Ponds and Falls

Water features in gardens are a pain in the neck...and the back...and I love them. Even as a little kid I would create water features around the hose bib in my parents back yard. I could spend hours arranging rocks and creating water courses. We've built water features here at the farm, the cows have always managed to break through fences and destroy them at least once or twice. One time when I was out of town the cows fell in my fish pond and The Husband had to hoist the beastly bovine out with a tractor, it was a Sunday morning and the neighbors just happened to be driving by on their way to church....I'm sure it was a very curious sight.
Our garden tour last weekend offered up a few water features to give me some inspiration for the feature we've been lacking the gumption to complete. The water course below wasn't on the garden tour but we just happened to park in front of it when we were on the tour....I was fascinated by this one. The house was at the top of the hill so this feature is really for the enjoyment of the people passing by, I'd like to thank these folks for this one...they don't really even see it from their house.
The photo below is a closer view of the falls, I really like how the water falls in a sheet...I've always wanted to build one of those....but on a smaller scale.

This pond in the photos above and below were on the tour, this was a back yard I could move right into, no hesitation whatsoever!

The stream course was great, I like how they staged a fall every couple of feet.

I can't believe I'm posting this shot, this is my stalled project...I dug that hole at least a year ago. I guess life got in the way of yet another garden dream...oh well...I say it's better to have started and stalled than never to have started at all!

Glass in the Garden

I'm pretty reserved when it comes to decorative ornaments in the garden, but one thing I wish I had more of... is glass. I love it. Glass in the garden seems like such a strange combination but every time I see it I launch into full-blast covet, ya ya...I know it's a sin but I really really want it!Ok...so this is a little over the top, but it's so much fun. This garden mosaic was in one of the gardens on the tour last weekend. The detail was amazing, check out the vase on the left, pouring out blue glass baubles to simulate pouring water on a flower. This mosaic covered a large wall and it was full of details like this. Check out the reflection in the mirror of the blue garden goddess.

Glass beads and hearts in a bird bath instead of water, I like the look but I wonder where the birdies go to freshen up....the spa? HMB..high maintenance birdies.

This vignette was fabulous, it consisted of a brightly painted chair with plantings to match. The finishing touch was the half dozen garden orbs that picked up the colors of the chair and plants.

OK....screaming coveting....this one dang near tipped me over. I'm crazy for it...for the glass, the beads, the perfect pairing with the maple....ayyyeeee!!!!! This is one talented gardener.

Same garden, this little orb wrapped with glass beads was tucked at the end of a secret path. The photo doesn't do it justice, it was so dang cute tucked into a corner.

You can see it at the end of the path in this photo...still not showing it off like I should..blame the photographer, yeah...write her a pink slip and put her on notice.

I'm such a dummy, mom gave me money for Christmas and I've been looking for something special to buy. I've been holding off spending it because I want the purchase to be unique and it just hit me...duhhh....glass for my garden! Every time I see it I will think of mom and the gift she gave me, I know she will approve.

Gardens and Art

Yesterday I posted about the garden tour we went on over the weekend. I'm planning a few more posts about the tour...I have garden-tour-itis, hope you do too!
The first garden that we went to was down a long driveway with a wildflower meadow...full of multi-colored poppies, lupine, and grasses. I knew right then we were in for a treat.

Several artists had their work displayed in this garden, this was my favorite piece...I really like glass in the garden. This one is my favorite and it's only $3000 bucks, hey...my birthday is coming up...hint hint.

This metal art made every person that walked by it smile...whimsical...anndddd recycled!

These flags were all over the garden, it was a beautiful breezy day and they were all different colors and sizes.... made for a fun, party atmosphere.

The extremely rare blue bottleicus treeicus. These always crack me up, I have a few of these blue bottles around the farm, I think I would have a hard time selling this idea to The Husband. Oh....and check out the view of the harbor!

This garden had every plant one could imagine, really colorful combinations and great winding paths.

Check out the water feature by the front door! Wowza! Everywhere you looked in this garden there was a feature...mosaics on the walls, on the ground, art hanging on posts in the garden and on the house, mirrors in several places to reflect different features...it really was amazing.

