting the lawn right after I walk the dogs. Most weeding happens at that time, too. Or I pull them in short bursts when I get home from being away and notice weeds as I get out of the car. This summer, there is little intentional management of the gardens.
On a relatively cool day, I dug up the garlic. This required care, as I did not want to disturb the sunflowers that some bird or squirrel had planted. They are quite happy, with large flowers even though their stems are relatively short. And once they die back, I can check for any garlic I may have missed.
There is a shrub in the yard behind mine that grows out of shape every summer. In September, their son comes and after careful consultation with his elderly parents, he trims it back to a tidy round shape. This year, getting rid of the trimmed branches will be a challenge. Some of the branches have grown 60 centimetres. They are so long that they are drooping rather than reaching. The shrub does not resemble the tidy globe it was when spring began.
Personally, I like this look, but I understand the need to cut back as we have rather small yards in this neighbourhood. I realized that my dogwood had grown as well, almost reaching the raised bed where the tomatoes are flourishing, almost blocking the gate to my neighbour’s yard. (I’m in the end unit of a townhouse so I have to give my neighbours access to their back yard through mine.) I think I won’t inhibit the height of the shrub. Yet. But it does need to be confined to its designated area.
When I started writing this column, I thought I was going to talk about how restful this July felt. That is not quite how it turned out.
But as much as managing the heat was work, as much as managing abundant growth is work, the environment around me, replete with bees of all sorts, feels at peace. I wish I could say the same for the political world.
Thank you to sponsors of The Owen Sound Current Writers’ Fund, who make these community contributions possible. Contributions from the community do not necessarily reflect the opinions or beliefs of The Owen Sound Current and its editor or publisher.
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