" Friends of the Bees"

Help save the Honey Bees, she urged...,
originally uploaded by A Fanciful Twist.

As we garden this year, lets not forget our tiny friends the bees! They are in a serious crisis and so are we, If they continued to die! What do you think will happen to us! !

I commented and voiced my concerns before on this issue on my post: Please Help The Bee's Help Us! 3/8/2010 and once again this serious topic was back this morning on the Yahoo news page.

      ( Bees In more trouble than ever after bad winter ).

This is a subject that is not going away soon and I'll probably post my concerns more than once about it.. I hope those of you who garden will join me as a voice and friend of the bee by  planting the nectar rich plants that our bees love. Please post your results....But don't just stop there..there are so many more ways that we can help....Here are a few helpful links to get you started.

The following links that got my attention, but I'm sure there are many more out there to discover...North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPP) was established in 1999 and has worked since than to promote and protect our tiny friends, they are one of many I call the Friends of the Bees! checkout http://pollinator.org.. they have a guide that helps the gardener attract all the pollinators... bees, birds and bats.

Urban Bee Gardens:  This is a guide based in California but the concept applies every where. This website explains the importance of our pollinators, choosing the right plants, how mulching can affect the bee, and how our native bee and our honeybee  differ....Introduction Why Make yours a Bee Garden? 
  http://nature.berkeley.edu/urbanbeegardens

From the Daily green ...Gardening to Attract Honey Bees...

http://www.thedailygreen.com/going-green/tips/2790

High Country Gardens...Get your Garden Buzzing with a native mason bee nest. 

http://plants.highcountrygardens.com

Life on the Balcony: Is a blog by Fern Richardson who shares her expertise on container gardening and more...if you are a container gardener such as myself, visit Life on the balcony for tips on attracting bees to the container garden... select  Birds, Bees, & Butterflies in the category search  box. ...

http://lifeonthebalcony.com

Diana of the ( Voice in the garden ) has some awesome photos of a Honey bee colony rescue from a fallen Oak tree on her property. http://voiceinthegarden.blogspot.com

From Yahoo News page... The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Colony Collapse Disorder: http://tinyurl.com/usdaccd

The study in Public Library of Science One...

http://tinyurl.com/beepaper

It's the first day of spring!

It's the first day of Spring! ...But does it feel like it here in Michigan...Nope! ...Our weather forecasters here In Michigan warned us that we would have some cooler temps ahead!.... 
 

So..Thursday when the temps hit a high of 70! I took advantage of the warm weather and got outside where I  finally  got a little yard work done and took a few pictures.  
The Magnolia buds right corner: will soon have lovely soft pink flowers.

A make shift cage.. I made out of metal crates to stop the squirrels from destroying my potted Sedums.and a  view from the cage on the inside where dragons blood and other sedums are coming to life in safety.

The small flower plot ( below )   held Cosmos, Hyssop, Speedwell, Daisies and a few others that I can't recall at the moment....It also held a solar water fountain... a Mother's day gift to My Mom. Mom and I are garden partner's and we were both out tiding up the yard..happy to finally take advantage of a warm March day.

My cat Panni thinks that if she stays down low enough..we won't notice that she sneaked outside. .. I love the shadow of the tree branches in the shot.

One of two willow trees right)  that we planted in 22  gallon plastic totes....They will need replanting this spring...The totes are bursting with willow roots.

                                                                                                  


Rose hips on a rambling rose. This rose produces tons of  prolific bright red roses during the summer and is a show stopper in the front yard..We will  need  to trim it back a little ..for it has enough thorns to Kill the devil!  In-fact..I nick named it the Red devil. 

My chick-a-dee couple butch and Beatrice .. Played a pretty good game on me while I was trying to snap a photo of them with my point and shoot  Canon powershot SD1200 IS ...

Every time I raised my camera to shoot one of them, they would run to the other side of the feeder out of my focus...

This continued until my eyes were crossed..and after about an half hour, I was able to snap one of them. ..ha..ha.. Very funny".

Happy first day of spring and thank you for stopping by.

Garden Blogger's Bloom Day 2010

Once again it's the 15th of the month, that means it's Garden blogger's bloom day.
Every 15th, participating blogger's post lovely blooms for My Dream Gardens bloom day event hosted by Carol.

