ABC Wednesday: Not X-actly X

This week we have reached the letter X, an extremely difficult letter . . .

. . . But I didn't want to think too hard-- it's summer, a time to relax and to watch

puffy white clouds or jet trails make a pattern in the blue sky.

Summer is also an exciting time in the garden as the garden teems with insect life and blooms like these of my favorite flower, the purple coneflower, fill the garden with color.



Or when exquisite creatures like these flit about searching for food. Note this is not the same dragonfly I pictured last week; I've had several varieties come to visit in the past week.


It can also be an exasperating time--the Japanese beetles have arrived!


Check out more ABC posts here.

And a note to garden bloggers, particularly those who attended Spring Fling: Sometime tomorrow I plan to post a review of the book A Garden of Invention. I hope you'll have time to stop by and read it sometime.

Annual Garden Walk: "Rooms With a View"

On Saturday Beckie and I spent the day on the annual Garden Walk sponsored by the local Master Gardeners. The theme for this year's Walk was "A Room with a View," and we certainly weren't disappointed by the views we saw. Despite temperatures in the 90's, we had a great time and were joined this year by one of Beckie's granddaughters who was quite a trouper and made notes of her favorite things in each garden we visited.


I took lots of photos, so I'll try to be less verbose than usual and let you just enjoy the sights of the tour.





Three of the gardens were public spaces, all located near each other on the east edge of the University of Illinois campus. I've often driven by the University's President's house and admired the front gardens, but this was the first time I've ever seen all of the gardens close up.

Sweeping expanses of lawn with several garden areas are located in the back. Add to that the view of the nearby Arboretum, and you have a very pleasant vista from the back patio.

Beckie and I marvelled over the enormous Boston ferns placed around the wrap-around brick patio. Just a note--this President also grows vegetables--pots of tomatoes and herbs were located on a back porch.

Nearby is the Japan House with its traditional gardens, including a rock garden. A volunteer Master Gardener pointed out something I might have missed: when viewed from the front deck, you can see that the new plantings of shrubs and small trees here mirror the shape of the horizon beyond.

Walking into the tea garden, we were excited to meet the designer of the gardens. This area was begun only 8 years ago, and many of the plantings are only 6 years old, so it will be interesting to see how it develops over the years.

Since this was our last stop of the day, we took advantage of the time to go into the building itself. Japan House is used for various classes and workshops related to Japanese culture, including the tea ceremony and . . .

. . . classes in Ikebana, the traditional Japanese art of flower arranging.

The other public garden was the Idea Garden, maintained by the local Master Gardeners. Although Beckie and I visited this garden several times last year, this was our first opportunity to visit it this year.

We made sure her granddaughter saw the children's garden, which included some new displays this year, including this duck topiary.

And any little girl would enjoy the Jewel Box garden, complete with a princess in a jewel box filled with "Diamond Frost" Euphorbia.

But the best part of the garden on this hot, hot day was a vendor's display of whimsical sprinklers. The younger one wasn't the only one who took advantage of the cooling mist; Beckie and I also had to try them out. The Idea Garden is located in full sun, so our visit here was very brief--we'll come back another cool evening to check it out in a more leisurely visit.


My favorite gardens, though, were the private ones. These gardeners don't have a paid staff or a large group of volunteers maintaining their gardens, so it's inspiring to see what one gardener can accomplish. While I don't think I'll be talking my husband into building a pool and patio complete with fireplace and granite-topped cooking center like the home above, I did come away with new ideas, as I always do from these peeks into other people's gardens:

The Plants

A blue, blue delphinium "Summer Nights"

Unnamed daylily adds to my serious case of daylily envy

Lovely calla lily would be perfect in the shade garden.

And of course, hydrangeas, which were in full bloom.

Oakleaf hydrangeas lined the sloping edge of one garden, providing privacy from the street.

And, of course, the old-fashioned Annabelles that I fell in love with on last year's walk. One of these days I'm going to find the perfect place for them in my garden.

Even basic yews were used a little differently as in this circular maze in the center of one yard. Each garden is staffed by several volunteer Master Gardeners for this walk. At this home, I received some excellent tips from one volunteer on how best to trim my own overgrown yews.

Containers

I am always looking for new ideas for combinations for container plantings. This gardener provided some extra help by labeling each of the plants.

Beckie and I were both interested in this blooming succulent, Portulaca "Rio Rose."

Other planters weren't usually labelled, but still gave us ideas:

Garden Art

Just as gardening styles varied, so did the type and use of garden art. From the classical like this stone statue of Pan . . .

. . . or this bust on a pedestal . . .

. . . to the purely whimsical.

Combinations of wood and metal . . .

. . . or other materials, drawing the eye downward . . .

