A Garden Party

Second time I've decided to post bunches of photos, and say very little... (hard for me to do) with the intent of sending this off to the Fishtail Cottage for a Garden Party tour. You can go see what I mean by clicking on Garden Party.



Not a whole lot of progress in my garden since last week's party. Truthfully I'm so busy with my work at Goat Hill Fair, ( <- click to see what work I do) that the house & garden take a back seat until after the show is over. There has been the mundane, not -so- pretty-to- photograph upkeep of a lawn, pulling of weeds, and pruning of overgrown branches.  All much needed tasks, but bo-ring!


Here's some pretty instead ~

this variegated Calla lily is from the garden of  Hubby's deceased Aunt

more vintage signs in the garden

pulling out winter crop and starting seeds

Penny the hen from next door

combo of rose, mock orange, and fremontodendron

star magnolia - long since leafed out...

Look at the same star magnolia image from above ^ done in Waterlogue app.... I love it!

That's all I've got for now. Back to Goat Hill work... anyone want to come along on a tour of that fun place? Maybe I'll post about Goat Hill after the May show...


Happy Mother's Day to the women that make life one beautiful garden....

May Queen

Can there possibly be a better way to celebrate all things flower & garden, and SPRING, than MAY 1st??  It is May Day!

A virtual bouquet to family and friends....  not hung on your doorknob - with a knock-knock to offer you sweet spring salutations... yet, with sunshine thoughts anyway ~

My garden has come alive! The veggies are beginning to shoot skyward. It has taken quite some time for them.. after first planting - some seeds, other starter plants - the Cali weather has been on a roller coaster ride and I do believe the plants stayed in hibernation for awhile, peeking out and then deciding to stay-put for a short time more.

You'll notice that many of my images are Instagram, or shot from my iPhone. Seems such a handy tool when I'm out gardening. It slips quite easily into the pocket of my apron!

I do have a "big-girl" camera.. and she WOWs me every time with the close-up shots I get of individual blossoms. It's just heavy, awkward and potentially dangerous ( to her ) while handling with clay dirt all across my hands!



The magnificent walnut that graces our backyard does not leaf out until late May. So she still looks like this ~

One of the veggies that was plenty happy with the fickle weather - actually preferring some cool, dampness - is the artichoke. We've already sampled some of our homegrown for dinner!  * a little side note: the artichoke capitol of the world is not far from where I live - Castroville,CA. The beachy area near Watsonville and Santa Cruz. Marilyn Monroe was once crowned the May Queen ARTICHOKE Queen!

one from my garden

I have loads of roses I tend...I adore... these grow over an arch intermingled with jasmine. The scent at this time of year as I wander through the gateway to the far back.. is breathtakingly sweet!

Still following me?... step along my gravel footpath... (this is a vintage sign from England - scored at an estate sale many years ago)

Purple lilac... whereas the first image I shared (above) was my white lilac - the white beauty new to me this year as a gift from a set of friends at Goat Hill Fair, to honor the passing of my Mom. Bittersweet but perfect memory as I garden!

I have so many images of my home and garden - my place of quiet content - my refuge...
This post is quite lengthy, so I hope any who follow are still reading ~




A couple of artsy images to shake things up!! hhhaaa

Veggies, again....

How can one resist swiss chard? My gawd the vibrancy...

Now - LETT UCE entertain you!! hha  A little piece of humor & light ... a vintage sink for a plant vessel ~

Yellow is a favorite of mine ~

... and in the front yard too ~

Lady Banks  ^ comes to visit each spring, knocks my socks off and then heads off to parts unknown until the following spring. Me thinks she needs to visit more frequently!! Don't you feel the same about these wonderous plants?




I am linking to a Garden Party and I hope that's where you've been to find my slice of abundant life... go read here { click - Fishtail Cottage }. I'm heading over there to go on some garden tours, myself... can never get too many ideas for the garden! Especially on May Day!

Darlings of Fast Food ? Our Family Chef Would Perish the Thought..

Taco trucks seem to be the hamburger stand de rigeuer. At least that's how I've come to see them. A hip way to get authentic food quickly. While our cousin hasn't lived in the U.S. in years, his craving for this simple dining experience had not wavered. Rick requested we hit a taco truck on his first day here.

Scrumptious street-style tacos!! soooo yummy...

The interior (^ where we did not eat) was wildly colorful and displayed vintage posters that I found oh so photographable!