I can't wait for these Tiger lilies on the side of my house to bloom this summer. There Hot orange colors are show stoppers for those that pass by.. and since I had no blooms of my own to display at home, I decided to take a few photos of whats blooming at my local Kroger supermarket.

They did not turn out as clear as I expected..."Oh well,  it's the thought that counts".

(1). A beautiful  group of orchids to the right of the screen:

( 2). Tulips and what I think were yellow daisies: bottom left:

( 3)  A sweet little Gerber daisy on the bottom right.                   

 Spring is in the air..I heard Robins in the trees and I'm finally feeling gleeful and much more positive today.  What can lift your spirits higher then sunshine and singing Robins.
   

                                                                                 

                                                                                            

" Please help the bees help us!

Bumble Bee head-on,
originally uploaded by Jim Nicholson.

Spring is on it's way and I have been reminiscing about my garden and a alarming issue that I first learned about two summers ago.

That issue was about and still is about, our nations bee crisis.. It is one that is wide spread, effecting both the U.S and Europe. These vital pollinators are disappearing! and scientist are scrambling to figure out why... Some of their findings in my opinion are well founded and make a lot of sense, although those who are responsible for this crisis I'm sure, would deny it.

I'm a amateur gardener...I like to grow vegetables and flowers and little did I know that a bee crisis was happening in my neck of the woods....

after reading some articles on this issue in a couple of garden magazines, I decided that I could help play a part in helping out these little creatures by choosing flowers that they would enjoy the most..such as...
Hyssop, Red Clover, Bee balm, Lavender, Purple Coneflowers, Sun flowers and Cosmos to name a few.

Squash, tomatoes, peppers, chives, radish, and a few carrots shared a place in a couple of containers. I was excited as I often am when I plant something and wait for it's turn out...

But my excitement turned in to disappointment...It would be a bad year for gardening, for the weather took forever to warm up here in Michigan and when it finally did.. there were No.. Honeybees to be found!

Bumble bees frequent the Honeysuckle and Wiegela shrubs.. showing little interest in anything else...
once and a while one or two would fly over to the other areas in the yard and I thought perhaps that just maybe there was some hope for my pathetic little garden, but I saw no changes in my vegetable production.

My squash would not flower and the buds fell off.. My cucumbers were nubs and the peppers, radish and carrots were stunted.

Every day when I found the opportunity I would sit for hours watching different areas of my garden for these Honeybees while taking notes in my garden journal.

It was mid summer when I begin to see a few and by a few I mean about Six!....Six Honey bees and about four native ( Mason bees). These numbers did not increase through out the whole summer! and neither did the plant population in my garden.

The only veggies that did fair well were my tomatoes.. Sweet 100's and Early girl.

It is possible that the weather and missing bees both played a part in my garden disaster..However if the weather had turned out perfect..I was still going to have a garden flop!.. evident by the lack of bees!

I had my first experience with our Honey bee crisis! and I'm currently studying once again what plants to grow in my garden this year to help out these VITAL little creatures..they are CRUCIAL to our SURVIVAL and our PLANET and I have included a few links so that you may learn more about this serious crisis! and how you can help because... They Need Us and We Need Them! ...

The web is full of helpful information on this subject... Here's a few that I found quite interesting and informative:  please visit the web pages below......

Why the Bees are Dying:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_5356.cfm

Why Make yours a bee Garden?
http://nature.berkeley.edu/urbanbeegardens

Bee Pollinator Partnership:
http://www.pollinator.org

Jessica of a Girl Growing Southern supplied this information:
Plant Diversity helps bees:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8467746.stm

Diana of the voice in the garden..http://voiceinthegarden.blogspot.com )  has some awesome photos of a Honey bee colony rescue from a fallen oak tree on her property.

Panini gets Spayed

Top : Panini in Petco carrier headed into the Michigan Humane Society.
 http:// www.michiganhumane.org

Yaaay! Panini is spayed I'm so happy!....After yowling, meowing, crying and chewing extra holes in her carrier box while riding in the back seat...I feared she may react in a bad manner out of fear and nervousness and the more she cried and chewed, the more nervous I became, because a few days before surgery a receptionist over the phone asked me about her character..." Is she a friendly cat?".. Yes I responded.

Now I'm scared and talking to myself...." Oh God please don't let Panini jump out of the box and run away"  Pleezzz.. don't let her scratch me, the receptionist... her assistant or the Vet.

