Here a garden, there a garden

Hydrangea fungus

2011-06-11T08:54:00.001-04:00

This was my hydrangea a few years ago in the fall. It was a large, beautiful, healthy plant. Then within a couple of days it looked like this _


Some kind of fungus? When I dug it up this spring, the roots didn't show signs of root rot. The leaves didn't develop any black spots. It looked like someone took a blow torch to it.

2 weeks ago, I purchased a new hydrangea. This time I chose an endless summer. Some of the leaves have begun to turn a sort of silvery color. It doesn't look like powdery mildew. I've been picking them off, keeping the area around it clean, and spraying with a fungicide. I don't like using chemicals in my garden, but sometimes I give in. So far, it hasn't died. I'm keeping my fingers crossed! I probably shouldn't have planted it in the same spot as my old one, but darn it all - that's where I want it!

On a better note, the battle I've been fighting the last couple of years with the viburnum leaf beetle seems to have been won - by ME!! My snowball bush is gorgeous this year and covered with snowballs.

new plants added to my garden

2011-06-01T15:28:00.000-04:00

I used some of my gift certificates to our local nursery and bought some new plants for my garden. Now my problem is, I want so many things but don't know where to plant them. The only full sun my yard gets is in the driveway and in front of my house, which isn't a very large space. So the neighbors get to watch me walk around my yard holding plants and staring at my gardens. They must wonder what is wrong with me! Just trying to find a spot for my babies.

I found a narrow spot for this gold thread cypress. I have 2 others but they are in my gardens in the country. One at my Dad's and one at my son's. (Hence my blog name - here a garden, there a garden.) I wanted one I could see everyday, something to add a bit of sunny yellow to my yard. As they all get bigger, I plan to trim them in December and use the trimmings in the Christmas wreaths I make. Has anyone used gold cypress in wreaths?

This is a Scotch broom. Not sure if it has anything to do with Scotland, but I'll be going there in 3 weeks so I'll find out if they have these. I did put this in front of my house. I was pleasantly surprised the next day when I discovered it was the source of the perfumed air I smelled every time I walked out of my house. I'm hoping the rain coming off the roof doesn't destroy it. Or the ice in winter. I may have to make a shelter for it during the winter.

Here is my white climbing rose. I've been working on a children's story about a moonlight garden. In the garden there is a white arbor covered with white roses, so of course I had to plant one.
The last thing I bought was an Endless Summer Hydrangea. I had a beautiful hydrangea that was hit by a fungus last year. I decided to try another one. It's pretty small right now, but I'm sure it will grow as long as the bugs and diseases leave it alone.

Cherry blossoms - friend or foe?

2011-05-27T18:52:00.000-04:00

I took this picture a couple of weeks ago, the day after my car was 100% covered in weeping cherry blossoms. See how the front bumper near the license plate is covered? That's what my whole car looked like. I wish I'd taken a picture then. My husband's new black truck was also covered. He was none too happy, let me tell you!! We've had the tree for years but must be every other year when the blossoms fall, it isn't raining. They just puddle in the driveway like piles of snow. The rain makes them stick like glue. Good think he really likes this tree, otherwise the chainsaw may have made a presence. I had so many compliments on how I decorated my car. He drives 40 miles to work on a highway and expected the flowers to fly off before he got there - didn't happen. Our rain must be pretty strong glue. He got a lot of compliments on his big truck too, from all his buddies. Again, he was none too happy! I thought it was rather pretty.

Pasque Flower

2011-05-19T14:50:00.000-04:00

My first Pasque flower. I bought it last spring and was excited to see it survive the winter. It brought much needed color to my garden early this spring. I can't wait for it to spread a little so I can divide it. While researching a little about this flower, I discovered another name for it is Easter Flower. Pasque being an old French word for Easter. Interesting little tidbit. Meanwhile, the hellibore I purchased at the same time last year did not bloom this year. I was very disappointed. It has some healthy new growth on it, but no flowers. Maybe next year.

I didn't notice the ants on this flower when I took the picture.

Peaches and cream bread

2011-05-05T14:48:00.002-04:00

This is a recipe for peach bread that I make every year for Easter.
Peaches and Cream Bread
Ingredients:
1/2 cup sugar
2 pkgs. yeast
2/3 cup water
6 TBS margarine
1 egg
1 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened
2 TBS confectioners sugar
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 16oz can peaches, well drained and cut up
1 egg white

In large bowl, combine sugar, yeast, & 1 cup flour. In saucepan, heat water & margarine until very warm. Margarine does not have to melt completely.
Gradually beat liquid into dry ingredients. Beat in egg and 3/4 cup flour to make a thick batter. Stir in 1 1/4 cups flour to make a soft dough.
Turn out onto lightly floured surface & knead until smooth & elastic, working in more flour while kneading. Shape dough into a ball and place in greased bowl, turning dough over so top is greased. Cover bowl and let rise for 1 hour.
Meanwhile prepare filling. Mix cream cheese until smooth, mix in confectioners sugar and almond extract until smooth. Sitr in peaches; cover and refrigerate.
When dough is ready, punch down and let rest 15 minutes. Cut dough in half. With floured rolling pin, roll half the dough into 12" x 8" rectangle. Spread half the filling in a 3" wide strip lengthwise down the center. Cut dough on both sides of filling crosswise into 1" strips.

Place strips at an angle across filling, alternating sides to make a braided effect. Repeat with remaining dough.

Place on greased cookie sheet. cover and let rise 1 hour. Beat egg white slightly and brush on top of bread. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until golden.

Frost with confectioners sugar icing if desired.

Cottage decor giveaway at A Delightsome Life blog

2011-05-04T08:58:00.001-04:00

A Delightsome Life blog is giving away some very pretty cottage decor items to celebrate their blog anniversary. http://blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com/2011/05/delightsome-life-cottage-charm-giveaway.html

making fresh mozzarella cheese

2011-04-25T13:54:00.000-04:00

My daughter and I completed our first attempt at making fresh mozzarella cheese over the weekend. I read a post from Kevin over at A Garden for the House blog about making cheese. http://www.agardenforthehouse.com/2011/03/homemade-mozzarella-in-30-minutes.html
I ordered the cheese making kit he suggested ($32.50 w/shipping) It arrived in 2 days. We were very excited to undertake this new adventure. It took us much longer than the 30 minutes it should have, but that was due to us not being sure if we were doing it right. We kept looking at the pictures and comparing to what we had on the stove. We finally just poured everything into a colandar and were surprised to find more curds than we thought we had. We kneaded and stretched the cheese and ended up with almost a pound of fresh cheese. The only problem with making this with another person is that you have to share it wtih them!! Looking forward to making our next batch. The kit comes with enough citric acid and rennet to make 40 batches of cheese. It also came with cheesecloth and a thermometer. Give it a try and have fun! I only wish it was fresh tomato and basil season!!

Spring is here, I think. Do I rake or shovel?

2011-04-17T18:30:00.000-04:00

I was going to post about the glories of Spring finally arriving, but as I look out my window, I see snow falling. We've had 2 days of decent weather that I was able to start my garden clean-ups. Where to start!
Remember that sapsicle picture I posted? It was on a very large maple tree in my back yard. I love that leaf-covered maple tree on hot summer days. I don't love those same leaves in the Spring. Especially when it snows so early in the Fall that I don't get them all raked up. This is the mess I am faced with. These leaves literally can be rolled up like a mat. I think I have all my spring bulbs uncovered, some of their leaves were pretty spindly and yellow as they struggled to find some sunlight under the maple leaves.

This was taken last week, on one of those nice days. It was pretty chilly out, but the sun was shining bright and the bees and flies were happy and busy. I didn't get my camera in time to capture the 5 bees that were covering these flowers.

