Days of rain have delayed cleanup of the bigleaf magnolia (and other chores) that fell in a recent storm. I’m only complaining a little. Cutting logs and gathering branches is not the gardening I enjoy, but it must be done and then I can move on to create the new planting of the area. That, I look forward to.

Of course, I wish for sunny, seventy-degree (Fahrenheit) days to follow this extended period of rain, but it’s summer so temperatures in the nineties are forecast. With little sunlight over the past week, the garden is in a bit of a lull, but a lush, green lull. I expect that color will increase quickly once the sun comes out.

Japanese and Louisiana irises have faded with a flower or two remaining, but hydrangeas and the scattered few daylilies are flowering. Several lilies began to bloom just as the rains arrived, with others and heavily budded clematis waiting for a few hours of sun.

The large-leafed hostas are an unexpected source of color. Many with blue-green leaves are convenient seedlings that add texture to shaded areas, though some remain only due to my laziness.

Against a green or blue-green background of large hosta leaves, and with a clouded sky, the flowers stand out while blooms of other perennials seem muted. Hostas with variegated leaves shine more brightly in the darkened light, though I wonder if perhaps there might be a few too many. This is rarely considered, even in the shade on a sunny afternoon.