 Panini begins to hiss...followed by more yowling"...My sister and mother who agreed to accompany me..began to talk and sing to her..It was a car full of noises and bad nerves and I was glad our destination wasn't very far! ...

A clueless.. yet suspicious Panini is taken out of the box.

               

Panini  isn't sure what all the touching is all about and her eyes are as big as saucers!

When we arrived I was surprised to see Panini was not the only cat for this Sunday appointment.

about 10 people were already in line when we arrived at 8:30am.....Some owner's had one cat while a few others had two... all were yowling and meowing as they peered out of their carriers...  As I signed in and took my place in line I noticed Panini had fallen silent........

And she had remained so.. until they called her name to go in to see the Vet.... To my relief she handled the entire event very well...No one was bitten or scratched.

At 3:30pm I returned to bring Panini home and I am very pleased so far with her surgical outcome...She only needed a small incision and has dissolvable sutures..Yay!

I am instructed to give her ..her medication and watch her closely..making sure she doesn't aggravate her stitched area by over licking it.. If she does she will need a collar.

I'll update later as she recovers.

Bottom left:  Poor Panini is not feeling so well..but she'll recover soon... in a couple of weeks she'll be fine.

                                                                           

Kitties come acourting

     Help!..Panini  my indoor house cat is in heat and she is driving me Crazy!                         

 

Her courting ritual includes but not limited to .. crawling through the house in a strange looking squat with a her tail twisted to one side, If you have not witnessed this before.. you may find.. It's a strange and funny looking sight to behold...She also swims across the floor doing the back stroke.  All hours of the day and night I have had to endure her Meowing, Yelling and Yowling  and one Morning around 3am I almost gave in and put her outside"

House Dashing: ........Dashing through the house with the speed of light, she hits the walls, bouncing off of them with amazing backward flips.. that left me stunned and amazed.

One day I opened my Kitchen door that leads to my basement where I had Panini confined for the day.

( Don't worry cat lover's)  the basement is a cool hang out for Panini where she has a nice fuzzy bed and lots of windows to watch for birds and her lovers. .... I was headed down there to do some laundry and Panini sprinted wildly up eight flights of stairs turning backwards in mid air like Micheal Jordan going for the hoop.....

 Still in mid air she twisted and  planted her back side on the back door like a touch down on a foot ball field!... and once again I was left spell bound and speechless"  What did this mean?  I guess only a cat would know the answer to that. 

Kitties come a courting!

 Garfield:  A big orange cat with mischievous amber eyes.
 Tyrone:  A black and white male cat with a Large head...
 Max:      A Splotchy multicolored cat with Bi-colored eyes

The boy friends are marking everything in sight : Car tires, bushes, basement windows, garbage cans, front door, side door, my porch, my neighbors porch and everything else in between..

I learned that these suitors can smell a female cat in heat from the inside of my house..Wow!
I wondered how these cats found out that I owned a female.

Panini and her quest for love have left me sleepless, speechless, amazed and exhausted... for cat urine and cat antics are only enjoyed by cats..and nature has designed it that way...

So my Panini will be spayed this Sunday 21rst at 8:30 in the morning at the Michigan Humane Society. Yahoo!... Now Me and Panini will be happier and we both can keep our Sanity...I will update everyone on her recovery.

Also check out... How to Stop your Cat  Spraying at: http://catsanddogsp.blogspot.com

Hey! Blogging  Backyard birdwatchers.. the Great 2010 Bird Count starts this Month help spread the word.
for more info go to....
http://www.birdcount.org


I had fun participating in the backyard bird count. 

Here's my list for February 12th 2010.

Downy Woodpecker - 1)   Black-capped Chickadee - 2)    White-breasted Nuthatch - 2)  Fox Sparrow -   House Sparrow - 50...Those darn House sparrows are taking over my yard!

February 14th:  American Crow - 4 spotted them in Harper woods)   American Robin - 40 saw these in Roseville Michigan outside of  a Tim Horton's.     On the 15th.. No new sightings.

I really enjoyed the bird count because it made me extra alert and I had spotted my feathered friends who I had not seen since 2007/08. The white breasted  Nuthatch couple I call Ben and Brenda was high up in a tree scouting for the black oil seeds that they must have planted in the bark during those years...I was happy to see them again.

I also looked for the return of my feathered friend the Red breasted Nuthatch....I named  Bandit.
He was fearless at my feeder and showed up around the same year in 2007/08..as  Ben and Brenda..
perhaps Bandit  will show up at a later date.

