April Showers--May Flowers

I don't have any time to write with the schedule we are keeping right now. .

But everything has been so beautiful with the 7 inches of rain we have had in the last month--

That I just had to snap a few pictures tonight to look back on later!!

Above is a view of the front side of my memory garden.

Jupiter's beard (pink), Cardonna salvia (dark purple) and Napeta's low catmint (lavender) The porcupine grass in the background is already nice and tall!!

The chives and culinary sage are in full bloom too! Other herbs growing nicely are the tarragon, oregano, lavender, bronzeleaf fennel, basil, lemon balm and dill!

AWWW tomatoes!! In a quick lookover, I found a handful on several different plants. These happen to be Lemon Boy. 

The last wall of water that hasn't collapsed due to leaks. Amazingly--it also sports THE tallest tomato plant now!! That extra heat has made the difference I think!! I will take the wall down as soon as I have a minute! 

Amethyst Falls Wisteria--planted 4 years ago--one of the plants I bought after my dad died. It is 1/2 way up the trellis this year. 

I can't wait till these gorgeous droopy blooms are hanging from the top of the support!! I just love them!! 

Raspberries anyone?? My new little $7 plants are going to net almost that much in fruit this year! It was a no-name variety I picked up at Walmart because I love raspberries. .and the plants looked so great!! Now--to get them--before the winged creatures do! 

Looks like we will have a blackberry crop too!! 

Here's my bush--I need to make a stronger support and stake it up a bit I think---but the plant is loaded with buds! 

The rhubarb makes such a pretty plant! I think I can harvest some stalks soon. .Might make a batch of rhubarb punch! Yum! 

Here's the back side of the memory garden (You can see the same grass in the background) There is a small sea of miniature hollyhocks. The picture doesn't do the blooms justice! There is also not much ground exposed now--many of the plantings have finally spread and grown together! That will certainly help the weed population!!  

I love larkspur! And there is a great stand of it in different shades of purple, pink and white. I haven't seen any hummingbirds in it yet--but maybe one will happen by! 

Common milkweed--it's a host plant for monarchs! This variety was started by seed given to me by a friend. .The plants spread by runners--thus it is EVERYWHERE! And usually, I don't see it bloom so nicely! I leave most of it--but it sure has taken over a patch!! 

The red hot pokers are getting ready to bloom. The foliage is nice--but the flowers, so far, have not impressed me--These are the best ones yet--but they haven't generally bloomed for very long at all--so I will be anxious to see how long it blooms this summer! If they don't last more than a few days--I'm not a fan! 

Little close up of the larkspur!

Larkspur in the back and a red salvia in the front. It has been a good plant--hardy--long bloom time. 

3 knock out roses in bloom--they were memorials for two of my grandparents who died within a month of each other. They make a bold statement when you drive in! You can see some of the pond plants in the background--it's looking good this year too!

Honeysuckle bush!

The thick scent was heavy in the air tonight as Cami and I played baseball nearby! 

Probably one of my favorite seasonal scents! 

A closeup of the hundreds of blooms! 

A front porch garden that is finally looking like something! For years it has been bare bones--too hot with a south wind. I have come up with (by trial and error--mostly error) things that will grow there! And this spring it is in full bloom--looking lovely!!

I continue puttering around the yard a few minutes here and there-I feel like the gardens that I have labored over for 18 years--are starting to look like they have looked in my head for years!! And I am so thankful for that!!

Hopefully soon I can update on the people that live around here. .

But not tonight!! 

Have a blessed weekend!!

Some Things that Make me Smile!

It has been such a refreshing spring. .

in comparison to ANY spring. .

But for sure in comparison to the last TWO springs. .

Where the temperatures were well over 100 degrees in May. .

And consistently over 100 degrees by this time in June.

We've enjoyed nearly SIX inches of moisture over the last few months. .

As well as temperatures in the 80's and 90's. .

Aside from a few days last week that were over 105!

And that has been good for the farmers. .

The gardens. .

AND the gardenERS!!

Come along for a quick flower show!

I have a little jungle area of hollyhocks in the front of my house. .

I think they look a little messy. .

And each year I think I am going to pull most of them out. .

But. .

I just CAN'T bring myself to do that!

The colors are so deep and cheery. .

And so far, even the big leaves still look nice and healthy. .

Not yet riddled with insect damage!

I LOVE tropical plants. .

I just CAN'T ever seem to keep them watered well enough and protected from the blazing heat and wind.

Well. .

The self watering container idea and the addition of that new patio has made the difference!

When I thought there might be a possibility of making a tropical vine work. .

I couldn't leave this hot pink mandevilla at Lowes!

It is starting to vine well. .

And is loaded with these gorgeous pink flowers!!

I'm also super excited about a tropical hibiscus plant that I bought at Walmart a month ago. .

