Summer is in full swing here in the high country of Northern Arizona.  And, for me that means that I'm between blooms on my clematis vines. 

The varieties that I'm growing put out a huge flush in late spring and since I pruned the vines, they should flower again in late summer or early fall.  I'm hopeful, and meanwhile I wanted to share a little bit about this wonderful plant along with images from my spring flush.

Clematis is a luxurious old-fashioned climber that is a showstopper in part-sun here in the high desert.
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Growing in most temperate parts of the world, Clematis is a showy and vigorous vine with over 400 wild varieties. 

The name comes from the classical Greek "klema", meaning vine or tendril, and it's a plant that has been collected and admired since the middle ages. 

There is a bit to know about what type you have (or want to grow) which affects how to care for and prune your vine for success.  Clematis varieties are grouped into one of three categories - spring bloomers, repeat bloomers, and summer or fall bloomers.   They generally do best in part sun, with their roots cool.  And they do best with something vertical to climb on, or can be left to tumble down from a raised location.  They are perennials and will bloom more actively after they are established for a couple seasons.
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Today is summer solstice.  "Midsommar" in Sweden.  I wanted to celebrate by sharing a lovely poem by an American Pulitzer prize winning artist and author who's parents were Swedish.  He lived in North Carolina and his home is now a National museum.
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However you celebrate, be sure it's outdoors and slow down to really observe and find the beauty all around you.  Let me know in the comments below what you think about this sweet poem and what you did to celebrate!

~Miriam

If you're looking for more inspiration, check out the other blog posts about Living with the Seasons here.

This week we are thinking about and celebrating local places, local-ness, the beautiful scenery we are lucky to have, and picnics.  Let me explain!

Tomorrow is International Picnic Day, not that we need a special holiday to make a picnic worthy of celebrating.

And since we want to share time with Dad on Sunday, I think we should all spend the day outside  with our family and friends enjoying a picnic.  There's nothing that sounds bad about that, right?  Consider that aside from some well-earned downtime, there are health and general wellness benefits too!!  

Keep reading to see my list of local Prescott picnic-worthy spots.

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A few years ago, I did a huge project on a property in the Sierra Foothills community of Granite Bay.  

It was a really neat property - 1.2 acres, full of large oak trees, a large spanish-style home with full access to a 10 acre riparian reserve with a seasonal creek, large cottonwood trees, and lots of wildlife. 

​Thing is, it was situated on a local neighborhood road that was a main route to the nearby elementary school.  And although the property offered so much nature and beauty, it didn't have any privacy at all from the street. 

Keep reading to find out about:

• The Ask
• Before
• And After

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​Technically, I missed National Gardening Day which was yesterday, April 14th.  But that's okay, I think we should turn it into a weekend celebration! 

​Honestly, for me it's a daily celebration year-round.  Even in the winter, while I might not be out in my garden actively growing things or enjoying the garden, I'm most definitely planning ahead for the coming season and dreaming up new ideas and projects.

To encourage you to jump into gardening if you aren't already obsessed, and to remind those of us that are in deep already why we do it, I wanted to share 10 Reasons Why Gardening is Good for You.
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One of the fabulous things about gardening in the high country of Arizona (Prescott) is that, for the most part, it's a 9-month season.  The shoulder seasons are most definitely a bit unpredictable.  But it's really a gardener's paradise.

This week our first frost is coming.  Bit early - but if we can get our gardens through the odd frost here and there we will often be enjoying the fruits of our labor well into November.  

This year, because I invested so much in getting the new kitchen garden raised beds built and seeds started, I just couldn't let this cold snap claim the end of my growing season.  So, I spent some time getting prepared ahead of time and have actually enjoyed the process (rather than feeling like it was the end of a glorious summer, it was thoroughly enjoyable).  

I wanted to share a few tidbits from the process here.

Technically speaking, a wildflower is defined as a native plant that grows naturally in the wild, and is not a cultivar that is different from what nature created.  That's a pretty broad definition.  Most of us would most likely imagine wildflowers in a meadow or wooded area with a large variety of random native flowers growing in conditions that each plant has adapted to over eons.  

When we decide we want to create some of that wild meadow feeling in our own home gardens, it often turns into a battle to contain the wanderings of these wild-flowers as well as attempting to provide the right conditions for our favorite varieties.  It can require lots of water to keep the wildflowers looking fresh and not weedy or scrappy.  It can be an ongoing challenge to weed the volunteers that appear where they aren't welcome, as well as the true weeds and grasses that often creep into the mix over time.  

But, it doesn't have to be that difficult to enjoy a little bit of the meadow look at home. 

The trick is to choose plants that are native to your area/climate (and therefore require less water and just less fussing) and are likely to grow in a way that's suited to the amount of space you have and the tidiness that you prefer.  Don't get me wrong, any wildflower will always have a loose and unplanned look to it.  But then that's part of the true charm that appeals to us in the first place.

Over many years of experimenting in my Northern Arizona mountain garden, I've found a few superstars that strike that balance. 

One of them is the Evening Primrose (I recently did a blog post about Growing Mexican Evening Primrose) and the other that I wanted to explore today is commonly called Blanket Flower.

I love to have a garden that is relaxed and inviting - a cottage garden.  But since we live in the high desert of Arizona I am careful to grow plants that don't require too much water and can take the dry early summer and four season climate here.  

Every early spring, of course, even the Arizona low-land deserts are covered with native wildflowers and the show is quite spectacular.  But in a home garden on a small city sized lot, wildflowers can be challenging to incorporate without a scrappy or weedy look.  And often they require quite a bit of water to regularly flourish and reseed on their own.

Enter, the primrose (along with a few other plants I'll tell you about later).  

After much experimentation in my mountain garden here in Prescott, Arizona I have come to depend on this wildflower as a reliable and pretty plant to gives me that meadow feel I love without all the hassle.
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Every summer we do a monthly garden feature, to share with you the success and inspiration of other local gardeners here in Prescott, Arizona.  #gardensofprescott

For August I'm featuring a garden in the Williamson Valley area, northwest of downtown.

This garden is in a much newer part of town, than the July Garden, but it has a wonderful organic and lived-in feeling to it; like the garden has been here for a very long time.

Because it is located in an area with many old Oak trees, and was designed with meandering walks and small pockets of plantings and garden room destinations, it is friendly and inviting space to relax and entertain in the dappled light of the trees.

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When someone mentions cactus, I bet most of you would first think of Prickly Pear.  It is one of the most distinctive desert plants, and grows in a wide range of locations, but is typically considered a hot desert dweller.

And for those of us who garden in the high country of Northern Arizona, some of you may not think of incorporating prickly pear initially.  While our climate is considered a high desert, it might be surprising to know that many prickly pear varieties will not only survive in our four season climate, but truly thrive.
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Optunia

There are many varieties of prickly pear, and it is found growing in southern Canada and all the way to southern South America.  In the Sonoran Desert region, which is a large part of central and southern Arizona, there are at least 18 species alone.  And there are hybrids as well.  I have seen references to even hundreds of cultivars around the world.

The cactus is named for the fruit that form after blooming and ripens in fall, and I guess some would say looks like a pear.  And the fruit is considered edible, as are in fact the pads of many varieties - much skill and work to properly prepare them goes along with a good recipe.

The whole process of watching the buds develop and burst into truly extravagant blooms, and then mature into fruit is really exciting to observe over the whole season.

I am  featuring an Engelman's Prickly Pear that is growing here at Juniper Hill Cottage.  One of my favorites.  Scroll down to learn more.

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