Blooms in the NC Desert

It is DRY, people!!! It's so dry the weeds (the ones in the lawn, that is) are dying. The weeds in my flowerbeds, however, have their thirsts quenched regularly and are growing like mad.

It seems like it used to rain when I was a kid. I remember the smell of rain, the rumble of thunder, lightning popping, and thick, heavy raindrops pelting my back as I pedaled hard to get home before the heavens opened up. I remember ditches full of water, and tadpoles. Now, it seems like every summer we go weeks and weeks without even the hope of rain.

As long as the city will permit me, I keep my flowerbeds watered. (Pretty soon, I guess I'll be saving bath water and hauling it out in buckets...) Fortunately, most of my plants are fairly drought tolerant; mostly I'm just trying to keep the new plantings alive.

My summer flowers are starting to bloom, including:

Lilies

Coneflower ("Rocky Top???")

More lilies

Beardtongue