Purple

Pickerel in the Pond

Speedwell (I think) by the Pond

Puppy in the Plants

A Walk Through the GREEN Garden

Dahlia bud

 

Clematis, past it's prime

 

Hens and Chicks...or just Hens?

Hydrangea

Lupine

Onion

289/366: Orange Thumb

As many of you, the garden was a challenge this summer.

But, you know what was the easy?  Anything that grew underground.  The dark soil protected the plant from the extreme heat and the location to the hose was critical.  Both these items were close to the pond and hose, therefore they stayed wet most of the time.

It was a great surprise the other day when I plucked those carrots from the earth.  Yes, real small sized normal looking carrots!  Granted, not long, but they weren't like their counterparts from the raised bed that looked more like a toothpick than a carrot.

And the potatoes...although it sometimes felt that I got as many potatoes that I planted, it was a good exercise in potato farming.  I will definitely replant the potatoes.  These carrots were born from seed, too!

Very exciting end to a horrible crop of nothing this summer.  I definitely didn't have a green thumb this summer.  Better luck next year.

Spoken like a true Buffalonian.  Next year.

204/366: Around the Yard

Bumble on the Gallardia with my Micro lens (yes, I was really close to this guy).

 Lime colored hosta beginning to flower.

Teasel...my favorite of weeds.  See my post two years ago on the history of this plant.

202/366: A-Double N-OUN-MENT-s

Starting this September is my project called "PINTEMBER".

I don't know about you, but I have a TON of pins on Pinterest. So many that I pin things twice because I have forgotten that I already pinned the same item a month ago. It's time for action! In September, I am going to make, bake, create, craft, clean and transform.

I will post my completed project on my blog and invite you to share your creation in the comments of my blog, or include the link to your blog with you Pintember post. I have set up a board on Pinterest of some items that I think I can handle for the month, you can see that board here.

It's time to take the virtual ideas and make them a reality. Will you join me?

Secondly, thanks for all three of you that played along via Facebook or to my actual face (thanks, Tom, but you are still wrong).

The produce is actually a White Pickling Cucumber. 

I know.  It isn't white and it surely doesn't look like a cucumber.  I'll let you know if I get any others on the vine that look differently, so far, they all appear to be want-a-be lemons.

Lastly, guess what?  I'm retiring from full time work!  Next Friday is my last full time day.  I'm going to spend August with my boys.  Traveling and camping and making boy crafts.

In September, I hope to do part time project work with my same company that has been so so good to me in the past 13 years (yes, 13 years working for the same smart guy). 

199/366: Rain, Finally

Most people stay inside when it rains.  Not me.

Rain makes for some amazing photographs.

Every year I complain about how hot I am.  Luckily, I only have another two weeks at work, tied to this desk as the afternoon sun beats through my curtains like a cancer.

The rain.  It was good.  Didn't help our humidity, but the plants enjoyed it, even for a short time.

And the boys?  Of course they wanted to go outside the minute it started and waited in the garage ready to pounce.

167/366: Hot Flowers

It's so hot and muggy.

Even the flowers agree.

Usually the daises can withstand the heat. 

Not so much today.

This is day two of the daylillies.

And I'm also appreciating my newest plant of the season, the clematis.

The flower is a richer purple and the inner stripe is close to the color of our house.  I'll need to play around with the camera to get the color just right.

How is your garden?

111/366: Evening Pond

I worked on the pond yesterday after dinner.  Added some of the plants I purchased at the Perennial Sale at Mischler's Florist and Greenhouses.

We have yet to bring out our table and chairs from the garage, so I sat on the patio, leaning against the house listening to the birds and the frog spouting water.  Looking beyond my new rock (more on this another day), watching the very active fish chase each other in the pond gave me a moment to just sit.  No kids, no bugs, just warm weather.  Yes, a cocktail would have been fantastic, but I fell more connected to the pond and the plants at their level.

I just re-read this paragraph...I am a nut.

After I healed a skinned knee, I tried to get some night shots of the pond when the solar lights came on.  I unfortunately had the micro lens on, so the shots didn't quite work, but I did take this video.  I love the sounds and glimmering water.

