EVERY GARDEN NEEDS A WINDSOCK

A windsock or wind cone is a tube made of fabric (nylon or some type of plastic can be used also) designed to indicate the direction of the wind and, in some situations, the relative wind speed.

Windsocks are often used at airports to gauge wind direction or alongside highways at windy locations to warn of gusts and strong breezes.

At home, windsocks can be seen flying from porches and flagpoles to proclaim festive occasions or holidays.

You can buy one or make one. Yes, you can buy classy looking ones too. LOL.. If you are crafty and want to give it a try, (it is easy) here are the directions:

DIRECTIONS FOR A WINDSOCK

RAISING CANE

I planted Cane in this pot at least ten years ago. I have never watered it, fed it or even praised it and yet it grows and grows. The pot is really small now for it's size but I figure it is doing so good, why bother it. Billy said it was cracking on the side a little, so I will just wait and let it come out when it is ready.

I have no idea what it is. I just call it cane. It starts out white in early Spring and then turns to a pretty stripe by Summer. It dies back after the first freeze and comes back every Spring. And like most of my plants, it never gets prettied up. The reason this one doesn't, has to do with the fire ants who made their bed in there. I know I should put poison and get rid of them but what if they decided to go somewhere else then. At least I know where they are and they seem happy and have hung out their "Home Sweet Home" sign. I think they keep the soil aerated. I am of the school that if it isn't broke, don't fix it, so I leave it alone. And every year,,there it is in all it's glory.

I planted blanket flowers around it and a spiller over the edge, which is long gone now, when it was a much smaller plant. It is a thriller, filler, spiller, gone hay wire. LOL

EASY AND CHEAP WAY TO GET MORE PLANTS

No, that pic is not out of focus, it is totally out of focus ..LOL

I was just browsing some websites today and ran across this helpful information on cuttings. I thought I would share it with you. Some of you, no doubt know this but since new gardeners are born every day, it might be useful for some. The cuttings above are sweet potato vine and a Malunggay or Moringa tree. There is a post on this tree in an earlier post.

Did you know there are 5 types of cuttings?

Leaf cuttings
Hardwood cuttings
Semi ripe cuttings
Softwood cuttings
Root cuttings

Read more here:

Plants from cuttings

RABBITS AND MELONS

Lovely painting is Benjamin's Garden
By Kimberly Hodge
We have a small plot of trees behind the house that I just let go wild for the birds and rabbits and other little animals who live there. I walked back there with the dogs when they were younger. Solo can no longer see too well, and I think he feels safer in the front where he knows his way around by the plants and buildings. I miss the walks though. My woods are full of birds right now. I seem to have a lot of red birds this year. Every time I stand on the back porch, I will see a flash of red. I hope I can get a picture of one.

Speaking of rabbit's, I love windows. Wait, I'll tie it together. In my home that was blown down by Katrina, I had this large picture window that looked out on the woods. I use to watch rabbits eat my plants from that window. I love rabbits though so I didn't mind. Until yesterday that is...Now I'm warning them, they better keep their little cotton picking mouths off my watermelon and cantaloupe. They actually are eating more than their share. Maybe they are looking for the cool juice since they have to be hot too with these temperatures. I didn't begrudge them a little, but they are just taking it too far now. There are perfectly good and juicy cukes they can have. We are no longer eating them. One or two a week is now enough for us for salads.

I think I will put a pot over a few of them. Not the rabbits, the melons. LOL Although that is a thought. Ummm rabbit stew. I'm kidding. I have heard the melons themselves, don't need the light, just the vines. It's worth a shot. We had cantaloupe for lunch today. It was decadent. We cut off the top of two of them and just ate right from nature's bowl with a spoon.

CATTAILS...I GOT LOTS OF CATTAILS

I started not to put this pic on, or you might think I never cut my grass, but this is on the backside of our property and it is always a little wet back there. I have Bamboo and cattails growing together happily. I just found out they are edible. That is good to know with prices going higher and higher for food. Who knows? They might keep us from starving some day but if they don't, they sure are great little plants to grow. I love every stage of their growth. Here is what Wiki has to say about them:

"Cattail has a wide variety of parts that are edible to humans. The rhizomes are a pleasant, nutritious and energy-rich food source, generally harvested from late Fall to early Spring. These are starchy, but also fibrous, so the starch must be scraped or sucked from the tough fibers. In addition to the rhizomes, cattails have little-known, underground, lateral stems that are quite tasty. In late spring, the bases of the leaves, while they are young and tender, can be eaten raw or cooked. As the flower spike is developing in early summer, it can be broken off and eaten, and in mid-summer, once the flowers are mature, the pollen can be collected and used as a flour supplement or thickener".