I call these dinosaur eggs. The first time I saw one was on a garden tour in Seattle a couple of years ago, ever since then I've wanted to make one to put in my garden....the list of "I wanna" projects for my garden is um.... long ;)

At the very back edge of the garden was this path, 50 steps down to the beach and a jungle hut! Oh mannn...decisions decisions. I decided not to make the trek...I spent a few hours at the chiropractor this past week, I'm not taking any chances.

I have so many more photos of this garden but I think I'll save them for another post.

Happy gardening!

Gardens Galore

Summer means garden tours...I looove garden tours. I love it that there are people out there that are willing to open up their personal space to folks like me...we oogle...we ahhhh....we admire. This weekend the Horticulture Society for the county had their tour, it was
a-ma-ziiinggggg! I'd had a rough week but I was so determined to go, there was no stoppin' this garden gawker.There were six gardens in all, one in particular that I really wanted to see. I had checked out the web site, I knew from the description and location that it would be a wow garden...I also thought it might be something I could get some ideas for our garden here at the farm. We need to make some changes if we're going to stay living here, the maintenance on this place is a bit overwhelming for me these days. I looove to be in the garden but "this old body" of "this old lady" on "this old farm" can't work as hard as I used to, my body is wearing out a bit. Dang it!
Check out the the Dogwood blossoms in the shot above....crazy pretty! They had a half dozen of these trees along the driveway...absolutely stunning. I've planted that many....one after the other, and they all promptly died on me from anthracnose - I need to admit that this tree is not suited for my site....I'm in denial about that....and I will keep buying them, they will keep dying. Therapy? Perhaps that would be in order....for me....not the tree.

The entrance to the property, big beautiful pots placed on each side of the wide sidewalk... planted simply and stunning with a goregous tree.

This mass planting of lavender 'Otto Quast'...I can't grow that either. We live ten miles away from this garden but we're also a zone colder...with heavy clay soil. Bummer, I love this lavender....absolutely stunning planted in a huge mass like this.

Stone work to make me swoon..this garden had it - and more.

Stone pathway around the back of the house. I love going to the stone yard...rock freak that I am. Knowing the price of stone and big rocks is sometimes a bad thing. I was walking up the stone steps doing the math on the rock alone...never mind the cost of installation! Ohhh...it was so beautiful, I paused for a moment ...gave the math a break and admired all the hard work that went into this place.

At the base of the lavender walk this is the view that was waiting for you, this hidden cove. Ohhh man, be still my heart.

If you turn your head 30 degrees you get to look at this!

I should have packed a picnic! These chairs were placed perfectly to enjoy those goregous views. Ok...so this place was definitely not low maintenance, the grade was pretty steep as well. But it was pretty...ohhh mannn was it pretty!

I don't even want to think about the property taxes...uh oh...there's that math thing again.

Tomorrow's post? More gardens!

It's here

We wait for it, we day dream about it...we pine for it,

and now it's here.

That brief moment when the flower garden peaks,

the peonies are huge, the roses are giving their best

show of the season.

I went for a little stroll in the garden last night, didn't pull

weeds...didn't make "to-do" lists....just looked at

all of the pretty, that I've waited a whole year for.

More wedding photos

Twenty eight years ago ...we said "I do" and I will, for richer for poor... in sickness and in health....all that stuff.

We don't need much to be content, as time passes our idea of a pleasant evening has become oh so simple.

Our plans for a little anniversary get-away got derailed a bit...that's okay. We'll have a nice dinner here at the farm, it will be great.

Happy Anniversary Honey!

Ta Da dooone

Yippieeee...that "Just Married" sign I was asked to make is finished! It was kinda fun and turned out better than I had hoped. I really wanted to find a stencil for the lillies but no such luck. I did find a line drawing of one so I just "placed and traced" my little heart out and filled in with acrylic paint....did some free-hand stems and leaves and wahooo...they really look like lillies!

I'm not an artist but I can trace to beat the band. I'd never worked with acrylic paints before..that was pretty easy. The bummer is that it's on posterboard...if it gets wet this thing is toast. We don't want to talk about how long this took me..I'm sloowwwww. Hey, it was a good activity for this blogger girl who has a really bad cold. Kept me out of trouble, that's for sure.A close-up of one of the flowers.

Ok...now I have to go find something to wear to the wedding.

Yuukkkk....I'm the worst clothes shopper in the world.

