~flowers in the fall~

 

Days and nights are getting cooler here in the Mid-South,

but that doesn’t mean you can’t still play in the dirt.

  Don’t be fooled by the dainty look of these tiny little blooms. 

Pansies are very hardy and love the cool weather.

Through the years, we tried planting just about everything around our patio,

but the ground was so hard and shallow, nothing would flourish. 

So, Cigar Man and I decided to build a border around the patio

and fill in with a foot or so of good rich dirt. 

We decided on these rock pavers we picked up at a local “rock” store

(for lack of a better word).  HA!

The temp got down to 29 degrees the other night and these little guys are still standing!

I’m looking forward to holding a cup of warm tea in my cold hands

and gazing out my window at these cheery pansies all the cold winter long.

Sharing with Before and After and Outdoor Wednesday.

moon plants (garden stars)

While watering what’s left of my flowers this morning (the heat has scorched so much of my garden), I was thrilled to see these white beauties peeking out.  They must have bloomed overnight since this is the first day of the summer, I’ve noticed their delicate graceful blossoms.  Aren’t they gorgeous!

 This is one of those old fashioned plants you don’t usually find at a nursery.  We got ours started from seed given to us by Cigar Man’s mother many years ago.  We have transplanted these seeds at several homes since we planted them the very first time.  So as we moved from house to house, we’ve left a little beauty along the way and still been able to take it with us too.  Like having your cake and eating it too!  

 Even the buds have a distinct beauty all their own.

Uniquely, they open at night and close in the daylight.  Thus, the name Moon plants.

Even as I was taking these photos, they delicately began to close. 

Each bud only lasts a night.  After closing, it will die and fall off the vine.

 They are so heavenly!

Named for blooming under the moon

and appearing as stars in an earthly garden.

Sharing with other beautiful gardens at Tootsie’s Fertilizer Friday

Sunday Eve ~ Lessons in gardening and life

Just a  few weeks back, pink roses scrambled up my trellis in abundance.

 But lately, the lavish blooms have dwindled. 

So….to the “accurate source of all information” I go,

the internet, of course, {cough}

to discover what I can do to renew my lush roses.

What I learned among other laborious feats was to deadhead the spent roses.

So up the step ladder I go with my garden clippers, 

snipping and snapping away!

While balancing on the ladder, it occurred to me that life needs deadheading too.

When the blooming season in your life is stagnant, deadhead and move on.

Whether it’s work, play, or relationships, when it’s not blooming anymore,

clip off the ugly deadheads and amazing things happen.

Just like the fresh beautiful blooms that reappear on the branch,

a renewing of your spirit

will well up within you and bring you

happiness and joy.

~

“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world,

but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—

his good, pleasing and perfect will.” ~ Romans 12:2

~

Sharing with others at Spiritual Sundays. 

 

Simple Pleasures

How could you not love this season of the year?

What’s one of my favorite pleasures during this season?

To walk out my back door, pluck a handful of fresh flowers, and bring them indoors.

What simple pleasures!

But aren’t they the best kind?

Love my pink garage sale pitcher.

It’s perfect for doing just that!

A heartfelt wish to all of you for a very happy Mother’s Day!

Sharing with Fertilizer Friday and Show and Tell.

when it rains it pours!

We’ve had a “little” rain in middle Tennessee this weekend.  Yeah, that’s an understatement!

Except for a leaky ceiling around a bay window and a toddler afraid of thunder, we are high and dry.  Unfortunately, many cannot say that.  Several lives have been taken by the flooding and many have been evacuated from their homes.

Shhh…don’t tell our local police, but Cigar Man drove around our little town to capture some of the devastation.  We were told not to get out on the roads.   Before I go to his pics, I thought this would be a good opportunity to show you our dry creek bed that’s not dry anymore.  As you can see, it does the job it’s designed to do. 

I’ve lived in this area all my life and I’ve never seen this much flooding so widely spread.

Need a boat to cross this intersection!

car lot under water

 

Sure hope this guy decided to turn around.

our community park with floating picnic tables

We’re hoping for sunshine tomorrow. 

a labor of love (or) backyard magic

Our backyard has a long way to go, but it’s come a long way too. While looking at old photos, I realized how much it has evolved over the seven years we lived in our current home.

I think I’ve told you before, Cigar Man loves to work in his garden so a barren yard was a real playground for him. We had somewhat of a plan. I say somewhat since the plan was and is altered often. I think a garden like a home will lead you in the direction it wants and if you follow, the result will always be desirable.

