Green Thumb Sunday - 9/28/2008

One of my favorite things about fall and winter is how the seedheads and skeletal remains of plants become the focus of interest instead of the flowers themselves. I was looking around today to see what was blooming and noticed the seedheads on my blanket flowers.
Joseph's Coat still had a few rogue blooms left on it. It has taken a break for the last couple of months and been putting on new growth. I finally had enough to tie it up to the trellis.

The water lily is still going gangbusters in the pond. The lilypads have pretty much taken it over. I'm going to have to pull it out soon and trim it back for the winter.

The sweet alyssum is still plugging along in the scree garden. It has spread quite a bit from when I planted it earlier this spring.

Gardeners, Plant and Nature lovers can join in every Sunday, visit As the Garden Grows for more information.

Providence

Today Quickbeam and I went along with my husband when he went out for a haircut. The place that he goes to is in the Providence shopping area here in town. While we were waiting for him we went for a walk to see what was going on in the area. We walked by a restaurant that had a fountain in the front and had some lantana planted by it. As we walked by there was a cloud of butterflies that took off from it. I went back to the car to get my camera so I could see if I could get some pictures.

Providence is in an area that is a bit more expensive than most of the places that we frequent, but Maw has been looking since we got here for a good place to get his hair cut. There is a barber shop there called Roosters, and it is a spot for men to go and get well...pampered isn't the word that I'm looking for but it's something like that. The place is really nice, it is set up to be like an old barber shop. The guys can get a haircut and a shave, as well as massages and manicures etc. After you get your hair cut the lady barbers will give a neck massage. Needless to say he is sold on it and goes there whenever he needs a hair cut. Makes me want to get MY hair cut there. :)

Finally the Weekend

The weather has been so pleasant in the evenings that we have been sitting on the back porch more. We watch the sun setting and the bats start to come out and flit through the sky. There is a big field behind our house and it makes us feel almost like we're living further out in the country than we are. I feel so much at peace lately, and so blessed in my life. There is something gut-wrenching about moving, picking up and leaving all that is familiar to you and starting over again. We got a new house and a new job and some new friends, but it still takes a long time before it really feels *right*. It's been odd lately...I haven't been wanting to buy things because I have everything that I need. I haven't even been buying that many books anymore, because I don't have much spare time to read and have a full bookcase, most of which I haven't read. I haven't even been wanting to buy more plants or start more garden beds and would rather maintain the ones that I have and let them grow in.

My mom has spent most of her life being unsatisfied with what she has in life. She doesn't take care of the things that she has but promises that she would take care of the new things she wants. I try to explain that if we don't take care of the things that we have then we won't take care of anything else that we get. I also sometimes think that God tests us, and that if we don't take care of the gifts that He has given to us then we won't be given more. So I am trying to revel in the blessings that I have been given and to be content and see what comes my way. :)

P.S. I almost forgot to mention the flower in my picture. :) I was poking around in the garden last night and saw that there are a few rogue blooms and buds on my Butterscotch Jessamine vine. I love the color and light fragrance that it has.

Mums

This morning when I walked out the door to go to work I was surprised at how cool it was. It was about 55 degrees, and the sky was clear. The stars and the crescent moon were bright and I realized that I haven't seen them in a long time. It is getting to be darker earlier, and the weather is nice enough that we can sit on the back porch for a while. I think we might have a bonfire in the fire pit this weekend and maybe cook up a pot of chili. There's an Apple Festival in Moulton this weekend and that sounds like it would be fun to go to. We are bad about making plans to do things and ending up staying around the house instead. We'll see what happens. :)

Autumn Garden

I have some plants that are still gamely blooming away, but you can tell that they are running out of steam. It has been a very long growing season here and it has started getting cooler at night so fall can't be too far away. My roses are still going crazy:

I still have lots of dahlias:

My new goldenrod is getting settled in:

And my gnome is getting settled into his new home:

Anticipation

When we were walking into the front door yesterday I noticed that some of the buds on the mums were starting to open up. In a week or so we are going to have a real show. :)