. . . or upward.

I don't have many art accents in my garden and would love to add more. But I realized when viewing all of these scenes that it's not just a matter of buying or making a piece of garden art, but it's also knowing how and where to place them. It takes a creative eye to place them in just the right place in the garden. Even stones and limbs can create a dramatic effect with some artistic vision.

These small blue chairs certainly draw the eye, but even more so when you found out that these belonged to the owners' two small dogs!

I wonder if the puppies also enjoyed watching the model railroads circle the garden area.

Even vegetables served as art in one garden!

But my favorite piece of all had to be this stone bench--isn't this beautiful?! Beckie and I thought it surely must have been imported from Italy, but we found out it had been purchased at one of our favorite garden centers in town. Maybe I could put this on my Christmas wish list--for the next several years:)

Of all the gardens we visited, my favorite was a large garden situated on a one and one-half acre lot. The program booklet described it as a park-like setting, and it was indeed a peaceful oasis.

When the owners moved in 18 years ago, all that existed were some very old trees.

This is not a new subdivision, but neither is it that old. I think it's wonderful that the developers recognized the value of these old trees and built around them. This huge example was actually in the neighbor's yard.

The size of this garden was impressive, but what made it even more so was how much the gardener at this home had accomplished in 18 years. All kinds of trees, shrubs, and perennials covered the acre and a half with more beds planned. I could have done a whole post on this garden alone!

For a moment I thought I had been transported to England . . .

. . . but the English garden was just one area of this garden.

The potting area, complete with large shed, was larger than some people's backyards!

Vegetables were included, too. Carol and Mr. McGregor's Daughter should take note: no critters of any kind should be able to get to this gardener's tomatoes!

All in all, it was a wonderful day, and I came home with some great ideas. As usual, I also came home with a serious case of garden envy, but looking at my own small garden I had to smile . . .

. . . the coneflowers are blooming!

ABC Wednesday: Wandering W's . . .

This Week's ABC Wednesday post is brought to you, appropriately enough, by the letter W.



W is for the Windy City, a fond nickname for the great city of Chicago. Fortunately, when I visited Chicago for Spring Fling at the end of May, there was only a gentle breeze and the temperatures were just right for sightseeing. Before the Chicago skyline was highlighted by skyscrapers and the city and its suburbs sprawled across most of the northeast corner of the state of Illinois, much of this area might have looked like this . . .

. . . or perhaps like this . . .

Both of these photos were taken near my home much further downstate at Meadowbrook Park in Urbana, Illinois, an ideal place for a walk. However, today was not a good day to walk as temperatures have been in the 90's here with humidity levels making it feel even hotter. A quick walk to the closest areas for good photos, and then it was back to the air-conditioned car!





The first photo of Meadowbrook was taken of a large Prairie Restoration area where Wildflowers are just coming into bloom. This area was burned off in late winter much like the natural prairie fires of long ago, and vegetation has reappeared. By July the prairie flowers should be in full bloom.

The second Meadowbrook photo was taken of the shaded Wildflower Garden, where most of the spring wildflowers have stopped blooming for the season. But a few flowers are just coming into their own, like the Prairie Coneflower.

To some, these wildflowers may look like Weeds, and, in fact, this common wild daisy (specific name unknown, sorry) is often pulled out when it grows in unwanted places.

W is also for weeds, of which I have plenty. But this Butterfly Weed is one I purposely planted and am happy to have growing in my garden. This Asclepias Tuberosa has tripled in size since last year; this is also the first year it has bloomed. Hopefully, it will attract many butterflies before the end of the season.

While the butterflies have been scarce so far this summer, other Winged insects have been abundant. The honeybees and bumblebees have definitely found my garden.

And it must have been serendipity that this morning I saw another of my favorite Winged creatures, the first dragonfly of the year. With their gossamer wings, I find them very hard to photograph; for some truly beautiful photos of these gorgeous creatures, you need to visit Q's Corner. Another favorite winged creature, the hummingbird, has been visiting of late, but it may take me all summer to capture one photograph of that elusive bird!

For more ABC posts, do visit the collection posted here. And stay cool!

In the Vegetable Garden

I am happy to finally be able to participate in Tina's Veggie Garden Update, which she holds on the 20th of each month.


I got a late start on planting vegetables, though I suppose it was no later than any other year for me. Last week I harvested my first vegetables--radishes. I'm not particularly fond of radishes--outside of eating them whole or sliced in salads, what can you do with a radish?--but I planted them, as my mother always did, along with carrots, primarily to mark the row until the carrots emerge.