So, while you are laying in those emergency supplies for hard times. why not plant these and enjoy their looks now and eat them later. : ) or you might want to use them as stuffing...no, not to eat,, for a pillow or vest or baby pack..


The disintegrating heads are used by some birds to line their nests. The downy material was also used by Native Americans as tinder for starting fires.

Native American tribes also used cattail down to line moccasins and papoose boards. An Indian name for cattail meant, “fruit for papoose’s bed”. Today some people still use cattail down to stuff clothing items and pillows.

The down has also been used to fill life vests in the same manner as kapok.

If using the cattail for pillow stuffing you may be wise to use thick batting material, as the fluff may cause a reaction similar to hives and will be very itchy.


Now how is that for a plant that earns its keep? A soft place to lay your weary head and ......A supermarket on a stick!

YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW PLANT

I had a friend whose Mother grew this evergreen shrub in her flower beds. I remember being fascinated by the name when I was a young teen and totally too romantic. The common name of Yesterday-Today-and Tomorrow comes from the quick change in the flower colors from purple to lavender to white. I've read that in partial shade the plant can reach 10 feet, but can be kept pruned to about 3 feet quite easily. Daisy Belle's Mother's plants were rather tall, and I think taller than 10 feet. Of course, I was shorter then so maybe they weren't. : )

Yesterday-today-and-tomorrow is known to contain poisonous alkaloids. The berries are especially toxic to dogs. You might know a cool plant like this would have drawbacks. I wouldn't take a chance on it around my animals but it sure is interesting. It reminds me of the Confederate Rose and how it changes from white, to pale pink to rose before the day is over. Now I have two of those but as far as I know, they are not poisonous.

ORDINARY MARIGOLDS

Sometime when I am looking for a nice pic from the garden, I overlook the obvious. These just looked so pretty today so I thought I would take a picture. They do not look ordinary at all when they are covered in blooms. They are quite beautiful.

History---It was well known to the old herbalists as a garden-flower and for use in cookery and medicine. Dodoens-Lyte (A New Herball, 1578) says:
'It hath pleasant, bright and shining yellow flowers, the which do close at the setting down of the sunne, and do spread and open again at the sunne rising.'

Since I am not up with the Sun, I don't know if this holds true, but I know it is always blooming when I see it. Faithful little thing. It does have a very pungent odor though so I don't use it much in arrangements. It just cheers me up to see the bright and beautiful colors of gold and orange in my veggie garden. I don't plant it for insect control, although I have heard it is good for that. I planted some of the pretty gold ones next to the purple and white eggplant this year and it was a great look. They did better than my eggplant, which was mediocre at best. They just never seem to reach their full potential.

It has been asserted that a Marigold flower, rubbed on the affected part, is an admirable remedy for the pain and swelling caused by the sting of a wasp or bee. A lotion made from the flowers is most useful for sprains and wounds, and a water distilled from them is good for inflamed and sore eyes. So the next time, a bee or wasp is chasing you, head in the direction of your marigolds. : )

CHICKENS AND FARM FRESH EGGS

Aren't they beautiful? I have always wanted to raise chickens for fresh eggs but then I come up against the killing part when they are no longer laying eggs. I also think it would be nice to have them eat bugs in your garden. But to be honest, I know I want kill them and would keep feeding them until they died of old age. So I guess I will just have to let this idea go.

Right after we got married, his Grandmother, who had wonderful chickens, killed one and brought it to me to clean. I tried,,I really did. I got all the feathers off and cut it open and tried to get the insides out,,but when I reached up inside and found that still warm mess,,,,well, that was that. I did not accept any more chickens. I like my chickens cold and without faces and feet, the way they come from the grocery store.
I would not make a good farm wife, although the idea appeals to me immensely. I am just not cut out for killing things. Or apparently, even cleaning them after someone else does it. But if we were starving and I had to do it, I would. I am a realist. But Dear God, please don't let me have to clean a warm chicken again. I'll peel shrimp till my fingers bleed, I'll snap peas till my arm falls off, and I'll shuck corn until it cries Uncle, but please Lord, don't make me clean a warm chicken again.