This was a pleasant surprise 2 weeks ago. I forgot I planted these little iris last fall.

Peanut butter cup cheesecake

2011-04-06T14:49:00.002-04:00

I'm still waiting for spring to reach us, hopefully we'll see it this weekend. In the meantime, I thought I'd post this recipe that I created for my daughter's birthday. I always make her a different kind of cheesecake. Recently, Hershey's came out with bite-size Reese's peanut butter cups. In case you are reading this from a country that doesn't have peanut butter cups - my sympathies. I learned last year from a foreign exchange student that England does not have them. They are one thing she was going to miss about America. They truly are the best food in the world!! So, back to the cake. I took my chocolate chip cheesecake recipe and used the bite size peanut butter cups instead of the chips. Oh, so delicious!!!!

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake
Crust - I used a package of Girl Scout peanut butter sandwich cookies (Do-Si-Dos). I crushed them and patted them in the bottom of a cheesecake pan. You can also do the traditional graham cracker crust.
Filling -
3 8oz packages of cream cheese
1 can condensed milk
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 bag Reese's Peanut Butter Cups - or use regular size and cut them in bite size pieces
1 tsp. flour
In large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Add condensed milk; beat until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well. In small bowl, toss together peanut butter cups with flour to coat (this keeps them from sinking in the batter), stir into cheese mixture. Pour over crust in pan. Bake 1 hour at 300 degrees or until cake springs back when lightly touched. Cool to room temperature. Chill. Remove side of pan, refrigerate leftovers.

Note - mini chocolate chips can be substituted - toss together 1 cup of chips with flour. Sprinkle 1 cup of chips, not mixed with flour, on top of cake before baking.

Maple syrup and sapsicles

2011-03-31T11:37:00.002-04:00

The sap is running! Do you see the maple sapsicle on my tree? I've enjoyed watching my squirrels pick off the sapsicles and munch on them. They've been scampering all over the tree licking up the sap. When the sapsicles melt, they create quite a sticky mess underneath. I have made syrup from this tree when my kids were younger and I was home all day to watch it cook outside. Nothing can beat homemade maple syrup. My son & daughter-in-law went to a maple festival this past weekend and brought back a jar of maple cream for me. HMMMM!! Yummy on toast.

My sign of spring

2011-03-24T10:36:00.000-04:00

First, a disclaimer - these are not my pictures, I took them off the internet.
I have been reading a lot of blogs lately about the first signs of spring, accompanied by beautiful pictures of crocus and daffodils. I admit, I am jealous. Especially since we received an inch of snow yesterday. It could be worse, other areas received more. Considering that one week ago it was 60 degrees and I was cleaning my gardens and now I can't see them, it's a bit depressing.

But here's the thing - my community has another sign of spring apart from the new growth outdoors. Our true sign of spring is when Rudy's Lakeside Drive-in opens for the season, which it did on March 16th. I usually get out there for lunch on opening day, but it was a pretty raw, cold day so I didn't go. My husband and I ate dinner there on Monday night - yup - spring is here. My first Texas hot of the season. A mouth-watering Hoffman hotdog topped with onions and spicey Texas hot sauce! Okay, so we had to sit in the car to eat so we wouldn't freeze to death, but we could still watch the waves of Lake Ontario come ashore and see the seagulls flying overhead, hoping for a bit of food. We have a whole summer ahead of us to sit outside and enjoy many more meals from Rudys.
The food isn't the healthiest - mostly deep fried, but the taste can't be beat. We wait patiently through the winter storms anticipating opening day and then we breath a sigh of relief - spring has arrived in Oswego.

Happy 1st blog anniversary to me!

2011-03-22T12:18:00.000-04:00

Today marks my 1 year anniversary of blogging. When I began last year, I wasn't sure how long I would keep at it or if I would like blogging. I just knew I wanted to learn more about it and see where it took me. There is so much to learn from other bloggers and so many new "cyber-space" friends to make. I plan to continue this enjoyable hobby. I sometimes wish I had more time to spend on it but I have far too many other interests and have to try and fit everything in.

Recycled garden art or gaden junk?

2011-03-19T11:28:00.001-04:00

I am a believer in recycling. Some may call me a junk-picker. I suppose I inherited the disease from my grandfather and father. I hate to throw something away if I can think of some other use for it, and I love old stuff. So, while I'm waiting for my spring flowers to bloom (most of the snow has finally disappeared) I thought I would share my "found objects." I enjoy finding unexpected things in gardens. Do you like a well trimmed, organized, everything matches garden or do you like an eccentric garden as I do?

Some of you might be gasping - how could you put this treasure outside? Yes, I suppose we could have tried to get a little money for it, but how neat does it look in my garden? My green peppers love their home. My brother bought a house in the country, one of those places where past owners threw their junk out back on a junk pile, and this was one of the pieces of junk.

Decorating a bowling ball to use in the garden might be considered kitschy, but I enjoy gluing stuff on old bowling balls and setting them in my garden. This one is covered in colored stones.

The bowl portion of this birdbath broke, so I planted a fuchsia in it. That was about 5 years ago and this is the same plant. I bring it in every winter.

Some might consider this junk. Another treasure from my brother's junk pile. He dragged this broken, old washing machine out and placed it in my garden as my Christmas present one year. He knew I would love this more than any store bought gift.

Here's the lady of my garden. My husband used to clean out unpaid storage units and was able to keep anything he found. This was a keeper. My niece used to be a bit frightened of her, as many small children would, but she pays her no mind now.

A pot belly stove with a crack in the belly. No longer able to hold a fire, but great at holding my mini-rose in a rescued, rusty, hole-filled bucket.

What do you do with a gas grill that doesn't work anymore? Turn it into a potting bench! I took out the gas burner, put in a plastic dish pan to hold my potting soil and there you have it! The cover keeps my soil nice and dry.

I'm a sucker for these old stools. I have 2 of them in my garden.

Got this for $5 at a yard sale last year. I couldn't pass it up.

Another yard sale find. An old radio flyer - perfect for my impatiens.

Another wood burning stove - right out of my grandfather's workshop. Victim of another crack.


My granparent's pump - it was no longer needed when city water came out their way. It sits up so high because there is a very long pipe attached to it. I couldn't dig down deep enough to bury it all.I hope you enjoyed my "junk". I have much more - old milk cans, tractor seats, wheelbarrows and stuff I don't even know what it is. What kind of junk do you have in your gardens?

my first orchid - any helpful advice to keep it alive?

2011-03-14T19:45:00.000-04:00


Here is my first orchid, granted - it's just a cheap one from the grocery store, but still beautiful. The directions tell me to water it once a week with 3 ice cubes, keep it in a room around 60 degrees and not in direct sunlight. Does anyone have any advice or tips to help me along the way to keeping this new baby healthy?

I've been wondering why I am so willing to hand over hard-earned money for plants but not for other items that are needed in my home? Is this an addiction? Am I a plantaholic? Is there such a thing? I've always maintained that I can't understand what people with additions go through, having never been addicted to anything, but maybe I can. I buy plants because they make me feel good. Isn't that why foodaholics eat? And shopaholics shop? I am standing up and publicly proclaiming to be a plantaholic - but please don't offer to help me, I'm not ready for an intervention!

