One simple pleasure is watching the new shoots of bamboo growing at a visible daily pace. I thought the patch was as tall as it was ever going to get but this year it has outstripped the previous years’ growth. Notice the emerging shoots before they have leaved out surpassing existing growth.
This is good as it makes bigger poles for harvesting, but it is also a key part of our natural air conditioning. In the summer, as the sun moves farther North it comes around the back side of our house and in the late afternoon shines directly on the side wall. The bamboo shades that a lot and the taller the bamboo, the better the shade. This helps keep the house from heating up.
We cover the south windows with curtains during the day to prevent solar heating, then at night open all the windows in the house when the outside air gets cooler than the inside. In the morning, as air temp rises, we go around and shut them all back up and draw the curtains.
While this takes a few minutes effort morning and evening it keeps our house comfortable without using an electrical air conditioner. The bamboo’s shade has helped this process as it has grown in on the northwest side of the house.
Bamboo is not very common at our latitude.
Another fun thing is when the catalpa trees drop their flowers. For a couple of weeks the lawn gets decorated.
While these things might seem boring to someone whose senses are overstimulated by NASCAR races, mosh pits, 300 TV channels, or constant exposure to electronics, if you can slow down a bit and look around, you may find similar things where you live.
