It could just be that Summer is a coveted time of year for those of us who live in lands of four seasons, but I totally relate to today’s gardening poem, Summer Days for Me! by Christina Rossetti, edited by Maria Polushkin Robbins.
Fall? Pretty, sure, but mostly signaling the death of Summer. So we eat our feelings through apple cider doughnuts, pumpkin muffins, and hot chocolate. Winter? Sure, it’s great with the snow, snowpeople, and the holidays. But mostly we’re just preparing for the long sleep until Summer. Spring? Lovely enough but mostly muddy. I do enjoy this time for starting seedlings and the anticipation of Summer itself. Then, Summer arrives, flip flops come out of the closet, and even when we have the inevitable cold snap in late Spring, ain’t nobody taking their flip-flops off because Summer has arrived!
For the gardening minded, this is the moment we wait for all year long. To put our seeds and seedlings in the ground and watch them grow. To wait and see if the plans we laid actually pan out for the better. For example, this year I dedicated an entire bed to watermelon. Watermelon that pretty much never grows in my garden, I decided to give a couple Sugar Baby plants an entire bed, with a carefully placed trellis, and pray that this will be my year.
I’m equally excited about new experiments I’m doing on my tomatoes this year. I’ve moved them next to my largest trellis, and instead of letting them outgrow their cages this year, I’ve been working on extreme pruning to see how large I can grow fruits. The trellis will keep them sturdy so I can still grow them tall, but not as bushy. Fingers crossed!
Getting back to the seasons, which this short gardening poem is about, I just love the disdain Maria has for the other seasons, in favor of Summer. Winter? Meh. Spring? Bleh. Fall? Eck. But Summer, bring it on! It makes me laugh, and I’m sure my fellow four-season friends can relate.
A Gardening Poem About Why Summer is the Best Season
This story comes from our archive that spans over 30 years and includes more than 130 magazine issues of GreenPrints. Pieces like these that inject the joy of gardening into everyday life lessons always brighten up my day, and I hope it does for you as well. Enjoy!
Summer Days for Me!
Christina Rossetti
Winter is cold-hearted,
Sping is yea and nay,
Autumn is a weather cock
Blown every way.
Summer days for me
When every leaf is on its tree. ❖
By Christina Rossetti, edited by Maria Polushkin Robbins. Published in A Gardener’s Bouquet of Quotations, and reprinted in 2016, in GreenPrints Issue #122. Illustrations by John Hinderliter.
What’s your favorite season? Can you relate to this gardening poem, or is a fall crop more your style?
