Grand Rapids garden
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What’s Bloomin’ on Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day?
What’s bloomin’? Spring stuff! This past winter was difficult for me. The cold seeped deeper this year. Or perhaps it just seemed that way because I had to go out into it more often. I adopted a second Standard Poodle that I wasn’t prepared for. She needed a place to live and I needed to Continue reading
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Hello, Garden
As always, a thank you to May Dreams Gardens for celebrating a monthly accounting of what is blooming in gardens all over the world. It’s April 15 and Michigan played a trick on us. The skies are oxygen blue and cloudless, but the garden is covered in four to six inches of heavy wet snow. Continue reading
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Catching the Late Afternoon Sun
Wandered through the gardens yesterday, camera in hand. Here’s how the light played. Continue reading
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First Snow Flakes
I didn’t think we were quite ready to see snow flakes, but as I was sipping coffee and reading the NY Times on-line, fluffy white flakes floated past my window. I still have roses blooming! I’ve known roses to bloom until Christmas if the weather has been mild. But it is early November and while Continue reading
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Sunny Sunday and Lovin’ the Lilies
Temps have come down a bit–into the mid-80’s. And the humidity is better. I had a little get-together for neighbors Friday night and it was so pleasant in the garden. So, good company and companions make for a lovely evening. The day lilies are in their glory. But I’m discovering that my record keeping last Continue reading
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Shredded bark makes the garden pop!
Yesterday was mulch day and the garden looks wonderful with its fresh new covering. And, four more arborvitae went in yesterday, too, with a little help from the guys who brought the mulch. They also moved the broken fountain into the secret garden. A friend tonight suggested I try aquarium glue on it. It won’t Continue reading
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View from above
I took this photo from the balcony this morning. It indicates that I forgot to put the perennial spade in the garage last night, and I left a container out, too. Sigh. But it also shows the lines of the lower garden and the Secret Garden. I can barely see the new rose I bought Continue reading
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The first roses
I can’t believe how big the hansa roses are. And they are starting to bloom. It’s barely May and I have roses! The bridal veil spirea is also blooming. It’s going to need some pruning in a couple of weeks. There’s a nice Francis Williams hosta that is buried under the veil and needs to Continue reading
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Bleeding Heart
Three or four years ago I planted two bleeding hearts in a little corner. Behind it is an old rambler rose that a neighbor gave me the first summer I moved in. It is doing well, but the bleeding heart is thriving. I planted another one behind the garage in a little corner, but it Continue reading
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An Early Spring
My glorious magnolia is in full bloom, two weeks ahead of schedule. I’ve been worried that it would get nipped by frosty nights, but so far, it has stayed clothed in fragrant pink blossoms. The old girl can still put on a show. And so can the old cherry tree in the backyard. In fact, Continue reading
About Me
I haven’t always been a gardener, but I have always loved gardens. It has taken 16 years to get my gardens into the shape they are today. And, I’ve had help. I’m 74 years old, have rheumatoid arthritis, and had a late stage cancer six years ago. I am, though, intrepid. I’m the kind of person who plods along, tailoring my goals as I go. Last November I had a long overdue knee replacement surgery and I’m hoping this spring, summer, and fall will be able to maintain and find even more joy working in all of my garden beds. Full disclosure, though. I have a garden guy who comes once a week to work in my gardens.
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