day trip

saturday hubby and i made the most of the cloudy, dreary weather we had here all day long. i took a break from gardening (until that evening anyway) and we drove north to citrus county for a day trip. after stopping for breakfast we landed at the homosassa river and made a stop into the wildlife state park.

recently i've added a new fascination to my "interests list" which now includes photographing natural wildlife. it can be challenging at times but some of the photos i took in the park were easy-peasy since the subjects were right in front of me. all the animals at this particular park have been rescued due to some circumstance that prevents them from being in the wild. The birdlife for the most part, although banded, are free to come and go. The park offers a perfect habitat for them so on this drizzly rainy morning there was an abundance of activity. the park is home to florida panthers, black bears, manatees with an underwater observatory in the spring, bobcats, deer, otter and even a hippo. the birdlife included all types of shore birds, waterfowl and birds of prey.

be prepared for lots of photos... of course these will only be some highlights.


the exotic flamingo

wood storks

bald eagle with his flag proudly displayed

along the river there was more birdlife ... these are the critters that i captured hanging out close to the park but not in the park.

fulvous whistling duck

great blue heron nest

pileated woodpecker

double-crested cormorant

a couple of anhinga's drying their wings

on the way home we detoured off 19 down some side roads with a stop at bayport and pine island. it was a florida scenic view of marshland and beach. this was my favorite sight captured there.

gulf fritillary enjoying the beach daisies

i don't always opt for the fun stuff. sometimes it is easier to keep right on working through the weekend. when i do give myself a break from the usual, i realize how important and vital it is. taking time for a fun pastime, amusement or hobby is good for the soul and helps to keep us healthy don't you think? what was your diversion from the normal this weekend?

fall clean-up progress

it's a slow, steady process right now... the fall clean-up is still underway. there's been progress made and i finally feel i've made some headway with the daunting to-do's. anytime there is a change of season gardening can feel overwhelming if i don't keep things in perspective. i'm a project sort of girl - i like to get things done - check them off my list. but truly, as the years go by, i'm doing my best to learn how not to rush the process getting to the result. it can be frustrating when i don't have time to get to the gardening or when i don't have as much time as i'd like. i love gardening (every little detail) but sometimes when i put pressure on myself to be finished, i rob myself of some of the pleasure.


today every muscle in my back hurts from trimming the confederate jasmine off of 40+ feet of fencing yesterday. it was a big job even using a gas trimmer. holding up the blade at shoulder level must be what enlisted the help of muscles that forgot they were there.

milkweed

i have been checking out all the lawn and garden shops and nurseries for two weeks now... visiting several and making plans for new plantings. in between big clean-up projects i have managed to plant a few new things. i planted two milkweed for the monarchs.

fire bush

another "first", i now have my very own (actually two) fire bush plants. i put them where they will have plenty of room to get quite large and attract all the butterflies they can. in the same area as the fire bush i planted something my neighbor gave me that i had left in the pot since last year. i am hoping it is a fire spike. she didn't know and i am only guessing until i can be sure when it blooms.

the grass killing seems to be moving along as planned. next week i hope to dig out the dead grass which will enlarge this bed for some transplants and some new plants. digging out grass might be my least favorite gardening job... but ... it's necessary for the most fun job which is designing, digging and planting.


i also have about 8 trays of annuals in the driveway waiting to be put in the ground... oh happy day!

rainy day

much needed, much appreciated, much wanted rain! today. all day. and maybe tomorrow too.
it's of the sort that falls steadily and consistently which means it's soaking into the ground rather than running off into the street. along with it we already have some relief from the abnormally high temps we've had the past couple of weeks. and for THAT this lover-of-temperate-gardening-gardener is most grateful.

on the calendar today, i scheduled mowing and planting annuals. those ever-present chores can wait... they aren't going to go away.

i stepped outside this afternoon under the overhang to capture a few photos of the rain and a few colorful plants close to the house... these in the front...

the begonias consistently produce their showy blossoms and i'm sure if we could hear them, they would be singing praises about the drink they are enjoying today.

you may remember my pumpkin planter project from last week. i was concerned about how it might fare in a rain storm. it hasn't made the least complaint so far.

from under the back porch and through the wet lanai screen i took this photo... thus the haze. the impatiens are drinking fully and have come to attention at the mention of rain. i saw some rain lilies blooming too. they actually got started from the downpour we had on saturday night. today they popped out in gratitude of more.

