Bittersweet harmonies

THERE is a tide in the affairs of gardens… at least in cool temperate zones such as the British Isles. It is a gentle shifting of the seasons—imperceptible at first and then more pronounced.

After a winter of widespread flooding, this summer has left lawns parched and straw-like; saved from oblivion only by timely thunderstorms—although grasses are a powerful force of Nature, often capable of recovering from droughts that would see off plants of feebler constitution.