I'm Back - With Garden Pictures!

Well that was a long break, wasn't it? Life has been crazy and I just wasn't feeling it. But summer is here, I'm loving our garden, and I want to share it. Today I'll showcase our vegetable garden.

 In the front raise beds we have sugar snap peas and mixed lettuce in the first square. I planted some more lettuce and onions on the other side of the peas.

Next comes the first crop of bush green beans, one of my favorite homegrown veggies. I love making a salad with them.

Then we have a bed of swiss chard, spinach, carrots and green onions. I planted these onions from seed so they make tiny green onions for salads.

I have 24 tomato plants that I grew from seed. Lots of paste and a mix of heirloom tomatoes. Yum!

I also have a bed of peppers, both sweet and hot. These took such a long time to get big, but they are doing great in the hot weather.

In the center square I always plant flowers and this year I put in some pansies and zinnias.

In the bigger back beds we have different squashes, cucumbers, onions, sunflowers, strawberries and asparagus and rhubarb. All the annual vegetables get rotated every year. We still have trouble with viruses on our tomatoes, but it doesn't seem to limit our harvest.

Strawberries, asparagus, red raspberries, and blueberries on the right.

Justin, Andrew, and grandson Tad picking strawberries in May.

I hope you all enjoyed this tour of the vegetable garden. I really love to keep it looking nice (when it's not too hot:) and it's fun to show it off! I will be back (much sooner) with flower gardens, and the crafting I have been doing. In the meantime, have a great weekend!!!

Back Home Again

We are back from a wonderfully relaxing vacation to Siesta Key, Florida. We had such a good time. We spent our mornings at the beach, enjoying the warm, clear water, hanging out at the condo in the heat of the afternoon, and then going out for dinner at one of the fun restaurants on the island. I decided not to take my camera and just took a very few cell phone photos.

Some people have asked why we go to Florida in the summer. The answer is simple. We go to be on the beach and play in the water and in the summer we are assured it will be warm! When the kids were small we would go down in January to stay with my in-laws at the condo they rented. It was always hit or miss as to the weather. It's also much more expensive in the winter. Except for the lack of birds (we love to go birding) summer is best for us. And as it turned out, it was cooler and less humid there than it was in Indiana. Go figure!

Before we left we worked hard on the gardens and yard so we would not come back to a jungle. Not!!! It rained at least 3 times while we were gone and everything went wild! And now it's too hot to weed. I tried but I can't be out in this heat for very long, especially working. So I wander around taking pictures and trying not to feel bad about all I want to do. Here are a few:

These lilies are over 6 feet tall!

And now I have to share a couple of grandbaby pics, because well, these kids are so darn cute!

Tad has become a little fish this year!

Jasper

Klaus

Son Eric with Klaus

Trixie is almost 4 months old!

Sorry, I sometimes forgot to wipe the lens - it's so humid! I hope everyone has a wonderful week!

The Colors of My Garden

Have you ever noticed that the colors of a garden change as the seasons progress? I have and it is very apparent in our gardens.
 

Spring is lavenders, blues, whites, and pinks, with a touch of soft yellows. Some tulips are red and orange, but I try to stay away from them. (Sometimes a bag of bulbs isn't what the label says:) Maybe these colors are in tune with the gentle spring light and soft greens of the new tree leaves. My favorite season!

 Then as the sun gets brighter and warmer with the lengthening days, the flower colors get brighter too. Strong yellows, reds, oranges and purples. Still some blues and whites to tone things down a bit.  The flowers jump out at you as you walk down the path. Maybe this is my favorite season.

As summer winds down we see a big change in the garden's colors. Warm, rich browns, dark reds, and golds. Is this your favorite season? Might be mine!

I hope everyone is having a great summer so far. We have been spending time in the garden, of course, swimming and going on hikes with our grandson, and enjoying a visit from our oldest. This weekend we are celebrating Tad's 5th birthday. Time sure flies, and more so during the summer. Slow down!!!

Spring in Our Garden

Virginia bluebells, woodland poppy, and lungwort

Crabapple in bloom, hostas coming up

Muscari

Flowering quince in the herb garden

Love those snowdrops: need to plant more!

Viola planted from seed

Couldn't resist instant color - Knock-Out Rose

Pretty peach daff.

This is my most favorite time of the year - the time I wait for all the rest of the year! I love that soft green just coming on, the blooming trees, noisy mating birds, and best of all, the spring peepers. We can hear them from the creek across the back field. Of course that also means the louder frogs in our pond (and our unopened pool!) But I don't mind. We look for the eggs and then the tadpoles. I love nature!

Smaller male on female. See the strings of eggs?

 To end this post I will share what I saw when I went outside this morning. Five huge vultures perching on our barn. They look rather menacing, don't they?