Every day here in the newsroom of The Christian Science Monitor, we roll up our sleeves, sharpen our elbows, and take on the hard questions in order to bring you, our readers, clarity about the world we share. Today’s problem: “Anybody got a joke about compost?” Debate ensued organically.

“What’s humus about that?” said one.

“Break it down for me,” replied another. 

“Keep digging.”

“Oh, for peat sake.”

OK, so maybe we’re better at headlines than at punch lines. But since April showers have given way to May flowers, we’re ending the week with today’s photo essay by Riley Robinson from New England’s premier annual flower show. We hope that like a world-class orchid, you’ll be Tickled Pink.

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Here’s an audio bonus: Our “Why We Wrote This” podcast, featuring conversations with Monitor writers about their work, returns today. In this new episode, Stephanie Hanes talks about her reporting on sustainable living in a high-tech age.