Sassy loves her morning walk, so I should have been aware of her lethargy as I put on my shade hat and shoes. Hmm, the driveway was damp.
I felt a light mist falling and turned around to see "Nope" in Sassy's eyes. Snow and ice are fine with her, but not rain. She has her own internal weather station. On one walk, when she usually wanted to turn around at Pat and John's, she headed home.
The sky did not seem threatening to me, because it is often overcast - clouds without rain, like the OJ salesmen. We got home and a tremendous thunderclap made us jump. Sassy knew.
Sassy stayed inside. Her funniest look is at the door, with me ahead of her on the driveway, with that "I am staying on the porch look." Being inside is even better when it is hot or rainy.
I was geared up for some pruning, so I grabbed the rose shears and began. I aimed at the finished Joe Pye blooms, which were turning to seed and the finished Bee Balm blooms (say that fast, three times).
I piled up the cuttings to use as mulch around some new roses. They inhibit grassy weed growth. That is the Ruth Stout method - use weeds to prevent weeds while feeding the soil. If the weeds look predatory and aggressive, I put the cut ones in the Blackberry patch. The only weeds growing out from that patch are the Hog Peanuts, a soil enhancer that cannot be pulled out by humans.
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| The doughty little Clethra creates an atmosphere of sweet spice. |
Pruning also opens up the Clethra shrubs to more air. They are doughty little plants,about 5 feet tall, always looking 100% healthy, never begging for water or rain. With more space around it, the Clethra will exude more sweet cinnamon fragrance as the one and only Cinnabon tree.
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| "Resist the beginning." I introduced Sassy to Frosty Paws. Every night she looks into my face and licks her jaws dramatically. It is a lot of fun to see her various expressions as I promise to get some - boredom, joy, exultant, smug. |
