There’s something different about the garden at night.
It all starts at dusk as the sun slips its way below the horizon and twilight settles into your garden. Suddenly it has a whole new personality, exciting and mysterious.
As the shadows deepen your garden becomes a mixture of dark hidden spots and places. Secrets–only the night holds.
 The phase of the moon will also determine how much light your garden gets during those twilight hours. Moonbeams may glitter off of the foliage from a midnight rain or sprinklers. Or possibly from a water feature you might have in your garden– if your water feature is large enough, you might catch the reflection of the stars in the sky. But the light of the moon has a different  feel to it than the light from the sun; more mystic and peaceful.
Night time is for the nocturnal animals to come out and play. Depending upon where you live will depend upon the type of animal to come out. You may hear the sound of the hoot owl or the cry of a bobcat. We’ve even heard the howl of the coyote and the hissing   of the alligator
If you’re like me, you love those sounds but safely from within the screen porch–there’s no way  you want to confront any of these animals up close and personal.
At some point it’s time to head inside, and I make my way to my office were there are windows on all sides showing me my garden from a different view. From this side of the window I can see the little fairy lights  in the trees and the landscape lighting shinning softly throughout the foliage it gives it a warm friendly glow. I’m so glad I put them in, especially when I look at the tree directly opposite my office window.
Because you see the nighttime has one more surprise for me…
 I watch as a fat possum works his way up the trunk of a tree.  It’s not even two feet away from me, with only a pane of glass between us. I leave the light on my desk and a possum notices me he stretches as far as he can from the trunk of the tree. He’s as curious who I am, just as I am curious about him. He quickly grows bored with me and continues on his way up the tree. I sit and count as he comes and goes at least three times up that trunk, each time disturbing the tree frogs, making them start their nightly songs.
Yes, the garden at night is full of activity and it’s up to you to determine if you want to sleep through it or stay awake and watch.
Gossip from the Southern Garden 