Category Gardening

Photography – When it is SPOT ON!

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A shout out to Hannes van Eeden at Wandering Ambivert out of Cape Town, South Africa. He’s an AMAZING photographer. He shares tips / tricks to make “us” better photographers.

I’m hoping this is up to his standards. I’m sure he would have tweaking advice. I did take zillions of photos to capture this one. The birds were on to me – NOT sure what I was up to, so I had to be FAST.

I smiled when I saw a field of dandelions! Did you know that the yellow flower is the dandelion. I always thought the white puff ball was the dandelion. Well, in theory it is, because it is the seeds from the yellow flower.

I did not know that!! What a revelation. It’s hard for me to imagine the yellow flower turning into a fuzz ball. I need to scout out a transformation video on that.

It must happen in the dark of night, right!?

I haven’t seen a bunch of them together in a long time. I was tempted to blow this puff ball out, but if you don’t blow every single one you are doomed in the love department. There is a better myth that you can blow on the seeds and make a wish. I like that one!

NOW, you know why there is a field of dandelions. All those seeds we blow on land somewhere to create more blooms for the next year.

Finally, it is LILAC season. My goodness, they are blooming everywhere, white and lilac colors and they smell heavenly. I do mean heavenly. I admit I prefer the lilac colored ones.

That about sums up my photography for the day. I was on a roll, it was fun!

Our weather is so strange. We’ve got Fall for three days, Spring the next and then Summer. We’ve just got to roll with it. Personally, I prefer Fall / Spring weather, I hope it stays cooler.

Have a nice day!

Happy Mother’s Day!

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Happy Mother’s Day!

Hats off to the wonderful neighbors who have planted tulips for us to enjoy. They are amazing. A shame they only bloom for 1-2 weeks, such a colorful and delicate flower.

I was lucky to get this photo while the sun was shining. We’ve had rain for a few days now.

Let’s do something special… (flowers for ourselves, a pedicure, almond croissant forget the calories, Prosecco with breakfast, a favorite chocolate, take out the tea set – SO MANY possibilities!)

I’ve started you out with some FLOWERS!

ENJOY your Sunday!

In Australia a peony blooms… snow comes to Chicago

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Winter is coming. Actually, it’s almost here. I think we will get our FIRST snow in Chicago today. The first snow is always exciting and beautiful. Then the shoveling and slipping on ice starts (laughing). While I was “thinking” about this, a friend sent me this BEAUTIFUL picture of a peony.

The message was… Thought I would brighten your day. We are having summer, but your winter is starting.

So true, beautiful flowers still bloom when we have winter. I remember falling in love with the Bird of Paradise in Hawaii. What a special flower, it does look like a colorful bird.

How about the orchid. I fell in love with this too. Growing up in the Midwest, we didn’t have exotic flowers. When I moved to California that’s when I started seeing amazing flowers. They say you can see Angels inside the orchid. What do you think?

So, we end the week with a smile and gratitude.

A BIG thank you to my friend for brightening my day with the PINK PEONY.

Have a great weekend!

A Wishing Well…

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Sometimes we get LUCKY! I was in Michigan at a fair. They had an historical center with different log cabins.

A I explored the buildings, I came across this Wishing Well. I’ve always wanted to see a Wishing Well up close, throw a coin in and make my wish. Of course, I was a bit disappointed when I got closer. Turns out it was a “fake” Well, no water, and you can probably see from the photo a plastic container inside that was very shallow for a plant maybe.

So, I could not make a wish. It would have been ridiculous. Throwing a penny in, would have felt like throwing my penny in the grass – no meaning. Sigh, but from a distance, the visual of the Well was GOOD!

When I got home, I did a search for Wishing Wells. Amazon sells quite a few, people buy them as a decoration for their garden. I had no idea. I know, it sounds silly, but I live in a city, we don’t put Wishing Wells on our roof tops. I think of Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairly Tales when I think of Wishing Wells.

On to my next adventure. Blueberry and raspberry picking. Take a look at this. A field of raspberries, it was amazing. They are a thorny bush, so next time I wouldn’t wear shorts. Your legs can really get scratched up.

I met some really nice people who were picking. There was an older couple in their 70s, who have been coming to the same farm for years. They said they pick about 8 lbs each time. Their grandkids love the blueberries. There was one mother who said she had been coming for 22 years with her daughter. She was sad, because this summer her daughter could not make it. Kids grow up, but she was picking some for her. Keep the tradition alive.

I got to say, it was wonderful to get out of the city and be on a farm. Smell the fresh air, hear the farm animals.

Oh, guess what, while I was getting gas, I found TWO Lucky pennies.

So, the Wishing Well DID WORK — in a round about way! Don’t you enjoy coincidences like that!

Gardening… What happened to the sunflowers?

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In bloom…
Drooping…

Summer is over. This weekend, I walked by the sunflowers and they were beautiful, tall, in bloom and soaking up the sun.

Yesterday, I walked by and look how droopy they were. It’s so sad! They looked like they were having a very bad day! I smiled, because that is how we all feel sometimes — head hung low.

BETTER to look bright and chipper and in FULL bloom.

Hope you are having a BLOOMING day and NOT a DROOPY day!

It makes all the difference!

Road Trip – Lavender Farm in Michigan

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FFEDB355-5406-4D0E-AA1D-C99E01543143When I lived in Seattle, I tried to explore as much as I could. One thing I didn’t make it to was a Lavender Farm. It’s not that I buy lavender all the time, I just wanted to see the beautiful field of purple flowers blowing in the wind.

