Kiss, Stroke, Admire!!!

Eucryphia blooms from our bedroom window

The title is a line from one of my children’s favorite books purchased around the time when my son was born much to the disappointment of my daughter who was really, really, REALLY gunning for a sister.  Julius, Baby of the World, by Kevin Henkes went a long way to helping us over that hump and contains that line which has entered our family’s lexicon to express moments of wonder and marvel.  It works great, feel free to borrow it anytime…  But I digress, I just thought my title might need a little explanation.

I know we’re all supposed to keep garden journals…”the cherry tree bloomed today – 3 days, 4 hours earlier than last year!”  But I don’t. 

I do however have certain events in my garden that I eagerly anticipate on an annual basis:   the heavenly fragrance of the winter daphne, when the way-cool hot pink tips of the Euphorbia griffithii ‘Fireglow” first start to emerge, sweet peas in bloom, fava bean harvest (don’t worry, I won’t beat that drum today) and many, many, more.   But the QUEEN of them all is when the Eucryphia x nymanensis is in full freakin’ flower!!!  She steals the show from the entire garden and I can only sit and (kiss, stroke and) admire her narrow form clothed in deep green foliage, copious pearlescent blooms and listen, mezmerized by the dizzy hum of pollinators. Hummingbirds, bees, and wasps congregate by the hundreds during daylight hours until the entire tree has an animate quiver.

The tree is situated (quite by accident I assure you) perfectly lined up with the peak of our second story and the much-deliberated green of our house and it’s white trim make a beautiful foil.  There’s almost a church-like frame to the whole composition.  Again, I take no credit.  This shrub came home from the nursery with me probably 10 years ago because “I like it…it’s cool”.  Dumb luck and the sheltered location of our backyard get all the credit.  Well, that and the fact that it’s been safely out of striking distance of our many garden renovations!

KISS 

STROKE 

ADMIRE 

This from Digging Dog – one of my favorite West Coast nurseries whose wonderful catalog reads like a compelling garden resource:

“This splendid evergreen hybrid between two Chilean species, Eucryphia cordifolia and Eucryphia glutinosa first arose nearly 100 years ago at Nymans Gardens in Sussex, England. Its name translates €˜well covered’ and reflects the abundant, sweetly fragrant bowls of pearl-white flowers with cheerful yellow stamens.” 

Check them out at Digging Dog.

But about garden journals, I totally understand the inclination to record and archive the events of everyday.  Plus, it would be darn handy to have a plant list for my many treasures (which one is the Billardiera longifolia and which one is the Billbergia nutans variegata….. ) let alone a means of documenting my various, haphazard garden experiments. Often, when conducting a garden trial of the latest greatest organic wonder spray I can’t remember which is the sample and which is the control…hmmmm, I guess that is an outcome.

But for now, writing is “indoor girl” as we say around here and gardening is …well, gardening is outside of that discipline.  That doesn’t mean that I don’t take note of and anticipate the rhythm and reliability of perennial pleasures that return every year to remind me that life is moving forward, on and on.  Even the most painful betrayal, disappointment and crushing heartache will pass as will those days of celebration, sunshine and laughter, thank heaven.  Today I’m bowing at my Church of the Eucryphia. I’m celebrating her beauty, her support for nature and her constant and beautiful presence in my life.