Season's best photos

My favorites from 2022

Though the black container for collecting weeds hints that there is work to be done, I love this idyllic view of the back entrance to the garden. Evening has come and the heat of the day is dissipating, making it possible to get something done or just hang out.

Someone is being surveilled, plus the creeping phlox is showing off in this photo from mid-April, 2022.

The gladioli were the stars of this perennial bed in mid-summer. I planted the corms under the impression that they were hardy only to zone 8, but discovered they easily survived our zone 6 winters. They flop badly when left to their own devices, but a few tomato cages help with this, and the epic blooms are worth it.

Flabbergastingly large mess of fruit. I've never seen anything approaching this level of fecundity in our resident pawpaws before this season. It was truly a banner year for these native trees.

Clouds beyond the Savanna. Every time I visit this area I kick myself mentally for not taking pictures a few years ago so I could dramatically juxtapose them with present scenes. Of course, five years ago I had no inkling of what this abandoned cornfield would become.

It's amazing how much a couple of fake cats can add to the garden. The same could be said for river stones (we call ‘em crick rocks), salvage bricks, spreading and draping plants, and old logs. I rarely draw up a plan for any part of the garden or property—I just start adding elements, and move them around until I'm satisfied.

How can anyone use insecticides when creatures like the buffalo treehopper are in the garden? I found this one perched on a crocosmia stem.

The part of the old cornfield closest to the river isn't really savanna anymore. It's more of a young, brushy woodland with box elders and sycamores starting to dominate. These juveniles are closing in over the paths in some areas, forming wonderfully cool tree tunnels. Entering these elongated oases in summer is a welcome relief after the punishing sun on the Savanna proper, where small trees are just beginning to cast a little shade.