The Accidental Larkspur

Sunday, June 11, 2006

Sometimes it's the unexpected things that make my garden most enjoyable. Take my Accidental Larkspurs, for example. I call them accidental because I wasn't expecting them to be here. Their growth this spring came as a pleasant and welcome surprise.

You see, last spring I planted an entire package of seeds, but not a single one germinated. Not one. Zero. Zip. Nada. I was so disappointed. It was a bunch of bum seeds, I thought. So in a last ditch effort, I tried sowing another half package, even though it was late May and the weather had become too hot. Again, nothing. It wasn't meant to be.

So you can imagine the joy in my eyes when early this spring I spotted a first unfamiliar tuft of green. Then another. And then another.

Could it be? I thought. Could those be my larkspurs? Sure enough, they were.

So now I have an entire section of them -- a beautiful multitude of delicate pink, white, lavender, and bold purple blooms. And because I wasn't expecting them this year, their presence is all the more appreciated. I'm enjoying them every day, as are the bees.