Pansies persevere in chilly spring and fall weather…the cheerful appearance and sweet, subtle scent belie its ability to survive freezes, fall cold snaps, and even mild winters – Penn State Extension
Nobody can keep on being angry if she looks into the heart of a pansy for a little while – Lucy Maud Montgomery, Canadian author (1874-1942)
The hot summer sun finally left us. For several months a drought caused deep cracks in the ground while the grass, flowers, and trees lost their usual growing time. Leaves from the trees gathered in large piles then a warm wind whisks through scattering leaves everywhere. Walking across the yard brought the sound of potato chips crunching. To glorify the coming of fall I gathered together all of my fall seasonal decorations, strings of gold, orange, and brown silk leaves on a cord. The front door holds a fall wreath in the same colors. Bodock balls also known as “Osage orange tree, hedge apple or horse apple,” were here and there in the woods. I gathered a few and arranged them into a woven basket with a colorful fall ribbon.
A week or two after we received a nice rain watering grass, summer flowers, the trees and lakes. Suddenly a dozen or more of the red spider lilies popped out inside a very dried raised bed. Spider lilies usually bloom from late summer to early September. These ladies popped up with the precious rain. They have stayed in the raised beds for several weeks now as red as ever.
It was time to visit the garden center for some new flowers. I purchased a flat of pansies. They are beautiful and hardy in cold weather. They come in many colors and sizes. They are said to be edible and used as a garnish. I think ours will be enjoyed from or on the porches.
Arriving at home I put the flat four steps up on the porch. I took four pansy cups and planted the pansies in a flowerpot; the rest could wait until the next day. Unfortunately, the next morning all the pansies blooms had been nipped as had the hostas, potato vines, and my glorious portulaca sometimes called “Moss Rose.” They had been so beautiful. Not even a stem remained of the portulaca. A Google search showed deer eat pansies like candy. Google also said in times of drought deer will eat things they normally would not eat. They suggested putting Irish Spring soap around flowers. Deer will shy away from strong smells.
We have deer that settle down in the woods at night. When I’m searching for Wilhelmina with a flashlight, I can see the eyes of about three deer laying down. The day before the pansies’ destruction we had purchased a deer feeder, but the deer didn’t wait a day, so they nipped my pansies. Not to be outdone I planted all the nipped off pansies and put them in pots on higher ground. Time will tell if the blooms will appear later with the roots and leaves intact. It’s the way of the Prairie.
Shannon Bardwell is a writer living quietly in the Prairie. Email reaches her at [email protected].
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 46 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
