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| Butterfly Weeds have long-lasting orange flowers. |
Sassy and I always enjoy the front yard in the afternoon. The shade favors our side, and the driveway serves as a good place for combing the dog, guarding the street, and trimming the grassy weeds.
Most of the plants are packed up and growing together by this time. The ones I thought were weak begin to shoulder the others aside. Various blooming cycles repeat - wild strawberry, mints, and many more. Millions of creatures handle several jobs. The omnipresent wild strawberries feed the birds, and extra foliage add to the soil, just as their tiny roots do.
One minute a plant is mostly growing fruit, then it is dropping leaves to replenish the soil. The birds love berries and distribute them with alacrity.
I stand inches from the Joe Pye Weed blooms so I can watch the tiniest flower flies and butterflies do their work.
Sitting on the driveway is the best way to avoid chiggers and other lasting surprises. Stings are almost completely absent and only come from the red wasps that rarely attack but seldom hurt.
Sassy comes over for petting and finger-combing on the driveway. She yelps about brushes but loves having that undercoat shedding gone. One her lovey battery is replenished; she walks over for a better view of her cul-de-sac properties.