106/366: Cukes

Last year, I vowed to only buy vegetable plants and stick them right in the garden.  The seeds I planted last spring only yielded half of what was planted.  I used the pellet pots in the tray.   So, plants it is.

Until all the seeds started showing up in the stores and the emails came from all the cool seed catalogs on-line.  I can't fight it.  I also like the ability to purchase different types of beans and peas and tomatoes, not just the top selling hothouse and cherry tomatoes that are available at the garden center.

So, black cherry tomatoes and pickling cucumbers and Nepal tomatoes and Russian Fingerling Potatoes. 

Every time I look at these pots, something more has sprouted.  I've used a larger peat pot and fresh potting soil and have already seen a greater yield.  The potatoes are outside in fabric pots and we have some peas directly sown outdoors, with green bursting out.

I purchased my seeds and potatoes from Johnny's.

I purchased my fabric reusable pots from Amazon.

Grabbed a packet of peas from High Mowing.

If you are in the Buffalo Area, my favorite 45 cent perennial sale starts this weekend here.



101/366: Weeds That Used to be Plants

One day, several years ago, I spotted this "plant" at a garden center.  With no name or tags on it, I bought it.  It was pretty.  Look at that red stripe on that bright green leaf.  Such pretty color.

Except, that it spreads.  I'm not a fan of a spreading plant.  That is when they stop being a plant and become a weed.  At least Lamb's ear spreads from the center, this sends shoots underground and they show up everywhere.  Like Jacob's Ladder.  Not a fan.  Just spotted another remnant in the walkway, 20 feet from the initial planting.

This is now gone, for the time being.  I'm sure I'll be digging it up for years to come.  I did stick one in a pot and placed it in the pond, wonder if it will live.

It was nice to get into the garden this weekend.  I planted potatoes and opened up the pond. The fish were busy, we have a baby!

Speaking of babies, the Tiny Zoo was able to keep the baby penguin healthy till we could place him with his parents this morning...if you were wondering.

82/366: Micro March

The mini daffodil proved to be harder than I thought.  In hindsight, turning off my auto focus would have been the best idea, one I discounted as I was precariously balancing my body and camera at a bizarre angle to capture these little lovelies.

Now I know, for next Spring.  I mean Winter.  These bloomed last week, along with many other pretty goodness, about a month early.  This weather is something for the record books.  We are in our second day of record high temps ever for this area.  Today, we will most likely make it to 3 days in a row at 80 degrees.  Never in my life have I known a Spring so early that it came in Winter.  Next week we drop 30 degrees, but that's okay, I am not ready for Summer just yet. 

Neither are my pasty white legs.

75/366: Micro March

Again, the Burning Bush.  This is from my other bush, that is more of a tree.

74/366: Micro March

Come on little guy...go for it!

I love seeing this hyacinth that was given to me by my neighbor.  Sharing the bounty of my plants is my favorite part of gardening.

Favorite plant to share:  Hosta
Least favorite plant to share:  Siberian Iris (those suckers are bound together like the inside of a baseball).

My (Not So) Perfect Garden

I don't have a fabulous yard.  

Yes, I take pretty pictures of the flowers that look nice, avoiding the ones eaten by bugs or missing petals.

It's only fair that you see the ugly parts of my yard to see that I am a real person, with a brown thumb at points.

My only pea pod vine that had produced two pods turned brown over the weekend while we were away.  Brown as in crispy, not just limp.  Brown.  Gone.

My maple trees.

Sick.  Like chicken pox for trees.  As sad as this is, my neighbors will be relieved and hopeful.  The previous owners planted six maple trees in a row, very close to my neighbors' new addition.  Maple trees aren't great for privacy.  These monsters now drop their many, many leaves in my neighbor's gutter (and my pond), so neither of us would be all that upset if they had to come down.

And my teasel.  Some would say my giant weed.

That it is.  I just never got to the point of pulling it out.  Then I realized what it was.

Weeds are living things, too.

