Berries at Target

My Final Photo of the (Last) Day (of the Year)

Taken at the local Target parking lot today

HAVE A BERRY GOOD NEW YEAR!

An Herb Garden in Central Florida

Rebecca's New Herb Garden - 12/21/10

 Having survived several frosty nights under the sheets, this herb garden was photographed as the car was idling in the driveway for our long trip home to Michigan. The previous day I had tidied a bit, removing the fallen leaves. The new soil was clean and pliable--oops, I meant friable* as one would expect from a professional mix. I am a little concerned that the many backyard squirrels will find it to be an ideal spot to bury their saved treasures. Also, by Michigan standards the location seemed too shady, but only time will answer that issue. It is serviced by the underground sprinkling system with a head emerging from the middle of the bed--probably strategically placed by the resident expert. (My highlighting turned it falsely blue). I like the angled placement of the two plots and the framing of the area with great rocks. It was nice to see green things growing again even if they needed to be tucked in a few times. Good job, Rebecca and Gustavo!

*Friable soil - easily crumbled--loose, open, un-compacted, well drained, allowing roots to expand and heavy rain or too much water to drain through easily

Flora in Florida

 

We are spending a week in Florida and even though it has been cold and even freezing overnight here in the Orlando area, we went to the ICE! sculpture show (see my other blog) and enjoyed a buffet lunch at The Palms, and strolled through the indoor gardens which were tropically warm and decorated thematically for Christmas. We sat "outside" at Villa de Flora for our lunch, surrounded by plantings, with a few koi in the pond and some small gators and turtles keeping company on a rock. Otherwise, I didn't see any bugs or creatures that would do damage to the perfect foliage and flowers of the gardens. I will include a few photographs, including the whimsical, the tropical and the seasonal.

Moss chairs

Perfect leaves

Lots of poinsettias

A find the bears activity for the youngsters

A tree of poinsettias

Poinsettias in a tree!

We ate lunch under the star (above, left)--it must be a magical place at night! Pictured here is a cinnamon tree (bark used for making the spice). I don't know where cinnamon trees grow but I think I have never seen one. I included it because I delighted myself with the thought that the cinnamon tree was, in a sense, seasonal-seasonal!

Blooming for Thanksgiving

This azalea is on the countertop behind my kitchen sink where it gets some florescent light on the dark short days of late November. Read My Azalea Story below. The blooming plants in my house help to extend the season a little, as it is now completely bleak outdoors. No leaves, no snow on the ground--just a little green color remains in the lawn. Even the orange pumpkins have now been composted. But my azalea must think it's spring!

Plectranthus 'Mona Lavender'

Also blooming is this plectranthus, which I took inside before the first frost. It is a late season bloomer from zone 9b-11 that can be planted as an annual here in Michigan. This cultivar was developed in the 90's from a species in South Africa. It will tolerate temperatures to about 25  degrees F. It was just starting to show its colors in October when we had the first touches of frost. It is known to respond to the shortening days of fall with these delicate lavender blooms.

One more sun room bloomer is this Christmas Cactus that I received from my sister-in-law last December. It bloomed rather pathetically last Christmas and then tried to re-bloom, but this fall I doused it with rain water and time-released fertilizer and every tip is developing a flower bud. Here is a closeup of a blossom:

MY AZALEA STORY

On Mother's Day three years ago, Erica, likely in a last minute trip to the local supermarket to find something for Mom, found this twisted stem azalea in bloom. I had a previous experience with an azalea in the 90's that I promptly killed. I really wanted to honor Erica's gift by keeping this one alive inside the house, which is way more difficult than successfully growing one intended for planting outdoors.

As it has been growing larger in the original small plastic pot, the azalea has become very root-bound and cannot absorb much water; thus, it gets watered every day--maybe a few days have been missed here and there. Sometimes it enjoys a full soak in a pan of water for an hour or so and then it is good for two days. When I was gone for three days in September I wrote a sticky note to my husband with specific instructions for watering.

I also rather strategically nip off excess growth and old blossoms to promote a fuller habit.

A year ago this past July when we spent a week in downtown Chicago I had one of Marissa's friends babysit the plant at her house. It was starting to bloom then and she did a good job with it! 

A few months ago, with the heat and busyness of summer, I realized that the azalea was not looking as good as it could. I gave it a generous top dressing of fertilizer, trying to poke a few pellets into the mass of bound roots. I have been super diligent since then in my watering routine.

Every time I look at it, the azalea has developed a few more buds or blooms. As I write today, it is even more full and luscious than when I took the picture above. 

I don't treat all my plants with this kind of diligence! This plant has become my personal horticultural challenge, which I have enjoyed--with great success, if I do say so myself!
 

Triple blossom from one tip!

Up on the Rooftop

I told myself not to climb on the roof anymore after I turned 60, but once again I didn't listen to my own advice.

I remember climbing up the big sturdy yellow ladder in the back of the house in July. I pulled on some vines that were growing up the drain spout and were starting to climb over the edge of the roof. Dislodging a nest of some species of flying things with stingers that had taken up residence in a crack between the roof and the house, I received one very painful sting on an exposed ankle by an outraged bee creature. I also squeezed a bee while deadheading a dahlia at the church garden in September. I am not at all allergic, but yet again, experienced intense pain for about fifteen minutes. Two stings for a whole season outdoors is tolerable, I suppose and I had only my own foolish behavior to blame.

