Celebrating a working garden

The festival of Beltane, often called May Day in the northern hemisphere, marks the halfway point between the spring Equinox and summer Solstice.

While there aren't really enough flowers of the right kind to make garlands or lei, the garden is certainly celebrating with a great promising budding and colourful blooming to mark what is also known as Lei Day in Hawaii.

Quite by accident, and quite mysteriously, while attempting to make a less water needy garden, this spring a cottage garden style seems to have evolved outback. Southwest cottage maybe. I just can't seem to do xeric minimalism and yes, I did plant way to closely making for crowded spaces. Some smothering is definitely going to happen as the season progresses. Or some pruning and disciplining of exuberance will be required. Or midsummer heat dormancy will cause some reduction in volume.

Some flowers, such as these on the euphorbia, are very tiny, while others are bold and prominent drawing attention to themselves.

The Amaryllis were not treated well this winter. I abandoned them outside under the cottonwood near the compost bins, yet still they are emerging from dormancy, offering the always spectacular blooms. Maybe I could try the bulbs in-ground?

May Day also being Workers Day, there is plenty of labouring going on in the garden.

From the busy birds, buzzy insects to the food plants: workers all of them.

The lovely laciness of coriander (cilantro)flowers are transforming into plump seeds promising flavourful food enhanced by the taste and medicinal qualities of dhania.

The food trees : apricots, plums and figs are loaded this year with swelling fruit. Not long until I must net against greedy birds.

Grape vines are filling arches with the loveliest of lush green and bursting with buds.

Pomegranate flowers are just starting out front. Last year's harvest, the first, was wonderful. I look forward to the treat of these tasty desert jewels in September and Octber.

Fava beans, a cool late winter/early spring crop have put out a lot of very pretty flowers, but I am not sure yet exactly how much pollination is taking place.

Last year fava beans (aka broad beans) were not hugely successful. I suspect we get too hot too quickly for their liking, but I persist with them as I do love the flavour. There's hope, though, as already there are more pods setting this year. I ate very few fava beans last year, saving the major part of the meager harvest to produce this year's plants.

Though I have, somewhat frustratingly. not been able to do much laboring in the garden these six weeks past, since equinox, (broken wing), the plants, birds, bees, butterflies and earthworms have been putting in good productive hours it seems.

Happy Worker's Day. Happy May Day.

Beltane Blessings.

I had to cancel my planned early April road-trip to see the wildflower superbloom in Arizona because of the broken arm.

It seems a mini super bloom has come to me.

Happy Lei Day!