The Divine Inspiration of... Onions?

Well whaddyaknow. It worked.

I guess third time really is a charm. As in.. three attempts to remember the password to this poor, neglected, blog.

I suppose it seems rather silly to be dusting off the blog at the end of gardening season. Been thinking about blogging all summer long and wrote quite a few posts. In my head. While pulling weeds.

Too busy doing the real thing, I guess. Too tired, by days end, to yak about it.

But I just gotta do a shout out for The Onions.

This beautiful little native wildflower was the divine inspiration for my entire summer!

***

Came home, from a month long vacation on June 30th. While I was gone, it rained, and rained and rained some more.

Which is unheard of in this high plains desert.

Thanks to that rain, something magical happened!

The Allium bulbs I ordered.

The entire north 40 (acres, old rancher term) which, in reality, is the east 1/2 (acre)...

... and best known as my backyard..

Had turned bright pink.

Blanketed with wild onions, flowering in the summer sun. Hundreds of them! I just couldn't believe it!

A pink backyard!

Remarkable, really, how those little pink flowers gave me back my mojo. 

Inspired me to take on the mighty task of reworking the big rock garden. 

To dive deeper into waterwise wildflowers vs. hybridized perennials. 

To skip the Daffodils altogether. Spend an arm and a leg on 'true' Allium bulbs this autumn.

The bulbs arrived today. Which got me thinking about those pretty in pink little wild onions whose blooms are long gone but not forgotten. 

Allium Canadense

Part of the Lily Family

* Some call them wild garlic, midwesterners often call them meadow garlic. We westerners call them wild onions and they are as lovely to eat as they are to behold. 

When camping, I've often picked 'em and cooked with them. 

Be sure to smell them if you do that.. make sure they have an onion aroma and that they are the real deal.

PS: That top photo is a Nodding Onion. They, too, are a delightful addition to your garden. 

Bonus: Deer, moose, elk absolutely hate allium - bulbs, wild onions, you name it.. they will avoid your garden if you plant some.

***

"My bank account is like an onion. Whenever I check the balance, my eyes tear up."