Dropping temperatures....

Hello, again. All of my Thanksgiving guests have returned home, so now my house is quiet again. And empty. But for one wonderful week, I loved having everyone here. My garden is becoming quiet and empty (sorta), too. The temperatures have dropped below freezing most of the nights this past week, which, of course, has affected my garden.


Something unusual happens to one of my plants when it freezes. It looks very odd to walk outside in the mornings and see this:




The sap of my Salvia coccinea turns to ice and bursts the stems open. As the day warms, the white ice will disappear, leaving behind the damaged stalks. Do you think the icy sap looks like cotton candy?



These Salvias have completely blackened now and I plan to pull them all out next week. I have a few Violas with which to replace some of them, but other places in the garden will be left blank for the Winter.


Salvia coccinea reseeds itself very well in my garden, so I have very little doubt that as things warm up next year, a new crop of these hummingbird favorites will start to show up.



The Violas are affected by the dropping temperatures, too. I like the way they hunker down against the cold and then revive again when it warms up. Hey, that sounds kind of like me!



One of my Catmint plants has one stalk with blooms on it. Maybe it didn't get the memo that the garden is shutting down for the season. Good for it.


Have a beautiful day!

Changes...

I started my blog one year and one day ago. And in that year, I have done 305 posts. (Whew!) I have enjoyed the focus on my garden that daily blogging has given me. But now it's time for a change. I have had a part-time job for a couple of months now, so my time is a little more limited. I will miss blogging every day, but I think that's a change I need to make. Working has given me less time in the garden, so I'll need to use some of my previous blogging time to actually be in my garden. I'd also like to be able to spend a little more time visiting other garden blogs because I love seeing other gardens and hearing about different plants. And then there is my other blog, Ruth's Plants, that I would like to work on occasionally as well. So, I will miss talking to you every day, but I will still be here, probably at least every week, and hopefully even more often than that.


Have a beautiful day!

Thanksgiving Day...

Well, Kirstin turned 21 today. It seems not so long ago that she was just my little, bitty baby girl and now she has grown into a beautiful young lady.

I am so very proud of her. And I love her so very much. Words cannot describe what she means to me.






Most of my siblings and their families came to my house for Thanksgiving. The food was delicious, thanks in part to Kirstin's cooking skills, and we all enjoyed being together again. There are quite a few of Kirstin's and Julie's cousins here, including Danielle, who likes Kirstin very much. Actually, all of Kirstin's cousins like her very much.



I love the table decorations I do for the Thanksgiving meal each year. I think the table is so pretty and sparkly. And very Fall-ish. Julie took this poetic picture of one of my candle holders.




One of my favorite flower pots is this "pumpkin," which I found several years ago. Every Fall I plant Violas in it.

I think it fits Thanksgiving Day very well.



Have a beautiful day!
"Thankfulness is the soil in which joy flourishes."

Thankful...

Today, as I was hurrying and scurrying about, I thought about the things for which I am thankful. And I came to realize something: they are things that are beautiful to me.



I am thankful for the people who love me. And for friendly people. I am thankful for the wild birds that come to my feeder and for my three dear chickens. For the charming hummingbirds that come to visit. And for many of the creatures that share my land.



I am thankful for clouds. And for the rain that waters my garden. Ah, my garden. I am so thankful for my garden and for the plants that I have. For sunrises and sunsets and seasons.



I am thankful for my blue and white transferware dishes, for my gorgeous fabrics, those in quilts and those yet to be in quilts. I am thankful for my cozy bed, for the bed frame and dresser and vanity to match which I inherited from a great aunt.




I'm also thankful for intangibles like courage and wisdom, joy and peace, when they come into my life. And there are so many, many more beautiful things for which I am thankful. Including you who read my blog.


And I do hope you have a beautiful day!

Another acquisition...

O.K., so what do you think? Pretty wild, huh? I saw this Variegated False Holly (Osmanthus heterophyllus 'Goshiki') at Southern States a couple of days ago and was intrigued. But I didn't buy it. I was "good" and went home and did my research first. Then I bought it today.




It should grow in my (evil) clay soil. And it is supposed to grow slowly so I might grow it in a container for awhile. (Read: "I don't know where to plant it yet.") It will to produce white flowers, just not many of them. The thing is, and this is what convinced me to buy it, the flowers are fragrant. And I love fragrant flowers.



Yep, those leaves are pretty prickly. And it can get to be a fairly large shrub. However, I am confident that my pruning abilities will keep it at bay.



The new growth is rather colorful, isn't it? And after the blooms, there are black berries for the birds. Even with all these other pluses, it's the mature foliage that I find most interesting.


Have a beautiful day!

Watching the chickens go by...

Today in the midst of my frantic Thanksgiving Day/week preparations, I took a break. I sat on the steps of my shed and watched my chickens peck and scratch as they "free-ranged." They spend most of their time in a fenced area to protect them, but there is no greenery left in their yard. So, when I am outside, I will let them out to wander as they will. They like to stay close to me, often following me if I go to the other side of the garden. I find it very cute. And today it was peaceful to just sit and watch my chickens.


Have a beautiful day!

Cardinals...

One of the reasons I moved to North Carolina was the Cardinals. I didn't have Cardinals in California and when I would visit N.C., I found them enchanting. Yeah, I know. Rather strange to back up all your worldly possessions and move across the country because of a pretty bird. There were other reasons, too. Really. There were. I do love to see the Cardinals, though. They are beautiful birds. I used to think the female was plain, but the more I see the females, the more I think they are just as pretty as the males in their way. This female was sitting in the Rose of Sharon bush outside my bedroom window this morning. (Just so you know: the clothesline is not as close as it looks in the picture.) Isn't she lovely?


Have a beautiful day!