Design

Mocha, my gardening assistant, had duties this morning, being the 'bear dog' for my gardening companion. They didn't go anywhere today that really had bears, and Mocha wouldn't be much protection, to be truthful. But he was tired out, and resting, when I took this shot, just before my gardening companion gave him a bath (he had walked through some poison ivy --not my favorite plant).

My gardening companion was out on a day-long photo excursion in the Blue Ridge Mountains yesterday, getting images for his book project. It was a perfect spring day at our elevation, but at the highest elevations, it was still winter. His 'bear dog' and my gardening assistant went with him. Here, he's waiting patiently in a natural garden of trilliums and mayapple.

Coming back from a long walk on a summer morning often finds the view from the gate slightly misty with early humidity, with the colors clarified by the soft light. It's one of the best times of the day in a southeastern summer. Mocha posed by the front meadow while I cooled off and snapped some pictures of the garage hanging baskets. Amazingly, the nasturtiums are still flourishing in these baskets, in spite of the 90+ heat and afternoon sun. I'm trying to use only drought-tolerant plants in large baskets to minimize watering!