Wednesday, April 02, 2014

Whence Comes a Plum


With luck (and the birds don't get at it first).

Sunday, June 16, 2013

Tuesday, April 02, 2013

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Mystery Flower Identified! [updated 4-28-13]




Pineapple guava (Acca sellowiana aka Feijoa sellowiana).   Has produced two flowers, but no fruit (yet).

Monday, April 02, 2012

Red Flower Day



Here is our old friend the "cactus orchid," this time in red. The top photo was taken with ambient (day)light. Flash was used for the bottom photo.

With greetings and happy birthday wishes to our most devoted reader. Good health and happiness to you!


Sunday, April 01, 2012

Spring Fail



After numerous attempts resulting in a 99.9% failure rate, we've given up on tulips. The Dutch can keep 'em.

Yes, this is a tulip we grew from a bulb. It is the one tulip that bloomed out of dozens planted over the years. It is the .1% that briefly occupied a spot in the garden. And it is pink. :-(

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Hands-Free Spring Success



No skill required to grow this. Sooner or later, it finds its way into most gardens without human assistance and thrives easily with a bit of sun and water run-off from the irrigation of other plants. Bees visit it and the roots fix nitrogen in the soil, which can benefit other plants.

When I was a child, I found a stem of clover in my mother's garden bearing the legendarily lucky four leaves. I pressed it and carried it in a waxed paper envelope in my wallet for several years until the wallet was lost. It didn't seem so lucky then.