CNY Blooms garden show review

2011-03-06T11:12:00.001-05:00

This weekend was the much anticipated Central New York garden show in Syracuse, NY. I attend every year with my daughter, sister, and Aunt. We look forward to a day indoors, wandering through gardens full of blooming spring flowers while the weather outside is usually cold, gray, windy, rainy or snowy. This year, we were a bit disappointed with the show. We enjoyed what was there, but some of our favorite vendors and landscape designers were missing. The garden displays weren't as large and there were vendors I don't care to see at a garden show. What do bathtubs have to do with gardening? I don't want to listen to pitches for subscribing to a newspaper. I'm not interested in new siding or windows. If I was, I'd go to the Home show. There were also too many sun room dealers. Perhaps the reason for the smaller, less impressive show is because they had to change venues this year. It was held at the War Memorial, which still has ice on the floor for hockey games. Of course, the ice was covered, but however they did it made the floor very uneven and hard to walk on. Many people were tripping and stumbling. We can only hope the show moves back to it's regular venue next year. Although we were disappointed, we did find some interesting ideas and colorful flowers, as shown below.

A pleasant waterfall, although the dried ornamental grasses do not go with the spring flowers, unless the gardener has not cleaned up their garden yet from last fall.

I love this little arrangement. I'm going to recreate this planting in my yard but I think I will add some small chartreuse colored hostas someplace or maybe some lamium.

I fell in love with this terrarium. Now I need to look for a cake saver at yard sales this summer. I went to our Thrifty Shopper 2nd hand store yesterday and found a round cheese tray with a domed cover. I put a small clay saucer in it with a small plant and a ceramic Adirondack chair that I purchased at the show.

My favorite garden design, by Ballantyne Gardens in Liverpool, NY. This was a fairy garden. Fairy gardens fascinate me. I love anything miniature. They were selling miniatures to use in fairy gardens so of course I had to buy some for my indoor garden.

Close up of one of the fairy houses. I bought the table & chair set for my daughter to put in her indoor fairy garden.

This year's theme was Out of This World, thus the spaceship. It was pretty cool, there was mist coming out of it and the lights were blinking.

Monroe County Lamberton Conservatory, Rochester, NY Highland Park

2011-02-24T20:00:00.000-05:00

Today I used a vacation day and my daughter and I took a trip to Rochester, NY to Highland Park. There, we visited the Lamberton Conservatory. This was established in 1911 and completely refurbished in 2008. What a wonderful place to spend a chilly, snowy, gray winter day. There were fruit trees blooming - oh my, what a wonderful scent. I was in heaven! Enjoy my pictures. I don't know the names of all the plants but I hope you can feel what we felt being there.

This is a small fish pond, also home to a turtle. Do you notice the snowflakes falling outside?

A banana tree, see the wee bananas? They aren't ones we eat.


Cactus room - as we arrived there was a bus load of 2nd graders leaving. I would be very afraid to have them in this room - lots of dangerous looking spikes! There was a large rat tail cactus that I didn't take a picture of, but it was one of the funkiest plants I've seen.

Put yourselves in our shoes - we climb over a snowbank leaving our car, boots, winter coats, gloves on. We walk into this warm room filled with flowers, color, perfumes. I can see myself living here year round.

I would volunteer to work here in a heartbeat!

This poor fellow had an infestation of bugs and needed to be trimmed back to get rid of them. Kind of like having lice, huh?

This room with Spanish moss cascading from every tree branch was my favorite.

I love this plant, a Shrimp plant. I've never seen it before. I wonder if anyone ever sneaks little pinches of the plants to take home and root?

Impressive Staghorn fern

More turtles - I hope you enjoyed the tour. We only paid $3 to enjoy this sanctuary. They offer season passes for $10. Believe me - if I lived closer I'd be buying a season pass and spending as much time here as I could - sitting on one of the many benches daydreaming of spring.

Proven Winners $100 giveaway at Dusty Bay

2011-02-19T15:10:00.002-05:00

Head on over to Dusty Bay blog to enter a giveaway. $100 spring annuals giveaway. Boy, wouldn't I love $100 worth of annuals to color my gardens with!

A Spring teaser day

2011-02-19T14:38:00.000-05:00

Look real close at this picture. Can you see what has me excited?


It's GRASS!!!

I haven't seen grass since some time in December! Yesterday we had a spring teaser day. The temperature rose to a balmy 58 degrees. Wow, can you believe it? Some brave souls dug out their shorts and tees. Winter coats, hats, mittens were tossed aside. I went for a walk before work. Also something I have not done since sometime in November or December. There was no ice to slip on. The birds greeted me with their morning song. The air smelled like spring - warm breeze and squishy mud. It was also filled with a most delightful sound of dripping ice melting off our roofs.
Today is a different story - 50 mph wind gusts mixed with snow flurries and a temperature of 17 degrees. Oh, how cruel Mother Nature can be. Or maybe she was just showing us a preview of what is soon to come. Building our winter weary spirits back up. Saying "Buck up, you know spring is just around the corner. Here's a reminder of what's coming your way."
It did help all of us who are suffering the winter doldrums. Our spirits rose, our batteries are recharged. We're tough old birds; we have what it takes to get through the last few weeks of winter.
To help me through this cold day, I re-potted an African Violet that had 2 babies and re-potted a purple cyclamen in a pretty pot. Love getting my hands in that soil!

Central New York Blooms Syracuse Flower and Garden Show

2011-02-13T09:37:00.001-05:00

This year's CNY Blooms Flower and Garden Show is being held March 3-6 at the OnCenter Complex in downtown Syracuse, NY. It's a wonderful day spent among flowers, dirt, and the smell of mulch!! Something we all need to get us through the last cold weeks of winter.

These pictures are from their website.

I could set a lawn chair here and sit all day, pretending I'm actually camping.

How to create a white garden

2011-02-10T15:26:00.000-05:00

I wrote a children's story titled The Moonlight Garden. (As yet, unpublished.) In the story, the reader takes a stroll through a garden bathed in moonlight and sees the different white flowers and how they reflect moonlight. The reader also meets insects and creatures of the night and smells the perfume of evening flowers. Now, if you'd like to know an easy way to create a white garden that reflects the moonlight, watch this video -

giveaways at I Am That Lady

2011-02-09T16:41:00.000-05:00

Head on over to I Am That Lady blog to enter some giveaways she has. Drawings are February 12th. This is a great site for anyone interested in saving money with coupons. Some of the content is for central New Yorkers, but there's something for everyone who is interested in saving money.

My winter oasis

2011-02-06T16:51:00.000-05:00

My Winter Oasis

Seed catalogs surround me;

Me and my cup of tea.

My cat on my lap,

And maybe a nap.

I close my eyes

And dream of blue skies.

A lilac scented breeze,

Birds singing in the trees.

Flowers in their beds,

Shades of yellow and red.

Sun shining bright,

It’ll be a warm night.

Alas, I open my eyes

And see the gray skies.

The view from my window

Is nothing but snow.

I’ll make do with artificial light;

My houseplants in sight.

I’ll be content with this,

My winter oasis.

Bonnie

Where is your winter oasis?

Cross Country Skiing at Rice Creek

2011-02-02T19:37:00.000-05:00

Another cross country skiing afternoon. The woods are so peaceful in winter, almost too peaceful. It's eerie not hearing any birds sing, I think it was too cold for them to be out. This skiing adventure was through the trails at the Rice Creek Field Station owned by the State University College at Oswego.

This is my daughter deciding if she can go under this, as someone else had before us, or should she go around.

She decided to go under. I followed her, can't believe I got down that low. It felt like I was doing the Limbo! I was mainly worried about getting under without getting stuck, she was worried about an animal jumping out at her! There were animal tracks under there, but I didn't point them out to her.

This is the herb garden, looks inviting, huh? When I had summers off, I used to volunteer to help weed this. There was a big, black resident snake. All volunteers had instructions not to harm it. I know they are good for the garden, but they aren't good for my heart!!!

This is an old stone wall. I love it - I don't know how old it is or who built it but it truly is a work of art. Stone walls like this aren't built anymore.

Part of the trail, it was such a beautiful day.

Rice Creek - bubbling through the quiet woods.

What do you do when you can't garden outside?

