I was walking home from Nancy's the other day, and looked up to see this beautiful sight.  The Hickory trees are in full autumn color!!!  Some are yellowish green, and others are already browning into golden.  

 

We have lots of hickory trees in our yard, and they are gorgeous right now.  They are also dropping tons of nuts.  The squirrels are having a field day planting them everywhere.  I'm sure they're happy for their winter food.  I wonder how they remember where they've stashed them all!?!

 

HAPPY FALL Y'ALL!!!

 

 

 

Here we are again in Jim and Roxanne's garden.  Their Japanese Maple is gorgeous right now!!

 

I went to Gibb's Gardens with some friends last week, and the Japanese Maples were absolutely beautiful!!!  There were hundreds of them there.  All showing gorgeous fall color.  

 

Japanese Maples, Acer palmatum, are a bit temperamental here, preferring filtered shade and protection from cold winds.  But Jim and Roxanne have the perfect environment for their's.  It's worth the walk over there to see it.  Go before the upcoming frost, though, because it is going to drop its leaves. 

 

If you want to grow your own, my North Carolina Gardener's Guide says you can plant them any time from November through April.  Just dig the hole wide and plant it at the same depth it was grown at the nursery.  Water regularly, each week for the first month, and during the dry months of summer and fall.  

 

Or just go appreciate some other gardener's expertise.  I love doing that!!!

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

Have you been on the Creekside Trail lately?

 

If you haven't, you should take a walk down there and see Al's handiwork.  He has spent hours raking, trimming, and clearing leaves so that we can all enjoy the trail.  

 

Thanks, Al, it looks better than ever!!!

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

Rosemary at the church is blooming!!!  Mine at home is not!  Hmmm!!!!

 

Anyway, let's talk about Rosemary.  

 

Rosmarinus officinalis, has a reputation for strengthening memory. OK. Good reason right there for using it every day. 

 

The leaves are resinous and leathery. But it dries easily, and retains its flavor for a long time.  Plant it in full sun, and protect it from cold winds.  Give it enough room to grow;  typically it grows 3-6 feet.  

 

Once it is established you can use it in almost everything.  Our favorite use for rosemary is to crush the dried leaves into dough when making bread or pizza crusts.  We also use the dried stems as skewers for chicken and vegetables on the grill.  

 

There are various other uses for rosemary:  decorative, cosmetic, and especially aromatic.  Try growing your own, and explore the many uses of rosemary. 

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!!

 

 

 

Success!!!  With a picture that was already oriented correctly.  I'm still working on my other pix.  Stay tuned for Monarchs, Marigold, and Rosemary.

 

Anyway...It's worth a trip to Blairsville to see the Red Maples in the Methodist Church parking lot.  They are beautiful!!!  Botanically, Acer rubrum, not sure of the cultivar, possibly October Glory.  There are lots of native red maples in our woods, and they are all showing their 'October glory,' right now.

 

Look up, it's starting to look like fall!!!!

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

 

This Monarch is on my Marigolds.  

 

I love this time of year when the Monarchs come through on their journey south.  I saw three in the garden:  gathering nectar, but not laying eggs.  They lay their eggs on Milkweed, and our milkweed dried up during the dry spell this summer.  Sorry, girls.  I'll try to do better next year.  

 

But, thanks for visiting us anyway!!!

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

On October 19, 2017, I wrote about cotton growing in Virginia.  

 

I was on my way home from another trip to Virginia Beach.  Well, the cotton was so pretty THIS trip, I had to stop again and take another picture.  It is so beautiful, it takes my breath away.  

 

That article was pretty thorough, so instead of repeating myself, how about you go to the archives and look up the blog for October 19, 2017, and learn about cotton in the field. 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

According to The Farmers Almanac it's time to plant spring flowering bulbs.  I see that the best days this month are the 19 and 20.  So get out those daffodil, tulip, lily, crocus and hyacinth bulbs.  

 

Since garlic is also a root crop, I'm going to plant my garlic on Saturday too.  We had such a great harvest this year, all I have to do is separate the cloves and plant them, leaving the paper on.  They don't take up much space, so you could even plant them in your flower beds.  Plant about 2 inches deep, and 5-6 inches apart, pointy end up.  We add a couple inches of mulch on top to protect the bulbs from freezing temps.  That's it!!!  They will start to grow the bulbs over the winter, then sprout green leaves in the spring.  And in July we'll have more garlic than we can use, again!!!

 

Love it!!!  

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

I saw these bushes on one of my morning bike rides at the beach.  There are also some in Linda's neighborhood in Yorktown, VA.  I love them.  The botanical name is Myrica cerifera, and they are commonly known as Bayberry, or Waxmyrtle.  

 

Bayberry are large bushes, reaching 10-12 feet, and they grow in sandy soil.  I've read that they can withstand top burning, leaving the roots to resprout.  Of course, they can only survive a couple years of that harshness, but still...that's pretty amazing.

 

Growing up in Virginia, we often went to Colonial Williamsburg and Jamestown.  We learned that the colonists used bayberries to make scented candles.  Today, candles are made differently, but the bayberries are still used for the scent.  This Christmas, notice the scent of bayberry candles.

 

I have checked the gardening books for North Carolina, and couldn't find much on Myrica, except that they do grow in this hardiness zone.  Not much sandy soil around here though, maybe that's why we don't see them.  Too bad, cause they are really great for a screen plant:  evergreen, tall growing, and bushy.  And they are so pretty this time of year.  I wonder if the deer would eat them...probably.  

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

I spent a few days with my three sisters at the beach in Nags Head, on the Outer Banks of NC.  

 

We rode bikes and walked on the beach every day.  We got lots of fresh air and exercise. We saw sunburned tourists, wind surfers, and beautiful Brown Pelicans.  

 

I looked for fun things to blog about, but it wasn't much different than here:  persimmons on the trees,  the start of autumn, and beautiful blue sky (read: no rain.)  Oh yeah!!!  I did see some bayberry bushes loaded with berries, and fields of cotton.   I'll show you those pix another day.

 

Today, I wanted you to see the flock of Pelicans flying over the Atlantic Ocean. 

 

I AM BACK!!!  Missed you.