This evening I'm on my own as Tim is at a meeting. Long shadows stretch across the garden, and there is just an hour or two of sunlight left in today. Earlier I heard the summer sound of a lawnmower across the street.
Yesterday I spent time in the garden, potting up annuals. This year there are white geraniums, purple heliotrope with its sweet vanilla scent, and blue and white lobelia. Our old white lattice deck railing is no more. Tim built a new one and I love its clean lines. Soon we'll get the summer gazebo set up and enjoy sitting outdoors. It's still a bit chilly for that in the evenings.
When lilacs bloom here, I am reminded of Anne of Green Gables and of our visit to Prince Edward Island several summers ago. The lilacs bloomed at while we were there. L. M. Montgomery created such a full picture of Anne in her books; an Anne who changed and grew as any child does.
Anne's imagination took her to wonderful places - "But I just went to work and imagined that I had on the most beautiful pale blue silk dress - because when you are imagining you might as well imagine something worth while..."
Old lilac bushes still surround Green Gables. They are grown tall as trees and when the wind blows, sweet fragrance floats through the air.
In my own garden the lilacs are not so well established. One bush is almost 16 years old, and from it we've planted two others in other places. The newer ones have just a few flowering branches, but will have more each year. All of them are taller than I am. Lilacs can last for over 100 years, and often remain as silent witnesses to places where homes once stood. I think of women from years past who planted a lilac bush and stood under it, breathing in the scent on a spring day.
On days like today, full of blue skies, warmth, and promise, I say along with Anne, "dear old world, you are very lovely and I am glad to be alive in you."
Do you have lilacs in your garden? Are they blooming yet?
Yes, I do and, no, they aren’t. I enjoyed the Anne of Green Gables references.
ReplyDeleteI don't have lilacs but I love their perfume. The Anne books were some of my favourites. My mum had all of the L.M. Montgomery books. May is truly here!
ReplyDeleteWe have a white double lilac...a late variety, not yet in bloom. What would springtime be without lilacs? I can almost smell them...just looking at your pic's. :)
ReplyDeleteI just love your thoughts on lilacs and also the quote from Anne and her immagination! So fun and such a good idea! My white is in full bloom and the dark purple is just opening and the french lilacs are starting to show their color!
ReplyDeleteI can imagine your lovely evening smelling your wonderful lilac. Only five blooms on ours this year but it is still a young plant. Do you prune yours much each year? B x
ReplyDeleteNo, I don't prune the lilacs very much at all. I take out the odd branch that is not doing well, or a few to shape the bush. I don't want it to grow into a tall tree so I may have to begin more pruning one day.
DeleteReally inspirational to hear someone pursuing their dreams and becoming successful instead of following the traditional path. I have read your article about This topic. I think it's good and impressed to know your service. Thanks for share this Information.Makha Bucha Day
ReplyDeleteLove what you say about being silent witnesses. Some of our bushes are more than 100 years old. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that none will be hit by frost.
ReplyDeleteAll looks beautiful in your garden Lorrie and I love the new deck railing. Like you I need to replant my pots with summer blooming flowers as the tulips and pansies are just about over. Because we'll be traveling a lot I must hold back and only do a few pots because they may not get watered!
ReplyDeleteLilacs don't do well here at all - the heat and humidity is just overpowering for such a beautiful, fragrant tree. We had them my childhood garden (old England!) and in New England, but sadly not here. The loveliest ones I've ever seen were on Mackinac Island, Michigan - they have an annual festival there in June.
Hugs - Mary
I do have lilacs and they are just blooming, too! I love them, and I love dear Anne with an E!
ReplyDeleteI love lilacs. We have not planted any here yet, but hope too.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this post and the memories of lilacs that it conjured up. No lilacs here as they don't do well. I still remember attending a cousin's wedding many years ago in Michigan. The reception was outside and the property was surrounded by lilacs in full bloom. It was delightful and made for a lasting memory. I don't remember much else about the wedding, but that glorious scent wafting through the air :). I recently read that people used to plant lilacs around the perimeter of their farms to make it smell a bit better out there. Don't know if that is still done or not.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful pictures
ReplyDeleteThe lilacs are budding leaves here. I like looking around to see old lilac trees. There is or was one in Burlington, VT that was above the bungalow roof line. Its one of the tallest I've seen. Back in the 20th Century day, lilacs appear to have been very popular along with quince and forsythia.