2011-01-26T19:29:00.000-05:00

Last year when I had extreme cabin fever, my daughter, Aunt, and I took a trip to Watson's Greenhouse in Lafayette, NY http://www.watsongreenhouse.com
It was a wonderful afternoon spent wandering around their lush plants. One of their specialties are fairy gardens. I fell in love with them! My daughter and I purchased a few small plants and then found some old wash basins at an antique store. Picked up some potting soil and started creating our own indoor fairy gardens.

This is my daughter's garden. We picked up small items at a craft store and I went through my craft supplies to see what we could use. She used broken tiles for the path, made a birdhouse out of heavy paper, and we each made a birdbath out of some wooden shapes I had. Our arbors are made out of redwood twigs. The fairies were purchased at a dollar store. Do you see her cat near her wood pile? It looks just like her calico cat. (who, by the way, loves to get into her fairy garden. I think a barbed wire fence needs to be put up.) Notice the little red wagon - very cute!

This is my garden. Instead of a wagon, I bought a wheelbarrow. I smashed a blue marble and glued the pieces in the birdbath to look like water (if you do this, put on safety goggles, put the marble in a heavy duty plastic bag, wrap it in a towel and then hit it with a hammer. I suggest doing it outside on something hard.) My path is made with colored stones found at a dollar store. I rimmed my garden with Spanish moss. My wreath is artemisia. My black & white cat doesn't show up very well, he's sleeping next to the picket fence.

Some of our plants didn't do very well and we've replaced them with others. I now have a miniature fushia in mine. It grows great, but hasn't flowered lately. If I wanted to spend the money on a miniature African violet or a miniature hosta - they would look great too. Depending on where you live, you will have access to different small plants. Watson's sells many Alpine plants that they use in their gardens. Many of their gardens are made in wooden boxes.
When you get that urge to garden and your yard will be covered in snow for the next 4 months, start a miniature garden indoors.

get your personal blog listed

2011-01-22T13:27:00.000-05:00

Do you have a personal gardening blog you'd like to bring more traffic to? Kathy over at Cold Climate Gardening has a Garden Blog Directory. You can send her a request to add you to her directory at
http://www.coldclimategardening.com/garden-blog-directory

She has a great list of bloggers if you're looking for other bloggers in your area.

World Garden Carnival - New Year Gardening Resolutions

2011-01-16T15:12:00.000-05:00

My new year gardening resolution (as is every year) is to spend more time on my gardens around my father's pond. This is always a challenge because the soil is very wet, heavy clay. I fill each new planting hole with good soil and compost. I add mulch every year, much of which gets washed into the pond during heavy rains. I must try to find more plants that enjoy wet feet. My other obstacles are the hot summers we've had. After working a full-time job, I don't have the energy to garden in the heat. Also, the goose poop! Lots of it! One more obstacle, or frustration actually - the horsetail weed has taken over this garden and I have never found a solution to getting rid of it. It's quite annoying to spend hours weeding only to come back a week later to find the horsetail back. But I will try to fulfill my resolution again this summer and take back my garden.

Visit New Year Gardening Resolutions Blog Carnival

at my little garden in japan

Beautiful winter day

2011-01-13T15:34:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday was a beautiful winter day, although I consider sunny days in August with green grass and colorful flowers to be more beautiful! Having said that, living in my part of the world that has winter weather from November until April, you have to find ways to enjoy it. My husband and I got out our cross-country skis for the first time this winter and headed to Battle Island State Park, which is actually a golf course. The sun was shining bright against the blue skes, making the pure white snow sparkle. Not many people were out so it was quiet and peaceful. Niether one of us fell - good thing!

This hill is a little bigger than it looks. I was surprised there was no one sledding on it. When my kids used to ski here with me, they enjoyed skiing down this hill. Cross-Country skis were not made to go downhill!

This is a narrow bridge you ski across at the end of the trail, I always get nervous, there's no room to fall and the approach from both ends is a slight downhill. Now, younger people probably think nothing of it, but as I get older, the fear of broken bones gets stronger.

January thaw

2011-01-01T13:08:00.000-05:00

My new blog photo was taken in January of 2007. We are currently experiencing a January thaw, the temperature today is 50 degrees and it's raining. Much of our snow has melted. Although the snow is beautiful, I prefer driving on bare roads and not shoveling. So, here's hoping the snow stays away for awhile, although I doubt that will happen. Wishing everyone a very happy new year with gardens full of flowers.

Chocolate Yule Log

2010-12-28T13:28:00.000-05:00

I made this cake last week for a birthday. It's just a chocolate cake roll with a cream cheese filling. I wanted to decorate it but not with the traditional meringue or marzipan mushrooms. While flipping through my recipe books for ideas, I came across the peanut butter ball (or buckeye ball) recipe and thought - if you can shape the peanut butter mixture into balls, why not mushrooms and mice? It worked great! I also flattened some of the mixture and cut out leaves. Everything was dipped in white chocolate. I sprinkled green sugar on the leaves before the chocolate hardened and put mini chocolate chips and dried cranberries on the mice. With the mushrooms, I dusted them with cocoa powder after the chocolate had hardened. Mouse tails were painted onto the cake with chocolate and red cinnamon candies are the holly berries.
I've decided to try this again with other cakes making other decorations from the peanut butter. A springtime or summer cake could be made shaping and coloring the chocolate like flowers. The possibilities are endless!!

Are you ready?

2010-12-22T09:43:00.000-05:00

Are you tired of hearing this question? Are you ready? It doesn't matter if we're ready, Christmas is coming. It won't wait until we have our house decorated, shopping done and wrapped, baking done, cards sent out, etc. etc. etc. I decided this year I am not stressing over anything. What gets done, gets done. No longer do I strive for the "perfect" Christmas. Our 2 trees are smaller this year, due to a very old cat who likes to spray. So our trees are up on tables and I actually like them that way. I was able to set my village up under one of our trees instead of moving all my houseplants out of a bay window to set my village up there.

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas, stress free and full of happy family memories.

A day in the life of a Christmas tree farm

2010-12-12T10:08:00.000-05:00

A day in the life of a tree farm - this season started with a lot of rain and mud. Then it snowed, making everything pretty. Now it's raining so it will go back to mud. Then it's supposed to freeze, which will turn everything to ice. Then snow on top of the ice. We've had everything except sun!

Thank goodness for the Gator - it goes through mud and snow!

A pre-cut tree being carried up to the baler

Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree - how much snow is on your branches. The kids love to see their tree being shaken. It's extra special if a bird nest flies out. The guys doing the shaking aren't too thrilled with snow filled trees. Today it's raining, they will be soaked.

This was 2 years ago, Santa goes around Oswego Town every year on the fire truck and they stopped at the tree farm to see the kids.

Wreaths, wreaths, and more wreaths

2010-12-01T08:11:00.000-05:00

It's my busiest time of the year, I've turned into the "wreath lady" for a few weeks. My brother owns a Christmas tree farm and I am the wreath maker. I've been at it for a couple of weeks now and I've neglected my blog. Today I am using a vacation day to go out to the tree farm and cut more boughs (in the pouring rain) and get ready for my Girl Scout meeting tonight. We will be making fresh evergreen arrangements with residents of a senior ladie's home. I enjoy creating wreaths but I miss out on having time to decorate my house and all that fun stuff! I hope you enjoy my photos of some of my creations. I had thought of doing a giveaway - sending a wreath to the lucky winner, but decided I just don't have time.

