I have been so impressed with your responses on our Reader Input Challenges (RICs).
First, you gave our heroine a red mini cooper (thanks Margaret!) Next, you invited us to play a game of pool and grab a drink at The Corner Pocket (thanks JB!)
Your answers have been fun and creative but also perfect for the story. Thank you!
Is That a Tulip in Your Pocket or...?
For this next RIC, we're looking for a plant you could find in Washington State that is at its most impressive during the spring but loses much of that appeal at the end of May or beginning of June.
You could buy it from a nursery, perhaps on its own, or as part of a container garden. Maybe it's a little plant with lots of vibrant flowers. Or a larger plant with lush foliage or tasty berries. Big or small, either is fine. Why? Because size...nope, you can't make me say it. I'm better than that. We can all just think it together. 😁
Maybe at its peak, your plant has big, colorful blooms, but the petals fall when the weather changes. Or the heat causes the leaves to permanently droop (yikes!) Whatever it is, the change should be visually significant.
A knowledgeable gardener would know when its showiest days are about to end, but someone who knows nothing about plants (*cough* our heroine cough) might be tempted to buy it, only to find it lose much of its appeal days later.
So What's it Going to Be?
"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need." - Marcus Tullius Cicero
READ FIRST: Legal Stuff
Please read the legalese before submitting your response.
Let me know your ideas below! I'll announce the winner in my newsletter and here in my blog. Thanks for helping shape the story!
A Bleeding heart. They bloom mid-April to May. Then, the hesrts wither and die just before the whole thing turns yellow and falls dormant.
Peony! They are the perfect NW flower. We have nurseries around the state (snohomish and central Washington) as well as Oregon, where the most impressive nursery is (adelmans). Peonies come in all colors and have huge blooms. But when the season passes they can look sad, droopy and brown.
My vote is for the bearded iris. They come in all shapes and sizes...dwarf, intermediate, tall. And all the colors! 😍 ~ Stacia
Entry by Bobby K Daffodils... They are at once both nostalgic and eagerly optimistic (in the spring...) For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
William Wordsworth
Kim,
Your area is famous for the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival (which runs from April 1-30). These beautiful flowers last until things heat up, lose their petals and become less attractive. There may be some ways to tie this into your story!