It has taken years for this ‘Spider’s Web’ Fatsia japonica to look this healthy. I pulled it out a few feet from the corner to give it more room and rain.
I guess that was a good call. I am fascinated by varieagated leaves. Each leaf has its own pattern of white.
This Fatsia finally looks happy.
I will not get to Wildwood until Monday afternoon. The un-landscaping crew comes in Tuesday morning. I am anxious about keeping the names with the plants.
I have made two name tags for each plant. One is for me to attach to the plant itself. The other is for the handle of its new container. I have ordered various sizes of fabric pots and sturdy paper bags with handles. Unlabeled and mislabeled plants will not be adopted by serious gardeners.
Doing this part of the job early is giving me some peace. Once these daylilies and other perennials are safely moved inside the fence, I can take my time rehabbing them and rehoming them.
I made lists of what plants are in each bed from memory. These gardens have been my joy for over thirty year. I have planted, cared for, and photographed each of these plants many times. I know them well.
On nights when I could not sleep, I walked my gardens in my mind and named each plant. That is how well I know my green friends. Knowing they will be safe is the goal. What happens next is up to me, not the herd.
In May, I hauled two of my favorite daylilies up the mountain. I looked in the garden where they should have been and saw only tiny, thin, green shoots. The deer have favorites, too. They ate these two as they emerged from the ground.
Now, ‘Nowhere to Hide’ and ‘Changing Latitudes’ are safe and healthy with me. There are deer here as well, so I will be bringing these back down the mountain to stay inside the fence on Wildwood.
FLOWER’s flowers will be safe soon.
Sigh
More changes are coming. No shift stands alone. Even if you are in control of the first move, you have less control of the effects. Sometimes I refer to this as a cascade.
The Butterfly Effect is real. Although it sounds ridiculous that a butterfly flapping its wings can cause a tornado, a small shift in one part of a system can result in a large change elsewhere.
I have witnessed this over and over. I know to expect the unexpected. Any instability can cause chaos eventually. A subtle, barely noticeable change can turn drastic over time.
So being the proactive person that I am, I respond with what I call “turtle mode.” I get very quiet and still and hide while peeking out to see what happens. Until I have a grasp of the new situation, I try to just be an observer. This may seem reactive, but why fight the tide as it comes in?
I will be moving most of my plant collection next week, Mr. Flower will officially retire and the house next door in our neighborhood of three is for sale. That sounds like a tornado to me!
FLOW in her shell
We spent the perfect day in a charming little town in the North Carolina mountains. We have never visited West Jefferson before. We will be going back.
The place and the people were lovely.
There are shops full of art and clothing.
If you get hungry or thirsty there are quite a few cafes and ice cream shops and a giant cheese, candy and wine store.
I was there to see the many murals. I did not photograph all of them.
Flowers were planted in containers and planters everywhere. These were amazingly well-maintained. That feat impressed me since it is almost July.
I had to pause several times to keep from getting overwhelmed. There was so much to see! I am glad it was not crowded on a Tuesday afternoon.
What a great way to spend a day!
FLOWER
I love this easy plant for many reasons. It is not needy. It self sows.
It mixes with other Bellamcanda to make various colors.
Its spent flower petals twist into little buns on the stalk/peduncle.
It gets its name from the fact that after its seed pods burst open, the shiny black seed clusters look like blackberries. (not shown)
Orange freckled is the wild type. Other variations my be called Candy lilies.
FLOWER loves Bellamcanda
I had heard about Apple Hill Farm from many sources. I decided it was time for a visit, when a member of the writing group I am in wrote a poem about a donkey there named Buckeroo.
I have always loved donkies and wanted to meet one that was poem worthy. Buckeroo did not disappoint, but my heart was stolen instantly by a baby Angora goat named Ethel.
The main attraction of the farm is the gorgeous alpacas. They had just been sheered so looked very sleek and clean.
The all the farm animals are guarded by donkies, and great Pyrenees dogs.
There was one cow, two “miniature” pigs and two horses to finish out the menagerie.
The fibers from the lamas, alpacas and goats are spun into fibers. These are sold as skeins or made into clothing items.
The socks, hats, etc. are sold in one of the barns at the farm or at the Apple Farm Outpost in Banner Elk.
Mr. Flower and I enjoyed our outing with the alpacas…
FLOWER
We went to a near-by farm to pick organic blueberries. We have done this for years. They give you your own bucket, then you lose yourself in the blueberry forest and pick off any row.
Each row is labeled by its hybrid name. When you are done you take your full buckets to the gazebo and pay for what you picked (that you did not eat.)
I lost Mr. Flower in the blueberry forest. He was silently picking while others chattered away. I finally spotted his legs down an empty row.
I heard a little voice several rows over claim that he had picked one hundred thousand blueberries. A group of women were joking that they were picking only off the ‘Climax’ rows.
I have been eating my blueberries several times a day. They are delicious!
I love gathering my own food from its source. I am grateful to all the people that grow our food. My family would starve if I had to grow and harvest our sustenance.
Nature takes what it wants, no matter how much you need it.
FLOW may turn blue
My daddy wanted those two maple trees down for decades. We scolded him about wishing to kill trees in someone elses’ yard. He kept wanting to call the owners and ask to have them removed. We did not want to insult our neighbors, so we discouraged him.
If I had not skipped Zumba this morning, I would have missed this monumental event. What a shock that would have been to walk out on the porch after the trees disappeared. I was here to watch and document the whole thing. I took photos and videos and sent them to the family. I called Mr. Flower and my sis. Yes, I cried…tears of joy.
I just wish Bop was here to see one of those maples go down. It was hooked to a crane, cut, lifted and chipped up in a matter of minutes. This was unbelievable after wishing the tree gone for decades to see it disappear within minutes.
My mountain has had lightning trouble. We had a poplar struck several years ago. Our neighbor also had one struck last year. A house across the hollow was struck recently. It left a big gash in the ground. Stay tuned for that.
So one of the hated maples and a row of cedars disappeared across the street. I watched from the porch. I take my role as the neighborhood’s Gladys Kravitz seriously.
We have many big trees on our property. I know who to call to get them removed if needed.
I hope Daddy was watching!
FLOWER with a new view
My daughter, Rose, sent these photos yesterday evening of our herd settling down for the night. Only eleven of the fourteen are in this group. As you can see, this is their habitat. My job now is too remove my artificial food source.
I am making decisions about what stays and what goes in the gardens. The criterion is
Do the deer eat it?
If the deer eat it, it will be removed. My favorite daylilies will be moved inside the fence. The rest will be given away. I also have deer on the mountain, so I will not be taking any there.
Now that the herd is more hungry and less finicky, they are eating plants they used to ignore.
Here is the purge list:
Solomon seal
Lily of the Valley
Daylilies(except favorites)
Tiger lilies
Hydrangeas
Sedums (not in pots)
I refuse to be part of the problem any longer.
I have spent enough time and money deterring the herd.
FLOW KNOWS WHEN TO SAY WHEN
floweralley 