It was unmarked as to color. .

And it was HALF price!!

I don't know why, and I didn't really care. .

In my cart it went. .

And am I ever glad it did!!

It opened up one of the most beautiful pinkish red colored blooms earlier this week!!

With lots more buds. .

promising future color!

I was totally THRILLED!!

Both of these girls are situated on our new patio near the pitcher pump feature.

They are slightly protected from the wind, and get a little bit of afternoon shade.

The self watering planters from Walmart are doing their part to keep them moist. .

SCORE!

Wish I had thought to load a before picture of the honeysuckle vine that we planted near this antique slipper slide several years ago. Jeremy re-staked the slide into the ground. .

 as the weight of the vine was pulling it southward!

I enjoy it's fragrance most. .

early in the morning while I am walking. I think it is always funny to come around the corner from the highway on my walk, and wonder where I will smell it. .

The wind does amazing things with the fragrance. .

And some mornings, I would notice the scent down by my mailbox. .

100 yards from the plant!!

I had to rescue one from the construction zone. .

And recently decided to plant it on the other side of the house, near the bedroom windows!

It didn't mind the move. .

and proceeded to do it's blooming IN the big pot it rested in until I knew where it would go.

This echinacea paradoxica. .

Or plain ole yellow coneflower. .

Came from a packet of seeds that I started a last winter. .

There were a couple blossoms on the plants last summer. .

But it is really doing well this year! I planted them in 3 different locations. .

to maximize the effect of them. .
and to make sure they had at least one location that they would thrive in.

One spot just had too much competition with water and other plants. .

And they stayed tiny all summer.

I was sure they would die out. .

but even THEY are blooming this summer.

This variety is a tolerant winner for sure!

Some day I want to learn how to put my lavender plant to good use. .

I really like it's tiny little blossom stems. .

And always think I will gather some and make a little sachet. .

Hasn't happened yet!

This variety is Hidcote. .

And the plant has gotten huge!!

That whole mass of flowers comes from ONE central root in the ground in the dead center!!

A few years ago, I took a cutting of the plant in fall. .

And it rooted in nicely by the next spring in my greenhouse.

I think I might do that again this fall. .

Let me know if you might want a start of it!

Here's the larkspur patch in the front beds along the driveway.

The purple aster plant in the left front of photo is growing. It won't shine for another month or more, but it appears there will be a lot of shine happenin' when it does it's thing!

My orange butterfly milkweed is blooming now too.

It may be one of my favorite summer blooms!!

My seed list for next winter includes another packet of these for sure!!

They have been easy to start in the past. .

But unfortunately, I only have this clump that has really taken off!

The black eyed susans are looking lovely this year. .

With the nice cool weather and moisture we have been having. .

They remind me of the photos of the luscious susans my gardening friend Sue shows from her cool Michigan patch! They look much better with this weather. .

than with drought and 100 degree temps!

 And it seems lots of flying creatures love them as much as I do!

Here is a tiger eye sumac bush. .

given to me by some friends to plant in memory of my dad!

Now, he was a farmer. .

And since Sumacs can be a little invasive. .

I'm not sure how he felt about them. .

But I have always wanted to have a patch of them for the wildlife that they support. .
Jeremy always nixed that idea. .

Until I was gifted one :-)

It has such beautiful foliage. .

And is starting one characteristic bloom head, that I presume will soon become bird food!!

YaHOO!!

It's planted on the outside of my memory garden. .

With room to spread out a little!

A non descripted lily variety I planted a couple years ago. .

I'm not even sure it came up last year. .

And I surely thought it was toast!

But, it seems to be happy this spring. .

And the big reddish orange blooms are nice!

The little stella de'oro daylilies are in full swing. .

And right in front of the dwindling blue flax. .

makes a nice color combo!

I am super excited about my patch of purple coneflowers! I started all of these in my greenhouse. .

And, now in their third summer. .

They are tall. .

And spreading a little bit. .

And loaded with potential!!

The birds and winged insects LOVE these!

I'm not good with my butterfly species yet. .

But we have been seeing many different kinds. .

As well as tons of moths, including uncountable sphinx moths.

It just all makes me stop. .

And thank God. .

for the incredible DIVERSITY. .

And BEAUTY. .

And ORIGINALITY. .

In His magnificent creations!!

And personally?

I don't think we've seen ANYTHING yet!!

I can't WAIT. .

to see the garden that He is fixing up at my mansion in heaven!!

Take a minute today. .

And appreciate some of God's handiwork. .

And talk to Him about YOUR eternal home!!

Matthew 6:28-29

And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.  Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.

Blooms of June. .

We have had sooo much moisture over the last month.

We've seen nearly 4.5 inches of the wet stuff over the last few weeks. .

we have had LOTS of wind. .

and ice pellets from the sky.