No pictures of the food - but I did get the cousins sitting together ~

Did I mention that our days revolved around where to take Rick to eat?

 No, we didn't eat the chickens!

Again - no capturing of the organic food take-out excursion, just a glimpse into where we dined....
our BACKYARD...

Here's the part where there was no way in hell I was going to have a professional chef try to slice&dice with my unsharpened cutlery, nor try to find a pan that would suit his needs. Let alone attempt a meal prep in a kitchen the size of some closets......  uh uh

lamb was a fave pick

We happily chose our own customized pleasure cartons of edibles from Whole Foods. Then, I did supplement and served a homemade galette from plums off of our trees. (the least I could do)
And, believe me - I don't think I impressed the cousin!

We listened to stories of Japan...

and opted for ~ a la mode~  just to top off the evening with more goodness ! ....

Mornings with the Mournings...

First thing each morning, I go to the kitchen to brew some tea. Always,  an open window is my ritual {Hubby is kind to help}... or I struggle with that 70 year old monster myself if he hasn't had the chance. This window looks out into our backyard garden. On each side of the pane are old twisted-wire plant hangers. We've had some visitors claim these planters as their home! A feathered couple of mourning doves, that I believe are hoping to start a family!

A couple of days after this portrait of Mr. Mourning, the pair left my window...

my pie-bird seems to be crowing at the dove

See the Missus - she's lying down - her black eyes following my lens, mid-picture...

Was so wishing to witness the birth of the babes....
Surely seemed that they might stay with this nest. They definitely weren't frightened by our close proximity, or the camera clicking away!

Maybe next time, Mr. & Mrs. Mourning.... our garden is your garden!



* go visit all of the fabulous blogs that are linked at My Romantic Home!! I'll be there.

How Does The Garden Grow?

With verdant twining leaves that spread at alarming rate - the pole bean seeds that barely hit soil a month ago - are producing long, narrow beans that the bird loves, as do we humans!

{the ever producing plums get in on the shot too}

A metal piece found long ago has been repurposed into a HUGE tomato cage {unsure of it's original use - someone once thought a pot-rack for the kitchen}

Moving to the floral department ~

Shasta Daisy heads fill an entire patch of garden space... tilting their faces to the sun.

Roses are still vibrant and abundant, yet I presume they are feeling somewhat wilty after that full week of scorching sun. Time for them to be fed again, so I might keep them happy through the fall!

Seems the summer-loving Hollyhock maintains her dignity and stands tall and stately through all kinds of weather ~

Happy mop-head Hydrangeas are blissfully blooming, but they too looked weary last week during the heatwave ~

Now, back to vegetable subjects again....

Not for lack of trying, but I've been unable to master the establishment of beets in our vegetable beds. Still I purchase them with fervor and we savor our salads with some goat cheese sprinkled atop ~

Getting a run for my money with shoots, tendrils, climbers and runners of all kinds. The wisteria runners climb to amazing heights and have a mind all their own. They are crazy-smart plants that can reach their way to anything brave enough to be within a 3 foot radius.

green beans climb their tee-pee

Many laborious hours ahead of me... with PLEASURE. Especially since much of the month of May, and June were spent away from home {what with that anniversay and such... wink-wink!}

All of That Annual Patriotic Partying... and Summertime Sunshine

Yesterday, and well - the last couple of weeks - have been chock-full of good time seeking. We've been doing anything we can to beat the heat. Temperatures have hovered near to 100* in our area - making for hide and seek games with the afternoon sun! I've gotten out of my darkened, fan-blown cave a few times to try and get some exercise. Sometimes I've opted {in the past} for mall-walking to be in air conditioned confines, but this is not one of my favorite venues. So many people, and too many distractions with window shopping!

Swimming pools are good places to hang out!

The garden is overgrown. Plums sweltering, and fermenting by the bushel in the gravel pathways.

Our hand-wrought wooden baskets far too small to hold the bounty from two trees ~

Lavender bunches trimmed...

{I have to say - I love reading blogs that mention harvesting lavender, and then then performing the ultimate DIY with said harvest. Unfortunately, this is not me! I trim just to downsize the plant}




And, yes! - we did also participate in patriotic partying. The 4th of July is just days past one of my brothers' birthday - so there is an annual celebration of both....

This morning brought cool air to my fluttering curtains.... very grateful for this! Yet, I realize there are still months to these ..



                      DOG DAYS OF SUMMER ~