The spinach and lettuce planted at the same time have not done as well. In fact, they look downright puny this year for some reason. But I do have some excellent volunteer lettuce--coming up right next to a couple tomato plants! I had planned to pull this lettuce yesterday, but we had a torrential rain storm last night, so the lettuce will have to wait until the garden dries out a little. I want to make sure, though, that this tomato has all the room it needs to grow.

I have had a vegetable garden off and on for many years, much longer than I have been into ornamental gardening. But I confess to being an indifferent gardener when it comes to vegetables. Oh, I do enjoy planning this garden and planting all the seeds, checking every few days to see if the green leaves of spinach or the first sprouts of green beans have emerged. But once the weather gets warmer, the bugs start coming out, and the weeds begin to grow faster than the veggies, I start to lose interest. When the green beans are ripe for picking, I willing spend time in this garden again. But it's not until August when I get really excited about growing vegetables, because August is the time when the star of the vegetable garden is ready--the tomatoes!

No other vegetable, in my opinion, tastes so different and so much better than anything purchased in a grocery store as a home-grown tomato. The rains and warm weather this past week have really been a boon to the tomatoes. Most of them are now sporting a few blooms like this shy one.

Even though I couldn't find any blooms here, the green beans are also looking very healthy.

One of the reasons I lose interest in the vegetable garden is that I get overwhelmed: I have a big problem with a weedy kind of grass that seems indestructible. I don't know if it's nutgrass, quack grass, or what, but it has long roots and seems to come back despite my best efforts to eradicate it. Last year by the end of the summer I wouldn't even show a photo of my whole garden out of sheer embarrassment. I am determined this year not to let that happen again, so I had planned to mulch the whole garden with straw. However, my son gave me lots of free wood mulch when he replaced the mulch in the grandkids' play structure with rubber mulch. I had so much left over that I decided why not use it in the vegetable garden? I put newspapers down first between all the rows and layered the mulch on top. So far it seems to be working, but I've never seen anyone use wood mulch in the vegetable garden before. Please, please tell me if this isn't a good idea. All the plants seem to be doing fine so far, but I'd hate to use something here that's not good for them.

Have you ever eaten fennel? I've seen it included in several recipes the past few years, but last year was the first time I'd ever eaten any. It was served as a side dish and has a slightly licorice flavor. This is the first time I've ever tried planting it, and I'm not sure my family will even like it. But I'm not concerned with eating it, actually; I planted just a few seeds primarily for the butterflies. The rest of the package was planted in the "wild" garden, so I'm hoping the butterflies find it.

Other vegetables growing besides the ones already mentioned: onions, chives, beets (a first for me), and green peppers. I have a small vegetable garden, and for the first time I actually ran out of room for everything I wanted to plant. I may tear out the spinach and lettuce soon if they don't start looking better and plant some zucchini and summer squash.

This is not in the vegetable garden, but I had to show you these blooms on my Monarda, "Petite Wonder," I think. True to my hypothesis, these blooms appeared on June 15, after I had finished my Bloom Day post.

And just a few days after Bloom Day, the hollyhocks all began to bloom. Notice all the little critters on these blossoms; I'm not sure what they are, but I do hope they aren't destructive. With the rain and the warmer weather, the insect population is really growing, but I do have a little help in that department . . .

. . . my friend, Mr. Toad. If last year was the year of the Praying Mantis here at "The Prairie," then this year has to be the year of the Toad. They are everywhere! Hopping out of a tray of plants, out from under the green beans, or even jumping out of a container as I put new plants into it, this is not just a family of toads, but a whole community! As long as they don't hop onto my lap and startle me, they are certainly welcome here and can invite all the cousins, nieces and nephews, and in-laws they want. I just wish besides eating insects, I could get them to eat some weeds as well:)

Check out Tina at In the Garden for other vegetable updates.

You might also be interested in participating in another ongoing post topic--public plantings. Veg Plotting has been showing different scenes around her home town and other parts of the UK, illustrating some lovely and not-so-lovely plantings. I had mentioned to her after Spring Fling that Chicago had some of the best downtown plantings I had seen in a city, but wouldn't you know it, when I checked all my photos I never took one of the city streets! So, Spring Flingers in particular, if you took some good photos of street or curbside plantings, please consider posting them. You can click here to find some suggestions.

ABC Wednesday: V

This week's ABC Wednesday

is brought to you by the letter V . . .

. . . for Volunteer

When I retired from teaching two years ago, I planned to spend part of my time volunteering, something I had had little time for while raising a family and working full-time. But most projects I was interested in required a set time commitment, which was difficult to do with an irregular substitute teaching schedule. Or perhaps that was just an excuse . . . However, last summer Oldest Granddaughter, who wants to be a Veterinarian, expressed an interest in volunteering at the local Humane Society. I wanted to encourage her, and since she needed not only transportation but also an adult mentor, I agreed to help, and together we went through orientation for Junior Volunteers.