Lilacs are my very favorite flowering bush/tree. I have a row of them that I will have to sadly leave behind when I move. You do know that to make them bloom more profusely you break off the old blooms once they are past flowering? I have done that for years and my lilacs are full of blooms. I only wish their bloom time was longer. xoDiana
ReplyDeleteYour Lilacs are beautiful. I have two one white and one deep purple.
ReplyDeleteI adore lilacs and yes ours are blooming. When we bought our house 16 years ago there was a very old lilac, but two years ago it fell over. Oh was I sad, but it did send out shoots as it was dying and now I enjoy it. Tomorrow I will be posting about a special lilac gardens I visited last Saturday. Your garden preparation sound just perfect for spring. And now I want to go to Anne of Green Gable country during lilac season too.
ReplyDeleteI don't have Lilacs but we have a lot of Crepe Myrtles in our neighborhood...not blooming yet though. I've been wanting to get my Anne girl DVDs out and watch the whole series..AGAIN! It makes me feel good! Hugs!
ReplyDeleteHi Lorrie! Your lilacs are so pretty and I wish I had some here but I never got to plant any unfortunately. I have to get some from friends and lilacs don't usually bloom here until June. Yes, Green Gables is a beautiful spot to visit. When I was a young girl my father used to golf there and my brother and I used to love running through the grounds and playing in the woods. Hubby and I have walked the paths through the woods many times over the years and they still enchant me. I read the Anne books about every two years so I am very familiar with all her lovely quotes and stories. But I also get very annoyed when the writers of the new movies and series they put out don't follow the books as well. The Anne of Green Gables played by Megan Follows was the best one and all the characters played their parts very well. I'm not a fan of the newest series at all. They have really botched that one up which is too bad because the young girls today will not get a true picture of the real Anne. This is opinion anyway.
ReplyDeleteNo one is cutting their grass here yet but perhaps next week I will begin hearing the lawn mowers. I do love springtime!
I had lilacs in France but not here, sadly. I do love the scent of them.
ReplyDeleteThe scent of lilac in the cool of the evening is special and for me evokes memories of my childhood garden. My father had a double white and a mauve, rather like yours, and I loved them.
ReplyDeleteI have a lilac here but it has never grown as tall and proud as my father's.
Lovely image of the black and white gable enhance by lilac blossom.
I'm happy to say that I do have one lilac bush/tree in my yard and finally this year after about 5 years from when we put it into the ground from a pot it has many blooms instead of just two! Lovely photos, Lorrie. Enjoy your weekend.
ReplyDeleteI wish smell could come across my computer screen so I could stick my nose near those beautiful flowers. Lilacs are my very favorite.
ReplyDeleteOh, it seems like everyone has lilacs in the posts that I missed this past week ... I am jealous! But, I will stop whining and take control of this - we are in the middle of landscaping right now and I know from the many lilacs I saw last spring that they flourish here ... so thanks for the inspiration. Fabulous photos - I can almost smell them from here!!!
ReplyDeleteI loved the Anne of Green Gables books when I was growing up, I hope to visit the Prince Edward Island one day. Along with quite a few other places :-)
ReplyDeleteAmalia
xo
very few survive down here but some people manage to have them. I do miss them and love the scent. My dad bought me my own lilac bush when I was a child.
ReplyDeleteYes, I have lilacs. I couldn't have a garden without them. There is a very old white one, here when we bought the cottage. I have planted two lovely purple lilacs on either side of the garden as well. I remember, when we lived in Ontario, that the lilacs grew wild all along the concession roads - dust and lilacs are joined in my memory. They bloomed around prom time and we'd go out into the country to pick the blooms to decorate the school gym.
ReplyDeleteLorrie, I love your photos and your thought about women from years past with their lilac bushes. No, I don't have one. I've always wanted one but for some reason have never planted one (some deep reason there, probably!). Maybe not having one gives me "more scope for the imagination," as Anne would say!
ReplyDeleteIt's been such a long time since I've seen lilacs. I can almost catch their wonderful scent from your pictures. We are planning to visit Minnesota and Colorado early next month ... I am hoping that one or both of those States may have a late enough Spring that we'll see some of the flowers we generally miss.
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