tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13974692177817112172009-12-15T11:19:42.248-05:00Planting seeds, bulbs and rooted pieces; dividing perennials, striking cuttings; always learning -- in the GardenNellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.comBlogger550125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-36077071360565339722009-12-15T00:23:00.001-05:002009-12-15T00:36:31.674-05:00

Despite some light frosts, there hasn't been a hard freeze. Roses persisted into December as have some other pretties. These are my favorites, mid-December. Sunny Knockout and a red leaf From upper left: last Climbing Peace bud, tipped with red after a frost, red rose from a rootstock where the graft failed; Knockout, and Gene Boerner in the lower left corner. A Sulphur on the last of

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-15161338322525736482009-12-13T20:38:00.003-05:002009-12-13T20:46:41.664-05:00

90% preferred to see  photos belonging to the blogger; nobody wanted to see pictures ‘borrowed’ from the internet. 85% would like to see pictures with captions. Only 19% indicated that they liked mostly text with few pics and 23% liked photos alone, no text. No one wanted to see items for sale. Only 14 percent wanted to see pics of pets in the garden – sorry, sometimes Buffy and Ike just will

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-81058790377265003412009-12-13T05:59:00.006-05:002009-12-13T05:59:01.660-05:00

Planning for year-around blossoms -- well, almost -- and providing nectar for butterflies in the months where they are about can be a real challenge. I'm discussing it in December to facilitate planning for spring blooms. Town Mouse mentioned the importance of consistant amounts of nectar for butterflies and pollinators in a comment on my previous post about gardening for butterflies. That's one

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-51250200739875740792009-12-11T05:32:00.002-05:002009-12-12T07:11:12.785-05:00

Please take a Second Look at mine and at Others. My 'Exotica' amaryllis has opened two blossoms each stem, with more to come. They look so sophisticated, I wish I had an important Christmas party at which they could star. Red Amaryllis used to be the standard for Christmas bloom. Other colors are popular now, and the familiar bell shaped blooms are now in other interesting configurations. The

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-51058665362490421422009-12-10T09:25:00.000-05:002009-12-10T09:25:08.125-05:00

Now that it's too late to chill tulips, I think longingly of the tulips I once grew. I had to prove to myself that I could bring tulips to bloom in a hot, humid climate where there is insufficient winter chill, maybe because nobody around me tried to grow tulips. My mother successfully grew tulips in the cooler, northern part of the state, why couldn't I grow them here? Chill one week for

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-18481172988585270492009-12-08T20:29:00.003-05:002009-12-08T21:10:30.483-05:00

A short tutorial for Blotanical members with questions: Picks are the oil that runs Blotanical, determining the most popular of easily chosen blog Posts from multiple lists. Clicks determine the most popular blogs of the week, and the past 24 hours, by number of actual visits to the blog. Picks quickly add points for those aspiring to a higher rank. Picks do not count as visits, because picks

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-29975070590644232312009-12-08T17:50:00.000-05:002009-12-08T17:50:35.215-05:00

Despite the recent freeze, the calendar still indicates it is fall for a few more days. Buffy and I took to the woods yesterday. Buffy found the scent of something to give fruitless chase; I found color remaining in the woods, including sumac and sweet gum. A small grove of ancient magnolias, at right, tall and thin because of crowding. Back at the house, we found color in the

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-44550760865271516732009-12-07T12:48:00.000-05:002009-12-07T12:48:10.564-05:00

I wasn't going to have an Amaryllis this year, until I saw the bulbs in a bin at Ramona's Flint River Nursery. They had sprouted in the warm room. She said the ones she'd potted and put outside in the cool didn't have buds yet. When I got home, I called back and asked her to put the two bulbs with the tallest sprouts aside for me. Lying in a cardboard bin, they'd sprouted into a curve, trying

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-35280865674078400452009-12-06T03:55:00.000-05:002009-12-06T03:55:00.388-05:00

I was reading the blog of Tim at A Chef in the Garden and saw his beginning Stumpery. Stumpery? Whoever thought? Prince Charles, for one. Prince Phillip asked him when he was going to burn that lot when he saw it. I searched for Stumpery images and found some interesting uses for stumps and roots and such left from clearing land. One that I found looked somewhat like my Stick House before I

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-70114941811574901362009-12-04T16:15:00.003-05:002009-12-05T18:11:18.489-05:00

Meems, of Hoe and Shovel, whose garden is always an inspiration to me, suggested that we join her in Twelve Days of Christmas in the Garden. I interpreted this meme to display a year's worth of blossoms, going back to 2008 for some of my favorite pics along with more recent views. Right now the garden is in confusion: Hibiscus and Roses blooming alongside Camellias while we wait for that first

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-4230983616950985772009-12-03T04:02:00.004-05:002009-12-03T12:10:02.777-05:00

Diana asked for a closer view of the herb garden's mid-feature, which I call the 'faux fountain.' After a search I located more views of the herb garden from its earlier days. Some things are best viewed through vaseline glass, but here you are, we're among friends. Updating, the culinary sage has died out and needs more grown from seed. Thyme remains and Oregano, not shown, is good. Parsley 

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-3079034617874607672009-12-02T14:27:00.005-05:002009-12-02T14:34:27.842-05:00

A partial list of some books in my garden that I've had for many years, or picked up in a Library sale somewhere. I didn't list the ancient textbooks, nor many of the late 20th century garden books on my shelves. I've given away some of my books once I decided that I would focus on regional books better suited to southern gardening. There are others that I wish I had bought before they went out

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-68619171568257896212009-12-01T08:50:00.001-05:002009-12-02T20:43:05.193-05:00