Good news, I have a chance to see lavender in Michigan. I grew up in Indiana, I know about corn, lettuce and sunflowers, but I didn’t realize across the border there were lavender farms. As a child, we did go blueberry picking in Michigan. We ATE a lot as we picked!! Luckily, the farmers never weighed us before and after, who knows what our bill would have been.

Here is where I am going in a few weeks. The Cherry Point Farm & Market, click on the link. They created a special lavender labyrinth. Now, their website says they lost a lot of lavender in early 2019 due to the Polar Vortex we had. They started re-planting Spring 2019, so it might not be as beautiful as in the website photos, but I will ENJOY walking through a labyrinth. I’ve never done that before.

My mother read many stories from Greek Mythology. King Minos and the labyrinth he had built was one of them. I will be thinking of this as I walk through the maze.

Europe has said borders are closed to American travelers. They are worried about a second wave of COVID. No traveling to Italy this year. So, that means we start explorations near our own home towns. 2020 – the year for change.

Butterflies… I’ve seen two in the past week, spiritual meaning?

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butterflyI haven’t seen butterflies for a long time. Suddenly though, in the past week, I saw two of them in odd ways.

The first one appeared while I was walking down an alley, something in the air caught my attention, I looked up and there was a butterfly flying like a bird very quickly to some destination. I say, flying like a bird, because usually a butterfly is flying close to flowers and flies in a fluttery type of way. This was so different.

The second one I saw today in the stairwell of my apartment building. I had to look twice, because I almost stepped on it. Sure enough, it was an orange looking butterfly. It was sitting with its wings closed. I looked to see if a window was open, nothing, so how did it make it in the building? If I wasn’t rushing, I would have tried to figure a way to put it outside again. The wings are so delicate, I was worried about this.

I did some research. I read that seeing a butterfly is important, because they signify transformation, personal growth and beauty.

What do you think? Is it normal to see butterflies in September when the weather is getting cold? Is there spiritual meaning behind this?

Hide your cashmere, there is a gigantic moth on the loose!

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04EAEDFE-C78D-437B-B78E-52D6946D262EI was out walking today and happened to see this gigantic moth!  It’s really beautiful. I’ve never seen a moth this size. My first thought was to hide the cashmere sweaters!

This moth was close to a door handle. I was worried that someone would open the door and the poor moth would be crushed. What’s interesting is that this moth was very s-l-o-w moving. I wasn’t sure if it was dead or in some sort of hibernation, but I was determined to move the darn thing. So, I used a twig from a branch and got her/him to move away from the door. It was tough though, like I said, this moth appeared like it was dying, but I don’t think it was. Once moved it stayed where it was, it did not move at all.

Google to the rescue! Turns out this moth is called a “Giant Emperor Moth or a Great Peacock Moth.” It’s the largest moth in Europe. In North America there are 11,000 different species of moths. In Africa they eat moths, which they say are high in protein. The article did not say if they cook the moths or eat them raw. I tried to imagine what that would be like. Maybe I need to watch the TV show, “Amazing Race,” they eat weird bugs, don’t they?

Apparently, moths are important as they are a source of food for other animals. Bats eat them and Mama Birds feed the caterpillars to their baby birds. Moths are also good pollinators. They have hairy bodies that pick up pollen from any flowers they land on.

Well, I’ve got to say I am amazed! My walk turned into an exciting adventure. Now, I can brag that I’ve seen a “Giant Emperor Moth!”

Happy Valentine’s Day!

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7CBC96C0-67F1-4CED-A951-0B3CF0A59BA6Today we celebrate Valentine’s Day. If you happen to be at the grocery store late afternoon you’ll see a lot of people rushing to buy their last minute flowers to bring home to their loved ones.

When I met my ex/mother/n/law years ago, I learned very quickly that she loved orchids. Back then I did not know much about orchids. Growing up in the Midwest our winters were long, so we did not see or think about flowers until Spring. Orchids were new to me, I soon fell in love with them too.

Living in California, with warmer temperatures, we had incredible tropical flowers. So for Valentine’s Day there was no need to just give red roses, we had a variety of flowers to choose from.

A favorite of mine is the bird of paradise. This flower with it’s bright colors does indeed look like a bird about to take flight. Amazing!

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For those of you who might be feeling lonely or forgotten on Valentine’s Day, I send you some flowers. Remember that Valentine’s Day is not only about receiving, but giving as well. If this is not your year to receive a Valentine, why not take the initiative to surprise someone and be the Valentine “giver” this year!

Wishing you ALL a very special and beautiful day!

Teacher gifts for Valentine’s Day

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Valentine’s Day is coming up and the stores are filled with hearts, chocolates and flowers. I spoke to a woman yesterday who had a great idea! She was buying 10 of these cute little heart mugs from Williams Sonoma. Her plan was to put flowers inside the mugs and give them to her child’s teachers on Valentine’s Day!

This was a clever idea! I once spoke to a teacher who said it was nice when parents thought of her, but she had a closet full of soaps, scented candles and note cards. Enough already.

How about “apples,” I said. Do you get a lot of those too? I said that for grins. I guess I was shocked to hear a teacher’s thoughts on the “type” of gifts she was receiving. Didn’t sound very good, but I bet I would get tired of the same gifts for every holiday from multiple parents too.

Still, it is important to think about our teachers. They work hard to educate our children. This woman had the right idea, let’s get creative with our gifts. I’m sure that this little heart mug with a flower will be remembered. Certainly not put in the closet… at least, not until the flower is dead!