Dear Reader:

If you are a Lowcountry gardener… the most challenging time of the year has arrived. How to

keep the spring/ early summer plants alive! It ” ain’t” easy! Overwater and you get root rot, under water and you get fried Gerber daisies. Suddenly all the earlier blooming plants have black spindly stems-even a beautiful bloom at the end of the stem doesn’t make up for the ugly ” holders.”

But then comes the cavalry … the Lowcountry lantana! For years during the Victorian period lantana was considered an ornamental plant with its diversified clusters of varied colorful flowers. It especially helped that lantana was drought resistant.

Now, however, due to its

aggressive weed-like growth and toxic nature, it is classified as a weed. And I, for one, am so happy and appreciative for it!

It fills in gaps where earlier flowers have given up the ” ghost” with much beauty-the hotter and drier the better!

Over the years I have added more color combinations than the traditional yellow and what an asset they are in the dog days of August. Here are some samples from my garden.

Yesterday…while watering my side garden I happened to glance down and from out of nowhere a sprig of lantana was growing all by itself… one bloom…another garden mystery-soon it will spread and cover the side garden for some ground foliage! Perfect!

Today scientists consider being ” human” a folk category, not a scientific one, and science can’t settle the question of what kinds of beings are human for the same reason it can’t settle the question of what kinds of plants are weeds.

For me it’s all in the eyes of the beholder.. as seen through our Creator-it is true …”Everyone and Everything is beautiful in their own way.”

So until tomorrow…

” Today is my favorite day” Winnie the Pooh