The lawn has been dead for a long while. Now even large trees are being affected by this summer’s drought. This is what several nearby birches look like: the leaves all dead and yellow, even though autumn is still far away.

Our cherry tree is still green but all the leaves are wilting, and the cherries themselves have dried on the tree. The new hedge only survives (mostly) because of diligent watering. The flowers on the deck are dead; I gave up trying to keep them alive.