God made rainy days so gardeners could get the housework done. ~Author Unknown

well... i started out getting some much needed bookkeeping accomplished today but alas, i had to get outside if only to breathe deeply of the smell and beauty of rain. okay, back to work on the lesser things of life.

weekend ramblings

woo-hoo! that's my excitement over the great rain we are finally getting this evening. just one nice steady rain like we're having is better than a week of irrigation for sufficiently watering in the lawn fertilizer i put down a few days ago. not to mention we just need the rain to help the
drought conditions we are enduring.

i broke in another pair of new gloves this weekend made by the rumford gardener. i had purchased them back in September in a little gardening store in north carolina. they are goat suede and spandex and washable. they protected my hands quite well and i like the way they fit. several pairs of workable gloves are helpful to have on hand (no pun:-) depending on the type of gardening necessary.

over grown ginger plants --before

severely trimmed back ginger plants --after

saturday was my third consecutive day of diligent fall clean-up (and more to go--yes, it's true). the weather was nearly 10 degrees cooler (80) than the days prior and the humidity was down enough to make the day very manageable. so i worked right through the afternoon hours with no trouble. the section of my front yard shown in the photos above is quite expansive (not fully visible here) and consists of several layers and variety of plants. along with trimming the ginger and all the palmettos, the droopy caladiums in the front of this area had to go. it is ready now for new fall annuals. not sure what i will plant there yet... still designing in my head.

my sweet elderly neighbor, helen, i have spoken of in previous posts came out to chit-chat as we were both doing some gardening. i always like to take a few minutes to walk around her garden with her because she loves to talk about her latest gardening triumphs and woes. before long she insists i dig up seedlings of some sort to transplant to my garden. when i'm in her garden it is as if around each corner and at every turn there is another unusual flowering plant. she rarely knows the names of many of them, like me, she just knows what works and doesn't work.

this blue ginger plant is now happy in my garden and i am happier to add it to the many wonderful plants she has shared with me over the years.

this is an example of a plant helen gave me a few years ago that she doesn't know the name of still and i can't find it out either. it drops its own seeds and sprouts up new plants quite easily.


i planted a butterfly bush and some daisies in one of the smaller areas i cleaned out. I still have a couple of firebush plants and the rest of my petunias to go in the ground. much more left to do in the next few weeks.

to everything there is a season

the uglies have taken over

it's not like i didn't know it was going to happen. but i feel the need to bemoan the situation anyway. my beloved & adored caladiums are as ugly and wilty right now as they are colorful, spunky and beautiful in the spring and summer. every year it is the same. but this year they lasted so well... i mean it is october and until now they have performed outstandingly. i guess it makes it doubly hard to see them go because they are everywhere and right now that makes me feel like everything is ugly.

this week in the garden has been one of those weeks. do you ever feel like every where you look there is work to do? honestly, it is as if all of a sudden what was left of the annuals are spent ... the perennials are droopy... the ginger is overgrown... the confederate jasmine is climbing into my neighbor's yard... my lawn is desperate for some rain... the asian jasmine is creeping into the flower beds... even the palmettos need to be de-frond (is that a word?)


today's bounty

all i want to do is plant some fall annuals and enlarge some flower beds (so i can plant more plants). BUT for the past two days i have had to muster all my discipline to stay focused on the fall clean-up. AND it is still so hot!!!! i know i speak of this in every post lately but REALLY... i need to get more work done that what the morning hours allow.

here's a quick run-down of fall maintenance checked off my list the last two days:

• fertilized the lawn with Scott's Bonus S weed and feed
• spruced up with new plants and moved to new locations some potted plants
• dug up some overgrown bromeliads to reveal some landscaping stones i couldn't see anymore.
• transplanted some clerodendrum seedlings
• marked off a grassy area on the backside of a flower bed with spray paint then sprayed the grass with round-up. next week i will remove the grass and my bed will be larger for more plants.
• cleaned out two large flower beds of caladiums; trimmed back all the impatiens and palmettos and ferns.
• cut back the mexican petunia (which is on the invasive plants list) because it can go everywhere in a hurry.
• pulled up and re-laid a pathway made of stones that had gotten out of alignment

i leave you today with some photos i took yesterday because it just wouldn't be nice to show you only the ugly ones...

amazingly, these caladiums are still providing a pleasant display... but... i am preparing myself for their certain demise in the next couple of weeks.

i happen to be a big fan of white flowers. i have a tray of white petunias to plant - probably tomorrow.

yesterday i discovered this plant flowering. i can't remember the name of it but it only blooms in October/ November. i actually pull up seedlings of this everywhere- it re-seeds so easily.

note added 10.23.07: i found this plant online it is a Phillipine Violet-Barleria cristata. Also comes in violet, mauve and a violet and white variegated.

the making of autumn

It has officially been autumn for almost a month now and i dare say only the calendar is aware of it. Someone forgot to alert the weather. other than a brief (i mean really brief) couple of days last week, we are continuing to experience very humid and hot days ... today 89 degrees and super muggy. tomorrow is predicted to be 90 degrees. whew!

Truth be told, even if it were mild and cool, in this area of the country we are hard-pressed to see any fall colors. sure there are some trees that bloom with bright yellows and pinks this time of year but we don't enjoy any leaves changing colors or plants going dormant that would offer nifty dried berries for indoor decorations.

In sunny, tropical central florida we have to be creative and make our own autumn.

