wildflowers | Seeds of Design

The best sort of travel is when one can take a proper break from routine to explore and soak in the surroundings, refresh the mind and fill the heart with a sense of awe and gratitude. That’s exactly what I’m doing here in Provence. I come here because its my happy place. All my senses are engaged and the joy I feel every time is pure bliss.

It is lavender season at the moment so this is when Provence shines at her brightest and looks her very best. Although, I’m told that the poppies gave strong competition till a few weeks ago. It has apparently been a particularly good year for them. They are well on their way out but what glimpses I’ve had of them, I can well imagine the stunning scenes I’ve just missed. Perhaps another year I’ll come in time for les coquelicot.

To see fields and fields of purple rows of lavender is nothing short of breathtaking. Up close, the thrum of bees purposefully making their rounds of the flowers is almost deafening. The butterflies add further color and movement while the birds compete in song. It is simply marvelous.

Lavender aside, there are other wildflowers in bloom. Geraniums, Spanish broom, chicory, scabiosa, verbascum, poppies, oxeye daisies and several others, some of which that I’m yet to identify are running riot in the meadows, hill sides, along the roads and even amongst some of the lavender. And since they’ve had more rain than usual, there is a green lushness I haven’t seen before. I’m smitten.

I’m able to see how these plants grow naturally, the sort of conditions they like best, the surprising color combinations we don’t typically try in our gardens ( sulfur yellow and pale pink?) – so much inspiration. Simple, common flowers doing a bang up job in beautifying the countryside.

The gardens in my temporary home are also looking lovely. The jasmine is in bloom and sends out a heady fragrance in the afternoon after the sun has warmed the air sufficiently. The small lavender ‘field’ is getting ready to burst into bloom – soon. I’ll have my very own purple haze to enjoy. It should look quite stunning against the soft, gray-green of the olive grove alongside.

And so it goes. Travel opens the mind – to take in new pleasures and often, learn from the old.

Here are some images from my wanderings in Provence –