Pantone Color Institute predicts that “Aurora,” “Tomato Puree,” and “Eucalyptus” will be the hot colors for spring/summer 2010, according to an article on CNNMoney.com. Aurora is a yellow tinted with green that gives off a burst of energy. Tomato Puree is a red that can be paired with Turquoise, another Pantone hot hue, for a retro look. Eucalyptus is a cool and classic hue. Other colors

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-55961825126673594062009-11-30T14:38:00.002-05:002009-12-05T18:48:30.491-05:00

The predicted freeze failed to take out lingering pretties. Butterflies came out to play again yesterday when the sun warmed the garden. I found more flowers that begged display here. Randy of Randy and Meg's Paradise Garden put forth the possibility of butterflies getting their name from Sulphurs, who look like pats of butter, nectaring here yesterday on Lantana montevidensis. Even a

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-47474962483949825372009-11-29T21:00:00.000-05:002009-11-29T21:00:04.574-05:00

I was chosen by Anna of Green Tapestry and Pam of Pam's English garden as a 'Best Blog' site. I appreciate the honor, and the time and thought they put into their choices. http://www.pamsenglishgarden.com/ http://greentapestry.blogspot.com/ I'm linking back to them so that you may visit those Best Blogs, too. My Best Blog choices are on my sidebar, too many good ones to choose just 15. Now,

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-39578901500002138222009-11-29T17:02:00.001-05:002009-11-29T17:19:39.787-05:00

What? Butterflies are gone for the season? Think about that next spring! Maybe not. One early spring night I went out to photograph hyacinths in the dark. When I came inside, there were Sulphur butterflies in the pics. Hyacinths are a choice for nectar plants. I'm about to plant more hyacinths. Parsley can be started inside or seed scattered outside to come up later as a potential spring host

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-2634089589492048202009-11-28T19:26:00.002-05:002009-11-28T19:29:58.964-05:00

Here are the rest of the pics from when I finished pulling up Madagascar periwinkles because I could not bear to see them all black and ruined when the freeze predicted for today came. I was asked about planting poppy seeds and other spring annuals. When I pull up summer annuals that are done, the soil is crumbly like chocolate cake, ready for scattering seeds for the next season. I try to

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-40419841850946215802009-11-27T12:12:00.004-05:002009-11-27T12:19:37.309-05:00

People who dislike fruitcake just never had a Golden Fruitcake, which has neither candied fruit peel nor candied citron. Citron is a nuisance melon that grows wild here. One ingredient in Proper Fruitcake does grow in my garden: Pecans. "As Christmas time approached, Sook made elaborate fruitcakes, dark and blond, to be given away to important people, and some not so important. This

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-15152563937839431152009-11-26T11:44:00.000-05:002009-11-26T11:44:54.109-05:00

The sun hit dewdrops on a spiderweb, sparkling like diamonds on a rosebush with little rose hips adding color. One last yellow Eclipse rose, also with dewdrops. A last Monarch nectars on Camellia sasanqua. Gerbera daisies last hurrah before the freeze. Buffy takes a shortcut through a late-blooming bed of Pentas and Echinacea. A last look at fall colors of crape myrtles, Salvia

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-19102053771117273512009-11-25T09:20:00.002-05:002009-11-25T09:31:00.680-05:00

I knew yesterday, like an expectant mother, that last night would be the night the Epiphyllum oxypetalum would bloom. When I remembered and ran out in my pajamas with the camera with animals following, the fragrance greeted us at the door. Two blossoms, one out of sight toward the floor, were partially open. Buds and a bloom supported by the Epi tree, a permanent structure that supports the

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-43841420524647771892009-11-23T10:08:00.000-05:002009-11-23T10:08:21.302-05:00

The blues is a blending of African and European traditional music characterized by its melancholy (or blue) notes expressing suffering and deprivation. Songs are typically structured in three-line verses, with the third line summing up, or rephrasing, the sentiment expressed in the first two. Beginning in the nineteenth century, blues music developed throughout the southern United States from

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-41222677764938105852009-11-21T16:44:00.000-05:002009-11-21T16:44:00.263-05:00

The first frost date is so uncertain. We know it is coming, will it be tonight or in two weeks? Conservative gardeners try not to leave blossoms to chance. Ground orchids are possibly hardy here, dying back to return in spring, but I want to see them bloom all winter. In a few days, Night Blooming Cereus will open for a single night's glory and fragrance. So many bloggers have blooms on

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-83602374301704172502009-11-20T22:09:00.001-05:002009-11-20T22:11:02.851-05:00

Violas and other winter annuals for the garden started going in today. With help of my able assistant, Buffy, we planted 2 flats of orange violas and 8 variegated purple and orange plants. The grower failed to deliver two flats of yellow for other areas; they'll be ready in two weeks. While I was clearing the bed and raking it smooth, Buffy dug a 3 foot trench a foot deep. I put her in the pen

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-55806807087742737962009-11-19T04:31:00.002-05:002009-11-19T04:31:00.784-05:00

Farmer Danny was picking peanuts in the far north field. You can see the dust between the picker/tractor and the trailers. Very dusty work. Peanuts are plowed up and the roots turned up for the picker to run over. When I looked at the close-up picture I took of the peanuts, I noticed something else. Can you see the deer hoofprints? The night before, after the peanuts were plowed, deer had a

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1397469217781711217.post-85108045255232576442009-11-17T00:45:00.003-05:002009-11-17T00:45:00.476-05:00

A publisher is promoting a new book about meadows in an email newletter. An effusive statement by the reviewer grabbed my attention: "...presents an alternative to the American lawn that is better in every way — better looking, less expensive, drought resistant, friendlier to wildlife, and yes, even good for walking barefoot. Did I mention you never have to mow a meadow?"  [Italics mine. There

NellJeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09000315400392984647noreply@blogger.com22