Here’s a few of the original photos and those changes made.

The patio and evergreen trees were the only originals to the yard.

Here our neighbors have built a fence and we’ve built our pergola, but no more improvements have been made.

Cigar Man created a berm beside the evergreen trees and a walkway from the front driveway to the patio. Later Cigar Man constructed a dry creek bed to remedy the standing water you can see at the left corner of the photo.

Our dry creek bed not only adds a little character to the yard, but it also serves to drain water off our yard during rains. Some time in the near future, I’m going to sweet talk Cigar Man into writing a tutorial on creating a dry creek bed.

Later we added the fountain surrounded by a rock path and perenials along the fence row.

At the back of the yard along one portion of the fence, we’ve made several changes along the way from wild flowers to perenials…

…to leyland pines. We’re still working to perfect that area.

This was the patio and pergola as it looked last April. We had just restained the pergola from all grey to a taupe floor with white walls.

In the seven years we’ve been in our present home, we’ve worked played in the yard and made many changes.

I’m sure we will continue to as long the good Lord’s willing and the creek don’t rise.

I’m sharing with others at Fertilizer Friday and Met. Monday

just old friends getting together

Last weekend was our monthly supper club date. We got together with old friends.

You’ve heard about supper clubs and maybe you belong to one? I know some are fancy and

try new recipes and have theme nights. Ours is not, just old friends getting together.

Usually, we just have, what you’d call, comfort food.

Our gracious hostess for the evening loves gardening. We have that in common.

I’m always anxious to see what she’s planted. We share plantings too. Last fall, she gave us slips from her hummingbird vine. Unfortunately, our resident rabbit ate mine. L I was so disappointed, but I’m going to try again next fall. Any suggestions on keeping rabbits from eating your plants? They also ate a blueberry bush. It wouldn’t have been so bad if they’d just ate the blueberries, but no, the whole bush, leaves, stems, trunk and all!

Well, it was a perfect evening to dine outside.

Dessert was my contribution to the evening. After browsing through cookbooks and recipes files, I couldn’t decide what to prepare. Peered in my pantry to see what I already had since I wasn’t in the mood to grocery shop. Much rather be in the garden this time of the year. Oh wow! There’s two cans of peaches!

Peach Cobbler it will be! Remember, what I said?

We’re not a fancy supper club, just old friends getting together.

So I:

Preheated my oven to 350 degrees.

Melted two sticks of butter in a 9 x 13 Pyrex dish.

(I always use real butter! Trust me. It makes all the difference in the world.)

Mixed:

• 2 cups of flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt

• 2 cups of sugar
• 2 cups of milk

Poured batter over butter. Did not stir.

Poured 2 cups of fruit (I used canned peaches, undrained) over batter. Did not stir.

Baked for 45 minutes or until browned and bubbly.

Everyone loved it cause remember what I said? We’re not a fancy supper club,

just old friends getting together.

I’m sharing with others at Outdoor Wednesday.

My bleeding heart…

…is blooming in my garden now. What a sweet sweet flower with its heart shaped blossoms hanging delicately from it’s willowy stems.

Cigar man and I worked played in the garden today. For garden work is play.

Early this morning, we headed to the cow manure store. (So romantic!) On the way back, we were to stop at a nearby flower stand to pick out our plantings. When I noticed we were passing it by, I asked, “Weren’t we going to stop at the flower stand?”

Cigar man: “Well, cigar man has to pick up cigars first.”

(Hmmm…he’s been reading my blog. J)

“No occupation is so delightful to me as the culture of the earth,
no culture comparable to that of the garden ...
But though an old man, I am but a young gardener.”
~ Thomas Jefferson, Garden Book, 1811

Linking to My favorite things Saturday.

if you could only smell the fragrance!

I’m joining some pretty fine gardeners at Tootsie’s Fertilizer Friday and the Inspired Room.

 

Wisteria blooms have taken over my pergola in the last couple of days with the most stunning  lilac colored blossoms.   The abundance of the color in my garden now is amazing.  It’s like someone takes a paint brush and hurls brilliant hues here and there at night while I’m sleeping.  When I awake I find new splashes of color where dull brown used to be.

Speaking of paint, I played around with textures on this photo and the effect reminded me of a water color painting.  I layered a texture found at Shadowhouse Creations  resembling a blue cracked paper called PG2 at 60% over the first photo to get this look.

Oh, how I wish you could take in the fragrance that envelopes me when I open my back door, but, sadly, I know you can’t.  I can only send you pictures and so that’s what I’ll do.  J