It was overcast and raining slightly when we got up this morning, so most of the plans that we had made for the day were cancelled. We went out and got breakfast, and then headed home. We stopped on our way back and watched the Trail of Tears motorcycle ride go through. It is a commemerative ride that helps raise money for scholarships for Native Americans and to remember the Trail of Tears forced march of the Cherokee Indians. When we got home I went out and took some pictures, and got a very small bit of gardening done. Lady Banks has been growing through the slats in the fence, and I saw the neighbors craning around while mowing to avoid it. So I went over on their side this morning and trimmed it back. There were some small planes practicing flying in formation overhead and it added to the entertainment to watch them.

Fall Gardening

I still have a few rose blooms here and there and one of them is my Angel Face rose. I was pretty amazed that it came back, since it had dropped all of its leaves from Black Spot earlier this spring. I really, really enjoy gardening in late summer/early fall. I ordered some plants from High Country Gardens and they came in Thursday. So today Quickbeam and I went out to get some planting done. I got a Dwarf Goldenrod 'Golden Fleece', Ironweed and New England Aster 'Purple Dome'. I also took the opportunity to clean up some of the other plants that needed to be trimmed back and staked. We got to get about half an hour of work done but it was getting so windy that we had to come back in. We are going to be getting some weather from Hurricane Ike today so we'll be mostly inside-bound.

We did get out for breakfast early this morning and went to Another Broken Egg, one of our favorite breakfast spots in town. A cup of coffee on the way back sealed the deal and I am ready to get some relaxing in today. Hope that everyone else has a great weekend. :)
Green Thumb Sunday

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Anemonemonemones

Yesterday was a really nice day. I took Quickbeam out when I got home from work and we did some gardening. I moved some plants around in my scree garden, and did some weeding. I started trying to do battle with the primroses in the front flower bed. We went to Bennett's on Sunday because they finally got in some Japanese Anemones. I got one last fall but it died in a late frost this year. I've been waiting impatiently for it ever since. I got the plants I ordered from High Country Gardens in today, so I'll be planting them this weekend. I need to sit down and put some more thought into the layout that I want to do first though.

Green Thumb Sunday 9/7/08

We woke up this morning to a heavy fog and a layer of dew on everything. It's been a rough couple of weeks and we're looking forward to a bit of a fresh start on things.

First Day Back

Today was the first day back at work after Labor Day and our trip last week. It also marks the end of my assignment with the IT group at work. I have been working for a couple of hours at my regular job, and then going to another building to work with our software implementation team. I have to say that I enjoyed the novelty of being able to stay in my office and actually stay focused on my work. I would rather do one job really well than to do two jobs half-assed, which is what it felt like I was doing. So I was very happy today. The picture above is from my succulent bird feeder. The plants in it are starting to get more established. Since they didn't have many roots the dirt has been washing out of it so I need to add more and respace out the plants.

Mine!

I pulled the name for my blog out of thin air when I started it. When we first got here and went to Across the Pond I saw some goblin garden statues and fell in love with them. Unfortunately we always had a more pressing financial priority and I was never able to get one. A couple of weeks ago when I took my camera along I decided that I would at least take a picture for my blog header.

Since we got back from Florida yesterday and my in-laws don't leave until tomorrow I suggested that we go to Across the Pind so that they could see the Victoria water lily. They also like to garden and see plants so they like going there. While we were there I pointed out the statue to them and told them that's where I got the picture for my blog. They surprised me and bought me the statue for my birthday. So now it is at home in my back yard, and waiting for me to decide how I'm going to reshuffle my plants around this fall. Thanks Mom and Dad, it means a lot to me. :)

Life and Death in the Garden

We got back from Florida late this afternoon. I was so glad to get home that I was just about to bust. Maw's sister is doing better and is back at home resting. She has lupus and they think that her latest problems are related to it. As soon as we got home and got the car unloaded I had to go out and see what was going on in the garden. There didn't seem to be much of anything different going on, so I was going to walk back in the house. I noticed a moth on my caryopteris plant, and that it seemed to be eating in an odd position. I didn't think much of it and started to go back into the house. For some reason I looked a little closer and noticed the white spider that was under the leaf that had captured it.