Leaves, leaves, and more leaves

2010-11-14T16:57:00.000-05:00

The leaves are down, raked, shredded, and spread around some plants and heaped on the compost pile. Who remembers jumping into huge piles of leaves as kids? We had 2 large maple trees in our yard and an older lady, 2 houses down, also had 2 large trees. We'd rake all our leaves into a pile and then rake her leaves and somehow get them up to our house. I don't remember how we accomplished that. Do kids today realize how much fun a pile of leaves is? We'd spend days playing in them. I also don't remember how the pile was ever removed from the front yard or where it was removed to. Every year, I wish for a child to be around so I would have an excuse to jump in a pile of leaves and not look like I've lost my mind! Just the smell of takes me back to those childhood days.

Leaves surrounding and covering my alyssum.

Someplace in here, look real hard - you'll see some impatiens peeking through.

Mums and alyssum surrounded by leaves.

Lavender blooming a 2nd time and mums. I love the purple, gold, and orange together.

A Fall "Easter Egg" Hunt

2010-11-05T18:53:00.001-04:00

Autumn is here and that means it's time for the squirrel's annual "Autumn Nut Hunt", similar to our Easter Egg hunt. Everywhere I go in my yard, discover beechnuts hidden in the oddest places. Here are three pictures of hidden nuts.
A few days ago, I was pulling down the dead morning glory vines and was rudely bopped on the head by a beechnut hidden in the vines. These only stay hidden a few days, when the squirrels get hungry, they find them and make quite a mess scattering the outer layers as they get to the prize inside.
(I had more, but they were in my camera program on my computer and my computer crashed. Don't ya' love these computers! I thought I had everything backed up, but forgot about all those pictures sitting in my camera program waiting to be saved to a folder. )

Halloween is almost here!

2010-10-25T19:57:00.000-04:00

I'd like you to meet some of my Halloween friends.

Here are the bride and groom. They sing "I've Got You Babe" by Sonny & Cher and sway their bony heads.

Here is our little ghoul riding her tricycle

Mr. Count, one of our greeters

Here's our other 2 greeters

A couple of witches hangin' out in the flowers

Rat and pumpkin head keeping company in the flower pot

I made this from a small birdhouse gourd

I made these 2 cuties from light bulbs

I hope everyone has a fun and ghoulish Halloween!

Goblin's Delight Cupcakes

2010-10-22T19:06:00.003-04:00

This is a fun Halloween party treat. It's also good any time of the year,
just change the cake flavor and filling color. Frosting can also be added.

FILLING

8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
1/3 c. sugar
1 egg
1/8 tsp. salt
2 drops each red and yellow food color
1 c. chocolate chips

CUPCAKES

1 1/2 c. unsifted all purpose flour
1 c. sugar
1/3 c. cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 c. vegetable oil
1 c. water
1 TBS. vinegar
1 tsp. vanilla

Filling: Combine cream cheese, sugar, eggs, salt, food color in small bowl. Beat until smooth. Add chocolate chips. Set aside.

Cupcakes: Combine ingredients in order listed in large mixing bowl. Blend well on low speed. Fill 24 paper muffin cups 2/3 full with batter. Spoon about 1 tablespoon cheese filling onto each cupcake. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in cake portion comes out clean.

VARIATION

This year, instead of making chocolate cupcakes, I used a spice cake mix. Then I frosted them with buttercream frosting flavored with cinnamon. They were delicious!

Good Morning, Glory

2010-10-20T06:06:00.000-04:00

Good Morning, Glories. What a treat to wake up in the morning with these flowers, all of us turning our faces to the sun. These photos were taken a couple weeks ago. Some of my morning glories are still flowering while others have succumbed to the cold. I find it strange that when you plant morning glories from a seed packet, you are instructed to nick the seeds or soak them so as to help them germinate better through their very hard outer layer. My morning glories have no trouble re-seeding themselves year after year with no help from me. I let most of them grow where they land, only pulling out the ones that will take over other plants. In this first photo are my well-behaved morning glories, growing where they're supposed to.

Meandering through the alyssum

Climbing a small shepherd's hook and trailing off into the boxwood

Climbing the lilac bush

Wrapped around another shepherd's hook and vining through the Russian Sage

Twisting through the snowball bush

In and around the turtleheads

Up yet another shepherd's hook and over to check out the birdhouse

One more behaving itself, climbing a trellis

I hope you enjoyed the tour of my wandering Morning Glories. I expect my crop to be larger next year. If I'm not careful, they will soon take over my garden!

October Sunrise

2010-10-17T20:16:00.000-04:00

I was eating breakfast one morning last week before work and happened to look out my back window. The sunrise was amazing, so of course I had to stop eating to grab my camera and go outside. Didn't even bother to put shoes on, just wandered around the dewy back yard in my slippers snapping pictures.

Sunrise behind my burning bush

This looks like there's a fire someplace. It was stunning but over too soon.

Letchworth State Park

2010-10-12T06:15:00.001-04:00

I took a trip to Letchworth State Park, one of New York's wonderful state parks. It's 2 hours away from home. Spent a wonderful day there with my daughter. The colors aren't at peak yet, but it was still beautiful. I hope you enjoy my pictures and this little break from gardening. A fellow blogger, The Violet Fern, posted pictures from her hike through Letchworth last week. Jump on over to her blog for more photos. http://thevioletfern.blogspot.com/2010/10/take-hike-at-letchworth.html

Artist spolight on Crafty Life and Style blog

2010-10-07T19:33:00.001-04:00

Jump on over to Crafty Life and Style blog to read about their artist spotlight. (just click on the title of this post) Each week they spotlight a different artist and offer a giveaway created by that artist.

Clip Clocks - a unique gift for that hard to buy for person

2010-10-03T13:07:00.001-04:00

Do you have a hard to buy for person in your family? My cousin has created the most unique item. It's a watch that is hidden inside of a beautiful pin. Many designs to choose from. Please visit her site by clicking on my post title and check out these unusual watches for yourself.

A ClipClock .is an original invention of Deanna A. Hubbard of Deanna's Nest Egg. After years of performing in various ways at the Sterling Renaissance Festival in Sterling, NY she became tired of hiding her watch while trying to check the time and stay anachronistically correct. These clocks are a great addition to any reenactor costume or just an accessory to your favorite outfit.
I create all the clocks from Jewelry and/or Vintage Jewelry Parts. I combine different pieces of jewelry to create the perfect accessory for you.
Orders are shipped within 2 days.

Old Road Primitives patterns

2010-10-01T06:09:00.000-04:00

Good news - I was the winner of a giveaway on Old Road Primitives. It's pattern to make an adorable fall harvest mouse decoration. Can't wait to get it and start creating. If you love crafting, check out their blog and their website.

Spider Web art

2010-09-29T19:27:00.004-04:00

I don't usually take pictures of spider webs, I'm too busy brushing them off my face, out of my hair, and then searching for any spiders on me. But, this one was too neat to pass up. I did have to destroy it so I could get to my barbecue grill, but it was back the next day. I have yet to see the spider who makes it.

Same web in black and white.

Oswego Tea

2010-09-12T16:32:00.004-04:00

Here is a Hawk Moth on my Oswego Tea. The Oswego Tea is also known as Bee Balm, Monarda, and Bergamot. Why do I call it Oswego Tea? Native Americans in my area of New York State used the dried leaves for tea. They shared it with our early settlers who used it as a substitute after the Boston Tea Party - thus it became known as Oswego Tea. Monarda didyma, with red flowers, is actually the only Monarda truly called Oswego Tea, although we tend to call all of it Oswego Tea.
The Hawk moth, also known as the sphinx moth or hummingbird moth, is often thought to be a very small hummingbird because of its hovering and flight pattern. You'll see them feeding on the same plants enjoyed by hummingbirds.
I remember the first time I'd ever heard of one. It was at least 20 years ago, my grandmother called me, very excited, and described this thing she saw hovering in her lavender. She thought it was a species of hummingbird she'd never seen. This was before I had internet, so I scoured the books in the library and found the hawk moth. Mystery solved! Now they are a common sight around here.