Granddaughter has always been an animal lover, so this "job" is a natural for her. We help out several hours a month and can choose our own schedule, so it's also the perfect opportunity for me to help out in a small way. Junior volunteers are given simple jobs; dog walking, for example, is limited to those who are at least 18. Instead, one of our main activities is to socialize with the animals. Playing with the kittens or puppies, cuddling them, or brushing them helps them to interact with different humans as well as giving them a much-needed break from the confinement of their cages.

I can attest to the fact that the animals at our local shelter are well-cared for: well-fed, litterboxes regularly cleaned, and all necessary medical attention given. But it has to be hard for them to spend most of the day in a cage. The luckiest animals, I think, are some of the more laid-back cats who are allowed to live together in their own room with names like "The Catnap Cafe." I don't remember how they are selected to live here, but 8-10 cats live in each room filled with all sorts of climbing towers, scratching posts, and comfy couches. They still love the human attention, though.

Recently, Grandson #2 has tagged along with us. Now that school is out, I asked if he would like to come along so that he didn't have to spend a few hours home alone. He eagerly agreed--I thought it was because of the offer of going out to lunch afterwards. But he has really enjoyed it and now wants to become an official Junior Volunteer himself.

Granddaughter chooses what we will do each week, but our first stop is always to check out the puppy cages. Puppies never stay long at the shelter; usually by the time we see a new one, it already has a blue sticker on its cage, meaning someone has applied to adopt it. Even so, these little guys need play time, of course, and we're more than happy to oblige.

Can you tell by the blurry tail that this little English pointer mix was having fun?

This little guy was such a sweetie that if I didn't already have Sophie, I would have seriously considered adopting him. And that is the main problem with volunteering here--I wish I could take so many of these animals home. Although the shelter is not technically a no-kill shelter, we were assured at orientation that no animals are euthanized if they are not adopted. The shelter seems to have a high rate of adoption, and alternative homes, such as rescue societies are sought in special cases for a few animals.

Volunteering isn't just playing with the animals, though. Folding laundry, mopping up the occasional puppy "accident" in the play room, or washing and sanitizing the mountains of pet dishes and toys are all part of the experience, too, and Granddaughter is more than willing to do whatever is needed.

Helping at the Humane Society wasn't one of the volunteer projects I had in mind two years ago. But it's been a rewarding experience for both of us, and it's given me a lot of quality time with my granddaughter who is quite a remarkable and mature young lady.

And I do think the animals appreciate our being there.

ABC Wednesday is hosted by Mrs. Nesbitt and the ABC team.

GBBD: June Blooms

Can you believe that we are halfway through June already? Where has the time gone? Of course, the good part of it being mid-month is that it's once again time for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Spring blooms have long since faded, but June is the real beginning of summer beauty in the garden here in Zone 5. Let's have a quick look around to see what is blooming today.

In the "back forty," as I call it, where things grow wildly without much help from the gardener, the first hollyhock bud has opened. Judging by the number of buds, there will be many more blooms in the coming weeks.

Last fall I had the bright idea to turn a small area in this back yard into a "wild" garden, planting some native plants and others to attract butterflies. I started with some passalongs, like this false sunflower given to me by my friend Beckie. I remember how long it took her to eradicate these from her garden as they spread all over. I have lots of space, so I don't think I'll regret planting these--they're really quite pretty, aren't they?

I've also added starts from some of my "spreaders," like the "Appleblossom" yarrow pictured above as well as some coneflower seedlings. New plants and many seeds were added this spring, but nothing else is ready to bloom yet, so I am going to wait until later in the summer to do a post on this area--that is, provided it turns out:)

Behind this area there are some less desirable plants, like this shrub that has turned into a small tree. It's what I generically call a "weed tree," but can anyone identify what it is?

Speaking of spreading plants, the daylilies "Stella d'Oro" have just begun to bloom. It's no wonder these lilies are ubiquitous in commercial plantings--they are so easy to grow, and they multiply like crazy. After seeing how congested mine were getting last year, I decided to divide them this spring. I gave away extras to friends and family and still had leftovers! The leftovers sat in a bucket for over a month until I decided out of desperation to plant them in front of one of the machine sheds. I'm not sure if Hubby, aka Mr. Procrastinator, appreciated the new landscaping there.

Another prolific self-seeder is the coneflower, but I will never grow tired of these. It's still too early for the real coneflower show here, but I was surprised to find two already beginning to bloom in the roadside garden.

Moving to the shade garden, the first hosta blooms have just appeared.