Tampa

We are getting ready to come home from Tampa tomorrow. It's been an enjoyable trip so far. We have been able to visit with Maw's sister quite a bit, but have been trying to take into consideration that she is tired and not feeling too well. We went out to eat seafood restaurants a couple of times, which underwhelmed me because I'm not a big seafood fan. I had jerk chicken yesterday and the fish and chips today. We drove down by Tampa Bay on the way home tomorrow and enjoyed some scenery before a downpour from Hurricane Gustave started in. We're leaving very early tomorrow and should be gone before most of the worst hits. I'm definately looking forward to getting home.

Dianthus

When It Rains, It Pours

First, this cloud looks like a camel to me.

Second, this has been a not-so-good month for us. Maw has had a Series of Unfortunate Events that just seems to keep rolling on. Now his sister is sick and in the hospital. We are going to be heading down to Florida to see her this weekend. I'm not crazy about traveling on the Labor Day weekend, but we do what we must. It'll be the longest car trip that we have taken Quickbeam on, so that will be a challenge in itself. When you're saying your prayers to the diety of your choosing, please add in one for Maw's sister, it would be appreciated.

Many Faces

It is raining a lot today, not really suitable weather for walking around outside adn taking pictures. So I'm digging through the archives (okay, from this weekend) and have this lovely picture of my Gingersnap rose. I am fascinated by this rose. It starts out a vibrant, rich orange and fades to palest peach. Here it is in a in-between stage. This is one of my most photogenic roses, along with Elle. This is its first year, I can't wait to see what it does next year.

Green Thumb Sunday 9/24/2008

We finally got some rain today, mostly due to Hurricane/Tropical Storm Here-Again-Gone-Again Fay. We were supposed to get rain yesterday but it went around us. We finally got a good soak early this morning. We are also supposed to get some Monday and Tuesday. It's been a lazy weekend where we didn't get a whole lot done. We had a few things that we were supposed to do that have been put off. We didn't feel like driving around in the rain. I did decide to order a few plants from High Country Gardens. My tradition is to get a plant or two for my birthday. On my last few trips to the nursery I haven't really found anything that caught my eye. So since my mind has been on rain gardens again lately I ordered an aster, dwarf goldenrod and ironweed. I'm planning on expanding my nature garden this fall and these plants are all good butterfly plants.

Evicted

I was looking around in the back garden last night, and was awestruck by the Mum that Ate Alabama. It is getting ready to bloom just about any day now, so I was checking to see if there were any buds opening yet. I have noticed it gradually encroaching on its neighbors, but I figured they'd rebound after it bloomed. And then a thought occured to me that I hadn't seen my Peppermint clematis lately. I peered behind TMTAA and there was my poor clematis, laying prostrate and looking mighty peaked. So that was the final straw. I don't want to lose my clematis after finally coming around to appreciate it. So I got a shovel and evicted my overly boisterous mum. I had an empty pot that I had unsuccessfully tried to grow shade plants in, and planted it in that. It is currently sitting in the front flower bed, well contained, and maybe it will still bloom. The only thing I'm going to have to do is to find a home for it before winter. :)

Working for a Living

Every now and then there is a fringe benefit for getting up and going to work. This is the sight that greeted me when I stepped out the door this morning. I had to drop my bags and come in and get the camera. If I wasn't working I would never voluntarily see a sunrise after all. :)

Out for a Walk

I took Quickbeam out for a walk today when I got home from work. We've been really enjoying the temperate August weather. It's actually been rare for it to be so hot that I can't stand being outside. It's pleasantly cool in the morning and evening, though it still gets pretty hot during the afternoon. Probably has to do with the fact that it hasn't rained in a bit and it's not too humid. I expect that we'll get some weather from Fay when it comes back around, but hopefully it won't be too bad. Until then, I'm enjoying spending time in my garden during the evening.

