Friday, August 13, 2010

~ A Little More Gardening





In the deep, deep south nothing holds up to the heat but the very strong and then it takes water, lots of water. Sweet hubby is holding up better than I am. It is finally bearable about 6:30 at night. Odd time to garden, but I can get twice as much done.
For a while it was nearly impossible to find the more red pentas instead of just the lighter pink. The red goes better with my color combination. What a performer! With the array of tiny star shaped blooms it's always dependable.

I love pots filled with flowers, plants and small trees. This year I got a late start, but the pots are really blooming beautifully after just a few weeks. I forgot how much work they are to keep looking good. Some needed watering more than once day until they got a bit more established. They cannot go one whole day with being tended to with a big drink. Though wonder Disney crews work all night to keep their pots so fabulous.


ThR simple coleus, so pretty. I use them for the quick punch of lime green. Usually he gets deadheaded so that it will last longer and fill out more. But he was determined to bloom. Then I remembered how delicate and lovely those blue shoots of flowers are when it is in bloom.

This little blue/purple guy loves the heat, he just wants enough water to keep from getting too thirsty.

Fortunately I bought a couple large pots years ago. Some days I think that they would look so good painted to look like old concrete. But it would be difficult to turn them back to terracotta. It's tough when you love two (or more) different looks and have to choose.


See Y'All Soon~
Donna

Thursday, August 5, 2010

~ Rosemary & Time, Again... Too Hot To Garden!

When I first posted this it was Jan. Now it's August. How did that happen? It's time to slow time down again. The heat has been a unforgiving, and I know it's not a good time for planting. It's actually more remarkable how many things can take the heat, if you water them twice a day. The small patch of new grass was incredibly perfect, until today. Now it needs some help. I remember why I don't add grass to the landscape. It just seemed to be needed in one place though.

The beautiful rosemary in the picture below was moved outside by the back door for a few months,and did fabulous, until I got busy with other things and just forgot to water it or give it any attention. I'm going to put it in the yard and see if I can nurse it back to health. But getting more herbs planted will have to wait.

For now, a little repost from when the pretty rosemary first came by.
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After holidays, most of us either miss the decorations and ornaments because the house looks empty, or you are thrilled to have less clutter. For me, it feels like a breath of fresh air, and it reminds me to start the year fresh. Time to start anew again.




I love the smell of rosemary. Usually at Christmastime you can find some really pretty cone shaped topiary rosemary plants. (Lowe's, Home Depot and many garden shops carry them.) This one has been sitting on the window sill in the kitchen where I can see when it needs water and it has been doing very well. It's really wonderful in the living room window, but we'll see how long it can stay there without me forgetting to water it.

The pot is terracotta which was painted a few years ago. First I painted it a creamy white, then aged it with some brown/taupe glaze and added a bit of mossy lime green to imitate the moss that would be growing on a pot left outside.

A little word of warning about these Santos cage dolls. I have recently seen them being sold as "vintage" and they are not. Although they look a little older, they are being made today and imported. Sticking a vintage label on them seems to garnish a higher price.

See Y'all Soon~
Donna

Monday, August 2, 2010

~ Outdoor Living Spaces


As I go through the one million and one pictures I've saved over the years, most of the garden and outdoor spaces photos are still beautiful. Unlike decorating inside, outdoor spaces are usually less likely to fall victim to how trends go out of style. Sometimes you can tell an approximate time period from the colors or the materials being used.








(Poynter Landscape & Construction)

This particular outdoor living area will be just as beautiful 20 years from now as it is now. I kept this picture because of the slightly different design of the arbor. The arched piece joining the sides is really a nice detail. We are using pavers right now too, so I was happy to find this picture with this lovely step design.

See Y'All Soon~
Donna