I am trying to be invisible

I can safely say I am getting the hang of my new camera. Every day presents a photo opportunity, and most times my camera is nearby to take advantage of these times.
There is still much to learn about all the features available on my Kodak Z650 and I am am having a lot of fun exploring them.
What do you think of this photo, not bad Eh?

Does anyone know what kind of spider this is?

I did my homework and have the answer.

Crab Spiders (Family Thomisidae).
There colorful spiders, have a crablike appearance. They generally appear on blossoms, where they blend with their background and pounce on prey that visits flowers.

I should have!

Installed a drip system in my garden a couple of seasons ago.

Up until yesterday I was watering my flower gardens with soaker hoses set on a timer, but found them unsatisfactory as there were areas which did not get enough water and the plants suffered for it, especially after yesterdays heatwave.

Due to the "perspiration dripping off the end of your nose" heatwave of yesterday, the first phase of my irrigation system was installed, up and running by 9pm yesterday. It was way too hot earlier in the day to be playing in the garden, so I waited until the evening hours before attempting this project.

When I first brought booklets home from the hardware store with all the bits and pieces needed for one of these irrigation systems, I was confused about what would work best, but after a visit to the store yesterday, and a chat with a knowledgeable assistant, I came home with a sack full of all kinds of tubing, small mini sprinklers, and bubblers to create my watering system.
As I had already planned out where the tubing sprinklers and bubblers were going to be placed, it took very little time to lay out all the parts, connect them, flush the system, then turn the water on so I could fine tune the direction of the sprinklers. OH! how cool it was to see every corner of my garden get a soaking.

As soon as I am finished with this post, I will go back to the store and get some more tubing and bubblers and other cool stuff to install a branch to all the flower pots by the front porch, and run a line to the front deck where I have more plants in pots. Once installed, I can sit back and not have to worry about dragging that darn hose around the garden to water all the pots and areas the old soaker hoses missed. Bliss, sheer BLISS

Salpiglossis - Royal mix

Once in a while, I find a plant for my garden which is so spectacular that I wish I had known just how beautiful the flowers would be, before they opened up. I would have planted them by the dozen.

One such plant is Salpiglossis or commonly called Painted Tongue.

My pictures do not do the flowers justice, as the color of this one is more of a deep maroon, and the petals look as though they are made from velvet.

This painted tongue is also a deeper shade of red.
Click on the pictures for a closer look.

CAUTION, gardener at work!

I had been giving some thought to what could be done to finish off the tops of the fence posts, and came to the conclusion it was a shame to waste space *grin* so I have anchored flower pots on some of the post tops and have planted them with petunias and hen & chickens. There are still more fence posts needing pots and plants, that project can wait a day or two.
Stop over at Keewee's Garden to see what is going on in the garden this month, (three posts)

This is why

There has not been too much time for blogging the last couple of days as my time has been spent outdoors in the garden.

Our weather has warmed up at last and it makes for a pleasant time pulling weeds, making a run to the garden center, and planting all the new plants. To see pictures (three posts) click on this BUTTON

I think, tomorrow I may enjoy a day of rest.

It's raining gold

This morning I had to drop my car off at the mechanics, so while I waited for my ride home, I walked across the road to the garden center.

This is one time I was happy to have a camera in my purse. Oh! what I wouldn't do to have two arches covered in ?? I stopped to call the garden center to ask the name of the plant. They are actually Golden Rain trees trained to grow over the arches.
Hmmmmm! I wonder if MrC would build me two arches, or I would settle for just one.

How gorgeous Sighhhh!

A few weeks ago I took myself for a drive to wander around Meerkerk Rhododendon Gardens. I was there before peak bloom season, but all the same I did manage to see some spectacular early blooms.
I will just post many pictures and no chatter to distract you from the beauty.

Squeaky clean

Last evening as I left work, a few large raindrops splattered onto my jacket as I walked to my car, and by the time I had driven about halfway home I had to turn the wipers on so I could see. As I drove up the road to our home it really started pelting down. Pulling up into the driveway as near to the front door of the house as I could, without actually driving inside, wish I could have, I decided to sit tight until the deluge passed. I sat, waiting, waiting, waiting, finally said to myself, "Oh nuts, what's a little rain? make a run for it" Pulling the hood of my jacket over my head, I made my run for the front door. Amazing how wet a person can get running just about ten feet.