Spiders

As I was walking by the bushes in front of the house, this spider web caught my eye. I'm not sure how well it will translate in the picture, but it is half of an orb, with anchor points around it. It was such an interesting architectural design I had to take a picture of it. If you look carefully at it, you can see the spider sitting in the middle of it.
I am not typically one that has a fear of spiders, but the sight of this behemoth on our screen (outside) about gave me a heart attack. The leg span on this thing was about as as big around as an apple (lousy comparison but about the best I could come up with). The thought of having this sneaking under the door and running around the house about has me breaking out in hives.

Across the Pond

So here's the latest picture of my pond...just kidding folks! Today Quickbeam and I made it over to one of my favorite places on Earth, Across the Pond. Since one of my favorite things to do when I travel is visit gardening centers, I'm going to share some of my local favorites. Across the Pond is a gardening center where you can buy pond things of course, and they have demonstration ponds. The Victoria water lily above is a new addition. I briefly considered trying to grow it once in my previous pond, but after seeing this one I realize that I totally underestimated their size. They also have stone that you can buy in bulk, as well as some pond liners, water plants and fish. The goldfish that I have in my pond came from there. They sell fish from truly immense koi that cost as much as one of my house payments to small goldfish. Here are a few of their larger specimens.
They also sell pots of all sizes and garden statuary. I am truly in love with some of their garden statues and NEED this one in particular since it goes along with my blog name. Unfortunately it's going to have to wait until my bank account rebounds from our move.

I also like their sense of humor. :)

Gardeners, Plant and Nature lovers can join in every Sunday, visit As the Garden Grows for more information.

Six Random Things

I got tagged by Serdic for this and was trying to still my mind and let some random thoughts bubble up to talk about.

1. Gratitude. This morning Maw was going to go get a haircut and I was going to take Quickbeam to the nursery. It was drizzling a little so I decided to do the nursery later. A few minutes after Maw left the house I got a phone call from him. He'd been in an accident, but he was okay. He'd hit a wet spot in the road and hydroplaned into the ditch. I am so grateful that he wasn't hurt, it could have been so much worse. There was no one else involved, we don't know the extent of the damage to our truck yet. Thank you to the big man upstairs that he was watching over Maw today.

2. Motherhood. There is one thing in my life that everything else pales in comparison to, and that is being my daughter's mother. My whole life has changed because of this little person, and I wouldn't have it any other way. One of the most endearing things to me is when we take her for a walk in her stroller. When I look down at my baby girl, I see three things. Her crop of hair, her ears and her little bitty neck holding it all up. I have tried many times unsuccessfuly to get a good picture of it but have been unable to because she has ESPN that tells her I have a camera and she tries to turn around to see what I'm doing. Watching her trying to take in everything that she sees tugs at my heartstrings.

3. Guitar. I have been playing my guitar more for the last few nights and really enjoying it. Except that Quickbeam is fascinated with the guitar and tries to play it along with me. I seem to be getting a lot of my interests back that I haven't had time for lately.

4. Fall. It isn't going to be too much longer before fall gets here. While I am not a fan of cold weather, I always love when fall comes around. And now that we have the fire pit I would like to have some bonfires outside and possibly marshmallows will be involved.

5. Sweet Tea. I have been obsessively drinking sweet tea lately. Being a daughter of the South I have always been fond of it, but lately it's gotten excessive. I really need to explore the benefits of drinking water more. ;)

6. Sports. I haven't ever been that big of a sports fan, but lately it's been catching on with me. Most likely because Q has the TV on ESPN when I get home from work, and I end up watching it for a while. Football is probably my favorite of all, but I've been keeping up with the gossip from all of them. Oh, and watching Michael Phelps and the Olympics has been just AWESOME!

