September flowers

You are in luck. The only functioning pair of glasses I seem to possess right now are the reading ones.

So sitting down at the computer is proving the most useful chore this afternoon.

And that’s only because the reading glasses are brand new and I haven’t scratched them yet.

Give me time. The rest are such dreadful damaged lenses I have to look around things to see. A sort of mad woman cocked head gesture just to see if the deer are eating the crab apples again way down on the lower terrace.

But I pick up my new pair on Monday so that will be a thrilling day.

September. My month of travelling.

Of staring at the sea in three different locations: Collioure, La Ciotat and Deal.

You have those pictures to come. But in between I did manage to harvest enough flowers for bouquets. All of the garden responded to the mad rainfall early September and the dahlias came back to life.

I have even started drying the ones that are going over bit in earnest now.

And believe me, after the pest infestation this week I am doing the dried flower equivalent of running with scissors.

Drying dahlias here in my office right above my head on one of the racks. Grubs are bound to fall out and make me shriek.

But it seems to be the best location for low light, no wind, and I get to harvest the amaranth seeds which drop on my desk.

I wonder if they suffer from that problem at the amazing display I saw at an organic grocers in Collioure.

Quite stunning isn’t it?

I had a good look. They suspended chicken wire for the overhead ones, and tied the flowers in bunches. And this one just above was hiding a blank concrete wall at the back of the store.

With this much grain and fodder lying about I hope they don’t have a similar mouse problem as we seem to ‘enjoy’.

I could be pretentious and call this the Dry Garden Bouquet as I harvest everything from the bone dry location under the pine trees bed which is definitely the best place for the rosemary, mountain thyme, the bupleurum and the (hurrah) – self seeding amaranth.

This bouquet was for Agnès who wanted some seeds for her large vegetable garden.

Now I know that many people fear a self-seeder. But luckily some weeds just work for me. And Agnès.

And this crimson amaranth is a delightful pop of colour in a pretty drought stricken garden.

Oh dear, they look a touch priapic from this angle. I never noticed that.

My other bouquets are more dahlia laden.

The mighty orange Sylvia’s are flowering like mad.

Some of the stems are still short. So I’m drying those too.

Now it’s time for me to head off and distribute the last bouquets of the month. I’m doing care packages for friends. Covid is rampaging once again.

And nothing beats staring at perfect sedums in little bouquets to cheer.