Smells like spring!

  Yesterday and today were perfect days to get a few chores done in the yard.  A good bit of trimming, raking and cleaning was on the agenda...not all was completed but I am off to a good start.  On the back side of the house there are two arbors both filled with wisteria.  The first is a lovely white wisteria that Mark and I dug up from my aunt and uncle's place.  The thing was growing wild in what used to be their garden area.  The other arbor holds a the lovely common lavender wisteria.  This, too, was from the old homestead of my relatives.  Both vines have withstood many trials with the worst being Hurricane Katrina.  She did a fine job of trying to rip the vines from the arbors but did not succeed.  No matter how the winds whipped the vines and how rough the water tugged at the roots, the wisterias both stood strong. As matter of fact, I do believe the vines are what held the arbors in place!  

  Yesterday, I noticed that both vines were blooming.  The white seems to have beaten the purple this year in the number of blooms.  Perhaps I failed to trim the purple enough or neglected to remove all of the seed pods.  The white is actually in need of a good trimming itself.  It has grown up into the overhead oak tree and has stretched to the north to reach the grapefruit tree.  Neither of these places are ideal for the wisteria.  

  Still, both vines make for a delightful walk on the north side of the house.  As you amble through the first arbor, an intense perfume hits you.  The smell is most incredible and fills the entire yard.  Then if you continue following the pathway to the second arbor, a slightly less intense but still strong aroma engulfs you.  I find that the white wisteria's scent is far sweeter than the lavender.  Throw in the delightful aroma of the soon-to-open orange blossoms, jasmine, gardenias, magnolias and then mimosas and my yard will rival any perfume factory in the world!  You just have to love springtime on the Bayou! There are some mighty fine aromas filling the air!