Is Summer Here
One wildflower that is not generally seen in gardens is the Indian Pipe, Monotropa uniflora. It contains no chlorophyll being a saprophyte, obtaining nourishment from decaying matter in the soil. There are those that have used its powdered root for medicinal purposes as a tonic, sedative and antispasmodic.
There are quite a few plants in gardens that have potentially harmful characteristics if not treated with caution, from Aconite, Aconitum napellus also known as Monkshood, to the Yew, Taxus cuspidata. I did not go all the way to Z as I don't think the Death Camas, Zigadenus venenosus, is commonly found in gardens. The name alone should scare people away. Then there are purveyors of plants that do not provide all the names or details on their wares to the unwary, such as sellers of "Moonflowers", not highlighting that this Datura, with its dramatic white flowers, is poisonous.
Are the leaves on trees beginning to turn to their fall colors? Can the summer be almost over before it was really here? It only arrived on the last week of August. When one lives in a region of four seasons that seems to predominate in just one, winter, summer is a most precious time. Soak up the memories of the day and relive them slowly during the months ahead. All too soon gardening will move indoors.