Okay, I don't really know that many blogging people, so the only ones I can think of to tag are : One hope, one heart and Kat. Take it away gals. ;)

New Resident

It was my birthday a few days ago and this was my present from

my very good friend One Heart, One Hope. She is now a resident in my shade garden that is under construction (the fairy that is, not my friend!). I plan on picking up a couple of new shade plants while I am at the nursery this weekend. Maw is going to get a haircut and shave and Quickbeam and I are going to go to the nursery for some unsupervised shopping. Here's to hoping that my bank account survives the shock. :)

Elle

My Elle rose is still blooming its heart out. This is in spite of the fact that it has been pretty much neglected this year. It does get pruned pretty often when I bring in flowers to take to work.

Home Day

Today was an unexpected home day. Maw had an allergic reaction to something and had to go to the doctor. So I stayed home this morning with Quickbeam. We took advantage of the time to go for a walk, and to see what was blooming outside. The weather was overcast and it looked like it was going to rain. I have been trying to get a good bee picture all year, and was finally able to. I have a particular fondness for bees after reading Sue Hubbell's books. At one time when we planned on moving to the country and starting a homestead, I planned on getting some hives of my own. Those hives are in the same dream wastebasket as the homestead is, but I still get to see and enjoy bees from time to time.

Gingersnap

Gingersnap is the rose that I planted when my baby girl was born. I am growing much fonder of orange flowers, and there was something that seemed fitting to honor her with. These start out a very vibrant orange color and fade to a pale peach color. It is planted in front of our bedroom window and I like to tie back the curtains and see it while I'm in there in the mornings.

Green Thumb Sunday 8/10/08

I didn't have a lot of hope left for my Angel Face rose at the beginning of this season. It had been hit hard by black spot and didn't even have a leaf left on it. I gave it some intense spraying therapy for a couple of weeks and then forgot about it until now. There are a couple of Japanese Beetles chewing on it, but otherwise it is doing so much better. Since I featured so many front yard plants last week, this post is for my back yard plants. This is my Joseph's Coat rose still blooming away. It is starting to get long enough to train up the trellis, which I am going to have to start doing soon.
This is the latest addition to my garden, 'Southern Charm' verbascum. I remember seeing it a long time ago, when I first started getting seed/gardening catalogs. I loved it but never did get any of it. When I was at Bennett's on my last visit I found some and finally fulfilled that wish. It is currently planted by the "Mum that Ate Alabama" so I'm hoping that it doesn't get eaten, like is about to happen to my garden gnome.

Gardeners, Plant and Nature lovers can join in every Sunday, visit As the Garden Grows for more information.

At Work

There are holly bushes in front of the building that I work in. Some mornings when I come into work and there is a heavy dew, I notice that there are spiderwebs all over them, as seen below. In the middle of each web there is a tunnel, and in each tunnel is one of the spiders that are seen above. I've always been fascinated by them, and finally got the work digital camera out and got a picture of one. And then spent the rest of the morning scratching all over at imaginary spiders. ;)

Rain Lilies

This picture of my Rain Lily is especially appropriate for today. We had a thunderstorm roll through around lunchtime and it poured. Since it was raining I parked next to the building that I worked in which has crepe myrtles around it. By the time I left to go home the truck looked like a parade float from all of the flowers that had fallen on it. I got this plant from Bennett's Nursery last year. It didn't bloom last year but has several times this year. The blooms are very short-lived so I was lucky to get a shot of it.

Joe Pye Weed

A few years ago I was reading a magazine article about rain gardens. I was interested in the idea because our yard in North Carolina became a lake everytime a hurricane went through. I read up on the different sorts of plants, and one of them that caught my eye was the Joe Pye Weed. I don't have a drainage problem here, but I did want some for their tall, architectural presence. I planted it in the front flower beds last year, and the blooms were underwhelming. This year I have moved it to the beginnings of my nature garden. It has obviously done better here, as witnessed in the picture above. As I was moving in to take a picture of it, there was an explosion of little butterflies that came off of it. Looks like it's a hit. :)