When you walk in the bush in autumn, you may find a bright red vertical fruit hanging on a vine. It’s Karasu-uri. However, I think few people know the flower. Karasu-uri flower appears in a fascinating appearance when the sun goes down, wearing a white lace evening dress. And in the morning the flowers wither. During the night, it emits a fragrance and invites only Suzume-ga, which has a long beak. Only Suzume-ga can ingest deep nectar. In this way, she continue to wait for Suzume-ga every night for four days, pollinate and wait for autumn fruit.

秋、藪の中を歩いていると蔓にぶら下った真っ赤な縦長の実を見つける事があります。カラスウリです。しかし、その花をご存知の方は少ないと思います。カラスウリの花は日が暮れる頃、真っ白なレースの夜会服を着て、妖艶な姿で現れます。芳香を放ち、口ばしの長いスズメガだけを誘います。奥深くにある蜜を吸えるのはスズメガしかいないからです。こうして四日間、夜毎スズメガを待ち続け、受粉して秋の実りを待ちます。

When I dropped there by hoping that the three lily sisters would be blooming, they are in full bloom this year as expected. It will be many years since I first met them. I don’t know anyone planted them, but these three sisters are planted just a little further from the usual walking path. At first, the number of flowers was one or two, but now I have many flowers. Lilies grow more and more flowers as they get older. From the number, I wonder if it’s been four or five years since I met them. I am very happy today to make sure that each other is doing well.

今年も元気に咲いているかなと期待をかけて立ち寄ってみると、期待通りユリの三姉妹がしっかりと花を咲かせています。初めて出会ってからもう何年になるでしょう。誰が植えたのでしょう、いつもの散歩道からちょっと踏み込んだ所にこの三姉妹が植っています。最初は花の数も一つか二つでしたが、今では沢山の花を付けています。ユリは年を経るほど花の数を増やします。数からすると出会ってから4、5年になるのかなあ。お互いに元気で良かったね。

It is believed that Kobo Daishi Kukai still lives in the Koyasan, and continues to meditate in the hope of world peace and the well-being of the people. And many worshipers come from not only in Japan but also abroad to the mausoleum of Koyasan Okunoin. The event that meals are delivered twice a day to a master who still continues to meditate is called “Shoujingu”. During also the rainy season, two priests who are led by the Yuina monk are carrying the morning meal to the Master. For 1200 years, it’s always a morning event, which may not be visible, but Kobo Daishi Kukai is certainly there.

高野山奥之院の御廟には、弘法大師空海が今もなおそこに生き、世界平和と人々の幸福を願い瞑想を続けていると信じられ、国内のみならず海外からも多くの参拝客が訪れています。「生身供(しょうじんぐ)と言って、毎日二回、今なお瞑想を続ける大師に食事を届けます。折からの梅雨の中、今朝も二人の僧が案内人の維那（ゆいな／僧侶の職名)に従って御廟に向かっています。1200年の間、いつも変わらね朝の行事です。姿としては見えないかもしれませんが、弘法大師空海は確かにそこにいらっしゃいます。

Yamayuri can be easily understood even from a distance. This is because it is the largest, gorgeous, and highly odorous flower in Japan. For some reason, I think of Yamato Takeru when I see this flower. Yamayuri has been inhabiting all over Japan for such a long time. It must have left a strong impression on the eyes of foreigners who came to Japan. It was introduced to foreign countries early on, and hybrid species such as Casablanca were also born. Yamayuri, Tamotoyuri and Kanokoyuri were the parents. Tamotoyuri have already become extinct due to overfishing. Many other native lilies, including Yamayuri, have the same fate.

ヤマユリは遠くからでも直ぐに分かります。日本の自生種の花の中では最も大きく、華やかで、臭いがとても強いからです。この花を見るとなぜかヤマトタケルを連想します。それほど古く日本の至る所に自生しています。日本にやってきた外国人の目にも強烈に印象に残ったはずです。早くから海外に紹介され、カサブランカのようなハイブリッド種も誕生しました。その親になったのもヤマユリやタモトユリ、カノコユリです。乱獲によりタモトユリは絶滅しました。ヤマユリをはじめ、他の多くの自生種のユリも同じ運命にあります。

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There are a hydrangea garden and a rose garden in the same park, and both flowers are blooming as if competing. Roses are almost over, but hydrangea is in full bloom. Every time it rains, roses drop flowers and hydrangea rushes. Until now, the time when roses bloom and the time when hydrangea blooms were a little more distinct, but lately the climate has changed and flowers also may be out of tune. This phenomenon is found not only in roses and hydrangeas, but in many other flowers. Not only flowers. Changes are occurring in animals and viruses too.

同じ公園にアジサイ 園とバラ園があり、両方の花が競うかのように咲いています。バラはもう盛りを過ぎましたが、アジサイ はちょうど盛りです。雨が降る毎にバラは花を落とし、アジサイ は勢いづきます。今までは、バラの咲く時期とアジサイ の咲く時期はもう少し明確に分かれていたのですが、最近は気候もおかしくなり、花も調子を狂わせているのでしょう。この現象はバラとアジサイ だけでなく、他の多くの花にも見受けます。花だけではありません。動物にも、そしてウイルスにも異変が起こっています。

Even at midsummer, the temperature of Mt.Fuji is sometimes below freezing, so it is not unusual for snow to fall. Therefore, it is very difficult to distinguish between the first snow and the last snow. The snow just before the highest temperature of the year is the last snow, and the snow just after that is the first snow in the year. If you think that it is the first snow, the maximum temperature will be updated after that, and the first snow may become the last snow. By the way, the first snow-capped Fuji refers to the condition where part of the mountaintop looks white after the above “highest temperature day” observed from the Yamanashi Meteorological Observatory.

