It’s that heavenly, all-too-short time of year when the air is filled with the intoxicating fragrance of billowing ballerina peony petals.

It’s always a dilemma. Pick them or leave them?

I’m lucky enough to have room for several different varieties that bloom in succession. The white ones are among the first, so I opted to pick enough to fill a jug to overflowing. They have a touch of red at the heart of the bloom. I tucked in a little Ladies’ Mantle for that tangy chartreuse contrast.

The Enchanted Home sold beautiful table linens for several years but discontinued them recently. The cornflower blue tablecloth and napkins with a white-trimmed scalloped edge were among their final offerings (at a steep discount, I might add).

Blue and white it is, then! Sophia dinner plates by Ralph Lauren hold small bird dishes by Grace’s Teaware. Both are discontinued but available at Replacements or on eBay sometimes. Though there are four bird dishes, I’ve only been able to track down three. I’ve used two on this table.

I used the third one with Pier 1 Elenore plates a few years ago.

Mary at Home is Where the Boat Is featured the fourth one on her St. Patrick’s Day table a couple of years ago. I’m keeping my eyes peeled! One may turn up eventually.

Home Goods provided the (unrelated) chubby bird salt-and-pepper shakers. They fit right in.

We are settled in the Cape now until early August. The garden is in good shape except for some gaps in the border, into which I will be tucking some replacement perennials. The hydrangea, as if making up for last year’s frost-bitten season, are packed with buds on the verge of blooming. It’s only a couple of weeks until the longest day of the year when summer officially begins!