Midsummer and all the festivities surrounding it – is over.
But this Midsummer was a different one. Usually we have rather chilly Midsummers, and a bit rainy – but many beautiful wildflowers. This year I had to take the bike out for hours in order to get the midsummer flowers – the result was only one, single bouquet…
This year, the heat in Sweden has been overwhelming since May, and many elderly people and newborn babies have difficulties with it. Not to talk about Nature and wildlife. There are no worms, no snails, no grass for the cattle and no flowers for us to admire. I pour water in seven different pots in the garden – for the birds and the hedgehogs. Wild fires are frequent in the southern part of Sweden, where I live.
I keep some of my flowers alive though – My Flammentanz roses seem to cope rather well. I water them late in the evening or around midnight. Watering is forbidden in many places now, and soon we will get that message too.
In fact, the cherry tree is the only tree liking this heat – or maybe it works like the pine trees – they produce cones in several hundreds when they think they are going to die. Anyway, the cherries taste delightful, and the tree has never been this blessed before. I planted it when my daughter, Emma, was born, in 1990. My son David got a plum when he was born, in 1992, and his tree brought us many kilos of delicious fruit last year, but this year maybe – 5 plums? But that is the way trees work.
Now it is getting late – Good Night to you all. May the rain fall and the sun shine on us all.
Leya 
I totally relate to your experience, Leya! We’re experiencing drought in Holland, and three provinces are already rationing water.
Here is Amsterdam has been stably warmer than ever, since May, and as school vacations started only this week, everyone has enjoyed a beach weather, swimming in the canals.
I went to London last weekend for a wedding and almost melted there, with temps over 30 degrees.
I never imagined I would miss the moody and chilly weather we have in Holland.
Enjoy summer!
Thank you, Lucille – and I agree about how I miss our ordinary summer!
Gosh I did realise it had been quite such a hot dry year over with you. Scotland too has been incredibly dry, and now hot too, but nothing like this where there are no wildflowers to be found🙁
Nothing to photograph…either. And for the bees and insects –
This is terrible, I just hope nature can use her miraculous powers of recovery on herself here💕
💚
Cherries look lovely indeed but the entire account sounds like something from a dystopian novel. 😦 This kind of irregularities – I guess we must start getting used to them. I wish you fresh, soft, benevolent rain.
Thank you, Manja. I guess we will have to get used to it, as you say. But, it is not great to know the cattle is starving and many of them will have to be killed. In the forest I find dead youngsters from starlings and blackbirds every day.
Brighter days will come I hope! And, there are still cherries to eat!
The heat and humidity are killing us in NY. it’s hard to breathe and we live in a really old building so our place is really hot and humid. Our summers can be pretty awful but we’ve had heat around 37C lately. It’s raining today and we get a break for a couple days but it’s going to get awful again. Hope you guys get rain. The flowers look lovely.
37! Well, 34 the other day – I hope you will have some cooling soon. Humidity makes it even worse.
I am amazed to see your grass looking so dry. I hope there will be some rain soon. The cherries look wonderful.
We have a terrible drought with Swedish eyes…two months of no rain. I feel sorry for the animals.
Yes, a real struggle for them.
No blooms here… but we got some rain yesterday. 🙂
Lucky you!
I wish you rain, rain & blossom, dear Anne-Christine…While it rains unceasengly in Moscow, nights are rather cold, while the rain is like in tropical countries. Jokes of Nature…
Yes, the heat of this summer is a nightmare here….
I have understood that. I suffer with Nature.
Indeed