This morning it has dawned bright and clear, not a rain cloud in sight.
I love to get outside early in the morning after a rainstorm as the whole world is shining like a bright new silver dollar. It seems as though all the birds are singing out their happiness and joy for this bright new day and the mist is rising in the warmth from the rising sun. Robins, especially appear to enjoy the days after a good shower, as they all congregate, with much splashing and chirping in the mud puddle, you can see on the right, for their daily bath.

The garden has been thoroughly watered and washed squeaky clean, and many plants left with diamond drops glistening in the sun. What a beautiful day to enjoy.

Want Not Waste Not

One of my favorite things to do on a beautiful morning, is to take my camera out doors to capture pictures of anything of interest. Today we have one of those mornings, where there is not a hint of breeze, the sun is warm at 6:30am and the birds are singing their little hearts out.

As long as I can remember, I have been in tune with nature, taking an interest in my surroundings, finding beauty in the shape of a leaf, the color and texture of flower petals or the twisted limbs of a tree, the smell of the rich decaying earth of a rain forest, well, you get the idea without me writing a book on the subject.

Talking of want not waste not, MrC had salmon he caught in Juneau Alaska, shipped home in polystyrene containers which have been sitting in the carport for years. One day I was looking at the boxes and one of those "light bulb' ideas came to me, why not use them as planters. MrC said they would not be strong enough, but being the person I am, I had to see for myself if they would hold up. Well as you can see this one is the perfect place for my deck herb garden, the herbs are very happy in their styrene box up against the house, where they get the afternoon sun, and this is the second year I have used this particular box, last year it held grape tomatoes, which also did well.

As I came down off the deck I caught a whiff of Lilac fragrance from the lilac along side the carport. Sure enough the lilac is in full bloom, how lovely it is.

With all the rain we have had this spring, my garden is lush and green. Ferns and hostas are robust in their growth and are competing for the "most beautiful award" as are many other perennials in the gardens.

Color by the Yard

Roozengaarde, at LaConnor Washington, the home of acres and acres of the most breathtaking tulips, is where my friend Joyce and I spent the better part of today. The weather was a balmy 60F or more, making for a pleasant stroll through the garden like setting of all the display bulbs.

As we strolled past the plantings outside the gardens I knew I was in for a treat when we went inside.
The colors and different varieties of tulips are fabulous, I did not realize how many there were.
There are a 1/4 million bulbs planted in the garden to delight visitors.

Now doesn't this look like a little slice of Holland?

Joyce

Wow! I'm in love, add this to my shopping basket.

Stunning, simply stunning.

I want this one too.

Ohhh lookee there, I want some of the yellow ones too.
By this time I thought I was going to get whiplash turning this way and that, to see all these beauties.

And just when I thought I had seen it all, I discovered these four blooms on one stem.
Please add this one to the shopping basket.

Color, color, every where.

Every time I turned around there was another delicious variety and color I could visualize in my garden

I took 86 pictures and I am sure I could have taken many more. I figure 86 should be good for a post or two or three.
Mentally I spent hundreds of dollars, but settled for spending less than one hundred once I arrived home and had a chance to sit down and drool over the catalog. I ordered the tulips I really, really want, and next year I will order my second choice. To tell you the whole truth, I think planting the 160 bulbs I ordered, will be enough work this fall when the bulbs are delivered.

At long Last

The warmth of the sun today, encouraged the tulips to open.
To see more click HERE

To Blog Or Not To Blog, That Is The Question

I am sure all of you have had times, when either finding the time, searching out material, or wanting to post on your blog has almost become a chore. The last few days I have other things to do, one of which is deciding what colors to paint the kitchen. The decision is getting to be more difficult as I really cannot make up my mind what colors to paint the walls. I think I will take pictures and have you, my readers give me some ideas.

I have spent very little time in the garden as it has been too cold to be outdoors for any length of time.
I took this photo at 6:30am this morning. As you see the Tulips are almost open and are teasing me with their promise of color. This is the first year forTulips in this garden, so I am excited to see what colors they will be. I am sure if we have a couple of warm days the petals will open showing me their velvety splendor.

The sound of windchimes

Today is the perfect day to hear the sounds of my windchime collection. In fact it is really almost too windy, as I found out, when I went outside to snap a few pictures, of the new spring blooms, to post on keewee's Garden.

This Oriental looking chime came as a freebie with something I bought years ago

This one belonged to MrC's Mom

A Dollar store find

Brought all the way back from Juneau Alaska

This windchime I bought at our local fair last year.

I intend on adding to my collection. One windchime I am really wanting, is one of those rather large chimes which are hand tuned and have a very deep melodic sound. They are also rather expensive.