June 20, 1980

This Friday will mark our 28th wedding anniversary. Here we are on that happy day.... oh so many years ago. Riding off into the sunset, sitting on the trunk of my brother-in-law's oh so cool TR7...he said we did permanent damage to the suspension system...sorry dude.
I had painted that "Just Married" sign for my girlfriend the year before and borrowed it from her for my own wedding...yup...we were even recyclers way back then.
Today I'm off to buy a few art supplies to paint another sign just like that one...only with lillies around the border, the sign I'm painting is for the daugher of my friend for whom I painted that original sign wayyyy back in 1979.

Hey wait...I don't know how to paint lillies. Oh well...way back then I didn't know how to paint daisies either, what the heck....I'll give it a whirl. Besides, it's getting taped to a get-away car, who's gonna notice?

Wish me luck.

Bloom Day, Bummer Day

I'm bummed....I'm grounded. All of that running around having fun last week caught up with me. Today while The Husband is off with family celebrating Fathers Day with his dear step-dad , I'm stuck at home with a nasty cold. I really wanted to go with him, it's a lovely drive to Whidbey Island and the step family is always fun....waaaa!
Ok...enough of that whiney stuff.
It's Garden Bloggers Bloom Day! Between naps I managed to pop out and snap a few photos. I should have waited until a bit later when the light wasn't so intense but I'll probably be conked out by then.

Isn't my peony pretty? The bee thinks so too.
The clematis is blooming full blast, everybody gets to see
it when they come to the back door.Foxglove. I read somewhere that if you want to have
foxgloves in your garden you need to be willing to accept
the fact that they will bloom where they want to, not where
you want them to. I'm always behind on my weeding so the
foxgloves have a pretty good chance around here.

Peeking at the Jacob's Ladder through the

Blue Oat Grass, the bees were busy here too.

This wild mess of color is out in the veggie garden, it makes me

smile every time I see it. Chives, Geum, Blue Geranium and

Garlic scapes in the background. I put the Geum and Geranium

out there until I found a good spot for them...oops...that was

a few years ago.

Another wild mess out by the fish ponds. I like the contrast of

the Black Mondo Grass against the greens, the orange of the Geum

just makes the whole thing pop!

A Geum close-up, it's a little invasive and sometimes I

contemplate pulling it all out...but it's still here creating

a color riot and making me smile.

This poor Delphinium has a new home...again.

I think I've moved it every year for the last three.

This just might be permanent! So far so good.

What would a day in June be without roses?

I keep pulling out this wild rose...and it keeps coming back,

this is one determined plant.

This one is so pretty, I love the shape of the petals, the way

the light hits the layers.

This yellow climber has a really big pretty bloom but it's

always a big mess of rust and black spot...grrrrr.

This Salvia out by the fish pond is the perfect blue to balance

with the orange of the Geum....the dreadful thing about these

is that they smell like...umm...how do I put this delicately...

they smell like cat piddle, no lie. I have to warn friends who come

over to gather bouquets not to include this one....because their

bouquet will smell like a giant cat box.

But this Magnolia smells absolutely wonderful, when I walk by

it always makes me stop and smile....these down facing blossoms

are so pretty when you tilt them up to take a closer look.

My garden is full of happy blossoms today, I hope you

enjoyed the few that I was able to show you.

Happy Bloom Day!

If you would like to see more Bloom Day posts,

check out May Dreams, where other

bloggers have joined in on the fun.

Wild Weeding Woman

While I was merrily blogging along, going to graduations...and graduation parties, making pretty flower arrangements and yummy food for a bridal shower - - - the weeds...ohhhh....the weeds....they were growing and growing. I saw them while I was playing party animal, while I was skipping about gathering flowers for arrangements, but I pretended they weren't there. This week I finally shifted out of denial and addressed the situation, it aint pretty folks....but I'm making progress. The last two nights I worked until I lost the light, this time of year that's after 9:30...ahhh...you play you pay.

I was laying a few pavers out by the pond, after The Husband mowed the lawn I noticed he had moved them out of the way...I liked this still life he created for me...had to catch the shot. And yes...the ponds are still icky, that green goo is actually quite fascinating to the puppy.

It's not all weeds, the clematis is blooming it's little heart out.

Have a great weekend! I'll be weeding, and going to a couple

of parties...of course ;)