A calamity of carnations

That's a group word I just made up but it really suits my carnations-dianthus-pinks this year.

For the first year ever I have carnations growing nay thriving. I love them and I have never been able to get them to grow before, I have struck out with all varieties.

This year with my wife's encouragement, 'they have always grown for me...' I picked out a lovely carnation, yellow with pink streaks [according to the picture] and a simple white dianthus.

The carnations budded profusely, then one opened. It was pink with minute white ruffling. I am not very fond of the color pink but I consoled myself with the idea of their scent. I picked a flourishing blossom.

No scent whatsoever. I had never realized that scentless varieties existed, for me there isn't much point, I love the scent so...

The white dianthus are doing well also, and the first few flowers opened last week. I'll leave it to your imagination my reaction when I sniffed a dainty specimen. No scent again.

It seems even when they grow I strike out. So I sniffed my new perennial lavender and tried to console myself. Summer tomorrow. It's hard to believe June is 3/4 over already.