Birmingham Botanical Gardens

 One of my reservations when I think about life on a farm is the fact that you are tied to it.  Planting, tending, and harvesting keep you busy in the fields or garden, and if you have animals, they are a daily commitment - twice daily, if they need milking.  One day, I'd love to have a few chickens and maybe goats, but I also love to travel.  Finding someone to take care of my cat while I'm away is probably a lot easier than finding someone to take care of my livestock.  
This past week I've taken advantage of the fact that I have caretakers for my cat and my garden and took several days to visit my sister and her husband in the Magic City - Birmingham, Alabama.  One of our tourist stops was the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, which I'd never visited.  This is a garden (or gardens, actually) to make any plant-lover jealous.  From manicured lawns and rose beds to pleasantly shaded woods and bogs, the Botanical Gardens was a beautiful way to spend an afternoon.  

The woods were an especially welcome part of the walk in the summer heat, with sections of wildflowers, carnivorous plants, and a stream.  Swings and gazebos were scattered in the gardens and along the pathways, making it easy to find a place to stop and rest.

Of course, I had to stop and see the vegetable garden.  A muscadine vine-draped arbor led to a brick stairwell flanked by beds of herbs, and then a garden of raised beds and pathways.  Peas, beans, tomatoes, squash, peppers, and eggplants were present in plenty, as well as half a dozen mature fig trees and a blueberry bush.  We arrived as the sprinklers were running and enjoyed a refreshing break from the heat as we bent to read the tags and identify the veggies.  The rebar tomato supports and straw bale planting were familiar sights from the many gardening books I've perused.  The giant rabbit statue, however, was a new one to me.

The Japanese garden gave us a chance to wander through a bamboo stand of which I was immediately envious, as the tall, sturdy poles make great supports but are expensive and difficult to find commercially.

Dozens of beautiful examples of what a garden can be, the Birmingham Botanical Gardens is worth more than one repeat visit, and wonderfully enough, it's free.  My sister enjoyed seeing the different plants in bloom compared to those she'd seen in the spring, and she was already planning a picnic for next time before we left.