This past week I once again ventured up onto the roof. It was slippery with all the leaves and littered with honey locust tree pods. I literally maneuvered on my butt as I neared the edge. Wearing latex gloves and old clothes, I carefully slid along the roof line removing sticks and other debris from the gutters. At one point I realized that the shingles seemed to be a little bit rougher than one would expect. I checked below and discovered that I had worn a hole through my old paint pants and through my Hanes. I was sliding around on my bare butt! Fortunately I received only superficial injuries to one "cheek." 

When am going to leave the leaves alone and reserve the roof for Santa's reindeer? But who shall help me? I have used gas leaf blowers and hoses with powerful sprayers, which is messy and fun (I have previously mentioned how I love wasting water), but the equipment makes the task even more awkward and requires standing up near the edge! I know, hire the pros, you say.

 We recently had our berber carpets cleaned. The professionals with their trucks and hydraulic-driven system for suction, with water heated to 180 degrees, did a really nice job. It was a Dutch owned company, a 6'4" Dutch workman, and my carpet is now dutch clean! I wonder if I should pay to have a dutch clean roof.

Next year: if I am old enough to collect money from the government, I am old enough to stay off the roof. This house was for sale 20 years ago because the previous owner fell off a ladder and died! (Not at this location, thankfully). After his death, his wife no longer wanted to live here. When we first looked at the house with our real estate agent, we noticed a picture of my husband's former pastor on the fireplace mantle. It was the widow's father. This odd occurrence seemed to be a sign, pointing us to the purchase of the property. So, for better or for worse, here we are--with trees falling, and leaves and poo-colored pods littering our house and yard, plugging our gutters. But yet: this is our home.

Rooftop View of Honey Locust Tree--a few pods remaining

A Very Special Garden Visit

Here is a sample of my photographs taken on a recent visit to Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids, Michigan, featuring the Dale Chihuly exhibit, which ended on October 31. Also featured were many fall displays, with pumpkins and mums everywhere. The wonderful large horse sculpture is a favorite, a Da Vinci design with a twin in Milan. I purposely took a photo from this angle to avoid focusing on the generous endowments which are part of this anatomically correct male horse!

The American Horse

Scary with 3X Zoom

Entry to Childrens Garden

Closeup of Mum Ball

My Honey Locust Tree

AN EXPOSITION OF THE SEEDY UNDER-BELLY OF LIFE UNDER LARGE TREES

My huge old Honey Locust tree had a pod-a-thon this year. This is my pile just from this week--following a severe windstorm that swept through the Midwest.  This is not nearly all the pods--some are still clinging to the monstrous mother tree and I have another larger mound like it on the other side of the sidewalk. One annoyed owner of a honey locust tree has described the pods as "littering the yard like brown piles of poo."

I was informed by some garden club friends who spent most of their lives in Africa that the pods are used as a food source. I wonder if anybody in Michigan is hungry for some pod stew. I'm sure other honey locusts had "bumper" crops this year as well. We could pool our pods for the food pantry--or for an interesting new side dish for the homeless feast on Thanksgiving Day. Actually, the hard, rattling seeds from these mature pods would have to be roasted and ground up (see below) for a coffee substitute.

Raking all these pods makes me wonder how many more years I am going to put up with this. A fall like this after a summer that seemed relentlessly hot has made the whole notion of condo life increasingly attractive.

The roof is loaded with leaves and pods as well, and I don't even want to think about how clogged the gutters are. These pods don't mulch so well, either. I will probably bag them and make another trip to the free city yard waste site.

This year's excessive pod and leaf production may just put me over the edge--hopefully not over the edge of the roof when I have to clear it! If I didn't believe that all this exercise and outdoor air/sunshine was good for me, I would probably have decided years ago to throw down the rake.

Some Honey Locust Pod facts gleaned on-line at Buzzle.com--comments in parenthesis, mine.

• Its pulp can be fermented and used as energy alcohol and also for extraction of sugar. 
• The seeds can be dried, roasted and ground and used as a substitute for coffee.
• The seeds, raw or cooked can also be used in food as they taste like peas. (A kind of legume, I guess.)
• The unripe pods can be eaten after cooking.
• The pods of the honey locust tree are also eaten by wild forest animals like rabbits, deer, squirrels, and birds too. (Have been used as fodder for livestock as well.)

Purple Smoke Bush

My Photo of the Day

This Purple Smoke Bush (photo taken today in Client P's yard) was already stunning but I enhanced it a little, giving it accented edges! The two shrubs were very differently transformed for some reason. A very wonderful sight to behold today as much of the fall scene is fast fading.

Fall Color Just Around The Corner and Down the Street

 

The October Sky - One Fall Afternoon in West Michigan

There's just something about that October Sky! Today the clouds were playing peek-a-boo with the sun all day, providing interesting backdrops for the autumn colors.

My Jeep and I on Color Tour

Gingko Tree 

 

Tiger Eyes Sumac

MY PHOTO OF THE DAY

  

Rhus balimer 'Tiger Eyes' sumac

This is an unedited photo taken October 16, 2010 at "My Secret Garden."

The Flavors of Fall - Maple and Orange

Maple, Amelanchier, mums, hosta

Amelanchier and mums

Maple across from my house

Maple at the cemetery

Mum at Aunt V
 

Another maple at Aunt V 

More color at the graveyard

Forest Pansy Redbud turns orange

If you know anything about autumn trees or photography you know how hard it is to capture the "big picture" of the fall scene in a camera lens. But yet, I have to try, so this is my first attempt to document the flavor of fall here in Michigan. It's a daily changing panorama--some trees are already bare and some are green, but the maples are the real beauties today. We have had a record number of sunny days this fall (yes!) and it is a good year for orange/red color. The burning bush euonymus are already bright red but the red maples are only just beginning to brighten this week. More color coming!