Did I  mention that we have had wind?!?

Even when it wasn't raining!

The flowers and weeds grow alike, as you might see with the giant broadleafed, stickery-sided weed in the center of my lovely blooms in the photo!

The larkspur are starting to pop!! My favorite is the dark purple. .

There is also a lighter purple. .

and sometimes an occasional pink or white.

These reseed like C-R-A-Z-Y. .

but they are easy to pull. .

And they sure brighten up the spot!

(Sara. .a great choice for instant color in your new yard!!!)

Last summer the hummingbird that visited was all over them. .

I haven't noticed any hummers as of yet.

This guy has been FOUR years in the waiting!!

One of my gardening patients brought me some milkweed seed years ago. .

I thought it was the tuberosa. .

which is a brilliant orange color, and truly a favorite of mine. .

I started some from seed. .

and expected them to bloom the second year or so. .

But instead of blooms the next year. .

I wasn't even sure that the plants in the spots where I THOUGHT I planted milkweed. .

WERE milkweed!!

They DIDN'T look like the orange clump of milkweed that I have. .

and so I was confused for the entire summer as to WHAT it was. .

But, because they were big plants. .

and definitely coming from the same spot I started them in. .

I left them!

Last summer, I waited for blooms. .

But none came. .

The plants continued to grow, and any time I would pop a stalk in half. .

The milky fluid came from them, leading me to believe they WERE milkweed.

I finally asked her about them at one of her appointments. 

And she advised me that it was the common milkweed. .

So I left them and continued to wait!

SOMEHOW. .

it has spread to include about a dozen plants in the same area. .

and since it HADN'T bloomed or set seed yet. .

That has me a little concerned.

BUT, they are blooming now. .

And they are gorgeous blooms, worth the wait. .

Plus, they look nice with the larkspur. .

AND. .

They are essential for monarch butterflies. .

So, they will stay!

To the west of the milkweed. .

 in the garden along the driveway. .

The red hot pokers are blooming, as is the passed-along pink penstemon to the right.

These red hot pokers are, interestingly, ALL yellow. .

And this clump has the more commonly seen variety. .

Which just so happens to be the variety that I ordered a few years ago.

This is the first year that they have really bloomed well, last year was just a flower on each plant. .

And since I had never seen the blooms before, I don't think I noticed the difference.

But it makes me wonder if I got a yellow one by accident.

They are pretty. .

And they are substantial plants (BIG).

I think they are adding alot to the beds they are in.

They are native to Africa;

And though I've lost one of the three I planted 3 years ago. .

The other two are flourishing now.

And they add a nice contrast to their places. .

They are also supposed to be hummingbird magnets. .

Hmmm. .

Here's a close up photo of the pink penstemon with the purple larkspur. .

There SHOULD be hummingbirds here. .

RIGHT??

Sigh!

The pink knock out roses are on FIRE. .

And if you look into the background, the pond is hiding beyond the tall green plants in the shadow. Those plants are a nice mixture of Mexican hats and gray headed coneflowers. There are a few scattered blossoms right now, but I imagine within the week, the plants will be L-O-A-D-E-D with blossoms and winged creatures!

Speaking of winged creatures. .

I spied a couple of giant bumble bees working the perennial snapdragons.

The Texas red yucca is blooming. .

I showed the light pink stalk with buds on it last week.

Still no blooms on the big plant.

Can you say

H-U-M-M-I-N-G-B-I-R-D

M-A-G-N-E-T????

Why, oh WHY don't they hear me? Sniff!

But on a more cheerful note. .

The coronation gold yarrow has just started blooming too.

And it's very. . .

Cheery!

Back around to the new patio. .

You can see my hen and chick flock in the rock planter. .

As well as my funnel planters. .

That I single handedly screwed into the post. .

Well, not really using just a single hand (yuk, yuk, yuk!). .
You know what I mean!

Anyway. .

A couple weeks into summer vacation finds. .

Two big boys working full time jobs while cramming in golf, frog hunting and fishing in their spare time. They will both be counselors at 4-H camp this coming week. .and then get home, repack, and head out for football camp at the end of the week. Devin and Cami have been attending a bible camp each afternoon this past week plus some pool and library time. .

and all the kids attended our 4-H Safari themed day camp. .

two as counselors and two as campers. .

and one mom that worked as the snack and lunch lady. .

hopefully pictures and stories to come.

Devin will get to go to 4-H camp next week too. .

 and Cami will have to stay home to keep her dad in line. .

Wish her luck!!

Enjoy your weekend!

A Tisket, A Tasket. .

