Hydrangea macrophylla 'Ayesha' 23 September 2025

 

In Latin, autumnus can refer to "the autumn season", the "harvest season", or "the passing of the year" and also describes "of autumn" or "autumnal". It is also the name of the goddess who personifies the season of autumn.

On that first day of each of the four seasons Rosemary and I would reflect on the past one and we would plan what we do on the on just happening. We planned many of our travels abroad in autumn as when we would go to Buenos Aires it was their spring.

As I see my garden retiring until spring I feel melancholic. But today this scan would have made my Rosemary smile. Our Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Ayesha’(she who must be obeyed) had one bloom as if today were not the beginning of autumn. I had to scan that bloom right next to one long gone.

In my 52 years of marriage to my Rosemary I never lost that sense of wonder that I could not possibly know her completely and that she would surprise me with facets of her life that would surprise me. Something of that came from her by way of this lovely hydrangea.