Sunshine, bright colour...

... & other gardening delights from the past week. I'm skipping over the overcast, dull grey features that showed up & stayed far too long nearly every day.

Friday, June 18th: Harvested a few 'Sea of Red' lettuce leaves but left most to capture the sun's rays & make more anthocyanins.

Saturday morning: Indulged in a few moments of simply "being" in the lavender, followed by a serious work session in the beet rows....

... thinning the crowded sections & filling the open spaces with a second sowing to ensure plenty of plump, golden roots in a few more weeks.

Sunday afternoon: Contemplated -- but only briefly -- what to make with the 'Lacinato' kale. Decided quickly & easily: An Honest Kitchen recipe with lentils, tomatoes & plenty of spices.

Monday evening, June 21st: Realized the day was nearly done & I hadn't celebrated the summer solstice in a meaningful way nor taken my "365" photo.  So a little after 8 pm, searched for the best light. Found it on the north side of our condo, illuminating my new-favourite hydrangea colouration.

Tuesday evening: Encountered the unexpected while taking a round-about way home from Pilates. This single, pink poppy in a Green Streets garden stopped me in my tracks. But only for a moment. Then I quickly ran home, grabbed my camera, raced back...well, you know how I spent the next 15 minutes ;-).

Wednesday morning, before work: Closely observed the water droplets on the Calibrachoa.

 

Thursday, mid-day: Soaked up a double dose of sunshine, one from the sky, and one from the pots along the balcony railing. Sent telepathic thanks (again) to my gardening mentor Gayla for inspiring me to appreciate and acquire bold, bright yellow flowers and not feel guilty about adding a few more inedible plants to the garden.

 

Friday, late afternoon: I never drink while gardening & don't usually plant wine with the flowers but I couldn't resist placing this "innocent bystander" among the Calibrachoa. Its colour blended beautifully with the 'Compact Yellow' and 'Apricot Red Eye'. But now the bottle is back on the shelf, some day to be shared, I hope, with my blogging buddies from far-away places. (You know who you are ;-) XO. )

Happy weekend gardening, everyone.

Excerpt from a balcony gardener's to-do list for June 11th

• Enjoy the flowers in the courtyard and the lavender on the balcony

• Thin the baby beets and carrots

• Find new recipes for the kale and the sorrel

• Eat lots of red greens

• Repot the Lewisia

• Repot the Calibrachoa & Osteospermum plants and find room for them all!

• Stir the compost

• Write a long over-due blog post -- does this one count?