But I was really excited to see these astilbe blooms. I have killed more astilbes than I care to remember and had decided not to even try planting them anymore. I could have sworn I let this one die last year, too, but obviously it survived my neglect. I love these delicate blooms, and I've promised it I will keep it watered this summer.

Here's a plant no amount of neglect can kill--lamium (specific name forgotten). I do like this groundcover in the shade garden, but it has spread all over. I took some time this spring and dug most of it up, transplanting it nearby where it can spread to its heart's content.

Here is proof for my hypothesis that the best blooms appear on the 16th or the 17th of the month, just after Bloom Day. The pink-tinged outer petals of "Let's Dance Moonlight" suggest it will burst into full bloom any day now. This was a bargain purchase made last fall, so I am anxious to see what its blooms will actually look like.

Several plants have been blooming for a few weeks already. The knockout roses began to bloom before I left for Spring Fling, but they're not looking as good as usual this year. I had to prune them quite bit after our harsh winter, but I think there is something else going on with them which I haven't figured out yet.

There's no problem with the catmint, Nepeta "Walker's Low," though, other than the washed-out photo. This plant just keeps getting bigger each year and was one of the first perennials to bloom here.

It is definitely a bee magnet. Judging by the number of bees swarming around it this spring, there should be lots of pollination going on in my garden this spring. And are they ever busy bees! I must have taken 20 or more shots to get this one mediocre photo of one.

Although I have many, many annuals in bloom right now, I wasn't going to include those in today's post. But I do have to share this ivy geranium which attracted the first butterfly of the season. The noon-day sun makes its color faded, but I believe this is an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail--butterfly experts, am I right?

And last, but not least, my very own "river of salvia":) Okay, so it's not quite as impressive as the Lurie Gardens', but I have only three plants compared to the hundreds in the Lurie. Actually, there may only be two plants now--one of the two "East Frieslands" may have succumbed to the more robust "May Night." The "May Night" is definitely a vigorous salvia and one I would recommend, but the "East Frieslands" were planted for sentimental reasons, as my ancestors came from this part of Germany.


Speaking of the Lurie Gardens, I had the good fortune during Spring Fling to meet Carol of May Dreams Gardens, our hostess for the monthly Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. And in case, you're wondering, yes, she is as lively and entertaining in person as she is on her blog. Be sure to visit her for other Bloom Day posts today.

ABC Wednesday: Unfinished Business

For this week's ABC posting for the letter U, I am uninspired. I have had trouble coming up with anything unique or even one of my utterly ordinary posts. Frankly, I have been so busy working in the garden that I can't think of much else. Here it is the second week of June already, and despite the hours I've spent outside, my garden remains Unfinished.




My wise friend Cheryl once wrote "Is a Garden Ever Finished?" I would agree with her, and I have to remember that the fabulous Lurie Garden in Chicago pictured above did not look this way overnight. It took years for the enchanting "river of salvia" to get to this "finished" stage. My garden is on a much, much humbler scale, but I've resigned myself to the fact that there will always be something else that needs to be done in it.





One of the chores that was left unfinished this year was to transplant some of the many new coneflower seedlings. In early spring I did dig out a few, but more kept popping up, and I fully intended to thin them out. But time got away from me, and now it looks as though purple coneflowers will be ubiquitous in my garden this summer.

Two jobs that will continue all season are watering and weeding. This hydrangea bud looks pretty promising right now, but unless I water it soon, it won't look so good by the time it's ready to bloom. Wasn't I the one complaining about so much rain just a few weeks ago? That just proves that a gardener is never satisified. We've had either too much rain or not enough. Yesterday the skies--and the weather forecast--threatened storms all day, but they never materialized. Today I gave up on rain and started the process of dragging hoses around the garden. Depending on how our summer goes, this may be a daily chore all season. And then of course, there's the weeding. While I was away at Spring Fling, the weeds grew twice as much as the flowers. (You didn't expect me to show a picture of my weeds, did you? Of course, if you look closely enough at some of these photos, you'll no doubt spot a few.)

But the biggest chunk of my time this spring has been spent on planting. I have made a good dent in the "pot ghetto" in front of my garage door, but there are still a few homeless plants waiting to be put into the ground. One reason for my lateness is that I lost a few perennials over the winter and kept waiting and waiting for them to appear. When I realized my favorite gaillardias "Oranges and Lemons" didn't make it through the winter, I had trouble finding them in any nursery until this past week.

While I did lose several perennials this past winter, there have been a few unexpected surprises like this dianthus that has bloomed in the same pot now for three years. This is one reason I don't clean out my pots in the fall as I probably should; every once in awhile I have an annual that decides to come back for another year.

