Invincible Summer

It's Jan. 12, and we're into day 3 of Atlanta's 2011 Deep Freeze. Three days of impassable roads, no mail delivery, cancelled airline flights, and stores running out of bread, milk, and bananas. (I cannot figure out why the stores ran out of bananas before the storm even hit. What was everybody planning on eating for the forecasted week-long chill? Peanut butter and banana sandwiches? Bananas in cereal? Banana bread, banana pudding, and just plain old bananas? I mean, you might expect a run on citrus during an ice and snow storm, but not this. I have this nagging feeling that there's some secret I haven't figured out yet, like bananas are good for wrinkles or quick weight loss.)

Anyway, I was organizing my digital images today and thought it was time to haul out a few summery, flowery pictures to get us through this cold weather. Hope you enjoy the ones below! (And I'm terribly sorry, but I don't even have any pictures of bananas.)

I bought a pot of greenhouse-grown hydrangeas at Publix years ago and planted them beside my porch. The picture above shows how they bloomed last summer. Just love the color. You can tinker with the pH of your soil, you know, to make your hydrangeas bloom pink or blue.


Nothing says "summer" to me like lots and lots of bright green ferns on the porch or deck. An added bonus: wrens have built nests in mine for several years in a row. I have to put out "do not disturb" signs for any UPS or FedEx deliveries until the eggs hatch, but I don't mind, because I've gotten to see some of the babies make their first flights. Little birds seem to like making nests in plants that have long, arching, woody branches, so they can dart in and out as they feed their young.

Here's another porch-pot, this one filled with begonias. I like the heart-shaped leaves and pale pink flowers. They did well in part sun/part shade, and weren't bothered at all by pests or diseases. Wish I could say the same for the roses I keep trying to cultivate. They're plagued by black spot, which is a fungal disease that's tough to control in our humid, hot summers. I've finally given up on most modern rose varieties in favor of the so-called antique roses, which are just as beautiful and not nearly so demanding to grow.

This is a container I planted with "hot colors," which are really bold and bright, but I like them. The purples are petunias and the orange flowers are calibrachoa, which are also known as "million bells," because they bloom prolifically. They look like baby petunias and grow just as nicely. Few pests or problems with either of these plants.

Here's a summer-y quote to help see us through the cold weather:

"In the depth of winter, I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer." - Albert Camus.

Inspiring words, aren't they? Almost enough to make up for those bananas.