I love the garden at night. Evening is my preferred time for working in my beds. The air is cooler and the light soft and diffused. The sky turns pink as the the long summer days whisper to a close. In July, I can garden until 9 pm and enjoy the sunset while watering my potted plants

and refilling the bird baths. I'm serenaded by a brilliant male cardinal, perched on the very top of my tallest pine tree, singing his goodnight song. His less colorful mate is always close by. The day quiets and a feeling of deep peace and contentment wash over me. The perfume of the flowers intensify and hang in the humid heat, as well as the earthy scent of damp soil. July in Wisconsin, is usually humid and hot, so everything gets a layer of dew as the earth slowly cools. My ever constant gardening companion, Errol, is always outdoors with me and by this time, has found every single patch of mud he can run through. His furry legs, caked to the "elbows" in muck, will have to be hosed off. He'll protest, but, it's been a successful evening chasing bunnies and birds, letting them know whose territory this is. By now, darkness has fallen and it's time to go inside. As if by magic, tiny, flickering spots of green light emerge from every corner of the flower borders and vegetable patch. The fireflies are up and about! Their syncronized symphony of light and motion is a fitting end to a day spent in the grace of a garden.