My son named it the ‘mosquito trap’ and he wasn’t wrong. The small pool of water in a depression in one of the large boulders on the lake side of York House was a perfect place for mosquitoes to breed.
This is how that small pool looked many months ago.
But the watery space was also an opportunity. The question, though, was how to use it.
Last week the answer appeared, almost by magic. Or more accurately, by my paying attention to what nature provided.
Driving out from the house, I noticed something blue in the field. I could see forget-me-nots closer to the driveway but this was a different shade of blue.
Buttercups, forget-me-nots, ferns, grasses and something blue. What is it?
A closer look provided the answer. Iris. Quebec’s native blue flag iris. Clumps and clumps of them.
The iris look more purple than blue here. But who cares? When you discover hundreds of these blooming in an old farm field, all you do is count your blessings.
Soon clumps of iris were in the back of the gator and on their way to fill the mosquito trap.
And here they are in situ. They’re still a little droopy but they will recover.
Once the stems are erect, this clump of blue flag iris should look spectacular!
I’m fortunate that these plants were growing profusely in my own field. On someone else’s property or even worse, in the wild, I wouldn’t have been able to dig and transplant them. But in this instance I could. And I’m happy with the results.
À brilliant and beautiful solution!