Because I find "Mellow Yellow" a little pedestrian

After last Friday's highly popular John Denver Arbor Day tribute, I've decided to start a new weekly tradition: The Nearly Constant Gardener's Music to Garden By. My plan is to present songs that, in some vague sense, relate to gardening. Usually, however, they will simply be a song that I can think of and find a decent video on YouTube to embed.

This week's Music to Garden By is actually a song that I've been somewhat obsessed with lately for reasons undetermined. Maybe it has to do with all the Tequila Cran-rises I've been drinking lately. It's old and weird, but, frankly, not that great. In its defense, it mentions a garden, snails, caterpillars, and Juanita.

So I give you "There is a Mountain" by the incomparable Donovan:

Some of you may be thinking that this new feature seems suspiciously similar to another world-famous blogger's Friday musical feature. I don't like your accusatory tone and assure you that this has nothing to do with driving increased site traffic by instigating some sort of conflict with the shrill Paul Krugman who blogs based on facts in a way that is totally disrespectful to the world's wise and righteous economic overlords.

Water lilies are easy because you don't have to water them.

As far as gardening goes, my material is pretty thin today. Our first water lily in Patrick's unused swimming pool has opened. I tried to get some pictures of it with the koi and goldfish at the surface. If you squint and use your imagination you can see them. I'm hoping for more water lilies as the summer goes on. Last year, we had quite a few in pink, yellow, and white. 

The fish are probably the easiest things in the world to take care of. We've had this tank for about a year now and have yet to lose a fish. I think I caught them getting amorous a few days ago, so we may actually get some baby goldfish. We bought around 30 goldfish that spend most of their day swimming around the surface and two very shy koi that we're lucky to see for two seconds when we feed them. The 30 goldfish cost a fraction of the price of the two koi.

The first water lily of the season floats nervously as a school of hungry goldfish and a single large koi indiscriminately devour anything on the surface of the water.