Delphinium

     Here's a photo of my nice delphinium. It's a bit out of focus, because the wind was waving it around, but you can still enjoy the amazing colours.
        The rain of fruit continues, with pears dropping on the lawn and plums and nectarines ripening. The Washo people of inland California (who have the dubious distinction of being the first native American tribe to be completely wiped out by the activities of the whites) called this harvest time 'Big Time' or gumsaba. 
         There is a wonderful and curious novel about the Washo people, which I read many years ago in a tent on a camping holiday, and it has stayed with me for many years. Thomas Sanchez' novel "Rabbit boss" charts the demise of the Washo through four generations of a family. It has many curious passages of magical prose, entering the thoughts of the people, and starts with a young Washo man watching the disaster of the Donner Party, when white settlers killed and ate others in a desperate attempt to survive a winter in the mountains. It is a long and not easy read, but well worth investing the time if you can find a copy.
       But now I must go and bottle!