Mornings are my favorite time of day. I feel the most creative, productive, relaxed, and motivated. The lighting is magical, and the bees, butterflies, and moths still sleep. During the summer months, the temperature is bearable and used for watering. I love the stillness before the world wakes. Roads are empty, and shopping is slow; I can move in and out quickly with my errands. Mornings fly by so fast that I ignore the world and focus on the things I want to do. Now that temperatures are more relaxed in the mid-60s, I’ve backed off watering most mornings. My garden is in full bloom, and I take advantage of the beautiful lighting to photograph and record the flowers. I can’t get enough of them. This morning was all about the cosmos.

I fell in love with the delicate flutter of a Cosmo and decided to dedicate a large amount of space to grow them this year. I devised and followed a succession plan that would give me a bounty of the cut and come again beauties all summer long. While I have had a bloom here and there, they didn’t take off until September. Then I learned that the cosmos grow and bulk up their leaves when the days are longer and prefer to bloom during the shorter days of late summer and early fall. My cosmos have topped out at 3 and even 4 feet tall, and I’ve struggled to keep them from falling over. The zinnias, grown right next to the cosmos, were strong and supported the tumbling cosmos. Next year, I will skip the succession plan and try interplanting the cosmos with the zinnias, keeping their preference in mind.

Week 37 recap:

• Started hardy annual seeds.
• Transplanted peonies and phlox.

Plans for week 38:

• Start fescue grass seed.
• Plant oakleaf hydrangea.
• Remove spent sunflowers
• Clean front flower bed.
• Tie up climbing rose.

Week 37 blooms:

• Amaranth
• Celosia
• Cosmo
• Crape Myrtle
• Dahlia
• Globe Amaranth
• Hydrangea
• Ivory Feather
• Marigold
• Zinnia

A September morning feels slower with the cooling temperature and gradual sunrise. This might be my favorite kind of morning.