100° in Effieland

Effielanders Effie and Paladin refuse to leave their grounds and come into the house when it’s a mere hundred degrees outside and their water drippers are providing only very warm water. Paladin naps, and Effie walks around drinking warm water. They seem not to mind in the least.

Effie finds a bit of shade in some grass, intermittently drinking warm water without flinching.

Paladin rests in a small patch of grassy shade by a pot of fresh growing catnip. He’s not punch-drunk; the sun’s in his eyes.

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In the pink: Here come the lupines

I welcome lupines as harbingers of summer, especially when they arrive in pink. We also have later-blooming lupines in cream and blue. The ones pictured here are beginning to bloom, and will soon fill their stalks with more petals. Effie and Paladin  took turns today, sleeping among the leaves on the side opposite the flowers.

It’s 112° in Effieland and Effie finds shade. . .

under a grapevine, where even the paving stones are cool!

Bounty of the vines

This evening we picked nearly nine pounds of grapes from two of our twelve vines in under half an hour. The variety of colors and flavors is amazing–all beautiful, and all delicious. Flame Seedless and Swenson Red are represented here, and we also picked and nibbled a few ripe Canadice as well. After rinsing the grapes, we loaded them into zip-lock freezer bags and put them in the freezer. We have just a few bags left from last year, and the newly picked grapes, and all the ripening grapes we will soon pick, will supply us for at least another year.

Effie among Grapes

Special Guest Star Halvor basks in the welcome sunshine on the patio. . . .

Effie enjoys a bit of shade near a chair.

Effie checks out a blackberry branch. She probably doesn’t mind that the blackberries have all been picked. Behind her are ripening Flame grapes.

Happy girl in a pleasant garden!

As blueberries ripen

As our blueberries begin to ripen. . .

Effie evidently prefers the shade of grapevines. I honestly can’t blame her; Effieland is 106° F right now.

Southeastern Washington hotter than Tripoli!

Tripoli, Libya (as versus Tripoli, Lebanon, or Tripoli, Iowa) was 93° F at 3:00 PM local Tripoli time. Effieland, our cat Effie’s garden domain, was 98° F at 3:00 PM our local time.

In all fairness, we are 1,300 ft above sea level. Tripoli is 266 ft above sea level, bounding the Mediterranean Sea.

The climate where we live is designated “cold semi-arid steppe (grassland).” Libya is designated “hot semi-arid,” though Tripoli has a more temperate, Mediterranean climate.

We have more cold days and colder days than Libya has–but also a few hotter ones, too.

Tripoli, Libya – Mediterranean Beach Scene, Summer, Corinthia Hotel, Dhat al-Imad Office Buildings

My beautiful bit of prairie

Vibrantly sunny flowers for a vibrantly sunny day

Sunflowers seem to invoke cheer, the way roses appeal to our sentimentality.

Who thrives at 93° F? Sweet peas.

Effieland’s Sweet Peas respond well to heat and watering, and we respond to their delicate beauty with joy.

A pair of pears

My husband planted this pear tree four years ago. It was only a foot tall! Now it’s seven feet tall and we celebrate its first year bearing fruit.

Our plums are on their way, and we hope for ripe fruit late in July.