MId-Summer

As we gather at the peak of the solar season - the summer solstice, we ought remember our northern cousins, trapped in their winter bleakness. Anni's blog has been full of such seasonal commentary, poor dear. Even as a "transplant" to warmer, Southern Hemisphere soils, she still suffers the seasonal longings, it seems.

*****

As a grower of Peonies, cold-climate plants from the Northern Hemisphere, I know that the growers in the Northern Hemisphere console themselves on this day with the thought that as the days start to lengthen, from tomorrow onwards, the Peonies will start to make the first signs of spring growth.

You have to believe it. Even though our summer will get hotter yet, and their winter will get much colder yet, it really is the length of hours of sunlight which determines the seasonal growth of most flowers. This is especially true of those precious jewels from the cold Northern Hemisphere (like Anni).