Today I worked on a couple of small projects to add some colorful autumn decorations outdoors.


After making a trip to my local craft store for a few additional supplies, I was ready to begin.


This looks much better than the (at least) 4 year old fall wreath I did have hanging.

Now on to some living plants...
What better way to accomplish the look of a tropical, Florida autumn than with the colorful croton plant? All the essential hues displayed in one plant.

All my supplies are gathered. the croton i purchased has three stems. Gently removing the croton from the container it came in and using a small trowel, I separated it into three plants by tenderly cutting through the roots.


Once my pumpkin was hulled out i made some drainage holes in the bottom and it became my container and ready for some potting soil. I made use of one of the bird baths from the backyard and brought it around to the front walkway.


I wish I could say this was my original idea but I borrowed it from a picture I saw in a recent BH&G magazine. In my version i've used a croton, yellow bush daisy, pink dianthus, purple potatoe vine and some cuttings from a crepe myrtle tree. Around the bottom i planted a couple of white petunias and another dianthus.

It makes for a vibrant autumn combination. By utilizing a full potato vine which filled in all the gaps between plants, it gives the illusion of being a mature grouping. I hope it holds up in a rain shower. Of course we've had so few of those lately, I'm not too concerned about it.
a closer look


Finishing up with two more container gardens, I used all three of the croton stems, two of the bush daisies- again from one pot but separated them, and also an English ivy I split into two.


I bought more plants that i can hopefully get planted by the end of this week. stay tuned for that project.

Oh... i mentioned last week i would be getting to a 'big idea' project this week or next but I have put that one on hold. I thought for certain we would enjoy some great weather by now but since we haven't, I will wait until the humidity is low and then it will be a 'fun project'. I'll be patient. in the meantime, I am designing and gathering my supplies... which is part of the fun!

The Sunshine State

so we have certainly had more than our share of sunshine with daytime temperatures of over 90 degrees for the past 2 weeks. anything resembling "fun gardening" has been minimal. not much going on beyond the usual maintenance. every year in september and october i do major pruning to be ready for the winter months. i won't fertilize the shrubs and bushes which promotes new growth-- just because with our mild winters, everything will keep growing anyway. it is, however, almost time to deplete my compost pile by transferring it to all my flower beds.


the weatherman forecasts a dryer, cooler front moving through our area tonight and into the morning. my son in north florida said today was perfectly beautiful there with temps in the 50's this morning. i admit i'm a tad jealous but i'm holding out for us to get cooled off a little this weekend. we won't see 50 degrees anytime soon but anything in the 60's in the morning hours would be sweet relief... and enjoyable gardening weather.

today i thought i'd post some random garden photos i've taken over the past few days.


the teeny bloom of my pink polka-dot plant


this angel wing begonia fascinates me with its deep burgundy underside and its rich polka-dots on the upperside. it sports a beautiful white bloom and it roots very easily by either putting the cuttings in water or directly into soil.

i followed this gulf fritillary to my next door neighbor's butterfly bush for this snap- i'm pretty sure this is the first one i've captured at home.

the snow bush i trimmed a couple of weeks ago is already pushing out this pretty 'autumn looking' new growth. from the front of the planting it just peeks out over the top of the blue plumbago blooms.

honestly, i'm a bit of a baby when it comes to the heat. don't get me wrong, i'll work in the heat-- like today, i worked in my yard all day long, but i prefer to do big projects when its cool. it only makes sense to me, because i want gardening to be a pleasure. being outdoors in beautiful weather is half the motivation for me to have such an extensive garden. i would rather be outside anytime than inside.

i have some big ideas for when we actually do feel some autumn breezes here. stay tuned for a major project i hope to start next week. it may have to wait until the following week. it all depends on the weather and if i can find all the "stuff" i need to complete it.

flora and fauna at wakulla springs part II

saturday morning i got out early to walk the grounds of the park with the hope of capturing some of the "life in the park". to my thrill i came upon a fire bush shrub with at least a dozen butterflies fluttering energetically about.

is this a cloudless sulphur???


is this also a cloudless sulphur??? there are many species of yellow butterflies with slight variations... i am not certain which this one is.

there were so many of these coming and going but even so --i had to be patient to capture some- they just don't stay in one spot for long.

monarch

this (queen- i think) beauty was not a problem. it just opened and closed its wings over and over so i have dozens of snaps of this one. hubby even commented, "that one let you get right in its face."

gulf fritillary - agraulis vanillae

the colors of autumn

surprise (or hurricane lilies) lilies are blooming everywhere

bee exploring a wildflower

banana spider enjoying its butterfly breakfast

damselfly

berries for the birds - more signs of autumn. i'm a sucker for 'all things berry' - i think because not only are they appealing to look at... they are a symbol of the season if there ever was one!

we made the most of our overnight stay at this florida landmark and really enjoyed the beautiful landscape. then it was on to tallahassee for saturday night.