ABC Wednesday
The letter is X and the choice of flower is really quite easy.  Not too many X's dwell in the Land of Flowers, so not much confusion in picking one!

Behold the lovely Xeranthemum

 

Otherwise known as the Everlasting, or Immortelle

 

A hardy annual which blooms even in poor soil, and whose flowers stay open in cloudy

weather, I am pleased to tell you..

 

The Immortelle begins to bloom in early summer and continues through autumn.

 

Wonderful for dried flowers.  Cut when the buds begin to open and hang

them by the stems, with their heads down, in a shady dry area for a couple of weeks, to dry.

 

There was a time in my life when the outdoor porch was full

of dried plants hanging from the rafters

but the Everlasting was the most charming and dependable

of them all.

 

 

 

You might know it by another name, 'strawflower'

 

but whatever its name it is precious for providing colour from the garden

in the midst of winter, whether in bouquets or in wreaths.

 

 

 

 

For more takes on the letter X visit here at ABC Wednesday, with many thanx to

everyone who brings this xcellent meme to us weekly.

June 24th, 2013

Another day that finds us enveloped in grey clouds, mist and almost continuous showers,
 but yesterday was a little gem amidst all these drizzly days.

 

I opened my eyes to sunshine and immediately sprang out of bed and put a skein of white singles wool to soak in warmish water and a cup of vinegar; drained the day lilies which have been sitting on the kitchen counter for days, releasing their lovely orange dye and beginning to look a little gelatinous, and only then I got dressed.  This sunny day was a long time in coming, and I didn't plan to waste any of it.

 

 

 

Before I walked to church I put the wool in with the dye in a large glass jar, placed it outside in the sunshine, and carried on with my day while the sun gently heated the whole mixture and coaxed the transfer of flowers to wool.  Lovely, - here it is today, hung to dry; a beautiful pale yellow skein hanging from the shower head and draining into the bathtub.

 

 

 

Yesterday was really a most satisfying day - our two eldest sons came riding by and scooped me up for dinner at The Ranch Restaurant, and what a splendid time we had.  Life is made up of these unexpected pleasures and one must snatch them and hold them close and treasure them as compensation for the unexpected tragedies that also take us by surprise!

I had a wonderful fresh crisp salad and breaded veal cutlets, Charles' favourite when dining out......

Today seems to be a 'yellow' day as I cut  lemony silk strips to start a new silk mat, or bag, or pillow cover, - whatever the current warp and weft suggests....

Rainy days can always be filled with sunny starts. 

It is a day for weaving.

Thursday, June 20th

 

Out in the garden this evening to try to lend a little support to the white delphiniums which were growing so tall and stately before the last two days of rain. but are now bent every which way, sadly and most distressed......

 

I brought a few of the most unhappy ones into the house with great bunches of Blaze roses, which are also heavy with rain and blossom, and they make a magnificent bouquet.

 

 

It was good to get out into the freshly washed air.  If the rain had been heavier I would have said 'scrubbed' but it has been a gentle rain, - persistent but kinder to the cherry crop

than a sudden violent downpour.

 

The skies are lighter, - it is even possible to see a few cloud formations

rather than that dismal pewter lid on the world.

 

I have spent the last two days sorting through pictures - part of my preparation to

gather together a pictorial story of Charles' life, - and reminiscing!  Our eldest daughter came

in as I was going through the many boxes and we got lost in memories

and warm stories and laughter.

 

It was such a rich and varied time - he was not a dull man, and life was never boring;

not for me or the children.

 

While I was outside I picked all the dead daylily blooms from along

the fence and brought them in to put with my daily/daylily stash that is

soaking in a bowl, waiting for the sunshine so that I can put

the whole wonderful mixture in glass jars with some mordanted wool

 and see what lovely soft shade it dyes.

 

The weatherman promises sun for tomorrow....

we shall see.

 

A new book to read in bed tonight; in the mail today

Alexander McCall Smith's latest -

'Trains and Lovers'

 

The New York Times says in review "McCall Smith's generous writing

and dry humor, his gentleness and humanity, and his ability to evoke a place and

a set of characters without caricature or condescension

have endeared his books to readers", and I can hardly wait.

 

An early bedtime.....

 

 

 

 

 

ABC Wednesday

W is the letter for the week

Wisteria is the choice of flower

 

 

pictures taken in May, 2011 at the big house

below our hill garden

 

Wildly exotic and tenderly sumptuous, these flowers

grow on a vine that is so strong it will bend a steel

pergoda out of shape.

 

I planted a small new vine against the back garden fence

and hope to enjoy its beautiful blooms before

it takes the fence down!!!

 

For more Ws visit here at ABC Wednesday, with

thanks to all the wonderful ones who

maintain this great meme.

