The thrill is going, going, gone.

The thrill is gone. A final good-bye.

It's a cold rainy day today. It is actually more of a steady misty drizzle, the kind of wet fogginess that you associate with the movie "Casablanca." There are two lovers on the verge of parting. You guessed it, me and my spring/summer flowers. I look at my patchy spots of color and I bow my head to the greats that are on their way to a better home (hybernation, or death). I am comforted by the thought of the next generation that they (plants) have fathered (seeds, corms, etc.). No, this is not a final good-bye, but a see you again sometime old friend.

This is a zinnia that was a royal purple. It grew so tall. An armadillo rooted around it and knocked it over, which encouraged the plant to make massive amounts of side shouts. The one three feet tall stalk looked more like a bush as it laid on its side. Remember the glossy look is due to the rain that was falling as I took the picture.

This daisy is one of two that I planted this month. The woody stem that is to the back, left of the daisy is the trunk of a specimen forsynthia. It has been raining for four days pretty steadily. On the first day of the rains, the temp was 78 degrees. Today the temp is 50-45 degrees.

Well, with rain gear and umbrellas, my middle daughter faces the inevitable, if it is the Lord's will, momma will be at it again next year. She peeps over the fence covered in cypress vine knowing that It has really only just begun; the planning, the dreaming for next spring. Her head tilts with her own thoughts of supportive, comforting, adjectives for me, her mother. She is the greatest garden cheerleader. And my photographer, baby Guyton, will be busy clicking away. I'm sorry B.B. King, the thrill of gardening is never gone.