  I look forward  to participating  again next year.

Good bye groundhog!

                                                      

Groundhog... you saw your shadow today and now we have six more weeks of winter! well ground hog... I'm use to having very..very.. long winter months here in Michigan...so I can take six More weeks... but won't like it...So next year I'm changing this Tradition and replacing you with a chipmunk!....Yes!....I said chipmunk"....They are cute and chirp like little birds and just like you they sleep underground.



photo credits:  Carl & Art's photo stream , http://www.flickr.com/photos/wiredwitch/with/2468541176/



They too" are done sleeping in February and are wide awake and ready for action! So good bye  Groundhog! and  Say  Helloooo".. to my little friend!

  

 

                                                                               

originally uploaded  by Krittergirl of  Flickr.

                    

Where Do Birds Go At Night?

Cardinal 2,
originally uploaded by Jimbo1239.

The last couple of days here in Michigan's zone 5.. were very nasty and fierce! with lows in the teens and high winds!

During weather like this I often wonder about my feathered friends who visit my feeders and I'm sure I have asked the same questions that other bird and nature lover's have... Where do birds go at night once they are finished feeding in the evening?   are they warm?... are they safe? ...will they die in this weather?

I searched the internet for some answers and my favorite store.. Wild birds unlimited surfaced and their site provided some important answers and tips that gave me a little piece of mind...Please click on the title in the header ( Where do birds go at night? ) and it will take you to the article.

Once you're done there..you may want to check out and view Marsha's garden photos titled....

"It's Cold Outside!   ( http://marshagarden.blogspot.com/2010/01/its-cold-outside.html )

 she has captured some wonderful and interesting photo's of some very chilly looking little birds.   I have never, every..witnessed birds with frost around their eyes and faces... check it out if you like.

P.S I hope you enjoy the lovely photos of nature that I'm using on my blogs..courtesy of Flickr until I upgrade to a digital camera..If you  don't mind, please share with me what camera you like to use to  photo what you love...Thank you I will greatly appreciate it

How do birds stay warm in the winter

Montreal Winter Bird,
originally uploaded by andskates.

January weather in Michigan is not really a surprise to me, every year I come 
 to expect it,  because it has always been a cruel and mean one, however, I was not prepared for yesterday's weather...Arctic like weather with wicked high winds blasted us with temperatures in the low teens...16 degrees that felt like 5!

 Dressed from head to toe in extra winter garments, I made a mad dash to purchase extra birdseed and cocoa.   I was so happy to arrive back  home were I settled down in some cozy socks, Pj's, my robe and a cup of piping hot cocoa.

I sat in my bedroom chair that faces my back window.. This is one of my favorite rooms to sit and watch the activities and antics of my feathered friends, squirrels and those stubborn cats that come through.

I watched the cardinals feeding from a  tree stump I placed against the back fence...The sparrows, purple and gold finches all ate from the feeder, while three junco's ate below.

They all amazed me as I watched them feed, fight and hop around as if it was a spring day!

How I pondered...is it, that these small creatures with their thin little bodies could withstand such extreme temperatures? ... How? ? ?

I could not and would not rest until I found the answer..so to the net I went, and here is the answer I found to my question.

Haven't you seen birds fluffing their feather's?..... Well, each time they perform this action, air is trapped between the feathers. This trapped air acts to insulate much like a down filled coat or sleeping bag and that's all there is to  it... Nature has equipped and designed them to handle the Winter weather.

Now.... if I could just stop wondering where they sleep at night once they leave the feeders". hmmm" maybe I should just enjoy watching and feeding them and let Mother nature handle her business.

Happy New Year! to All here on blogger

Here's Wishing You more happiness than all my words can tell, not just alone for New Years Eve, but for all the years as Well.

Garden Bloom Day 2009

 It's time to post for our host Carol of Garden Bloom Day. A day that the garden blogging community share with viewers on the 15th of every month what's blooming in their gardens.

Here in the Northeast zone 5b, plants are all sleeping awaiting springs arrival so no blooms to show, but here are a few pictures of my beautiful Barberry. ( Berberis thunbergii) "It's a thorny devil," and I once thought about removing it.

Thanks to it's thorniness my desire to remove it was put off until I forgot to remove it all together.. I'm now thankful that I forgot, because its gorgeous Red berries add color and texture to what is now a colorless winter scene. Winter snow would have made a striking back ground and photo for this shrub but it has not snowed here in Michigan yet.

