juneSCENE IN OUR GARDEN: June 2010

Not OUR Garden

We went on our first official Home and Garden Tour of the summer today! Twelve homes and many of the gardens were open for our meanderings. It was hot, but a breeze made it tolerable.

Congratulations to the home owners, the North Anthony Area Association (Fort Wayne, IN), and ARCH, Inc. for a pleasurable experience.

Here are a few of the garden views that caught my eye...

Full on Friday

Today...a FULL display of baby's breath and beautiful yellow lilies...

The Price is Right

Lying on the side of the country road yesterday, I spied a pile of "stuff" with a sign saying "FREE". My friend was driving, and it wasn't a good time to stop. Last night my husband agreed to drive out with me and see if anything was left. Sure enough!

Look at these sweet "feet"...

and the rust...just the right amount!

My husband remembered we had an extra piece of glass in the garage (I'm always on the lookout for glass - even if I don't have anywhere special to put it - yet!) This one fit perfectly!

Now to find the perfect place for it...

On a covered porch or patio, pillows - or something else - could be stored inside. The lid lifts off!

Out and About

My friend and I enjoyed breakfast at the Covered Bridge Restaurant before heading to Hurshtown Gardens--an Amish enterprise near my home. While their stock has thinned out, their hanging baskets were some of the grandest, most healthy I've seen this year!

I didn't buy a hanging basket but purchased some onions and tomatoes to enjoy at home.

We then headed to Parent Road where I bought the "Blackie" sweet potato vine (below),
some red raspberries,

and some eat-out-of-hand peas.

After depositing the vine on a lawn chair near the garage door for future planting, I strolled around the front of our house where I found the first bloom on this clump of black-eyed-Susans. It's just a matter of time till they are all open and "smiling" at me!

Finally!

Finally! We came home from our overnight in Chicago to find the yellow lilies had opened beautifully!

See them in the background (to the left) behind this Russian Sage?
The hosta were blooming, too. Each with a unique shade and shape.

Sweet!

A vintage tablecloth, roses off our bushes in a vintage vase, sunshine, and cup of coffee shared with a friend this morning. Sweet.

On the Fence

Here are a couple of decorations we have on one of the fences bordering our property...

The lilies below have been "on the fence" for several days now when it comes to blooming! Maybe today?

A New Angle

Here's a different perspective for me! I stood behind our shed and took a picture of the lilac bed and the side garden that grows along our garage. Seeing it this way gives me a few more ideas!!!

These mature lamb's ear grow in the garage-side garden. I transplanted a few a couple of weeks ago. They seem to have taken root just fine...

A couple of days ago, we moved these chairs to a new spot thinking we may create a mulched or graveled area to include the tree behind them. We'll wait for cooler weather to tackle THIS project!

Behind them, the clematis bloom...

...and they overlook the bed that includes the grass and this lily.

When Life Gives You Mulberries

We inherited a LARGE mulberry tree. It is an attractive tree - most of the time. About this time of year, it is annoying and messy! Last night, however, I served our guests this delicious cobbler. The recipe was the first that came up when I googled "Mulberry Cobbler". It was just delicious!

Crispy Mulberry Cobbler

1 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. sugar
3 c. mulberries
1 c. flour
1 c. sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/3 c. butter or shortening
1 egg lightly beaten

Gently rinse mulberries in cool water. Combine the Tbsp. of flour and sugar in medium bowl and toss gently with berries.
Combine flour, sugar and baking powder in mixing bowl. Cut in butter with pastry blender till mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add in egg; mix just enough to moisten.
Grease 8-inch square baking dish. Fill with berry mix. Crumble topping over berries. Bake at 350 degrees till slightly golden, 30 to 35 min.
Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

I baked the night before serving and covered with foil. It was delicious unheated—it was soft and moist – not crispy.

No Place Like Home!

I was anxious to stroll in my own yard after a week of beauty in Kentucky...to see what had changed and to enjoy the familiar. The fern, hosta, and sedum had grown to proportions I haven't seen in the six summers I've gardened here!

The astillbe may not have become fuller, but certainly taller!

The color of the spirea blooms never cease to draw my eye to them.

