The Painful Price of Not Paying Attention

I've let myself be lulled by cooler than normal temperatures. How can something so pleasant have led to potential disaster?

See, because of the cooler temperatures and days of overcast skies, I haven't been paying enough attention to how little rain we've actually been getting. My front bed, composed primarily of more established prairie wildflowers, has been looking great (at least as far as water stress goes!). That's what I pass by closely on my way in and out of the house several times a day...and I haven't been looking nearly as closely at my new backyard bed.

After all, it looked fine from the kitchen window. When I actually walked out to it yesterday, however, I was appalled to see that several plants had dried up and disappeared and several others looked like limp caricatures of themselves. Whoops.

I hate it when I fail to follow my own advice! "You can generally plant containerized plants at any time in the growing season, but be sure you keep them well watered for the first year or two, especially if you're trying to get them established during the summer."

At this point, it will probably be next spring before I know the true extent of the damage I've done. I'll try to think of it as an opportunity to try something new. But, blast it! I didn't really even give these plants an even chance at deciding whether they wanted to grow and thrive here. That's what makes me the most frustrated with myself.