CASHMERE BOUQUET

They say this flower was the inspiration for the first mass produced soap, put out by the Colgate Company. It does have a pretty smell but they may have been more inspired by the flower than the fragrance. The soap is still available today but the picture looks more like a rose. Down through the years they changed it and used other flowers in thier ads.

I love this but I've been told it can become a pest. We planted some of it in an old fiberglass bathtub to contain it but we couldn't resist putting one in this old plastic light globe. These globes were used to cover those big outside lights at our Coliseum. Billy asked me if I wanted one and then he brought home fifty! He works in contruction so people are always giving him things.
I think it makes a good pot for this plant. I put a hole for drainage in the bottom but the top already had a hole large enough to plant in. I like the way it looks. Anyone know what I can do with the other forty nine? LOL

CRAPE MYRTLE

As lovely as soft bits of fragile crinkled silk,
These rosy blossoms, clustered thick upon the heavy drooping boughs,
When shaken by a summer wind,
Drop down in swirling showers,
And drift awhile about the ground;
Then gathered into frothy heaps beneath the hedge,
They spread a frill of rosy lace around the green lawns edge.
- LEDA CLEMENTS


I took my camera outside today to see if I could get a picture of something to show you. I took a picture of my Pampas Grass, my Cane, the Cashmere Bouquet, the garden, but none of it really thrilled me. Then I turned and saw my pretty Crape Myrtle and this one particular bloom, caught my eye. This tree has the prettiest color flowers. Please click on the pic to enlarge and look at those undeveloped buds of deep purple against the pink. It is so pretty. I have to keep this cut back each year because it is growing beneath a Pecan tree which give us a lot of shade and in the South, you can never have too much shade.

FLOWERS I WISH I COULD GROW

I covet the Purple Prairie Clover. I just love this flower. But like the other, it grows in the north central portion of the United States, not the Gulf Coast. The flowers start at the bottom and work their way up. Can you imagine this in all it's glory? I will have to repent now, for wanting this flower in my garden. To covet is a sin, even if it is just a flower,,probably. : )

Purple Prairie Clover














And this one... TIDY TIPS...it won't grow in Mississippi. It is the neatest little flower.
A short, hardy annual native to California, but can be grown as far east as Texas is what the garden site says about it.


Tidy Tips

TAGGED

Tagged!

I have been tagged by THE SUN IS KILLING ME
Great Blog, you should check it out.

The rules are as follows:
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on the blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post.
5. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

6 Random things about me:

1)I have no idea what is in my freezer!
2)I am a reader,,I love reading blogs
3)I love anything English, especially thier cottage gardens
4)I have lived and traveled in a motor home for three years
5)I am a frugul person, I can't throw plastic tubs,string, rubber bands, bubble wrap etc. away
6)I accomplish more through deperation than inspiration

I am in turn tagging:


DIRT THERAPHY..ALABAMA

THE HOME GARDEN..TENN

MISSISSIPPI GARDEN..MISSISSIPPI

MAY DREAMS GARDENS...INDIANA...

SHOWER FRESH GARDEN...MISSISSIPPI

JOCO-SERIOUS...UNITED KINGDOM

ALL AMERICAN ROSE SELECTION

Rose lovers of the world, may we present the new All American Rose Selection of 2008,,"DREAM COME TRUE" Talk about a beauty. It is awesome. I just don't have what it takes to grow roses. If it can't survive on it's own, it can't come to my house. As pretty as they are, I will admire them from afar. They are high-maintenance flowers. But, I do love seeing them in other people's yards who have more grit than I do when it comes to maintenance and upkeep.

The old seven sisters was growing in my yard, and it decided to leave me without a word of farewell. The lady that gave it to me, said it would grow anywhere for anyone. It is supposed to grow like a weed. It didn't.

EDIBLE LANDSCAPE & PATIO TOMATOES

Interest in patio vegetable gardens and edible landscapes is going through the roof. I knew this explosion was going on in Europe because of some of the garden blogs I read. I wondered if it would hit here, too. After the scare we are having with out tomatoes, lettuce and other veggies this year, it was just a matter of time. Big veggies like zucchini squash, acorn squash and Windsor pumpkins are being grown in large patio containers. Other containers, not so large, are filled with peppers, sweet ones and hot ones like Cheyenne. Although I have a garden, I also grow peppers and patio tomatoes in containers. You can grow lettuce in a bowl on your patio. Grow them in window boxes, hanging baskets, all kinds of ways to grow veggies. I mix flowers and veggies in my garden and in containers around the property.