I've also spent a lot of time plant shopping this spring. I had no trouble finding the usual geraniums I use in a few containers. But Beckie and I commented on one of our plant expeditions this spring, that we found fewer unusual plants this year. We wondered if that might be due to the economy; perhaps nursery growers decided to stick more to the traditional plants this year rather than risk growing something that might not sell.

But garden centers and nurseries needn't worry about me. I have a serious case of plant-envy, and I find it hard to visit a garden center without buying something. Seeing a display of hostas on sale like this one at Rich's during Spring Fling usually makes me salivate and forget that there really isn't much more room in the shade garden for another hosta right now.

And while I was on a search for a few more Victoria Blue Salvia to fill in a space, I found something else, this Solenia Begonia "Dusty Rose," which I couldn't resist.

And this new-to-me flower, Lisanthus "Forever Blue." I still don't know where I'm going to plant this.

I never did find the needed salvia, but on the same shopping trip I found a new nursery that also had many garden accent pieces. This cast iron pot caught my eye, the price was right, and it already had a hole pre-drilled in the bottom. It quickly found its way into my car and is now filled with soil and seeds.

Not everything I buy, though, is an impulsive purchase. While hunting down my replacement gaillardia, I found this plant that I have wanted so badly since seeing it during Spring Fling. Do you recognize it? I'm sure you would if I showed it to you in full bloom . . .

. . . Yes, I am now the proud possessor of my very own Baptisia, "Purple Smoke," also known as False Indigo. I was thrilled to find it and hope that it is happy in its new home in my garden and one day looks as good as this one seen in the Lurie Garden.

Let's face it, as long as I keep visiting other gardens, whether in person or through blogging, my garden will never be "finished." There are always new ideas to try and more plants to be added. Last weekend I celebrated my un-birthday. (I coined this term last year--my theory is that if you don't acknowledge your birthday, it doesn't really count and you can subtract a year from your age rather than add one:) Doesn't that make sense?) Anyway, one of the gifts I received was a gift card to my favorite garden center, so I know there will more additions to the garden, if not this year, then next.

I already have another idea for next year's garden--I am definitely going to plant some alliums. I saw them everywhere in Chicago and realized they're a perfect in-between season perennial, not to mention their striking blooms. Thanks to Mr. McGregor's Daughter for sending me this photo. She and another blogger thought I must have purposely worn this purple top to color coordinate with the blooms of the allium:)

Finally, if I am spending all this time in the garden and it's still unfinished, you can imagine what my house looks like. Suffice it to say that during gardening season, the housework remains Undone!

Check out other ABC posts by clicking here.

Spring Fling Finale

It's hard to believe that a week ago today I was waking up in Chicago and boarding a bus for an activity-filled day of Spring Fling. Since I've returned home, I've been very busy catching up here--watering the garden, napping, weeding, napping, planting more homeless plants, napping, mulching, and . . . did I mention napping? As a result, my intention of carefully sorting through all my photos to choose the best ones to accompany a sparkling, comprehensive commentary of the weekend's events never materialized. Instead, here's a last look at Spring Fling with minimum narration and minus blog links for the sake of time.



Early arrivals on Thursday were treated to a tour of Rich's Foxwillow Pines in the northern suburbs of Chicago, a huge and amazing place. No wonder Mr. McGregor's Daughter loves this place! Rich himself greeted us warmly and entertained us with lots of colorful stories besides impressing us with his extensive knowledge of everything conifer-related. Laynee (left), Carol, and Dee (backs to the camera) took it all in.

A walk through back paths brought surprises at every turn, including giant hostas, and muddied our shoes.

Back at MMD's, a few more arrivals took the later tour of Squirrelhaven. At this point in the weekend, I wasn't sure about bloggers' wishes for anonymity, thus the back view of (l-r) Tina, Lisa, Gail, and Frances with MMD and her "apprentice gardener" facing them.

After the "scenic route" to the hotel that night--we were "too west of west"--it was straight to bed for an early morning train ride to the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Beckie and I opted for a later arrival at the Garden, which didn't allow us much time to see such a large area. We decided to first take the tram tour to give us an overview of the place, and I'm glad we did, because I believe this is the only way to see the large prairie area of the Botanic Garden. I learned so much more about the prairie; for example, there are actually three types of prairie, including the marsh prairie, which probably originally covered the land where I now live. Unfortunately, I don't remember the other two--the small notebook and pen purposely put into the large purse for taking notes remained at the hotel most of the time:)

The tram tour also gave us a glimpse of areas we weren't able to visit, like the Japanese Gardens. These, along with the Model Railroad Garden, will definitely be on the "must-see" list the next time we visit the Chicago area.

