The Flower gardens have fared better this summer than the vegetable gardens. With the vegetable garden so low key this summer and me relearning my kitchen knife skills, there isn’t too much post harvest production going on right now. Mostly, I ponder how to reconfigure the main vegetable garden next year to make it more manageable for myself.

Not surprisingly, when you put the tomatoes in a month late, they look oddly stunted for mid July. Here they are, the teeny tiny tomato plants…….I am glad that the Flowers don’t seem to mind the benign neglect of this summer as much as the vegetables.

Here are two very traditional New England garden friends, Lemon Lilies and Hollyhocks, sailing along in a flower bed that has only been half weeded once this summer.

In this shot, another Nature Spirit can be seen over the bee balm. For some reason, that is what they look like on film, a ball of slightly opaque air.

Here is a new Flower for Green Hope Farm, Teasel.

I am very excited that it is beginning to blossom. As a biennial, it only blooms after two years, so I started growing it last year to make into a Flower Essence this summer. Teasel is not found around here, so this is the first time I have met this plant.

I decided to grow Teasel after seeing it in a garden book listed as a weed. With the intense geometry of its incredible prickles, I knew it would be an excellent addition to Flee Free.

When I transplanted it into the garden, I noticed that the deer just could not leave this plant alone. I had to build a nest of sticks around it during the spring to save it from the deer devouring every last leaf. This made me think it might be an excellent remedy for Lyme disease.

Since planting this plant, I have heard that David Dalton, another Flower Essence maker, already uses it to address Lyme disease. I find this very heartening and know that within a few short days, we too will have Teasel Flower Essence to offer in support of people and animals dealing with this disease.

I feel certain this is a Flower with an Essence of profound depths. I will try and get more photos to reflect its strengths and will let you know as soon as this one is made. I am waiting a few more days to see how the Flower heads evolve and to get the green light from the Angels that it is time to make this Essence. As I noted, this is not a plant I have met before and I am so grateful that it is now flourishing here.

Its not just the Flowers flourishing. Here is the Smokebush doing its smoky thing. As always, it really sets off the Echinacea.