The clematis had spilled over the backside of the fence!

Not to be outdone, several hosta had bloomed themselves!
A great amount of rain fell yesterday. There are weeds waiting to be addressed tomorrow. Today, however, is a day of rest.

To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly; to listen to stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart; to bear all cheerfully, do all bravely, await occasions, hurry never. In a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common. This is to be my symphony. William Henry Channing 1810-1884

Irises come in many forms, shapes, colors and sizes and the sword-like foliage is attractive when the plant is not in bloom. The genus Iris is a large genus of bulbous and rhizomatous perennials.

The Iris was named after the goddess of the rainbow because of its many colors.
A flower on the Sphinx is considered to be an Iris, and another appears on a bas-relief of the 18th Egyptian dynasty.
Pliny also knew the Iris and praised its medicinal virtues.
The Iris was also a favourite flower of the Moslems, who took it to Spain after their conquest in the 8th century.

Bought at a local plant sale, Spring of 2009 Feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium; syn. Chrysanthemum parthenium (L.) Pers., Pyrethrum parthenium Sm.) is a traditional medicinal herb which is found in many old gardens, and is also occasionally grown for ornament. The plant grows into a small bush up to around 18 inches high, with citrus-scented leaves and is covered by flowers reminiscent of daisies. It spreads rapidly, and they will cover a wide area after a few years. It is also commonly seen in the literature by its synonyms, Chrysanthemum parthenium (L.) Bernh. and Pyrethrum parthenium (L.) Sm.

I'D PICK MORE DAISIES
If I could live my life again
I'd be a little lazy
I'd stop this rushing to and fro
And stop and pick more daisies
Through all the lovely summer months
Though days be clear or hazy
No more to fret over tasks undone,
I'd stop to pick a daisy
Not so important what I did
This fact time now discloses
While running through life's garden green
I'd stop to smell the roses
If I could hold my little ones
The children in my care
I'd scold them less and love them more
With so much love to share
If I could pass this way again
Though folks might think I'm crazy
I'd work and worry less, but I'd
Take time to pick a daisy
The rush of life has passed me by
Now I have leisure hours
But time has taken such a toll
It's too late to pick the flowers.

Mildred F. Rowe

MEASURE YOUR HEALTH...by your sympathy with morning and spring. If there is no response in you to the awakening of nature, if the prospect of an early morning walk does not banish sleep, if the warble of the first bluebird does not thrill you--know that the morning and the spring of your life are past. Thus may you feel your pulse. (Thoreau)

"God writes the gospel not in the Bible alone, but on the trees and flowers and clouds and stars." (Martin Luther)

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and to endure the betrayal of false friends. To appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded." (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

The soul of a child is the loveliest flower
That grows in the garden of God
It's climb is from weakness to knowledge and power,
To the sky from the clay to the clod.
To beauty and sweetness it grows under care
Neglected, 'tis ragged and wild.
'Tis a plant that is tender, but wondrously rare,
The sweet wistfull soul of a child.

Be tender, O Gardener, and give it it's share
Of moisture, of warmth and of light,
And let it not lack for th painstaking care
To protect it from frost and from blight.
A glad day will come when it's bloom shall unfold,
It will seem that an angel has smiled,
Reflecting a beauty and sweetness untold
In the sensitive soul of a child.

...Author Unknown

Thy Word is like a garden, Lord,
With flowers bright and fair;
And every one who seeks may pluck
A lovely cluster there.
Thy Word is like a deep, deep mine,
And jewels rich and rare
Are hidden in its mighty depths
For every searcher there.

Thy Word is like a starry host:
A thousand rays of light
Are seen to guard the traveler,
And make his pathway bright.
Thy Word is like an armory,
Where soldiers may repair,
And find, for life's long battle-day,
All needful weapons there.

Oh, may I love Thy precious Word,
May I explore the mine,
May I its fragrant flowers glen,
May light upon me shine!
Oh, may I find my armor there!
Thy Word my trusty sword,
I'll learn to fight with every foe
The battle of the Lord.

(Edwin Hodder, Thy Word Is Like a Garden, Lord)