So far, the weekend has been a great opportunity to slow our pace a little bit, and catch a needed breath of fresh air!! The weather has been perfect!! The sea of larkspur is in full glory!! We caught sight of a tiny little male ruby throated hummingbird devouring the pollen Friday. .we have seen glimpses of hummers for several weeks now, but hadn't gotten close enough to see them. I have only seen one at a time. .so there may only be one around, and it may be different ones as they fly north! I was able to really see this guy with the binoculars, but just couldn't get close enough to get a photo. .you'll just have to take my word that he was C-U-T-E!! 

The girls are getting big. .and finally don't look so horrid!! Yesterday we let them out of the cage in the morning. .and after seeing that the cats weren't too interested in them anymore. .let them run around all day long!!

They stay busy, busy. .picking through the weeds. .they also enjoy sitting all together as a group in the shade, napping!!

I got most of my containers filled up this past week. .and was glad to have gotten my funnel planters loaded up again!! I chose an asparagus fern and a black eyed susan vine. 

The purple water iris bloomed last week (thanks Becky!) and the water lily has more than one bloom at a time already! The fish are re-trained to come swimmin' at the sound of our voices. .they are fun to watch, especially when they eat!!

And the front succulent garden has filled in well. Everything seems so much larger than life as compared to last year. .so I can't wait to see how much everything grows over the 

summer!

The veggie garden is doing well. .Here is our potato crop. .Yukon gold and Red Norland. 

Behind the potatos, along the fence are 2 Crimson Red rhubarb plants, ready to be made into a pie. .2 red lathum raspberry bushes (one with some berries even) and 2 Navaho thornless blackberry bushes.  The tomatoes are to the right side of the photo. .but aren't large enough to see really well.

The brick planter has garlic (a new crop for us). .and to the right of that are beets, peppers, broccoli; and in front of it are more peppers, basil (self seeded from last year) carrots, and lettuce mixes. I have seeded in melons and cukes, and put some squash seeds and gourd seeds in the greenhouse to sprout.  You can see to the right lower corner, the spiky green grass looking plant. .my old nemesis. .the Johnson grass!! That area still needs some cardboard mulch to go down, and hopefully the melons will crawl out onto the mulched down middle as it smothers the grass (HOPEFULLY) 

In honor of Mother's Day, I wanted to share one of my favorite passages from the Bible. .

Mainly, because this woman they are speaking of in the passage. .

is someone whom I would really like to emulate in my life. .

and strive to become someday!! 

Proverbs 31:10-30

¹⁰ 

Who can find a virtuous and capable wife?

    She is more precious than rubies.

Her husband can trust her,

    and she will greatly enrich his life.

¹² 

She brings him good, not harm,

    all the days of her life.

This weekend the Silver lace vine got a face lift  using jute to tie up the stragglers. The memory garden is across the sidewalk from this vine.

She finds wool and flax

    and busily spins it.

¹⁴ 

She is like a merchant’s ship,

    bringing her food from afar.

¹⁵ 

She gets up before dawn to prepare breakfast for her household

    and plan the day’s work for her servant girls.

She goes to inspect a field and buys it;

    with her earnings she plants a vineyard.

She is energetic and strong,

    a hard worker.

The hollyhocks are just starting, and amazingly. .there are three different colors blooming side by side in the front garden bed. Not too often can I shoot their photo with nice looking leaves too!!

She makes sure her dealings are profitable;

    her lamp burns late into the night.

¹⁹ 

Her hands are busy spinning thread,

    her fingers twisting fiber.

²⁰ 

She extends a helping hand to the poor

    and opens her arms to the needy.

²¹ 

She has no fear of winter for her household,

    for everyone has warm clothes.

She makes her own bedspreads.

    She dresses in fine linen and purple gowns. 

The Mexican hat has self seeded, as has the gray headed coneflowers planted last spring from High Country Gardens. .The buds are formed, and I can hardly WAIT for their colors to pop. .you can bet I'll be posting their pondside display!!

Her husband is well known at the city gates,

    where he sits with the other civic leaders.

She makes belted linen garments

    and sashes to sell to the merchants.

She is clothed with strength and dignity,

    and she laughs without fear of the future.

Such a vivid purple of the larkspur next to the passed along penstemon plant from my friend Pat!

When she speaks, her words are wise,

    and she gives instructions with kindness.

 

She carefully watches everything in her household

    and suffers nothing from laziness.

The zip line got another overhaul last weekend by my dear hubby!!  Now even Cami can climb the ladder to get on if the handles are close!

 Her children stand and bless her.
    Her husband praises her:
 “There are many virtuous and capable women in the world,
    but you surpass them all!”

The red hot pokers bloomed. I was slightly disappointed in the length of their blooms, but they bloomed long enough that the hummer was sighted on them too!

Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last;
    but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised.
 Reward her for all she has done.
    Let her deeds publicly declare her praise.

HAHAHA! Can you just imagine the gossip?

Happy Mother's Day!!

A little over a week, and I will be the mom of TWO high school kids. .stay tuned!!