Gardening Thoughts

Design - "4th of July" (Flip Its)

Designer - Lizzie Kate

Fabric - 32 count Summer Khaki linen

Fibers - GAST 2 strands over 2 threads

Started - 27 July 2012

Completed - 30 July 2012

It's time for the Tuesday Garden Party at an Oregon Cottage.

In late July / early August my garden is full of 'hot' colors.

Let's look at some of my favorite plants.

  

This is a large Salvia 'La Trinidad Pink'. We cut back the plant hard this spring to bring it back under control.  It has totally recovered from our mauling. It requires room to grow, but rewards with nonstop blooms from mid-May until frost once established.  

I have four different colors of this variety of Calibrachoa, and again I've been rewarded with non-stop blooms.  This is Calibrachoa MiniFamous Double Amethyst. 

Honestly, I don't care if this plant ever blooms.  I am so in love with the large, long spotted leaves of the Begonia maculata 'Polka Dot'.  I bought it at Xera Plants and the tag says "The ultimate plant to decorate a martini lounge or outdoor container...Small shell pink flowers are no match for the wonderful foliage, backed by red with red canes...Cheers!"   

I have about a dozen or so Coleus.  They come into their own by this time of year. 

I'm getting lots of pow and pop from my collection of Non-stop Begonias.  I have pink, yellow, orange, red, and white.

My Fuchsia 'Other Fellow' is a shocker - pure white outer petals contrast with Barbie-doll pink inner petals.  It must have close to 100 blooms.

The first of my Oriental Lilies is blooming.  I'd love to tell you the name, but I didn't save the information. 

When you buy a Breadseed Poppy it's always a bit of a gamble.  What color / hue will the blossom be?  I'm most pleased with this - a mix of deep and lighter purples. 

Everyone enjoys company while gardening.  This morning I had help from a young female Black-headed Grosbeak.  She seemed taken with my pink garden gloves.  

That's my Garden Tour for today.  Hope you found a plant or two that you now Must Have!

Ringing In The Last Days of July

Design - "Let Freedom Ring"

Designer - Lizzie Kate

Fabric - 32 count Summer Khaki linen

Fibers - WDW - 2 strands over 2 threads

Started - 25 July 2012

Completed - 27 July 2012

I like the simplicity of this design.

I may still have a few more patriotic stitches up my sleeve!

While the Flickers have been omnipresent, once the Sapsuckers fledged at the beginning of July they have disappeared. I'd not seen or heard a Downy or Hairy Woodpecker for a couple of months either.  Just when I complained about my dearth of woodpeckers, there, high in a tree was a little Downy Woodpecker rata-tat-tatting away! 

There's been no let up with the Hummingbirds.

They approve of many of my plant choices!

And while the Goldfinches love my Nyjer thistle, they are also beginning to consume the seeds of the Canadian Thistles.   

I like the yellow / purple combination.

Speaking of small yellow birds, I had a female Wilson's Warbler stop by Sunday morning.  

As July turns into August, Atticus Quail continues to watch over his covey.

Summer is moving along at the speed of light!

Quiet Sunday Morning

The last few mornings have begun as gray and overcast.

That does not seem to bother the Goldfinches. 

As long as the All You Can Eat Nyjer Thistle Bar is open, they are happy.

By early afternoon the sun appears and so do the bees.

This Bumblebee has a large ball of pollen to carry back home.

Lavender has a wide appeal to pollinators of all sorts.

Here's a young female Black headed Grosbeak.

While the Evening Grosbeaks have mostly moved on, the Black headed Grosbeaks remain in large numbers.

This little gal stopped by for a drink of water.

And this little gal stopped by to make sure there were no other Hummingbirds in the immediate area.

Saturday Is For Relaxing

It's Saturday!

A day that calls for kicking back and relaxing.

This doe was not relaxed - she was on high alert. 

On the left you can see her fawn.  

Now the fawn is on the right.

See the spots?  Mama was very protective of her little one.

Atticus Quail is protective too.

I don't know how he can keep track of everyone.

His brood is now old enough that they are beginning to develop little top-knots.  Soon I'll be able to tell the males from the females.

Repeat:  It's Saturday - relax!

I Can't Stay Away!

I'm having fun working on "Let Freedom Ring".

I'll probably be able to finish it today.

Besides stitching, I continue to haunt our local nurseries.

And so back to Gray's Garden Center I went.

They have the most amazing display of cascading flowers lining their parking lot.  It is a hellishly hot and windy site along a very busy street.

And yet with drip irrigation, they've managed to create a wall of flowers!

Love this Rudbeckia

and this darling bird feeder

I was good - I did NOT buy another fuchsia!

Another cute bird feeder

and lots of dahlias.

There's Always Something / Someone Interesting at the Market!

Design - "Happy Flag Flag Day"

Designer - The Trilogy

Fabric - 32 cnt Natural Light linen

Fibers - WDW - 2 strands over 2 threads

Started - 20 July 2012

Completed - 25 July 2012

All I can say: Boy there are a lot of stitches in that-there wavy flag!

There's always something / someone interesting at the Farmers' Market.

The City of Eugene is considering banning plastic bags.

I think that Plastic Man was publicising that.

We had cherries

and fennel

and blackberries

and Walla Walla onions

and currents

and Torpedo onions

and peas

and Cibola onions

and the first sweet corn of the season!