Sales in vegetable seeds and transplants have taken off. Edible landscapes and small square-foot or intensive-type gardens like mine are gaining in popularity. Look for transplants at local garden centers as well as seeds for some quick sow-grow-and-harvest products like cilantro, that key ingredient for salsa and fajitas, ( I love fajitas) or basil for Italian pesto sauce. I am growing two types of basil this year. One I grow alongside my tomatoe plants, since it is talior made to go with tomatoes and the other I use in pork dishes. I grow it on my back porch in a container. It is stronger than the other one so it is good with pork.

There is a new eggplant out this year , SLIM JIM, that I am trying to locate... It can be used as the thriller plant (see another post for this) in a mixed container. I can also plant it in my Lantana bed with my yellow and orange flowers. I think it will be a winning combination -- plus, I will be eating eggplant parmesan which is one of my favoirte dishes.

BLUE FLOWERS ARE A STAND OUT

You can not have too much blue in the garden in my opinion. I love blue. I always like the various blue salvias and, of course, the blue Wave petunias. But one little plant that is just a stand out is the "blue daze" evolvulus. This little flower reminds me so much of the Canterbury bells we had all over the place when I was a child. It thrives in hot summers like we have here on the Coast. It is in the morning glory family and is almost the same beautiuful blue as the "heavenly blue" morning glory.I have one on an earlier post. Since it is only 12 inches high,,it will look good in the front of your bed with let's say, ,the gold zinnias..Pictue this: The icy light blue flowers with olive colored leaves in front of the gold zinnias,,,oh wait..You don't have to picture it...that is what is in the picture. Now isn't that dramatic?

HANGING BASKETS

Hanging basket containing a display of purple and white flowers including Diascia, Phlox, Verbena, Lobelia, Reinwardtia and ivy-leaved Pelargonium.

I love hanging baskets. I like to use a big, big basket it gets more attention and you have to water it less. Right now I don't have any planted,,they just hang there, making me feel guilty. I want to get out this weekend and see what kind of flowers I can find. I fully intended to plant a few but I got so involved with the veggie garden, I just didn't take the time.

I really like the mesh type baskets best because when you think about it, most baskets are seen from below and this way, you can poke holes and plants all around the sides. You can buy the natural mesh liners to line your pot. It looks better from below. You will have to line it with plastic to keep it from getting dry so fast, that's the only problem. With the plastic types, you won't need to do this. Insert you plants through the slits cut in both the natural liner and the plastic. Make it stiffer so it is easier to insert by wrapping in a piece of stiff paper.

When it gets dry, take it down and let it soak in a pan of water for a few hours, overnight is better. That way it will get thoroughly and evenly wet. Use slow release fertilizer in your soil. Primp them while you're at it, get rid of dead flowers, trim up the dry or dead foliage..check for disease or insects before you hang it back up. And use a strong support. Plants get really heavy when wet and need the support. I have had a few fall so I know. I messed up one of my favorites in a pot once, broke to smitherins.... And after all your hard work on them,,don't forget to enjoy them.

WINDOW BOXES

I love window boxes and every year I always plan on having one. Then before you know it, the Summer is over and I still haven't got around to that window box. These are very pretty ones here in this slide show. I am thinking I may get around to the Christmas one, since I can't get it together the rest of the year. I am most certainly going to have a Spring one next year. Absolutely!

Make a Free Flash Slideshow

TOO MUCH GARDEN BLING BLING?

Is this taking garden bling bling a little far? I love it but would I want it in my yard? If you click on this and look closely, you will find this is a false front, not a shed at all. Interesting!
Yes, we all like a little garden art here and there. For instance, statues, gazing ball, maybe a fountain. But when do you know you have gone over the line and your family is going to have you committed? There is a few little tips to help you know when you have crossed the line.

Do you have more junk than plants? Can you no longer mow the lawn but need to use a weed eater on the whole yard? When you stop and pick up things like stoves, an old sink, toilet, heater, scrap lumber, or bathtub with an eye to planting something in it...you may be over the line. When people think you are holding a garage sale and you're not, you may be over the line. When you pick up a brass bed, headboard and think it will be cute to make a "flower' bed with it...that may be the clue right there.


But take all the above with the purest of intentions. I cover bowling balls with pennies, marbles or paint them and call them garden balls and I made a huge pot-man once upon a time out of clay pots....so if it makes you happy - Seize the day, I say!