富士山頂は真夏でも気温が氷点下になる日があり、いつ雪が降ってもおかしくない環境にあります。だから、初雪と終雪の区別をつけるのがとても難しいのです。一年の最高気温の手前で最後に降った雪が終雪、後で初めて降った雪が初雪となります。初雪だと思っていたら、その後に最高気温が更新され、初雪が終雪になることもあります。一方、初冠雪とは、山梨気象台から観測して、上記の「最高気温日」以降で、「山頂の一部が白色に見える状態」を言います。

I found a firefly. The song, “Hotaru-no-Hikari (Firefly light)”, comes to my mind immediately. Speaking of “Hotaru no Hikari”, it was a staple of the graduation ceremony song, along with “Aogeba Tootoshi (Respectable Teacher)”. At the graduation ceremony of elementary school, junior high school, and high school, I was always crying, singing this song. About 30 years ago, it was when my daughter graduated from high school that I last shed tears in this song. Since then, these songs are no longer being sung at any school, and instead of that, “Day of departure”, “Fly, Birds”, “To the future/Kiroro”, “The wind is blowing/Ikimonogakari” etc., they’re the graduation songs. I sometimes hear it at “the Red and White Singing Battle” at the end of the year and the closing ceremony of high school baseball, which makes me remember nostalgicly.

蛍を見つけました。直ぐに思い浮かぶのが『蛍の光』。『蛍の光』と言えば、『仰げば尊し』と並んで卒業式の歌の定番でした。小学校、中学校、高校の卒業式では、いつでもこの歌を歌いながら涙を流したものです。この歌で最後に涙を流したのは、娘の高校の卒業式の時でしたから、今から30年ほど昔です。それ以来、もうどの学校でもこれらの歌は歌われなくなって、それに変わって、『旅立ちの日に』『はばたけ鳥』『未来へ／Kiroro』『風が吹いている／いきものがかり』などが定番の卒業ソングになりました。年末の紅白歌合戦や高校野球の閉会式などで時折聞くことがありますが、懐かしく思い出されます。

Smoke tree is a tree that is distributed all over the world, but since it came to also Japan in the Meiji era and it produces unique and impressive flowers, it has rapidly spread as a garden tree in recent years. The name is also universal. In also Japan, it is called “Kemuri-no-ki (smoke tree)”, but I propose calling it “cotton candy tree”. Cotton candy is a traditional sugar candy that is indispensable for summer festivals. This cotton candy, which was actually born in the United States, became very popular at the St. Louis Expo and sold like wildfire despite the fact that it’s half the entry fee, 25 cents. It soon spread all over the world, and Japan. I have a dream to call it “cotton candy tree” rather than “smoke tree”.

スモークツリーは世界中に分布する木ですが、日本へは明治時代に渡来し、ユニークで印象的な花を咲かせることから、近年庭木として急速に普及しています。名前も世界共通。日本でも「煙の木」とも呼んでいますが、「綿菓子の木」と呼んだ方がぴったしです。綿菓子は夏の縁日には欠かせない伝統的な砂糖菓子です。この綿菓子、実はアメリカ生まれで、セントルイス博覧会で大人気を博し、入場料の半分の25セントにも関わらず飛ぶように売れたそうです。直ぐに日本をはじめ世界中に広がりました。「煙の木」よりも「綿菓子の木」の方が夢がありますよね。

Cherry is in season now. If you enter “cherry” in the search on the website, you can get a lot of cherry mail order advertisements. Among them, “Sato Nishiki” in Yamagata Prefecture is very popular, and it is said that it will be shipped from July by reservation sale. These are mostly traditional open-field cultivation, but now house cultivation has become widespread, and in May or June, you will see the advertising flags of “cherry hunting” in the metropolitan area and Kansai. With the development of agricultural technology, it is possible to create the same environment in greenhouses as in outdoor cultivation and control the season. You can eat as much as you want for the entrance fee of 2,000 or 3,000 yen there. However, there is usually a time limit, and it seems that it is often 20 to 30 minutes.

サクランボは今が旬です。Webサイトの検索に「サクランボ」と入れたら、サクランボ通販の宣伝がずらり。中でも山形県の「佐藤錦」は人気が高く、予約販売で七月から出荷だとか。これらは大概伝統的な露地栽培ですが、今はハウス栽培が浸透してきていて、首都圏や関西でも五月、六月くらいから「サクランボ狩り」の幟をよく見かけるようになりました。農業技術の発達で、ハウスでも露地栽培と同じ環境を作れ、時期もコントロールできるそうです。入園料2、3千円で食べ放題、と言っても時間制限があって、20分だとか、30分位が多いようです。

At noon after the rain, lotus ponds in the park have large, lush, round leaves open at the ends of the stems that stretched from the surface of the water. A single flower is stretching the stem from between the leaves, and opening a bright pink petal. The surrounding flowers are still closed. That’s right. Lotus usually open flowers in the morning and close at noon. The lotus flower has a lifespan of four days, so on the fourth day it continues to bloom even after noon and is scattered in the evening. I feel sad when I think about that. In the middle of the leaf in front of the flower, pure water like honeydew was collected.

雨上がりのお昼時、公園の蓮池には蓮が水面からすーっと伸びた茎の先に青々とした大きな丸い葉を開かせています。その葉の間から一輪の花がさらに茎を伸ばし明るいピンク色の花を咲かせています。周りの花はもう閉じたままです。そうです。蓮は朝に花を開き昼頃には閉じてしまうのが普通です。蓮の花の寿命は四日間で、四日目にはこうして昼を過ぎても咲き続け、夕方には散ってしまうのです。そんな事を思うと悲しくなりますね。花の前の葉っぱの真ん中に甘露の様な清らかな水が溜まっていました。