Here's a little History about the Barberry shrub I thought I would share with you.  The Barberry is associated with the Berbers, who cultivated it on the African cost of Barbary.

The Moonshine Designs Nursery located in Milan, Illinois,  discovered that Hummingbirds, like to nest in their barberry shrubs for they have found small walnut size nest in their nursery plants from time to time.


 It makes an excellent protective hedge..I can attest to that, and deers will not touch it.

There are fifty spices of Barberry grown in the US.

They are often used to hold slopes and banks.

They are used in making candles because of their scent. 

The ripe fruits are used to make jelly, uumm ..now that's very interesting and something that I must investigate.

In India they are dried and eaten like raisins.

 It's Medicinal...it has a high concentration of berberine a hormonal substance that fights diseases and infections and is used by naturopaths to treat dysentery.

Wow! and I once thought that this was just a pretty bush of thorns that I found annoying, I have certainly change my views about it.

If some of you crafty bloggers out there have made scented Candles or Jelly  from this shrub, please write me about it.  I would love to hear from you and thanks for stopping by my blog.

The Day We Broke Tradition

Since my childhood it has been my families Tradition to purchase a natural Christmas tree.  It's pine fresh scent filled the house putting us in the mood for Holiday cheer and since our Mother's home was the place for family gatherings it was customary to sat up a tree in her home.

A couple of winters ago we were hit by an unexpected storm the very week we needed to shop for a tree.

 Frigid bone chilling winds blew Icy flurries across our faces and through our bodies as we Shook, Shivered and Shake our way from one tree vendor to another.

We were astonished by the quality of trees that were offered. They were in poor shape and every vendor we approached seemed to have them.

There were trees that were so dry if you Sneezed the vibration would sat them on fire!
Hundreds of trees with missing pine needles were sprayed with blue green paint and scores of knotty crooked trees so knotty and so crooked a squirrel would risk injury if it attempted to climb one.

This was not the norm..we never had trouble purchasing a natural tree in the past.

Chilled to the bone and close to frostbite, one of my sister's suggested that we do something we had  never done before.. Purchase an artificial tree!

So off we went to find our artificial tree, agreeing to stop at the first retailer we came across.
Back at moms we pulled the tree from the box that came with three dissected pieces that we had to put together.

when we were done ... It looked nothing like the fabulous tree on the box, but after a little more tweaking and decorating we had a tree we could be proud of.

I have a new appreciation for the artificial tree.. They are crafted to look like the ones found in nature and unlike the natural tree they save you time, money and clean up.


I have not abandoned my tradition and love for the real thing..but it is nice to know that I have an alternative when I need one.

Got gnats?

 Got gnats?.. last year I had plenty ..This year I have None!   Thanks to some simple tips that saved my plants and my sanity.   Fungus gnats are a specie of gnat that are commonly found indoors.  I saw these gnats everywhere. They occupied my home, taking up residents in my houseplants and my basement.  At my local garden centers I spotted them flying around the latest arrival of  plants.

 I found them annoying but my lack of knowledge concerning their existence didn't give rise to any specific concerns or red flags! In my inexperienced  mind..  these insects were just a part of life, bugs came with the territory..

You got plants..You Got dirt..You Got gnats and other critters that like your plants as much as you do.  This concept almost caused me to lose my Chinese evergreen a plant I purchased for it's noted ease of care and beauty.   I purchased it from  my local home and garden store it was dense and beautiful.  It's unique contrast of dark and light green patterns on broad pointy leaves,  make it a stunning specimen and  I was thrilled to own it.  

After about a week or two, it suddenly became limp and turned yellow. I was mortified!, What have I done!  did I over water it?   I stared at it in total anguish and disbelief.... Maybe I have it placed in to much light?.. Maybe the room is to drafty?   If  it's sick why?  it was fabulous a week or so ago!  What happened!  
Oh my God please don't tell me that I just killed this beautiful plant!

                
                          Chinese Evergreen -Aglaonema

I decided to get to the bottom of this literally...I grabbed some news paper, purchased new soil and got out my planting equipment. As I prepared my table for dissecting my evergreen..I surveyed and studied my other collection of  houseplants which are Golden and Marble queen pothos, English Ivy, a Jade, Ponytails, and a few Cactus.  Gnats were flying around and sitting on most of my houseplants and they appeared fine but I wasn't taking any chances they too were getting a check up.

