At the beginning of the month, we had a horrible heatwave, and I whined about how we don’t have summers in Maine the way we once did. Well, either the weather gods heard my lament and took pity on me, or they decided to pull one of their little tricks. The heatwave lasted for a few days, and since then, we have been having an old-fashioned Maine summer — warm, dry days with temps in the low 80s and cool nights that dip down into the 50s or 60s. In other words, sheer delight. I wish readers suffering through extreme heat could be in Maine right now to enjoy this perfect weather.
My front gardens are in a bit of funk right now and not just because of the work on the house. Somehow, with the demise of my lilies because of the lily beetles, I just haven’t found anything to take their place in terms of color and pizzaz for late July and August. Darn things! The beetles are relatively new to Maine, and I wish they had never crossed the border. But in everyday life, we know how far we get ahead with wishes. The lily beetles are here to stay, and I have decided not to grow lilies in the garden.
However, the plants on my porch are thriving. Between the perfect weather and just the right amount of watering and feeding, they are in their glory.
Begonias,
coleuses,
and those oh-so-pretty petunias really jazz up the front porch.
In other news…Clif began tearing siding off the house,
but he ran into some problems. Or rather, they ran into him.
Now, for the most part, we are very careful not to destroy the homes and habitat of the creatures who live around us. In our yard, Moles and ants burrow and dig with abandon. Porcupines are allowed to use the underneath of our shed for a home. But Clif was unable to work on the house with a nest guarded by dive-bombing biters. (I am not sure if it is a hornet or wasp nest, but the results are the same. Readers, if you know what kind of nest this is, do let me know.)
So last night, when it was dark, Clif found a long piece of wood and knocked the nest down. This morning, I used the wood to hook the nest, which still had insects buzzing around it, and deposited it into the woods on the side of our yard. At least we didn’t have to use poison to get rid of the problem, and this afternoon, Clif will be able to resume work on the house.
Never a dull moment at our house on the edge of the woods, but Kai, one of our cats, took it all in stride as he relaxed in the living room.
Ah, the life of a cat!
Notes From the Hinterland 
I am so loving this old fashioned Maine summer weather. Windows open all day and night is such a treat!
Lily beetles completely decimated my whole bed a few years back. I miss them and their bright bursts of color…. but haven’t planted any more for fear the little red bastards will come back.
Your potted plants are lovely!
I am impressed that you walked that nest of stingers, even being on a piece of wood! Wow! Your flowers are gorgeous.
So glad you are having normal Maine weather. I made the mistake of celebrating how mild our summer has been, and that we had even had enough rain. So then of course the Guadalupe flooded again (17-25 inches of rain in 24 hours), this time with fewer lives lost but tremendous property damage. And the “mild” summer is about to be hit with a heat dome and triple digits. Be careful not just for what you wish for but also what you take for granted. Re the nest: I got into the outs with a former neighbor, who, in the process of doing me a favor had a crew in my yard that felt the need to spray mud-dauber nests, which had never been a problem where they were. I sent him a very formal thank-you for the favor, and never spoke to him again.