Warm, sunny afternoon. But where is the color?

These days when we wonder if the craziness exists in the mind of a long gunman or our civilization, it’s good to ponder the wonder of the Japanese Anemone.

So far fall here at Bee Cottage is a dud. The falling leaves are dry, brown, desiccated. We’ve had no significant rain since early July. September was the sixth driest month on record.

The calendar may say October, but Mother Nature still thinks its fall!

Despite the drought, the Japanese Anemone bloom prolifically. These lovely Anemone came to my garden by accident.

When Prince Charming and I moved in, the yard looked like your typical suburban blank slate with a slab of concrete out the back door.

Bee Cottage’s back yard today

I envisioned turning this house into Bee Cottage. I beg, borrowed and stole (only occasionally) plants and seeds where ever I could get them.

Happy Spot

This is a tough spot to grow anything. There is lots of shade and it is a low spot in the yard, making it wet and mucky.

Bee Cottage’s yard and future garden faced challenges. This spot by the shed was awful. A patch of gooey mud where even the weeds refused to grow. Dense shade from Oaks, Maples and pines kept the sunlight out. It’s the lowest spot in the garden, making it a muddy, wet mess.

Our first fall here, I asked David, our occasional gardener, to plant Anemone in this awful muck.

In the spring the pretty petite alpine Anemone sprouted with their lovely pink and white flowers.

Spring Anemone. Photo Courtesy http://www.rosecottageplants.co.uk/anemone/c33

Pleased with the progress, I celebrated.

In late July, these big, burly guys showed up. What in the heck were they?

What are these?!

My gardening philosophy is to leave anything alone I don’t recognize until it declares itself friend or foe.  I’ll admit it was hard to keep from pulling these big guys out. I left them alone to see what they would do.

And did they deliver?!

Japanese Anemone give a wonderful POP of color to the fall garden.

History

Anemone means wind flower in Greek. Derived from the Greek anemio or Greek wind gods.

Victorians considered anemone a symbol of forsaken love. Greek tales say Anemones are Aphrodite’s tears over the grave of her dead lover, Adonis. He was killed by the other jealous gods.

They look just like Aphrodites tears

For me this year, they are one bright spot in the garden. While our nation cries our own tears over the graves of so many innocents this week, let’s soak in the peace and beauty of the Japanese Anemone and pray for peace and healing for those suffering.

Some of the Maples are just beginning to turn color.