Moose River, Old Forge, NY

2010-08-30T18:15:00.007-04:00

I took a much needed break from everyday life. I watered my garden and left for a few days - weeds - have fun growing! We went camping in Old Forge, NY at Nick's Lake State Park. We were joined by other family members. On Saturday, we met more people in town who had come for the day and we spent the afternoon paddling down the Moose River. What a relaxing, wonderful, stress-free afternoon. (except the part when we had to portage, oh my aching back!!) We paid to have Mountain Man Outdoors transport us and our canoes/kayaks to a put-in site. Then all we had to do was let the current carry us down river (with a little bit of steering on our part.) Stopped for a leisurely picnic lunch on one of the many sandbars. It was a wonderful break from life. Mountain Man Outdoors rents all the equipment you need for this trip if you don't have your own.

The Evening Garden by Peter Loewer book review

2010-08-25T17:26:00.003-04:00

If you don't already have a garden to enjoy in the evening, in the light of the moon, you will want one after reading Peter Loewer's book, The Evening Garden: Flowers and Fragrance From Dusk to Dawn.
I am in the process of submitting a children's story I wrote to publishers. I've been working on it since last winter. The title - The Moonlight Garden. The story takes the reader on a stroll through a moonlit garden and my hopes are it will inspire parents to create a similar garden with their children.
I borrowed Peter's book from the library so many times to use in my research, I finally bought my own copy. This book is such an inspiration. Full of beautiful black & white drawings, quotes, and snippets about gardening. It's full of ideas, plant care, etc. Published in 1993, there are many new varieties of flowers and plants suitable for an evening garden, but this book is a great place to start. (As my book would be if a publisher chooses to publish it.)
If you're looking for a different "theme" garden to add to your landscape, consider one you can enjoy at night - after a day of work and chores.

http://www.amazon.com/Evening-Garden-Flowers-Fragrance-Dusk/dp/0881925322

Blackberries picking and cooking

2010-08-17T21:18:00.003-04:00

'Off I went, into the wild green yonder...' It's blackberry season (or it was last week when I went picking.) I braved the stabbing thorns, skin-piercing mosquitoes, and head-buzzing deer flies in the wilds of my son's property. Yup - all for the joy of picking my own berries. There's such a rewarding feeling about foraging for your food. Kind of like being a pioneer woman (or cave woman, depending on how far back you want to go.) When you walk out of the "jungle" with your pail of berries, sweat dripping, feeling like you've just done battle with nature - you feel great knowing YOU picked those beautiful berries. You may get a few strange looks from folks willing to pay $3 a pint for their berries. I give them strange looks for paying such an outrageous price, what the heck do you do with a measly pint of berries?

Don't these look yummy?? They were, trust me. They're so pretty and shiny :)

So, other than eating them on cereal and in my yogurt, here are a couple of recipes you might like. Oh - and have you ever made a smoothie with blackberries? It turns a delicious shade of purple!

Blackberry Cobbler

4 cups fresh blackberries
1 large egg
1 cup sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp cinnamon
6 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375°. Place blackberries in a lightly greased 8-inch square baking dish. Stir together egg, sugar, and flour, and cinnamon in a medium bowl until mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle over fruit. Drizzle melted butter over topping. Bake at 375° for 35 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbly. Serve warm with whipped cream, or even better - vanilla ice cream.

Blackberry Freezer Jelly

2 cups blackberry juice (either use a juicer or sieve to get the juice)
2 TBS lemon juice
4 cups sugar
1 pouch CERTO

Measure juice into large bowl (one with a spout is great.) Measure exact amount of sugar and stir into juice. Mix well, let stand 10 minutes; stir occasionally. Stir pectin into lemon juice. Stir mixture into juice mixture. Stir constantly for 3 minutes. Pour into jelly containers. Let stand at room temperature before putting in freezer or refrigerator.
Note: Sure-Jell or Fruit Pectin can be used for lower sugar recipe or no sugar recipe - follow their directions.

The Greenhouse Garden update

2010-08-15T20:27:00.007-04:00

A few new pictures of my greenhouse garden -
Here is my very own live orangecicle - orange gladiola and white liatris

Pink butterfly bush (huge blooms- over a foot long!) with white rose of sharon as a backdrop.

Don't you just love it when a "non-plan" comes together? These are my fuchsia colored phlox, which I just happened to plant around my purple rose of sharon (because there was empty space there) and they just happened to bloom at the same time - I didn't even think about that when I planted them. The phlox filled in the bare lower branches of the rose of sharon. Love it!!!

out of control clematis

2010-08-08T19:49:00.003-04:00

This is my clematis that I didn't quite get trained over the top of my arbor. It decided to reach for the neighbor's yard. Didn't quite make it but it gave a good try.
Do you like the frame around my photo? I found this GREAT blog that has TONS of neat stuff to add to your blog. There were very detailed, clear instructions for adding frames to your photos. Check it out at paisleycatscrapsfreebloglayouts.blogspot.com

flower dolls

2010-08-08T19:03:00.002-04:00

Okay, so I was bored one day. I know, how is that possible when you have gardens to weed. I guess I didn't feel like weeding, I felt like playing. Remembering the hollyhock dolls I used to make as a kid, I decided to see what else you could turn into "people". My husband saw me playing and thought the heat had cooked my brain. I was having fun - I used balloon flowers, impatiens, day lilies, poppy seed heads, trumpet flower and Oswego tea. Next time your kids get bored (or you feel like having a lazy day) just pick a few flowers and use your imagination.

The 3,000 Mile Garden book review

2010-08-05T16:16:00.004-04:00

I've just finished reading The 3,000 Mile Garden by Roger Phillips and Leslie Land. Roger, a professional gardener in London and Leslie, an American gardener, exchange letters during the year, sharing their gardening experiences. I ecpected this to be a dry read and I'd just skim through it, but I was delightfully surprised. I felt like I was reading a novel. Through their letters, we learn about their garden successes and frustrations. The struggles they each have gardening in their climate, critter problems, people problems... We've all been there. I highly recommend this enjoyable read for every gardener.

Rain, rain, go away

2010-07-24T10:46:00.002-04:00

We had so much rain yesterday, my flowers are water logged, drooping, sad, and broken. And so am I. I need to find stakes that are at least 5 ft. tall to stake my flower with next year. These are my poor drooping phlox, spilling their sad, pink tears.

My false sunflowers were glorious - reaching for the sky. Now their stems are broken off where they were staked. I'll cut them and put them in a vase, but I am so sad. This happened last year, too. I thought I had them staked better. Live and learn....

Russian sage is not happy. I may still be able to save it if I tie it up better.

These are photos of my liatris - before and after the rain. More heavy rain is predicted for tonight.

Swamp Milkweed

2010-07-22T16:34:00.003-04:00

A few years ago I planted one swamp milkweed in a garden at the edge of my father's pond. It has since spread like, well - a weed! It loves the wet soil and does very well in the heavy clay. I don't mind that it has spread around the pond, it's a beautiful plant. Much prettier than the regular milkweed. The monarch caterpillars love it just as much, too. I brought one plant home with me and put it in my flower garden, where it is thriving. It has yet to spread and when it does, it may end up in one of my neighbor's yards. Not to worry, they can just mow it down. If you have a butterfly garden, I suggest you plant a swamp milkweed in it! The bees love it too, as you can see, although my picture is a little blurry. This bee was all over this flower like, well - a bee to honey :)
Clicking on the title of this post will take you to a site with more information on the swamp milkweed.

