Pick Me!

While waiting for planting season, I've had a revelation. Gardening centres are like bars for older people. Now, some of these older people may still be in their mid-twenties, but all gardeners have old souls.  And the one thing all the generations have in common is our longing for colour. For an end to the dirty white snow and dead brown ground that follows that final melt. Let's face it. Once the Christmas decorations come down, we find ourselves passing the gardening aisles with their patio sets and sunbrellas and dreaming about flowers. 

We all have our favourites. While some love roses, I think they're too uptight. Their blossoms open slowly, transforming from a tight bud to a modest bloom. By the time they're fully open, they're half dead. Even then, you can tell they're holding back. If you compared a rose to a girl from a '70's romance novel, she'd have died without a carnal thought in her head. A few chaste kisses, some light petting and she'd have shown you the door.

Peonies, on the other hand, are the bar flies of the flower world. Their extravagant but short lived blooms draw the eye of everyone passing through the garden. Of course, their promise is short lived. After a number of days...maybe a week...they start to droop. Some brief moments of glory, and it's all over. Next thing you know, the petals are falling off and the blooms are ragged around the edges. Why? They never left the bar. And that life style is hard on a gal.

 'Remember Rita?" I picture some old drunk saying. "She was beautiful, but not for long." Not that he could talk. "Buddy, you're a 4" tall Alyssum," his drunk friend says."You're short and boring. Give it a rest." Even a bar fly has her fans.

Then there's the common Marigold flower. The 'shouters' of the garden, whether potted or placed protectively around the vegetables. It's why they're so effective against pests. They're loud. Eventually, their noisy voices wear the pests out until finally, they give up. At night, I picture the vegetables saying, "For God's sake, be quiet! We're trying to sleep!"

Geraniums of all colours show best when they're full and round, with all their petals in place. Like models strutting the runway, hair done, makeup immaculate. But they're also brilliant at hanging in there, and not too fussed about being watered, either. I discovered that during last year's evacuation. They're brave in all kinds of weather, and even though they love the sun, they do okay in the shade. For part of a day, anyway. You can count on them, and I like a dependable flower. They're pretty inside or out, even when cut and placed in a vase. But they're always the bridesmaid, never the bride. Even the white blossoms.

Petunias are much the same. A little more demanding, given their need for dead heading. I swear I hear them calling me from across the yard. "What are you waiting for? Pull the dead blossoms, lady!" Their idea of looking pretty is to pout and droop down the sides of their containers. It's like they're constantly auditioning for a role. "Look at me! I'm not tired...I'm just pretending!" They're hardy, so it's easy to take them for granted. 

My favourite flower is the begonia, especially the yellow ones. I like it when they get big and blousy, like a southern belle past her prime but still looking terrific. If they get enough shade, they last well into cooler weather. They like compliments, so I offer them plenty when I pass their containers beside my front door. "You're beautiful, ladies," I say. (Maybe they're not all female? I'm not a botanist...what do I know.)

My least favourite bloom in the garden is the wild daisy. They're so sneaky. One minute you're admiring your perennials, and the next, there's a two foot tall bunch of daisies plunked down in the middle of the hostas, or squatting against the primroses. They're aggressive, and they spread quickly, like a gang moving in to take over the neighborhood.

 "You sons of bitches," I've been known to shout when I spot them.  Occasionally, this frightens folks passing by. "I wasn't talking to you!" I call out to them.

I've told you about mine,now please share your favourites. I'm not very good at remembering names, so add a picture in the comments, if you're able. And keep an eye on your peonies this summer. Their blooms are so short lived. And whatever you do, don't let them anywhere near the wine.