I grabbed my evergreen and begin moving some of the top soil around to check for crawling nemesis..as I did so a couple of gnats emerged out of the soil followed but a dozen others!  I began to dig a little deeper and every inch reviled more gnats!   I had a gnat infestation  and I feared the same fate for all the other plants.  My first step was to search the net for some info on this matter and the solution I found was surprisingly simple.

Neem oil was my choice for an insecticide simply because it's organic and non-toxic to me and my environment.

                                      
                                     
                                  Jade- crassula ovata
   

 I removed all the soil from my evergreen completely, sprayed it's roots with Neem oil and placed it in new soil. This step was repeated with all my other houseplants.  For I read that by the time you have discovered a gnat flying around your plants there maybe a nursery of baby gnats already present in your soil.

Days passed and all of my plants rebounded with-out incident except my Jade and Chinese evergreen.  They continued to falter, leaves shriveled up and fell from my jade and the evergreen continued to yellow and go limp and a third of it rotted and died.

Desperate I returned to the internet for some answers and learned that certain plants are very sensitive to some pesticides, even those that are derived from botanical sources, so please take care to learn your plants sensitivities and  read the care instructions before applying any insecticide/pesticide.

 I  soaked the roots of both the jade and evergreen in a shallow pan of water hoping to remove traces of the Neem.  In the mean time I search the internet again and found an answer and solution that was So simple, and So darn easy I felt stupid when I finished reading it.

I was instructed to allow the soil in my houseplants to dry out completely between watering and to add a little sand to help improve drainage.

 Fungus gnats love and thrive on moist soil, moist organic matter and dampness, which are perfect mediums for them to lay eggs.   Dry and well drained soil prevents this problem.. gnat eggs won't survive and will die in dry soil. This solution worked so well for me I no longer needed any insecticide to deter them!  I only watered them when they were almost bone dry!  a risky undertaking but one that work for me.

 It has been a year since this incident and this winter my Chinese evergreen is green once again although not bushy and full  like it was when I first purchased it and my Jade is putting out new leaves.  Yippy!

So here are a few simple tips to help you keep gnats out or cut down their populations if they are already present  in your home.

When possible purchase the lightest soils you can find because Some houseplant soils that are frequently sold at our garden centers are too heavy and hang on to water and if gnats are already dancing around plants in the store..duh! pass them by!

Watch for leaking facets and other sources wear water tends to leak. keep an eye on places like your attic and basement for creatures such as dead birds and vermin.
Mops, kitty litter pans and garbage cans attract these tiny critters as well so keep them clean and dry!

 Thank you for stopping by my blog do leave a quick hello I'd love to hear from you.

The Avenue trees in mists and sun

  The Avenue trees in mists and sun originally uploaded by algo.

  "Yesterday's the past and tomorrow's the future. 

Today is a gift which is why they call it the present"

    source unkown..

I'm Thankful for

Happy Thanksgiving to all who blog here at blogger.com

First and foremost, I'm Thankful that my family and friends near and far are here to celebrate the Thanksgiving Holiday with me once again.

 I'm Thankful for the unusual warm winter weather that we have had this November. It's a November that I won't forget. I have never walked out side in a jacket in the month of November here in Michigan,  nor have I ever witnessed flowers still happily blooming in the ground and in my containers.

  I enjoyed the pictures and blogs submitted for Carol's blog and host of Bloom Day, for many gardener's especially for those of us who live in the harsher winter climates were also in awe of the weather. The photo's and blogs that were submitted were entertaining, witty and artistic.

P.S  Thank you  Monica, Carolyn, Carrie, Carol and Sue for welcoming me with your friendly responses and tips you all left on my blogs and email...If I've forgotten anyone, I thank you too.

What's Bloomimg in my Garden

                               White Geraniums 

                  White Alyssum  in strawberry pot

I'm new to blogger and today I just  learned about the Garden Bloggers Bloom day that begins on the 15th of every month hosted by Carol who is passionate about plants.  It's a place were garden Blogger's  summit  photos and blogs of their gardens in bloom. So here's my blog about what's blooming in my garden.

I live in the state of Michigan where winter's are long, mean and brutal to all that reside here..people, pets and plants alike.   A month ago I made my usual  fall and winter preparations, cleaning my yard of debris, trimming, pruning plants and putting my garden tools away in their proper places.


