WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY

Are you like this young girl, fantasizing about your fantastic gardens, perusing seed catalogs and itching to dig in the dirt?

Once upon a time my backyard gardens were my pride and joy.

While the front and side gardens boasted baskets or hanging bags of colorful annuals, perennials ruled in my backyard, which was ablaze in beautiful blooms from late Spring until early Fall. My butterfly garden lured Swallowtails, Monarchs and Red Admirals. Bunnies, for the most part, were obedient, but we did battle when it came to my Bleeding Heart, which they demolished even before the string of dainty hearts began to swing merrily along the vine.

I spent a small fortune on Sluggo while slugging it out with slugs and when that product didn’t work as promised, I ordered “magic mushrooms” … no, not that kind, but soapstone shaped like mushrooms. You set these faux mushrooms around the yard, partially submerged in dirt or mulch. The mushroom “cap” was designed to be removed and the “stem” was a receptacle with a few holes near the “cap” … these soapstone mushrooms were supposedly slug magnets. If you didn’t know, slugs like yeast, so you filled the mushrooms with beer and ideally, the slugs would inch up the “stem” through the holes and fall into the beer where they drowned. I thought it was kinder than the recommended flat copper wire which would shock them as their wet and slimy bodies traveled over the metal. Yes me, the animal lover, put an asterisk to her love of critters when it came to those slimy slugs. The garden smelled like a German biergarten on hot and humid mornings … and still those little buggers lived on.

But paradise found eventually became paradise lost .…

At one time my backyard was certified by National Wildlife as I provided the necessary elements for wildlife to sustain and raise their families there, from butterfly houses, sunning rocks and puddling dishes, to bird feeders and birdbaths and yes, peanuts for the squirrels. I spent way too much time toiling in the garden even though I loved every minute of it.

Then a new neighbor moved in behind and left his dog outside 24/7/365 and we got rats. I had to have a pest control service come in and could no longer provide food or water in my backyard due to the poisonous bait. Sadly, I removed my butterfly paraphernalia as well. At least the plants and bushes could still provide shelter from the wind and cold, but the Polar Vortex in the Winter of 2013-2014 wiped out all my perennials, even the (supposedly) hardy Butterfly Bushes. Only the roses rallied back, but have never looked the same.

Today, I look around at remnants of my garden and deem it paradise lost, even more so after the fire from the downed wire last December 2nd, which burned one quarter of the back garden, leaving my lilac tree, bushes and clematis black and the mulch and grass scorched. While I always thought I would one day replace and repair Mother Nature’s damage, our increasing erratic weather gives me cause to pause and I believe any plans of making gardening a retirement pastime again will not happen.

But, that does not mean I can’t appreciate the beauty of flowers.

Last year I met with members of a local plein air painting group. I had heard about this group of artists who frequent the venues where I walk and write about. I met with them twice and was invited to join them to paint. I have not dabbled in painting, though I took sketching classes many moons ago, but I will join them when I am retired and feel confident enough in my painting abilities (hopefully in this decade). I have been following their painting schedule and when they visited the Emily Frank Gardens and Cultural Center in Trenton last June, I decided it would be a fun outing for me with the camera.

While I know a lot of flowers in a single post might be boring, I timed this post to coincide with the first day of Spring … a little boost of sorts for Readers from coast to coast and beyond who are Winter weary.

The official name of this venue is the Emily Bridge Frank Cultural Center. The farm was established in 1901 and was one of the first dairy farms in the area. Emily lived in the Victorian farmhouse from the time she was seven until her passing in 1972. She was a Detroit school teacher and antique collector, but her first love was her orchards and flowers.

Here is a photo of that farmhouse which is a/k/a the Trenton Cultural Center.

How about if I give you an abbreviated tour?

A huge red barn with one whimsical wall represents the Children’s Garden and the Farmhouse is where events are held with the beautiful gardens as a backdrop.

I first visited on June 18th and met with the “Garden Angels” i.e. the volunteers that tend to the massive flower gardens and veggie gardens behind the barn which are donated to a local food bank. In chattin’ it up that day, it was suggested I return in about six weeks when the flower gardens were at peak, so this was why I was here on July 31st. I have already done one post about the sunflower garden and a mischievous goldfinch who tried to evade me that day. You can click here if you’d like to read that post.

I did a Wordless Wednesday post about a sparrow and its whimsical home at the Children’s Garden after my June 18th visit. Here is that post.

So much beauty in one place … it was eye candy for flower lovers.

I winnowed down some 200 images from this July 31st visit when I sorted through my photos back in January. These were my favorites. This country-inspired arrangement is near the big red barn.

Paver bricks cut through the middle of the largest garden area …

These are some of the many flowers in the Gardens, nestled in between some fabulous yard art.

And, if ponds are your “thing” …

I will likely visit Emily Frank Gardens again, but my post will be a shorter recap – perhaps I’ll plan a September stop to see the sunflowers.