juneSCENE IN OUR GARDEN

At Last

Actually, today is the first day I've even had the urge to check out

the condition of our yard and flower beds!

The sun is shining. It's still chilly and snow is forecast for tomorrow,

but at last I think we're turning the corner from winter to spring!

My husband has spent many hours cleaning out his work space in our garage. He came across a lot of scrap wood and put together some really interesting Yard Art for me!

These were made out of some cabinet doors (samples) that he'd picked up somewhere (free, of course). After dismantling them and creating chalkboards from the middle parts of them, he had these narrow strips left over.

This is what we came up with!

Once the ground thaws, I'm going to "plant" a mini-grove

in one of our flower beds!

I'm kind of excited.

Waiting...

...patiently.

Ice Sculpture

Food for Thought

Paul David Tripp recently tweeted: "One of the basic sins in relationships is inattention. We make greater commitments to our gardens than to the people we say we love."

Wow! Something to think about as my yard and garden lie dormant just now....

not MY yard

There's really not so much to see in our own yard today.

However, we drove through nearby Woodburn, IN
and pulled up alongside one of my favorite yards
so I could take a picture.

It sure makes a good case for "hardscape", doesn't it?

I guess not everyone would appreciate all the yard art here,

but I LOVE it!
(You probably know you can click on the pictures to enlarge them
and see more detail.....)

No Question About It!

December 26, 2012

Scene from our living room window.
No question about it. It's winter.

Our Backyard Christmas Cabin

The sun was already setting when I went out to get this picture this afternoon...

still you can get the gist of our backyard Christmas cabin.

If you'd like a peek inside, click HERE.

Come on! I think you'll be surprised.

And Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

I had the dream for some time but had been too lazy to search

out a "proper" branch.

Imagine my happiness to find THIS perfect one

lying across an evergreen tree--

apparently deposited by the wind in a most convenient place for me!

I placed it in a tree holder I found recently at a thrift store.

Now it stands on our front porch decked sparingly with a few thrifted ornaments.

Even the "berries" seem suited for the season!

Merry Christmas, my Gardening Friends!

Oh Christmas Tree II

I saw this in a magazine at Barnes & Noble this evening.

I'd sure like to try it!

(Haven't done the previous one yet though...)

Oh Christmas Tree

I think I need to go "harvest" a "tree" !

How cool is this?!?

Sky Watch

That's the moon this morning - down near the end of the road

as my husband drove to work...

This is the sun setting in front of our house this evening.

What beauty in the sky!

2 Wet 2 Work

...so we wait for a chance to rake leaves, pick up rest of walnuts

cut back the perennials, and put away lawn ornaments.

To Do

OK. I'm going To Do this myself!

I'll show my personal version when I complete it!

(Like many of the rest of you, we have plenty of
clean up and put-away-for-winter To Do, too!)

Entertained by Change

The colors of autumn

tend toward jewel tones here, it seems.

We've been kind of lazy about yard work...

On one of the next warmer days,

we need to get out and put away lawn ornaments for the winter.

Meanwhile, we are simply entertained by all the changes.

Bumper Crop

One of these things is not like the others,

One of these things just doesn't belong,

Can you tell which thing is not like the others

By the time I finish my song?

Yes! I found an Easter egg!

It's probably been in the flower bed since a late Easter Egg hunt

when our grandchildren visited.

So far we've gathered 4 wheelbarrows full of walnuts!

What a mess.

A few still remain on the tree.

That's right--ONE tree.

We've had a Bumper Crop for sure!

More Generosity!

I've lived 64 years and never realized sweet potatoes

could grow so large!

Seriously!

Almost bigger than our generous friend

who gave it to us.

Generosity of Friends & Abundance of Autumn

Harvest Moon in the Morning

Sunday morning view from our front porch...

down and across the street.

No WAY could the camera on my cell phone

capture its beauty...

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)