Garden surprises

2010-07-18T14:07:00.008-04:00

Imagine my surprise this morning as I was eating breakfast in my garden, minding my own business, when I looked behind me to see Miss Rose of Sharon peeking at me through the fence. She lives on the other side of the fence in my neighbor's yard but decided to go rogue and come over to say hi. Or, she may just have wanted to return home. My neighbor's shrubs are wanderers from my Rose of Sharon, as are many of her flowers on the "other side." A happy gardener is one whose neighbor doesn't mind an invasion of wandering plants.

Another pleasant surprise, this time as I was eating lunch in my garden - a Swallowtail butterfly feasting on my butterfly bush. It was all over this blossom, swinging up and down when the breeze blew, hanging on tight. I don't usually get swallowtails, they tend to enjoy the country fare, not my city plot. Usually I just see monarchs, whites, and fritillaries.

Raspberry Morning

2010-07-15T05:26:00.002-04:00

Tuesday was a perfect morning for picking raspberries. Mine are almost done but I did manage to get almost a quart. It was so peaceful -the only sound was that of the birds singing good morning as the sky was turning pink with the rising sun; the grass moist with morning dew - then I looked at my watch, darn - time to get ready for work. Back to reality...

Lemon Lavender cookies for tea

2010-07-12T20:00:00.003-04:00

The weather cooled down enough for one day for me to light the oven. Here are my Lemon Lavender Shortbread cookies. Delicious. Hubby won't eat them though - they have flowers in them! Good - all the more for me :)

Lemon Lavender Shortbread recipe

2010-07-08T21:20:00.003-04:00

I haven't posted in a while. Between end of the school-year activities and the current heat wave we're having, I haven't been sitting at my computer. I wanted to share this recipe now that the lavender is in bloom. If it ever cools down, I may consider lighting my oven. This recipe is from the Country Living Gardener magazine.

Lemon Lavender Shortbread
4 sticks (1 lb) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sifted confectioner's sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons dried lavender, finely chopped or ground
finely ground zest of 2 lemons

Beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add the vanilla, flour, and salt. Beat on low speed until well combined. Stir in lavender and lemon. Divide dough evenly into 4 pieces, wrap each in plastic wrap. Press each piece into a flat disc. (This makes it easier to roll out.) Chill at least 30 minutes or up to 1 day.
Heat oven to 300 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove dough from refrigerator and let warm 3 - 4 minutes. Roll out 1 piece at a time on floured surface. Using a cookie cutter dipped in flour, cut out desired shapes and transfer to baking pan. Bake on center rack 15 - 20 minutes or until edges are golden brown.

Feverfew Fever

2010-06-23T06:40:00.004-04:00

The feverfew is in full bloom. I love this flower. I know - some people consider it to be like a weed. It does like to self-sow, but it adds such a splash of bright white to the garden and it grows anywhere.

blooms in the greenhouse garden

2010-06-07T21:28:00.011-04:00

Spent 5 hours Saturday weeding in the greenhouse garden. Stopped occasionally to enjoy the flowers and snap a few pictures.
This is one of my oriental poppies growing in the middle of a large patch of lemon thyme. The nice thing about this is that once the poppy dies back, I can cut it down and the thyme fills in the empty spot.

This is Verbascum in front of a rose bush. I have no idea the name of the rose. It's from a shrub rose that was my great-great grandmother's. Smells wonderful, grows like a weed!

I took this picture a few years ago when the ajuga was in bloom. I planted a very small bit of ajuga in 1994 and look at it now. When someone offers you a pot of "extra" flowers they dug up - BEWARE! There's a reason they're giving it away.

Memorial Day

2010-05-31T09:38:00.003-04:00

What a glorious Memorial Day to remember those who are no longer with us. I think about our family and friends who brought so much joy to our lives and who influenced our lives in so many ways. Who would we be today without them?
I painted this stone 6 years ago after my grandmother died. It sits at the base of a rose I bought in her memory.

Sea of blue

2010-05-28T21:10:00.004-04:00

It's time to pull up all the forget-me-nots. They were beautiful this year. This photo was taken a few days after they had reached their peak. Their seeds will be scattered for next year's sea of blue show. Now I'll be able to walk down my garden path without weaving between and stepping over them all. (At least until the alyssum takes over.)

snowball viburnum being eaten alive

2010-05-22T20:32:00.002-04:00

Does anyone know what these bugs are that are eating my snowball viburnum? I purchased this shrub in 2005 in memory of my grandmother. Every year, it gets defoliated but I never can find anything eating it. This year I finally found the little buggers, and they are little. I've seen articles about the viburnum leaf beetle, but these don't seem to be changing shape or size. I've been spraying every couple of days with a soap insecticide with no luck. Any advice? Will I have to get rid of my snowball bush?

Spring Greenhouse Garden

2010-05-12T17:59:00.003-04:00

This is an updated picture from my earlier post titled A Daunting Task. It always amazes me how a garden can go from looking dead to looking lush and colorful in a matter of a few weeks. I almost have this garden under control now. Can't wait for the orange poppies to open. My butterfly bush isn't looking very healthy this year, and it's my favorite one. Hopefully some of it will bloom this year. The pink azalea is doing great as are the creeping phlox.

Edible Violets

2010-05-08T17:20:00.003-04:00

For those of us with violets still in bloom in our yards, did you know they were edible? Here's a few recipes-
Violet Syrup
Fill any size glass jar with violet blossoms, cover with boiling water, put a lid on the jar and let sit for 24 hours. Strain the liquid, discarding the flowers. To each cup of liquid, add the juice of 1/2 lemon and 2 cups of sugar. Bring to a boil, pour into sterilized jars and seal or cap.
This is a good, light flavored syrup for pancakes. Or, pour a couple of spoonfuls over ice, add cold water and stir. A delightful, colorful beverage.
Violet Jelly
Violet Jelly is a wonderful, pretty, dainty jelly to use on English muffins or saltine crackers. To 2 cups of violet syrup, add the juice of 1 lemon and 1 package of powdered pectin. Bring to a boil, then add 4 cups of sugar. Bring back to a boil and boil hard for 1 minute. Pour into jelly jars and seal. (I used small baby food jars and I stored them in the freezer.)
Sugared Violets
Beat 1 egg white until frothy. Pour some superfine sugar into a bowl. Cover a cookie sheet with wax paper. Holding violets by the stem, dip the flowers in the egg white and then in the sugar. Cover top and bottom of flowers. Place on cookie sheet. Use a toothpick to straighten the petals, if necessary. Place in 200 degree oven for 40 minutes or until sugar crystallizes. (It turns frosty white.) Remove from cookie sheet and place on another piece of wax paper to cool. When cool, cut off stems. Store in airtight container, placing wax paper between layers. Sugared violets should keep in this manner a year or more. Use to decorate cakes and desserts or just serve as candy. (Lilac blossoms can also be sugared.)
Violet Leaves
Violet leaves are rich in vitamin C and vitamin A. They can be eaten in salads or cooked like spinach. Gather the bright green leaves when they are young and tender. Wash thoroughly. Use any way you would use raw spinach.

Another victim of ants

2010-05-01T12:08:00.002-04:00

This was my clematis a couple of years ago. This year - dead as a doornail! Suspect - ants!! Ants are destroying my gardens. Does anyone have a solution to keep ants from building their nests under my prime flowers? And, to make matters worse, while pulling out my poor dead clematis vines, I was stung by a bee. Someone, please - remind me why we do this??

April weather

2010-04-28T17:55:00.004-04:00

It snowed yesterday here in Central New York....grrrr...
Just when you think it's over, Mother Nature hits you over the head and says "Not yet, my impatient one, did you forget where you live?" Reality returns. This spring has been too good to be true. This picture is not of snow, these are my beloved cherry blossoms blown off the tree. Happens every year - the tree reaches perfection and then WHAM!! Wind, rain, snow, hail...

