Saturday, June 13, 2020

Mmm, that smells good!


 The other day I went outside to check on my garden. I wanted to see who was peeking up and who is still sleeping in their beds. You see what I did there, seed beds, garden beds? Get it? It was a nice warm evening and as I walked around the corner I was gently enveloped by a fragrance in the air. The apple trees and lilac were in full bloom. The spring scent was uplifting, washing away any stress.

I love the smell of lilac, I once heard that part of the beauty of lilac, is that it's fleeting, pretty and fragrant and within a few days gone for another year. I love the smell so much that I wrapped up some of the flowers and froze them. I want to see if I can enjoy them in winter. These lilacs have been growing in this spot since the 1800s, we are not sure if my great grandparents planted them or if they were already here when they bought the farm. An elderly neighbour told me that long ago, one way to know if a farm was owned by an Irish family was to see if lilacs and rhubarb were growing on it.

Apple blossoms.

 Apple blossoms, so pretty and they smell so good as well. All the apple trees growing here grew naturally, we didn't buy them.


 A day or two after the first lilac picture, I went out one morning and the bushes were covered with these yellow butterflies.

I haven't seen these guys in years and definitely not in large numbers like on this day, not since I was a teenager have I seen the flowers covered with them, so beautiful.

It made me wonder if everyone having to stay indoors resulted in the abundance of the butterflies, especially when you see how so much wildlife had started to take over in the absence of people. It was hard to get a picture of a bunch together, they were really active and darting everywhere.


 Finally a little waterfall that is on the farm. It's fed by water (melting snow) that is trapped on a small mountain (hill) and the water seeps out from between the rocks over time and runs down. However since it's actually melted snow, eventually by July it stops running.

 Tonight the temperature will drop down to near 0 Celsius, I have a fire going to stay warm. This is not normal for this time of year.

22 comments:

Debra She Who Seeks said...

Lots of natural beauty on your farm!

John Going Gently said...

Lilac is not a smell I love
Honeysuckle , that's more the ticket

Mistress Maddie said...

It's beyond me why don't don't feature more pictures I love them. I featured some lilacs the other day. One of my favorites too. I have Lily of the Valley now, another favorite.

anne marie in philly said...

ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, I can smell the lilac & apple blossoms now!

Bob said...

I love the smell of flowers blooming in the yard. We have gardenias and when they bloom, that scent floods the yard and into the house. Gorgeous.
We should try more flowering plants like lilac.

Dave R said...

Your lilacs look simply amazing. Butterflies are great, things are in harmony. You have a little waterfall near your house! Holy Shit! All I have is the Susquehanna. I would rather have a waterfall... less mosquitoes.

Jimmy said...

And this you want to leave? Looks like heaven to me!

Ur-spo said...

When I lived in the midwest the smell of lilac was the urtext of June

Deedles said...

Such pretty pictures! I don't believe I've ever smelled lilac before. I love gardenias, star jasmine and honeysuckle.

Sixpence Notthewiser said...

Love the blossoms and the butterflies!
I'd love to plant a lilac bush. Maybe next year. This year will be my first experiment planting some bee and butterfly plants. I planted the bulbs about two months ago and there's some little plants coming up. If they come up and flower I'll take some pics LOL

So cool to be so close to nature...

XOXO

HuntleyBiGuy said...

You have a great area! It’s great to see the butterflies enjoying the flowers. And the history of the plants on the farm is interesting. And now I know why my aunt’s farm had rub Arby’s day lilacs! She married an Irishman!

Sooo-this-is-me said...

Debra, yes there is, my own personal parkland.

Sooo-this-is-me said...

John, you are BANISHED!!! Hahaha! Just joking, honeysuckle is nice as well but I prefer lilac.

Sooo-this-is-me said...

Maddie, okay will do. My Lily of the valley has already left the building. Oh you know those are poisonous right? Don't let Buster nibble on them.

Sooo-this-is-me said...

Anne Marie, wow my pictures must have been really good! :D

Sooo-this-is-me said...

Bob, it takes seven years before a lilac blooms so get cracking!

Sooo-this-is-me said...

Dave, I don't think it's possible for me to have more mosquitoes! Lol

Sooo-this-is-me said...

Jimmy, if you don't have anyone to share this with... then it's just pictures. If I wasn't so far from the city, I probably would stay here.

Sooo-this-is-me said...

Dr Spo, yes but at least now you have lovely scorpions. Yes I'm being rotten. ; )

Sooo-this-is-me said...

Deedles, I don't know how to describe it, maybe a bit like lavender.

Sooo-this-is-me said...

Sixpence, it takes seven years before a lilac will bloom. I transplanted some because of over crowding and those plants were OLD, yet it was still seven years before they bloomed so I guess it's true.

Sooo-this-is-me said...

HuntleyBiGuy, thank you. Someone should come up with a potato-lilac-rhubarb bush for Irish people!!! Lol