   A lovely pink annual that I forgot the name of

 This ritual never fails to make me melancholy,  I hate to see the Summer go, for I have  to wait so long for it's return.  The entire month of October, I continued my ritual while waiting for winter's icy breath.  A sharp chilly breeze  blew across my face, signaling to me, that winter is not far away.



              Cobbweb hens and chicks.

It's now November 15th,  just 10 days away from Thanksgivings and I'm still waiting, but not looking forward to winter's return. 40, 50, and 60 degree temperatures are unusual and uncharacteristic for Michigan weather this time of year.   Mother nature has prolonged my joy and  my time in the garden allowing me to walk outdoors in my spring jacket in place of a heavy coat, flip flops instead of boots, and the best prize of all a  garden still in bloom!

I'm a Chocoholic

I'm a Chocoholic and have loved chocolate since I was a little girl.  It is one of my favorite desserts, treat, or snack.

During the Holidays such as Easter and Christmas, I loved to bite off the ears of hallow milk chocolate bunnies and  the heads of solid chocolate Santas.  At six I had a grown-ups palate and while my siblings all vied for the hard stuff that stuck to your teeth like ..Candy canes, Lollipop and Jellybeans..

I'd pass them up for my Aunt Lillian's Home made German chocolate cake or beg my mother out of her favorite chocolate pecan turtles.                                                  
  Another favorite was Mom's Hot chocolate made the good old fashioned way with cocoa powder and milk, than topped off with marshmallows. ..mmm"

 I can always find an occasion but don't need a reason to indulge in my favorite treat, whether I'm feeling blue" stressed"  bored" or just happy as a lark" there's a chocolate treat to fit my mood...So with this in mind, I will be  starting a chocolate blog soon with all the chocoholics like myself  in mind. http://vetsyluvschocolate.blogspot.com


 So ..what is your favorite chocolate fix? ... Here are a few of mine..Chocolate Almonds, Peacans, Cookies, Pretzels, Milk chocolate, Chocolate cherries, German Chocolate cake, and  Double chocolate anything!

A Novice plant and garden lover.

 

I'm a novice gardener and houseplant lover that is not a green thumb, though I try very hard to be.  Gardening and growing plants is one of my favorite hobbies because it relaxes me and helps me meditate. it's a family trait and I'll never foresake it no matter how many plants I kill!

I'm very proud of my current house plants because they try to die on me every winter. The reason is due to I assume .. is my lack of knowledge, lack of sunshine, and  long dark cold ugly gray Michigan winter months.   Last winter I finally learned to stop over watering my plants during this time no matter how dry, ruff and ugly my plants appeared .

During the summer months I like to be spontaneous and just grow what I like. I have tried to make plans during the dormant season, but soon forget them or change them altogether once me and the plants thaw out in the spring.

1. Solar dog and flower pots. 

                                            

                                   

How we became Cat people

My family and I became Cat people unintentionally.  Cats have a way of adopting people and we seem to be a highly regarded choice on their adoption list.  Stray cats and neighbor's cats alike would find their way into our home and hearts whether we wanted them there or not.

Some were just visitors, dropping in just to say hello, or to get a free handout or a  pat on the head and off they would go.. back to their homes or some other unknown destination.

Then there were the rolling stones. They were the cats that pretended they never had owner's.. Never had a caring helpful human soul to love, pamper and feed them... therefore we had to do it.

Then there came the Feral,  aka.. Alley cats.  Some found us.. while others were found and given to us by friends and other family members such as my kid brother who always brought them home but managed to mysteriously disappear when it was his turn to change the cat litter.

 Oh" the adventures we had with the feral's....there were the Wild..The Fearful.. The Shy.. The Moody.. the Slicer, the Mad, the Talker, the Stalker..The list of these characters and the stories behind these cats that became our pets goes on and on ...and one thing for sure, we learned a lot about cats along the way and we  never  had a dull moment.

I visited the Cats And Dogs blog at  (catsanddogsp.blogspot.com.) because I'm currently a cat owner seeking some info on dog breeds.  Next  year I hope to own a small dog as well.

I love this site/blog.. it is very educational, informative, funny and fun. The  photos of the sweetest most adorable looking cats and dogs will leave you spellbound. You will be entertained and educated at the same time. I would encourage anyone seeking to learn more about pets, pet problems, pets for children or pets  in general to take a look at this blog.