Once upon a time, I bought a scented geranium, potted it up, and put it outside with other geraniums in a little theater set up. (Pelargoniums, actually, but you know what flower I’m talking about.)
That little scented geranium was near the bottom of the theater, and quite frankly, wasn’t doing that well.
One day, a couple of viola seedlings showed up in that pot. Rogues? Infiltrators? Interlopers? Weeds? Goodness, no!
Violas are kind, sharing, sweet, wonderful flowers! In my garden, I let them choose their pots and plots and grow wherever they like.
Those viola little seedlings grew and flowered and looked so pretty that I took their picture.
And that picture would have just been one of countless pictures of violas for me to scroll through on my phone, except one day I chose it for the wallpaper background on my iPad.
Then every time I picked up that iPad, those violas looked like they had something to say.
With a little help from Canva, I encouraged them a bit and gave them a voice so I could hear what they were talking about.
Thus began a series I’m calling “Overheard in a Flower Garden.”
For your amusement, here are the first four conversations. I’m also posting them on Instagram and Substack Notes.
For the record, none of these violas were cut and “squished” to be dried. I cannot say the same for other violas.
Clearly, the big one in the middle is the instigator of most conversations, and I hope because that’s the top center one, that’s where you read first, and then you go clockwise round, until you get to the little tattered one. I might make that more clear by putting that last one on the bottom like the third one.
Yes, these violas did get put inside, in the garage, and live under some lights with that tiny scented geranium back there which is still barely hanging on. For the record, the violas don’t look very good right now, either.
My goodness, these violas think they’re going to be reading this winter? Well, I can’t fault them for their book choice, clearly a blatant attempt by me to sneak in a mention of The Christmas Cottontail at the start of the holiday book-buying season.
I’m sure I’ll overhear some other conversations amongst these violas. Stay tuned.
With a shared love of gardening, and violas,
Carol
P. S. The garden fairies are not happy that I let talking flowers take up so much of my time when they have things they’d like to write about too. They are itching to get to the keyboard! Should I let them post again?
The post Overheard in a Flower Garden: Talking Flowers appeared first on Carol J. Michel – Author and Gardener.