ABC Wednesday
June 12th, 2013

The letter is V

 

The nicest thing I can think of in the flower/plant line is the Korean Spice Viburnum

 

 

A deciduous flowering shrub

reaching four to six feet in height, although the Compact variety stays a bit smaller.

 

Often planted at entranceways or close to windows

it is the  Crème do la Crème of the Garden when it comes to fragrance!!

The aroma is sweet, but of even greater appeal is the

sharpness of the spicy scent that some say reminds them of cloves.

 

If I had a lovely garden gate as here depicted, I would plant a Korean Viburnum

 and visitors would be overcome by the romanticism

and the intriguing fragrance. 

 

(The picture is entitled a Country Garden Gate

and the artist is David Lloyd Glover)

 

We had a lovely Korean Viburnum in the garden on 10th, but it was unfortunately

too large to move, and I have never been back to obtain clippings

to root, alas.

 

Even more 'alas' none of the local nurseries seem to be able to obtain this shrub

though I ask every spring.

 

These bushes are among the many plants that attract butterflies, and

small birds feed on the berries in the fall.

 

 

Of course there is also the sweet, retiring violet, whose lovely scent is

also known amongst

Lovers, Sweet Old Grandmothers. and anyone else

who yearns for the first flowers of spring.

 

 

 

For more V's visit here at ABC Wednesday

with thanks to all who maintain this great meme

June 7th, 2013

A stroll in the garden on a lovely summery June day.....

The Blaze Climber, which is thriving so beautifully it threatens to take the shed wall

it grows against and run away down the lane!

 



Columbines from the garden on the hill

 



 

I should really have been more circumspect and taken the time to deadhead these

lovely roses before asking them to pose for a photo

This lemony yellow Iris is loaded with blooms and just seems to keep

adding sunshine to the back garden

 





 

while the delphinium from the old garden have reverted to white

and probably have ambitions to reach the roof top, they are

growing so straight and tall

 

 

The Abraham Darby, fragrant and my favourite

A nice clutch of lettuce for salads

 



and the gorgeous floxglove

 

a Mister Lincoln rose

 

 

and that lovely apricot Iris with the furry tongue

 

a pot of herbs

 



 

and more foxgloves with the pots that line the front sidewalk

the Heliotrope and the pinks make brushing by this pot a delight

a sunny welcome at the front steps



and the Blaze at the end of the side bed



 

 Roses



 

A peony that hides behind the roses (above)

 

 

the new, tiny clematis along the back fence

 

at this stage of the game the delphinium look very fragile and fairylike

 



 

 

and over it all a blue sky and summer clouds...

 

I have much to be thankful for!

ABC Wednesday

And the letter this week is U.

Believe me, sticking to my theme of flowers I had an Unusually hard time finding a Unique representation of the letter U in plantland.  Well, that's not quite true, the plants I found whose names begin with U were really all quite Unique, - not your usual common  garden variety that you would find in these parts......

I chose to make you acquainted with the Unicorn plant, in case you have not already met.

The Unicorn plant is also known as Devil's Claw and Martynia.

 

 

It is an upright annual herb whose preferred habitat is rich woods, slopes and moist meadows.

 

Heart shaped leaves, up to six inches wide, with large, stout stalks.

 

Flower petals are united into one bell-shaped structure, no more than three inches long and with a crooked stalk that droops laterally.  The flowers are in variable colors but usually pale to dark lavender with a yellow streak arising from the throat.

 

The fruit is edible, being similar to okra with a long beak that extends four to six inches beyond the tip, and drying into a black capsule.

 

 

The curved claw of the fruit splits open when dry, forming two hooks that catch in the fur or ears of livestock, thus the name 'Devil's Claw"

 

 

 

The plant is a medicinal herb and is used in treating health disorders like fibrositis, arthritis, rheumatism, neuralgia, gall bladder disorders, pancreas infections, muscular inflammation and other skin infections.

 

It is also used for curing pain during labour and after childbirth, and externally for treating swollen joints, sores, skin ulcers, arthritic joints and a few other skin infections.

 

Perhaps you know the Unicorn Plant in this form.....

 

All this information I obtained from Sir Google!!!

 

For more interesting tidbits about the letter U visit here, at ABC Wednesday,

with thanks to all who keep this great meme operating.

 

Sunday, June 2nd, 2013

There are puddles in the back lane and I know  there must have been rainbows around today as the sun shone through dozens of showers, but I am not in the right place to see them, - location, location......  I am cosied up between two town lots, - lovely and sheltered from wind and weather, but not open enough to see the hills and the sky, except to the north.

However, I did have one indication of how wet the last two weeks have been, and how damp the garden stays.  I picked fresh lettuce from the garden, washed it well and made a salad for supper.

