Author: anne

Garden Transformation

There are numerous areas of my garden which require attention. This weekend I tackled one. Sometimes it helps me stay motivated to break down a complex task into defined steps and track my project in a before and after. So while this post is really 

Plea of the Ruby Spice Clethra . . . “I’m Not Dead Yet!”

Know any funny stories about gardening? No? I didn’t either until this weekend. Gardening seems a sort of meditative, serious type of practice but I have found there is a lot of humor in it too. Take for example, my recent experience with the Ruby 

. . . and You Think You’re Busy?!

Azalea bush in full bloom. One of the many "busy" inhabitants of our garden.

Lately around our house we have an abundance of life. We have huge azaleas, rhododenrons and peonies in an overwhelming, almost desperate, bloom.

Rhododendron burdened with enormous blooms.
Red peony. A new addition from last year.
Blood red peony. Too amazing for words.

This week, I was taking out the garbage one evening and in the short walk out the back door to the garbage can, a lizard scurried under the steps, large moths were fluttering in the darkness and a frog hopped out of the way of my path to rest on our garden hose. After dumping the trash, I caught something out of the corner of my eye near my foot. As I stooped to inspect, I found a large brown spider carrying an egg sac!

It felt like these creatures were saying to me:

Move it, lady! Can’t you see we’re busy?!


It made me stop to realize how important this time of year is for almost every other life form. Whether they survive next year depends on what happens right now.

It’s the kind of realization that makes you feel very small . . . and a bit claustrophobic too!

Mother’s Day Gift Ideas

While we may tend to think of the “holiday season” in December, one of the most important holidays of the year is now upon us . . . Mother’s Day! Mother’s Day is one of those holidays that you cannot miss. After reading Battle Hymn 

Punched Aluminum Plant Markers

In my garden, sometimes it can be hard to tell the difference between the small plants that are still getting established and the weeds! To both help myself and clarify the situation for visitors, I wanted to create some plant markers that would be both