My world teems with life

The re-blooming day lilies are still going strong.

The coneflowers are alive with butterflies.

Lots of bees, too.  

There are still blackberries ripening, but I'm not making any more pies.  Cliff and I don't need pie.  

When we take our walks in the woods, we have to be careful or we'll walk right into a spider's web.  

It's a lovely time of year, is summer.

pictures from around the place

I took this picture this morning right after I milked Bonnie.  Sir Loin is ten months old, and as big as his mom.  The only reason we haven't weaned him is that Bonnie would be the only cow on the place without him; I'd rather she have some sort of bovine companion.  Cliff's brother is going to bring some calves here to wean, like he did last summer.  At that time, we'll haul Sir to the butcher shop down the road and I will dry Bonnie up so she can put all her energy into the calf (I hope there's a calf... I'm gun-shy after our experience with Secret) growing inside her.  
My friend Joanna is flying in tomorrow; she lives in Centreville, five minutes from Dulles airport.  She and I met years ago in the old AOL chat room where I met so many wonderful people.  I had hoped some of my pretty flowers would be blooming for her visit; unfortunately, the tulips are fading fast, and the last daffodils have lost their petals.  

There's a bloom trying to break out on this iris, but it won't make it in time for Joanna's visit.  The peonies aren't doing anything, and there isn't so much as a bud on the rosebushes and the tall phlox.  The lilac bush is trying hard, but it won't bloom for at least another week.  


When I moved back here behind the barn, I went into a frenzy of flower-planting.  Most all the things I planted have lived through the winter and are starting to grow.  Unfortunately, I don't recall what some of them are.  

This, for instance.  

And this.  

I'm pretty sure I bought both of these at Home Depot when they were closing out their nursery stock.  Or maybe it was Walmart.   Anybody have a clue what either of these are?  I remember my readers identifying Blazing Star for me last year... a plant which really doesn't impress me, by the way.  


The Crepe Myrtle tree I planted was killed by our harsh winter.  I got it on closeout, so I didn't pay a lot for it.  I've since learned that local nurseries won't guarantee Crepe Myrtle trees (or bushes, whatever they are) because it really isn't hardy enough for the zone.  

Cliff pulled the dead tree up by its roots and stuck two traffic cones in the hole; I'm really wanting a Crimson King maple tree to put there; but they are so expensive, I just haven't been able to talk myself into buying one.  

New life

I'm an early riser. Far too early to suit me, but that's how I'm wired, I guess.

As soon as it's light enough to see, I go outside, because exciting things are happening out there. Since we claimed this section of the pasture/hayfield as home only last summer, we had lots of planting to do. Now everything is coming to life, and it's a big adventure for me.

Right outside the front door is this dwarf lilac bush which, as you can see, is about to bloom. I don't know why it's slower than all the other lilacs in the neighborhood; I'm just happy to know it's going to have flowers, and it's less than a year old.

Behind the lilac bush is a clematis vine, one of several Cliff's sister brought from Wisconsin last year. It seems to climb inches taller each day.

In the front yard, I check the Chanticleer Pear tree. In the background you can see one of two Autumn Blaze maples that are also thriving and healthy. You can also see the mature Kentucky Coffee Bean tree I blogged about recently.

Following the sidewalk around the house to the back, I monitor the progress of the Astilbes I put out in early spring. These are especially exciting because I've never had them, and all I know about how they look is what I saw in the seed catalog. I can't wait to see them up-close and personal! They're supposed to be a good shade plant, and I needed something on the north side of the house.

Another good plant for the shade, Impatiens.

This is the tiny Chinquapin Oak tree I brought up from the woods last fall. It's alive! See the reddish leaf-buds? It's a slow grower, so Cliff and I probably won't live to see it in its mature glory. Still, it'll be fun to watch, knowing it started life back by my cabin.

I received ten free trees (for a small donation, so how free is that?) from the Arbor Day Foundation. I had given them all up for dead, but a few days ago I noticed the Washington Hawthorns had buds, and I did a happy dance. Out of ten trees, two lived. Hey, that's better than nothing.

And then this morning, I noticed that a flowering crabapple is waking up. That makes three out of ten. Maybe more will come to life?

I've already blogged about the "dead" Norway Spruce trees that are, one by one, getting busy growing. I love it! Seeing life come back into those trees, some of which had become nothing but bare sticks, is amazing.

No, this wasn't taken in my yard. I took it yesterday in the woods. I must say, all of these and others I found were very tasty.

See? How can a person NOT be excited, with all this going on?

Signs of spring

It's almost 5 P.M. here, and it's 77 degrees. It would have been a nice day for a motorcycle ride, but Cliff decided to save his vacation day; it was somewhat windy anyway. Tomorrow is a regular day off for him, and it's supposed to be around 70, so we plan to do our riding then. We got the weekly shopping done, and I puttered around in the yard. Spring is busting out all over.

The buds on my little lilac bush are swelling.


Tulips are peeking through! I spent quite a bit of time working on those little weeds, pulling them by hand. Or should I say by finger, they're so tiny. I forget who sent me stuff on the "pay-it-forward" thing, but among the goodies she sent me were some gardening gloves. They were put to use today. I disturbed several earthworms pulling those weeds.


Inside the house, my pepper plants have all sprouted. Yes, they look pretty puny; as soon as all the tomato plants are up, I can start taking them outside when it's warm enough, to harden them off.


The tomato plants are slower to germinate, but if you look closely, you can see a few.

Sadie got away again this morning. We went on to the store and when we returned, she was lying in the yard soaking up the sun. She came running to meet us as though it were the most natural thing in the world for her to be loose.

Whew. That dog will be the death of me yet.