So there you have it.  I have death and sickness and invasive giants in my yard (and green pond water).

And I'm proud of it.

Pampas, Spiders and Dead Things

 This past weekend I had my camera in the backyard.

We have a nice backyard, we are in the suburbs, so there are houses each way I look and power lines obstructing my nature photos.  I've started taking pictures facing up to the sky, then lightening them so the background nearly fades away.  I really love what happens to the subject.

 This spider was cool.  He was the only thing living on my Japanese Red Maple that I got as a freebie from a friend. Unfortunately, it was too shocked to keep it's leaves this year. 

I'm hoping that the roots will find a good footing this winter and in spring, sprout back to life.  Oh, yes, that would be good.  I'd even let the spider stay.

REMINDER:  The free photo (from my entire collection) is still current, if you were to leave a post HERE  right now, you'd have a 25% chance of winning!  

I'm Tom Ta-may-da

When I was living in downtown Buffalo with my friends Maria and Michelle, there was a commercial on and the only thing I remember is Maria saying, "I'm TOM Ta-may-ta" just like the little boy in the commercial.  I wish I knew the commercial.

Anyway, my tomatoes.  This has been my best crop ever.  I have tons of tomatoes.

Unfortunately, they are still very green.  It is September 23rd and I have all green tomatoes.  A good haul for the day, yields approximately three grape tomatoes.

My son actually posed for a picture!

Sometimes I get caught up in what is wrong with the world, people, events and forget the good things.  I'm upset I have nothing red in the average sized tomatoes.  I can dwell on something for much too long.  I need to learn to breathe.

I need to step back and watch what happens and let it be.  Often times I'll look to my husband for conversation and he turns it around to side with my opposing thought.  I get upset and say, "You never agree with me".  And it is rare when he does agree with me. Lately, since I brought it up recently, he makes it known that "See Carrie, I AGREE with you."  Funny, Tom.

And after I've stewed (no pun intended) and thought about my views versus Tom's, I realize that sometimes he is right.  Sometimes, it's good to play the other side of the fence and look at things from a different dugout.

So, cheers to my Tom Tamayda...thanks for making me think on the other side.

Rocky Rocky Rocky!

I wanted to show you what's been on my mind lately (aside from the predictions I received last week Friday).

Rocks.

You could even say I've been obsessed with them.

Their shape, texture, color.

We (I) are finally getting to the finish line of the pond.

Who am I kidding...it will never be finished. I'll change it every year, I'm sure.

We (I) are finally getting the dirt covered for the pond.

I need some more plants to fill in some cracks, openings. I also need some more rocks.

I have become obsessed with rocks. I even looked at the rocks at the pet store today. The ones for the fish tanks. Yeah, at $1.99 per POUND at the pet store, I even considered one.

When I brought home my last batch from the garden center, I also got a green rock, well two. At 40 cents per pound above what all the other rocks cost, it was a splurge.

I used to splurge on jewelry, or expensive shoes, or name brand cereal.

Now, I splurge on rocks.

Obsessed, I tell you, obsessed.

Prickly Sunshine

I've never been able to grow sunflowers.

Not sure why, they just never seemed to make it past 4 inches tall.

But this one.

Wow.

A gift from my neighbor, I planted this in the "Golden" soil. I have a small spot next to the house facing East that has the sweetest soil. Annuals come back year after year, tomatoes grow like weeds and flowers are more colorful than the brightest rainbow.

Sunflowers will be in my future, for sure. And perhaps some note cards to savor through the winter months.

In My Backyard

We had a rain shower with the sun shining. My favorite kind of rain. The rainbow wasn't all that awe inspiring, but this gallardia seed head surely caught my attention.

Although this Feather Grass reminds me much of wheat, of which I'm allergic too, I still love the beauty of it. The sun on the seeds makes it almost glow.

And of course, the always intriguing day lily. This is a double one that my Dad gave me. I love that it blooms after most have been dead for weeks.

Enjoy your weekend!

In My Backyard

A sunflower.

I'm anticipating sunshine.