Hello again from Sarah Graves, and from Eastport, which with a summer that lasts perhaps twenty minutes isn’t the likeliest garden spot in the world, but it may be the most enthusiastic. Despite hordes of deer, Eastporters raise flowers in profusion. Warm weather and rain have helped matters along, and now that our holiday company has gone home we can get out and pull a few nice, quiet weeds.

Some of us are ambitious, and have the space to make a big-time vision a reality. Trees, water features, paths, and meadows all backed by a view up the bay to the St. Croix river and the hills of New Brunswick…that’s the kind of big-canvas creation you will find at the north end of the island. A graveyard on one side of the property and a summer home on the other make for a peaceful place to pursue this landscape design project.

Others have less space, but just as much va-voom. This is the kind of garden you’ll come upon as you wander up and down the side streets of Eastport, just something somebody puts heart and soul into for the pleasure of doing it.

Vegetables are a big hit here, too, and their living quarters don’t have to look utilitarian, as you can see from this south end of the island patch. Note the serious deer fencing: we have taken to shock treatment in our efforts to repel them.

We have public gardens, like this one along the walkway downtown, between the Quoddy Tides building and the post office. This was a patch of waste ground until a gardener got inspired, and got to work. Behind the garden on the left is the dive shop, and in the distance on the right is the flower shop.

My own garden is doing well in some areas, not so much in others. Except for potatoes, onions, and garlic, the vegetable area is a complete bust, don’t ask me why, but the flower beds seem happy. Deer have eaten black-eyed Susans but left the dahlias alone so far.

The astilbe doesn’t the least bit go with the calendula, but the latter came up from seed all by itself so I couldn’t very well pull it out. And by the time I got around to thinking about moving it, it had grown strong where it was and I was becoming accustomed to its big orange self.

The photograph below is by my friend Jim Lowe, who snapped it while I signed books in front of Wadsworth’s hardware store on July 3rd. It was a great day, lots of people stopped by, and we had fun. Thanks, Jim!