I came across this Robert Frost poem last night that describes April perfectly -

"Two Tramps in Mudtime"

The sun was warm but the wind was chill.
You know how it is with an April day
When the sun is out and the wind is still,
You're one month on in the middle of May.
But if you so much as dare to speak,
A cloud comes over the sunlit arch,
A wind comes off a frozen peak,
And you're two months back in the middle of March.

My favorite thing in bloom today

2010-04-21T20:43:00.008-04:00

My weeping cherry tree is my favorite thing in bloom this week. When you stand under it, you can hear the humming of the happy bees

The heather is also looking nice right now.

And so is the Lungwort.

Who needs flower gardens when your lawn looks like this. Gasp... I heard all the lawn fanatics gasping with shock. I don't care if there are "weeds" in my lawn, just don't show up in my gardens.

Meet my newest garden "family members"

2010-04-17T18:59:00.003-04:00

I finally have my helloebores!!! I've been searching for a few years now for a nursery around here that sells them. I had finally given up and was going to order some from a catalog. Then a friend emailed a picture to me and asked me to identify a plant in her garden. She had it professionally done last year. Yup - it was the elusive hellebore! I promptly emailed back - WHERE DID YOU GET THIS? She said Phoenix Flower Farm (Phoenix, NY.) It's 1/2 hour away from me but well worth the drive. They sell plants that our local garden centers don't. Even though it was only 40 degrees and very windy today ("Neither snow nor rain nor heat...."), you know the saying, I was determined to get my hellebores. I bought one for myself and one for my mother (Happy "early) Mother's Day, Mom, if you read this.) I help take care of her flower gardens so, I can enjoy hers too. I also bought a yellow primrose, pasque flower, and Iceland poppy. I don't know the name of my hellebore. This flower farm grows everything in the ground and digs up babies when they are big enough and pots them up to sell. The pot tag just says it's a hellebore and that's fine with me. Happy feet dancing through the gardens.
http://www.phoenixflowerfarm.com

Project plant a bulb for Earth Day

2010-04-13T18:20:00.004-04:00

I saw this Earth Day Plant a Bulb project in the Parade magazine of the Sunday paper. Click on the blog title and it will take you to GEProjectPlantABulb.com. For every viewing of this site during April, GE will donate a flower bulb - up to 200,000 - to communities nationwide.

Spring flowers

2010-04-10T15:28:00.005-04:00

Here are a few pictures of spring flowers I took last spring. I put a black piece of construction paper behind the flowers to give me the background.

A daunting spring task

2010-04-10T15:04:00.003-04:00

My Greenhouse Garden
My backyard gardens are almost cleaned up - piece of cake! Now it's time to start on my greenhouse garden. That should take me - hmmm.... until fall??
This garden is at my son's house; he's the 4th generation to live here. The garden is inside the foundation of one of my grandfather's greenhouses. It blew down many years ago; he rebuilt it only to have it blow down again. (Perhaps there was a big, bad wolf lurking about.)
Gramp had a vegetable garden here for many years, but when he died in 1987, the garden was abandoned. In 1994, I decided to take it back from the goldenrods. At that time, the only other plants in here were 3 forsythia bushes and some spring bulbs. Thanks to the help from my mother and her trusty rototiller, I was able to get most of the goldenrod out that first summer.
I took any and all plants people were giving away; many of my first plantings were plants I knew would spread quickly. (More about my spreading plants in another blog.)
My first "daunting task" is to thin out the ornamental grass - it has grown to a diameter of about 4 feet. I attempted to dig some out last week but only succeeded in getting 2 little clumps out. Does anyone have an easy way to dig this stuff up, short of a backhoe?
Once I complete this task, I will begin the major cleanup. I'll post pictures during the year of the many seasons of this garden. It doesn't look like much now, but when things start blooming, it's very pretty. My grandmother enjoyed watching me work in this garden and looked forward to seeing each plant as it bloomed. The time I spent gardening with her (and for her, as her health deteriorated) was very special to me. She died in 2004. My son purchased the house in 2005. My daughter-in-law attempted to keep the garden up, but I know how much work it takes. I spend as much time out there as I can, but it will never be perfect and it will never be weed-free; and that's okay with me.
Once it's somewhat under control, hopefully within the next couple of weeks, I need to start on another garden I have at my parent's house around their large pond.
Does anyone ever regret starting too many gardens? Sometimes there isn't enough time to just sit back and enjoy the fruits of our labor.

Parsley survived zone 4 winter

2010-04-05T21:18:00.002-04:00

Imagine my surprise when the snow melted and I discovered a large clump of parsley still alive!! That has never happened before. I'm not sure how it survived our winter but I'm happy it did. Has anyone else in zone 4 had pleasant surprises like this?

Another nice surprise today was finding my butterfly bushes leafing out. They normally don't leaf out until late May/early June. They are way ahead of schedule this year.
Of course, it helps that we've had some 80 degree days - only 30 degrees higher than normal!
I'll be adding all these odd happenings to my garden journal so I can look back on this wonderful spring in some future year when we're having a snowstorm in April.

Forcing spring flowering trees and shrubs

2010-04-01T11:10:00.004-04:00

Those of us up north get a little antsy in March waiting for our flowers and shrubs to bloom. I usually cut off branches of my weeping cherry tree early in March and force them to bloom. I have a little success with it, a few blossoms on each branch. I found this article (click on the blog title for link) with steps to take for fooling your branches into thinking it's spring. I didn't find this article until late March and I hope my tree knows it's spring and I don't have to fool it. I cut a few branches yesterday and put them in a vase of water. I'll post a picture of them in bloom (if they bloom.)
Has anyone had good luck forcing spring branches into bloom? Which branches have you found work best?

Spring Peepers

2010-03-29T19:42:00.004-04:00

Just got back from my parent's house in the country. The spring peepers were out (no, not the marshmallow kind.) I don't have peepers at my house. I guess I'll have to play my spring peeper CD tonight while I fall asleep. Oh, how I miss the sounds of the country. Spring peepers is the best sound after a long winter. Who agrees with me?
(click on my title of spring peepers to view the e-nature page about peepers and listen to them.)

Earth Day - April 22, 2010

2010-03-28T09:21:00.008-04:00

Earth Day - April 22, 2010
What are you doing in your yard/garden for a sustainable lifestyle? Last fall I chopped up my leaves in my trusty shredder and spread them throughout my gardens. Granted, some of them blew back into the yard with our strong lake winds, but they were small enough to decompose where they landed. I dumped some in my compost pile and will be using those this spring to mulch more of my gardens with. During the long, cold, snowy winter I saved my kitchen scraps in a big, covered bucket. When it was full, and the weather wasn't too bad, I trudged down to the compost pile and emptied it. Most of it is still there waiting to be turned over but the squirrels and birds did have a few meals from my scraps. And that is fine, it's fun to watch them digging for treasure. This spring I'll have plenty of nutrient rich soil from the bottom of my compost pile to enrich my heavy clay soil with.
Earth Day/Sustainability Giveaway!!

Bookish Birdhouses: Frances and Mary

2010-03-24T13:35:00.000-04:00

This is a link to a blog I saw about decorating cheap, plain, wooden birdhouses with pages from childrens' books.

Bookish Birdhouses: Frances and Mary: "So many of you have told me that you love (and miss seeing!) the birdho..."

My first blog

2010-03-22T19:36:00.000-04:00

I finally gave in to the desire to start blogging. I decided to blog about gardening since that is my passion. Last week we had sunshine and temperatures hovering around 60 degrees. I was outside after work every day uncovering my daffodils that were struggling to break through layers of maple leaves and winter dirt. My crocus are blooming (I even saw a bee buzzing in one of them, happy as could be.) I also found 1 lonely English daisy in bloom. This week is cold and rainy but the spring rain will wash away the dirt and turn everything green again.