I believe that inhaling paint fumes and shedding tears for a couple of hours each day over Sally Field has befogged my brain. The trellis next to my porch is climbed by both Confederate and Carolina jasmine. The Carolina–yellow–blooms a couple of times annually and has done well in spite of recent years’ winter and summer droughts and our few hard freezes. However, the Confederate jasmine hasn’t bloomed for two or more years, and I was beginning to think the Carolina vines had overtaken it as surely as Sherman overtook Georgia.
Today as I was wandering around the yard–in my nightgown, of course, a sure way to draw traffic down our street because heaven forfend I not make a fool of myself–I wouldn’t have even noticed the trellis had it not been for that heavenly scent. The South has risen again.
Vines heavy with Confederate jasmine.
A closer look. Wish you could smell it.
Also thanks to the aroma, I noticed my mother’s amaryllis tucked into the corner of that bed. I don’t believe it’s bloomed since the year she died, but it looks like nature has helped it bounce back. I’m not catching it at its prettiest, but I’ll watch it in case better photo ops come my way.
Nora Walker’s got nothing on me.
If there were honeysuckle at the compound it would be paradise.
For you, but sadly, honeysuckle makes me sneeze like crazy. I loved it when I was a kid–did you used to drink the nectar, too?
oh yes …
That’s just summer in the South, isn’t it? The smell and taste of honeysuckle, lightning bugs flying around, the chorus of the peepers…
i can remember nights where Scott and I would be catching lightning bugs under our mimosa tree and never wanting to go in.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen an amaryllis growing outside!
Our friends Amy and Richard have an entire bed of them in their back yard. It made me very envious!
I have one in the living room from last Christmas. I wonder if it’s hardy this far north.
We had a whole row of honeysuckle growing along a fence at my grade school’s athletic field. I never thought to taste it.
I never thought to taste it.
I’m sure the bees appreciated that.
We used to have that growing right outside our back door. (I know it as Chinese Star Jasmine.) Unfortunately we had several years of drought and really high temperatures and lost it. The perfume was amazing.
It’s drought and poor soil tolerant, but I really thought ours was gone after so long without seeing it bloom. I’m thrilled that it’s back!
Confederate jasmine – what a lovely name . . . and a lovely look, too.
It sounds very romantic, doesn’t it?
I too wish I could smell the jasmine. All I’ve seen around here flower-wise is a couple of crocuses.
You probably should come back in May. =)