The morning after the storm

Pitch black by 6:30 p.m. as Mark was getting ready to go to a photo lecture. Once the wind and rain kicked in it was clear he wasn't going anywhere. I kept expecting the tornado sirens to go off but they didn't. We pulled the curtains just in case something hit the windows. I always figure that will slow down shattered glass from flying into the room. Lost power shortly after 7 p.m. Sat and read with flashlights and a big lantern that lit the room surprisingly well.

But the storm kept drawing us to the windows to marvel at the intensity of the wind and the wildly blowing and twisting trees in the garden. The pond was overflowing into the dry stream mechanism to handle such events. But the water flowing through it was the highest it's been in many years. Once it all calmed down around 9:30 p.m. Mark took the lantern and walked around a bit to see if there was any major damage.

Here's what it looked like this morning. One of our many bunnies briefly joined me for a look at all the twigs and small debris that's scattered all over the garden.

We got 4.32 inches (10.97 centimeters) of rain in not much more than two hours. It was blowing against the house so that you could hardly see out some of the windows. It was enough rain that it started coming in the basement right in the area where we have artwork stored — which meant a lot of things were moved around by flashlight. With no power we couldn't use the shop vac to keep on top of the seepage.

Here's the Lilium henryi that looked so nice in my Wordless Wednesday post. Not sure if they will straighten up on their own. I am guessing the answer is no. My huge Agastache 'Blue Fortune' is all splayed out from the center and I am sure it will have to be tied up for the rest of the season. Luckily most plants and shrubs suffered little permanent damage despite some pretty big branches coming down on them.

Most of the branches that came down were from our Honey Locust trees. One in particular lost a good chunk of a limb. It also left a damaged limb that will likely need an arborist to remove. But I am thrilled that it missed our 'Golden Shadows' Dogwood. Here's the same branch looking down from the back side of the Tea House along the west side fence. This branch is too big to move without doing some cutting which Mark is about to do as soon as he finishes mopping up the basement. The garden certainly needed the rain even if the basement didn't, so I'm not complaining. It could have been much worse.

 

Comments

[Kristin]

Yikes. So many Madison friends shared photos of the storm. I'm glad you didn't have more damage than you did. Time to check with the in-laws in Verona!

[Barbara H.]

Oh my, that was quite a storm. You were smart to check on the basement. I hope the cleanup doesn't take too long.

[Lisa at Greenbow]

Isn't it odd how we are drawn to the very windows we shouldn't be by during a storm? One can hardly stay away. I am glad there wasn't more damage. The rabbit hole must have filled up too.

[Rae Kaiser]

I had no idea we got that much rain. Since we are in a condo I don't think we had many storm facing windows. We were watching TV in the basement. We did come up about 8:30 and sat watching the most amazing light show over the lake.

[Linda from Each Little World]

Rae — ​I can imagine what the lightening looked like at your place. It was wild enough here so I am glad there was no serious damage.​

[Linda from Each Little World]

Lisa — If only the storm had washed away all the rabbits!

[Susie]

Sorry you have a bit of a scare and now a mess to clean. That's a lot of rainfall. We could use some here but hope to see a gentler shower.

[Linda from Each Little World]

Susie — The rain really pelted a lot of the plants. They are looking pretty bedraggled today. So you definitely want a gentler rain.

[Beth @ PlantPostings]

Yes, similar damage here. Many Honey Locust branches down and my tall plants (Swamp Milkweed, Bugbane) were blown over and needed to be staked. But the huge Oaks were fine. I can't believe we didn't suffer more damage with 60+ mph winds and four inches of rain in two hours! Glad your garden is OK, too.

[Loree / danger garden]

Summer storms can be so destructive - even without the artwork storage issue. I'm glad yours wasn't worse - although it looks plenty messy!

[Linda from Each Little World]

Beth — ​We have one big branch caught in the crotch of a tree that will need a pro to remove it. Mostly perennials got smashed from rain and branches. Total rain with Saturday's two storms is just under 6 and a half inches. And more supposedly today. Ugh.

[Linda from Each Little World]

Loree — Definitely messy. Barely cleaned up except for the big stuff and we've had two more storms since I took the photos.

[Jenny]

Sorry about the mess but I would take a little mess to have the chance of 4" of rain. Hope your art work survived the rain coming in the basement.

[Peter/Outlaw]

How frightening! I'm glad that your damage was minimal and that you're safe, sound, and dry!