Shavuot

Today is Shavuot, the forth of seven Biblical Feasts. It is the celebration of the Giving of Torah, when God met with His people at Sinai. Normally Sunday is the first day of our work week and we are busy outside in the garden, but since today is a Holy Day, there will be no work done today.

It has been a rainy day,  in fits and spurts, so I took the opportunity between rain showers to get some photos of the rose trellis that is in full bloom. As I stroll through the wet grass, the profusion of blooms on the rose trellis is a feast for my eyes and is complimented by the scent of honeysuckle that is blooming in the nearby woods... pure bliss.... Both the roses and the honeysuckle are fleeting; the rose on this trellis blooms for only a few weeks and then is done for the season, unless we are fortunate enough to be blessed with a second flush of roses in the fall as we were last year. The honeysuckle will only bloom for a few weeks as well. I try to spend as much time outside in the evenings as possible, enjoying both the combination of the perfume of the honeysuckle wafting up from the woods and the glow that the roses take on at the gloaming of the evening. It is enchanting, like something from a fairytale.

This rose trellis was part of a Father's Day gift that I gave my husband in 2001. He was away for a weekend camping trip in the mountains with one of our sons, so I had the trellis, privacy fence and a deck built for his hot tub while he was gone. It was quite a surprise for him when he returned home from that trip!

 

 Of course it was a year or so before the rose covered the trellis completely, but it did make its way to the top by the end of the summer. By the next Father's Day the trellis was full of roses and was lovely to look at in the evenings from the hot tub since pale-colored roses make a wonderful show on moonlit nights.

Over the years the other plants we had planted in that area had to give way to this rose's robust habit. There isn't time to fuss with plants that can't hold their own...we are survival of the fittest gardeners, so I didn't grieve much when the Lady Banks Rose lost her place on the privacy fence.

It is necessary to use a little discipline on the other side of the trellis, as we have espalier fruit trees growing along the pathway that appreciate a little more light than the rose was willing to offer so, after it blooms, we prune the rose back pretty hard on that side of the pathway to allow the pear and apple trees their day in the sun.

Well day is done and the rain has stopped, the sun is down and the feast day is over. Tomorrow will be a full day with much to do in the garden, there is kombucha to bottle and menus to plan...but for tonight I think I will take a glass of wine out on the deck and enjoy the evening. I hope that you all have a blessed and restful evening!