BLUMEN BLOOMIN'

IT'S A GREAT YEAR for flowers here -- Europe has been drenched as the U.S. has suffered heat and drought. Geraniums fill every container -- from the old horse-drawn carriages on  the hotel porch ... 

to the window boxes hanging from  the balconies

of hotels

or antique Swiss dwellings now used for storage.

There are geraniums in wild arrays of form and  color...

And even in the vegetable gardens, delphiniums and edelweiss bloom among the onions.

Sweet william, astilbes, and sea holly edge the lawns...

and line the fences.

Hollowed-out trees along the sidewalk make colorful containers...

At the florist you can buy cultivated edelweiss or lavender to add a centerpiece to your outdoor table,  a pot to  soften your steps, or a stoneware sculpture to add a bit of whimsy. 

It's Blumen everywhere in Switzerland.