There are few places I’d rather be than on our deck. Traveling is fun, and exploring keeps us young, but there’s a lot of truth in L. Frank Baum’s words via Dorothy:  “There’s no place like home.”

Mid-July is the time when the deck’s flowerpots overflow with a summery mixture of colorful annuals and a few perennials. I have no method of organizing these plantings; I just know I like brights and whites, so we’ve ended up with lots of purples, reds, and whites. The cosmos I grew from seed are one exception in their pinkish-rosy hues. In today’s heat, the first “double click white” cosmo from Swallowtail Garden Seeds (available last year) is blooming.

Echinacea that overwintered in the greenhouse when I needed the pots for tulips, are back in bloom all over Coppertop and on the deck as well.

Mingling with the perennial dianthus and some sweet petunias, the electric blue lobelia are an excellent accent. The heliotrope’s textured leaves and cherry pie fragrance are other favorites.

Basil that was getting munched by slugs in the herb garden is safe and sound in pots on the deck. The only other herbs in pots are dill and lemongrass.

The Queens Of The Deck are the fragrant sweet peas! I’d hoped they might reach the height of our thermometer (6 feet) by end of summer, and here they are in mid-July. I love the vibrant colors and will definitely start the same varieties next year. Included are Lord Nelson, Barry Dare, and Air Warden, all from Swallowtail.

Down around the corner of the deck, the trellises along the garage are also filled with sweet peas. Thanks to the bounty of seedlings I even planted some to climb the bird feeding post outside the kitchen window. These all are in sunlight all morning, then have the relief of a cooler afternoon. I inhale deeply each time I pass by.