Serious Storm

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If aged memory serves me correctly, the severe storm visited here Saturday evening.  Strong winds from the south pelted huge raindrops against the windows with attention getting force.  Our power remained on and we retired by 10:30PM as usual.  Anxiety got the better of me by 2:30AM and I ventured out to see just how much of our driveway remained.  There were deep ruts but we were lucky!   I also checked to see if any of the house siding had been dislodged.  None had moved.

The reported rainfall of four inches in little more than one hour must have been a somewhat limited local event.  Our Unadilla River is unusually brown and full but did not appear to have spilled over into farmer's fields near here.  Storm damage likely occurred but fortunately we were spared.

Early Sunday morning I ventured out with a shovel, rake and the lawn tractor with trailer.  Thirty shovels full made a manageable load and it was dumped in the deepest section of the new ravine.  The uniform spreading of the fill hints at my Irish ancestry but many more loads will be needed to finish this job.  As it was, three loads were followed by a break then three more loads finished me for the day.  No chest pain was felt but it was definitely time to quit after the sixth load.

All that rain may have dampened my spirits, but the daylily flowers loved it.  Spiritual Corridor is the name of this variety.  The fern like leaves of Sweet Cicely behind it identifies this plant's placement inside of the stone square.

Sunday Gloves is pictured here along with the messy remains of yesterday's flower and an insect.  Removing the disgusting mess of old flowers usually precedes taking the picture but no sticky hands could touch the camera.

 

Swallowtail Kite has an unusual series of perhaps four colors as the petals open outward.

Aurora Raspberry features the much favored ruffled edge.

Huckleberry Candy is intensely colored as is the pollen load.

 

Big Bird has a somewhat disheveled general appearance as did the Sesame Street character.

 

Frosted Vintage Ruffles has been with us for many years.  It appears to find its placement next to the stone path at least satisfactory
 

Spirit Boosters

It was not that long ago that I completely dismissed day lilies as totally unsuited for garden cultivation.  The deep orange ones commonly grow untended in ditches alongside of roads.  This habit earned them the name sewer lilies.  How could any plant that rampantly grows wild possibly capture my attention?

Exotic scents, color combinations and ruffled edges quickly won me over.  This year I was genuinely sorry when their time of bloom passed.  Catalog descriptions frequently list re bloom as a characteristic of some varieties.  More interested in scent and color, I did not seek out those that bloom a second time.  The first photo features an Elegant Candy.  We never purchased this variety.  It was discovered growing in a pot of Indian Givers.  Its late flowers have lifted my sagging spirits.
 

Princeton Silky has been here several years.  It displayed a huge number of flowers this year.  Still not worn out, it is having another go at flowering.  Great quantities of undesirable pollen fill the air at this time of year so separating  out the subtle scent of this day lily is difficult.  We are glad just to have the flower.

Swallowtail Kite has also produced a bountiful number of flowers this year.  The white stains that spot the petal edges are disappointing.  This variety is relatively new to us so we do not know if these white spots are typical or a result of this summers weird weather.  The yellow green eye spot seems to be a source of light.  Stained or not  color at this time of year  really pleases the eye.

It is highly likely that soon many Winter hours will be passed looking at mail order catalogs.  This year we will search out re bloomers.  What is better than a colorful non chemical depression buster?