So many plants to ooh and ahh over, especially those Icelandic poppies I think we have all pictured. My eye was also caught by these simple Canterbury bells. I love the colors, but mainly I was excited to see them since I planted some seed given to me by Cheryl. I hope mine turn out this well!

The waterfall garden was another compelling place. Beckie and I climbed to the top, drawn by the rushing waters, and admired the view. Suddenly we realized we had only 20 minutes left to get back to the trolley for our return trip back.

Hurry, hurry down the slippery uneven slabs of rock--don't slip!

Hurry, hurry through the garden with trough after trough of potted annuals. Ok, time for one picture--but next time we will take time to see this area in entirety, too! We did make it to the trolley in time, fortunately.

On Saturday, most of the group began the day with a morning tour of Rick Bayless' garden in the heart of Chicago. After a sumptious buffet at Andie's in Andersonville, our first stop of the afternoon was at a community garden in the heart of Chicago. Surrounded by tall, older apartment buildings, this garden was a testament to the best of volunteerism and good will among gardeners.

Next, a stop at Carolyn Gail's garden where there were ample opportunities for everyone, including Jessica above, to take photos of a fantastic urban garden.

And some time to chat. Linda, aka Garden Girl, was one of several Chicago Gardeners who deserve many thanks for organizing such a fantastic weekend.

Before we left, Frances was the lucky winner of one of Carolyn Gail's paintings. I know Frances made sure this lovely artwork was well-cared for the rest of the bus trip:)

The final stop of the afternoon was at the Lincoln Conservatory. While others visited the fabulous lily pond and other areas of the Conservatory, several of us chose to hike a few blocks to the nearby Peggy Notebaert Museum to see the butterfly exhibit. Being a butterfly lover, I didn't regret my decision, but only wished that vanity didn't get in the way of wearing much-need reading glasses: the camera was on the wrong setting for much of the visit, resulting in blurs of color instead.

We were told upon entering that the butterflies were "awake," and they certainly were in a constant state of motion. This blurry photo must be shown, though, as Lisa explained we were watching a mating dance.

Changing the camera settings resulted in a few good photos, but no i.d.'s have yet been made.

I thought this was a Buckeye at first, but on closer inspection, I'm not so sure.

This has to be the most colorful butterfly I've ever seen;

it's certainly not one I would see in my garden.

Not to be completely outdone by Frances' butterfly magnetism, one small butterfly

chose to land on my leg . . . and then he flew to Frances:)

My intention was to also take lots of photos of the bloggers who attended Spring Fling, but somehow I never did. Saturday's dinner of authentic Chicago-style pizza did give me a chance to get a photo taken with Monica (left) and Beckie (right). Sorry, ladies, being very unphotogenic, I chose the most flattering photo of ME.

All too soon the weekend came to an end, and with just a few hours left on Sunday morning, Millenium Park seemed a logical place to return to, being within walking distance of our hotel. The fountain with changing images drew many visitors both Friday evening, when this photo was taken, and Sunday morning when little ones splashed happily in the shallow water.

The breathtaking river of salvia in the Lurie Garden, pictured on nearly everyone's posts, including a previous one of mine, was hard to capture in a photo, even though I tried from many angles.

Also difficult to capture completely were the hedges surrounding the gardens, meant to symbolize the "big shoulders" of Sandberg's poem "Chicago." Note the couple in the righthand corner of this photo--we saw several brides and grooms having their photos taken in the Lurie Gardens.

There's more to the Garden than just the salvia, however; one area is devoted to prairie plants, including this "Prairie Smoke." I first saw this on one of Mr. McGregor's Daughter's posts as well as seeing it in person in her garden. I know I'm not the only garden blogger who wants to add this plant to my garden!

And for a more traditional plant-lovers, the Lurie also had the perfect white peony.

Like any typical tourist, Beckie and I couldn't resist a final stop at "Cloud Gate," aka "the Bean," for a reflective photo of the Chicago skyline. Besides all the wonderful people we met and all the interesting places we saw, Chicago has even more to offer and has a beautifully landscaped downtown. While it won't be the same as Spring Fling, Beckie and I are already talking about returning to the Windy City to see all that we missed this time!

ABC Wednesday: A Tree for All Seasons

Note to visiting Spring Flingers: Scroll down to my previous post for first impressions of our weekend in Chicago. I'm still sorting through photos to do a longer post--there was so much to see!

This week's ABC Wednesday is brought to you by the letter T for . . .

. . . Trees

I may not exactly be a tree-hugger, but I am certainly a lover of trees. I've always lived in older homes with plenty of mature trees, and I can't imagine living anywhere that didn't have a yard full of shade.