 

As well as I had cleaned it and picked it over my DIL found a baby snail clinging to a green leaf, and I have to tell you it was the first  snail I have ever seen in any of my gardens in this arid semi-desert!  Or in any of my salads - and what a good sport she was about it!  She didn't gasp, or shriek, but was calm and classy as she scooped up another helping of greens.

Well, I suppose if you can't have Escargot from the seaside a baby snail from the garden is the next best thing!!!!

 

A borrowed picture from the internet.......

 

I have been so lucky with my daughters-in-law, - all of them kind and generous;

responsible and loveable young women!

The weather report tonight is not especially encouraging.
 I wonder if I will wake up to the willow in the front garden
leaning it's elbows against the porch and peering through to the
kitchen to see if the coffee is on....

I have to beat it with a broom to remove enough rain drops to allow it to stand up straight again!

It must make an intriguing early morning picture.....

Bits and Pieces

Yesterday morning, contrary to the Weatherman's predictions, the sun was shining and the sky was blue, rimmed with potential thunder clouds peeking/peaking over the green hills.

I decided to pay a visit to my Stash, which you may recall is located in our lovely old travel trailer, full of memories of fishing and camping trips, late night card games but now stacked to the gills with white plastic bins, full of yarn, baskets overflowing with small balls of wool and endless pieces of loom equipment.  They brought home to me how generously Charles had shared in my weaving life.

He made wonderful sectional beams for both my floor looms, bobbin winders and thread counters, a reverse drill complete with holder for twisting fringes, a spool rack and all sorts of advice, - full of creative ideas for supplying needs and wants, - he was so generous with his time and his marvelous red-neck remedies for all sorts of weaving dilemmas.

To get to the trailer/cum studio I had to pass through the lane of curly willows that Charles planted along the roadway leading to our home, - originally to hide the mess of old vehicles on the neighbour's property, but now it creates a most welcoming and shady drive up the hill, and all the time he spent rooting the clippings, planting and pruning and watering have resulted in a lovely memorial to him.

I also had to pass through the garden, which I did with selective vision - appreciative of the glorious show the roses present and ignoring the equally energetic coutch grass bowing at their feet.

 The Mister Lincoln

 The |Prairie Princess

 The climbing Blaze

the Pink Climber

I brought home some cones of linen,  some soft and silky white yarn, the rest of the Handwoven magazines and all sorts of other bits and pieces - and plan to go back in the next few days after I have made room on the shelves in the garage to stash it all!!!

Our elder daughter came on a flying visit in the afternoon with a friend, with the express purpose of showing her the Leclerc loom.  I was glad to have  some more woven on the warp and it has inspired me to hurry and finish this particular warp and get on with my silk rag bag ideas.   What also inspired me was the catalogue from Treenway Silk that arrived in my e-box yesterday and the cost of their silk rag strips, and I looked on the old silk blouses that I am cutting up to weave  with even more appreciative eyes. I have such a wild and wonderful array of colours and shades....

The blue skies stayed with us all day and late in the afternoon I went out to stroll along the side beds and found the aphids having a wild time amongst the pink cabbage roses at the gate. l I immediately went for the sprayer David had left all primed for me, turned it on and began spraying the foliage.  I finished the cabbage roses, and then found that the climber next to it, heavily in bud, was also being attacked, so I  moved along.

Time to turn the sprayer off.  How does this happen???

 I released the catch I had turned it on with.  Nothing happened. I noticed the elderberry bush that last year suffered a sudden attack from these self-same aphids, and discovered a few leaves dry and curled, and I was glad to have the sprayer  still operational.

Finally I discovered how to turn it off!   I have been trying to control these aphids with hearty spray from the hose, but it appears this was not enough.  An early morning inspection turns up dead eggs and no flying insects, so I hope this dormant oil was successful and not harmful to bees and birds and butterflies.

Nothing on TV last night so I went out and cut the lawns and enjoyed the evening air. 

However, at 9 o'clock there was a marvelous program on the comeback of the Ukulele - totally different from last night's Israeli Philharmonic with Ishtak Perlman, lots of Beethoven and a wonderful trio of piano, cello and violin playing a Sonato in C.  Enjoyed them both in vastly different ways, but they both made me smile....

I am going one step further with Viktor Frankl and reading 'Man's Search for Ultimate Meaning' - it sits propped open on the kitchen table where I breakfast, lunch and dine, and is a great contrast to 'Vodka, it's Me, Chelsea'  which I take to bed on my Kobo.  In the end it is possible they are both on the same underlying search........

I am immensely pleased with how the garden is growing in this cool, showery weather......

and especially with the Foxglove...