Global Warming, Kat, & Racoon

The temperature is sixty-seven degrees.  Sure seems more like spring than late February. Tomorrow the high is only suppose to be around forty-eight.  This afternoon and tonight they forecast rain and cooler temps and possible tornadoes.  Just never know what Mother Nature is gonna throw at us.

I have crocus bloomed and jonquils are several inches high, a miniature rose bush that had buds on it over a month ago.  Global Warming?  Don't subscribe to that theory at all.  The one thing I do know for sure is that I'm going to be mowing, trimming and pulling weeds very soon.

  I would like to introduce my newest friend, Kat, who seems to have adopted my place as her new home.  I know she looks like she had a rough night and maybe she did.  Wonder if I can teach her to pull weeds.  We found her outside one morning looking a bit hungry so we gave her food and she stayed. 

A couple of evenings later I heard a noise outside and when I looked out the window this is what was eating the cat's food.

Not only is he the biggest raccoon I have ever seen he is most brazen.  Turning on the outside lights made no difference to him.  The flash from the camera made him turn his back but a few minutes later he stood up, put his little front paws on an outside chair and looked back at my daughter as she stood in the window.  He was back the next evening and when he found no food he waddled around to the front porch and climbed the steps.  He was quite comical, I must say.  He has not been around lately which is fine.  Cute but not a creature I  would care to do battle with.

Blooming Orchids

My orchids are blooming!!   This one has 3 or 4 other buds and the one in the foreground will be somewhat of a

chartreuse colour when it finally opens.  

Last year they set buds but when I moved them to a different location they all fell off .  This time I've left them in the sun room.  I did not realize it took such a long time for them too open but they are well worth the wait.

It's been a long time

It's been a long time since my last post and lots of things have happened.  Spring is not just around the corner for us but the winter has been very mild so far this year.  I'll be back tomorrow with some pictures and comments, I hope.

Yellow Iris are Blooming

It was chilly out on the Hill this morning but we did not have frost. A couple of people in the office said that they had to scrap ice from windshields. Last weekend I had a load of landscape gravel delivered and, with some helping hands I have begun to create a drystream bed. We got this much of it done when the heavens opened up and rain came down in buckets. Hopefully will get back out there by Friday.

This bed of Iris was here when I arrived. It had some type of tree growing in the center along with a thicket of blackberry briers around and in it. The tree we took down and the briers I have tried to remove. One thing I have found is that deer do not care for Iris or Jonquils.
Standing on the walk that leads to the Wash House and looking up gives one the idea of just how steep my Hill really is. The bed of Iris that is faintly visible in the upper left corner is the one in the picture above.

Iris are Blooming

Went for a short this evening about seven o'clock and when I came back I snapped a few pictures. This is absolutely one of my favorites. I have no idea how old these are because several years ago when I was down at my farm I dug up a few and planted them in a bed. Well, as Iris will do, they quickly multiplied so last spring I relocated them to their present home. I did this in the spring after they were almost ready to bloom. I must admit I did not expect them to bloom but it did not slow them down at all. This year they are really going to be beautiful.

The one below is a rebloomer. It bloomed last spring and then in the late fall. Actually it was still blooming so late in the fall that I cut off the last buds and brought them inside so they would not freeze. Not only was it a heavy bloomer but it more than doubled in clump size.

I particularly like the way it looks growing among the rocks. Gives it more of a naturalized setting.
If you look closely you will see that the delphinium is getting ready to put on it's show but it will still be longer before the first flowers open.

"Tomorrow is Another Day"

Rain and thunderstorms were suppose to move through last evening but all we got was the rain and much cooler temperature. At five thirty this morning it is 51 degrees and the high is suppose to be only in the mid-sixties as opposed to the 80s we've had in the past few days. Would be great weather to work in the garden but both my grandkids are with me today so gardening will wait until another day. The oldest one is 12 and lives on a small farm so he enjoys coming to my house and just hanging out without any chores to do. The youngest has just turned 3 so she likes Dora, Little Bear and Hello Kitty. I need a break from gardening and outside work so this will be a wonderful weekend to just relax and play with the kidos. This is one of my favorite hydrangea. It blooms on both old and new wood and so far has proved to be a rather heavy bloomer. I have two of them and last fall collected enough flower heads to make several large bouquets which dried nicely and are still very showy.
The August Lily is up and surrounded by violets. Flower pots are awaiting new tenants which requires a decision on my part. Oh, well, as Scarlett said "tomorrow is another day". I will consider all these problems at a later date.

Gnarley Mulberry

This distorted piece of nature amazes me each time I see it. Just off my front porch (that is not my house in the picture) it grows close to the property line. This is not an upclose picture but it is so twisted and gnarled I wonder how it got into such a shape. Each summer it will have a few mulberries but they soon disappear thanks to the birds. If I were a "little person" beneath this would be the perfect place to sit and play. I've thought about putting a tiny house beneath it for the leprechauns and other wee folk. Prehaps if I do they will tend my gardens - pull weeds, mulch the beds, keep all the other things under control. I'm not sure what type of fern this it but it stayed green all winter. There are a couple of other types that did not survive. I would like to find more of these to put beneath the Hickory tree tree. So many things will not grow where the nuts and leaves contiminate the ground. This is one huge tree. I'm not exactly sure where my property line is but there is a survey in the near future. If it's on my property I will very seriously considering having it removed because of the close proximity to my house and if it is not I may have a talk with my neighbor about both of us having it removed. Several of the big trees on our hill have been struk by lighting. When it took out my 200 plus year old Oak it was quite a jolt, to say the least.

High A Top the Chimney

Early in the morning one never knows what will be seen at my house!
I looked up and this is what I saw perched on one of the chimneys. He seems to be there surveying his kingdom. I have a rather aggressive mockingbird who resides nearby and this could be one and the same.

The deer is one of several that was in the backyard. They are not as skiddish as one might expect them to be around people. Indeed, they often seem to pose for pictures.

I found these lovelies peeking through a crack in the walk. They are such a deep blue they seemed quite unique.

Time for a second cup of coffee.