A visit during Spring Fling to Rich's Foxwillow Pines in the northern suburbs of Chicago introduced me to a tree I am now coveting. This variegated beech tree growing in front of the large spruce (or was it a pine?) has pink-tinged leaves that absolutely glow in the sunlight. I only wish I had taken a close-up of the leaves. This tree is going to be added to my ever-growing plant "wish list."


If you were to ask me, though, what my favorite tree is, I would probably answer the majestic oak, the grand old man of my yard which I have featured many times here. But in spring, I might say it's the redbuds with their fluorescent lavender blooms that tell me spring has finally arrived. Of course, a little later in spring, the flowering crabapples are magnificent . . .


While it may not be my absolute favorite, however, a tree that I've grown to appreciate more and more in the past year is one of the smallest trees on our property, a white flowering crabapple.

In the Spring green leaves appear first, then tiny pink buds appear.

By early May, the buds open into a cascade of white flowers. Notice the shape of the tree. Perhaps one of the reasons I have grown to love it more is that it was rather shapeless when we moved here until my husband decided to prune it to make it easier to mow around and under. While he was pruning it for convenience, the end result makes for a pleasing umbrella shape.

Although there is no colorful foliage in the Fall, red berries appear, and when the leaves drop late in the season, this crab is covered with sprays of red, looking almost like a holly decoration for the holidays.

The berries last throughout the Winter, providing a berry sundae for the birds who love this tree.

Oh, did I forget a season? In the Summer, the tree doesn't stand out in the landscape other than its shape, but its small size is inviting . . .

. . . for adventurous tree climbers.

This crabapple really is a tree for all the seasons.

To see more ABC posts today, you may click here. Or to read about the Garden Bloggers' Spring Fling, scroll below.

Garden Muse Day: Chicago!

Hog Butcher for the World,

Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,

Player with Railroads and the Nation's Freight Handler;

Stormy, husky, brawling,

City of the Big Shoulders . . .

from "Chicago" by Carl Sandburg

To Sandburg it was the "City of the Big Shoulders," to Sinatra it was "my kind of town," to others it is "the Windy City," but to over 50 garden bloggers this past weekend Chicago was the beautiful and gracious city that hosted this year's Spring Fling. I'm still a little bleary-eyed and coming down from a sensory overload, but I wanted to share just a few highlights of this wonderful weekend.

Garden Muse Day is sponsored the first of each month by Carolyn Gail at Sweet Home and Garden Chicago, and this month it is particularly exciting as we actually got to see her garden in person!

Carolyn Gail was gracious enough to invite all of the Spring Flingers into her garden and home.




I had admired her orange perfection iris on her post, but all of her irises were beautiful, including these yellow and purple ones.

It is one thing to see a garden or parts of it on a blog, but quite another to see it in person. Some of you may think this photo looks familiar--Mr. McGregor's Daughter showed a similar photo on her blog one day as part of the "Through the Garden Gate" meme. A few of us who arrived early on Thursday were able to tour Squirrelhaven as well, and I was amazed at how large it was! A picture may be worth "a thousand words," but the real thing is worth ten times that.

The weekend was jam-packed with so many activities that it may take me awhile to remember everything we did. But I won't forget the highlight of Friday's tours--a trip to the Chicago Botanic Garden. Beckie and I made the mistake of opting for a later arrival and barely had time to skim the surface of all this fantastic place has to offer. The English walled garden was one of my favorite parts . . .



. . . as was this field of poppies. I have a feeling you're going to see a photo of this on every Spring Flinger's blog:) This planting of over 4700 poppies made an impression on everyone who saw it.

But the best part of the trip had to be meeting "old friends" and making new ones. There was certainly never a problem striking up a conversation with someone I'd never "met" before! Bus trips to gardens as well as dinners and lunches gave us a chance to meet new people and learn more about bloggers we thought we "knew."

For example, who knew that Frances was such a butterfly magnet?

And, of course, a good blogger is never without his or her camera, ready to take advantage of every photo opportunity as Nancy, Gail, and Frances demonstrate here in the Butterfly Haven at the Peggy Notebaert Museum.

Another highlight of the trip was the Lurie Garden, part of Millenium Park. This wave of six different varieties of salvia was so impressive I must have taken 20 pictures of it and still couldn't capture its magical effect.

In the Lurie I also found another "must-have" plant--this baptisia. I know I've seen it on some of your blogs, but again it's not the same as seeing it in person. I'm smitten with it and now am trying to find a place for one in my garden.

It was truly a wonderful weekend, and it will take me several days to sort through all my photos and collect my thoughts enough to thoroughly cover Spring Fling. But there are plants to be watered and some still needing a home in the garden and there are blog posts to be read, so this short post will have to do for now. A big thank you to all the organizers of Chicago's Spring Fling for a weekend I will always remember!