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I just love them. No hummingbirds around here yet, but I can see how they'd be a good match. Lucky you, ruby-throats are my favorite.

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Wonderful creatures. We have one kind that over-winters here but in trying to figure out what kind it is here, I found out that what I'm calling a Ruby throat is a Rufous. Well... it HAS a red throat! When will they come to your area, Soz?

Did you know that Europe doesn't have hummingbirds... anymore?

Quote:

Hummingbirds May Have Originated In Europe
A pair of hummingbird-like fossils have been found (Piffka note: this is from May 2004) in what is now Europe. Found in southern Germany, the fossils demonstrate that these New World birds may have evolved in Europe. Zoologist Gerald Mayr of the Senkenberg Natural History Museum in Frankfurt, Germany, reports in the journal Science that the long, slender beaks and delicate wings of the fossils are startlingly similar to those of the modern hummingbird genus Trochilus. These 30-million-years old fossils are not only the first record of these birds found outside the Americas, but are also the oldest known examples of modern hummingbirds yet found. The announcement has also excited botanists, who believe the presence of hummingbirds in Europe may explain the shape of some Old World flowers today.
from: http://www.calacademy.org/thisweek/archive/2004/20040512.html

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When i was a liddly, living with my grandparents, i was always fascinated by the hummingbirds. We had grape arbors, on which the trumpet vines and morning glories climbed and thrived. In the summer mornings, when the dew still sparkled with a cumulative blaze, i would sit in the wet grass, rapt with the vivid colors of flowers and vines and birds . . .

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Set, You shuda become a wine maker. Wink

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Wine just tears up my stomach, C. I. . . . when i was still little, i could never figure out why we had all these grapes, but only had a quart or two of grape jelly each year . . . i could just not figure out what happened to all those grapes . . .

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Fresh grapes are fine, but it's much better when they are fermented.

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I suspect that health wise, a bit of natural grape juice does the trick, re the grape compounds that do what ever they do.

So, did I mention (I know I did, but I don't remember on what thread) that Dys and Diane have grapes in their freezer? (which of course is none of anybody's business, so I am bad for telling this).

I tried one while I was getting ice cubes... and boy, that was delicious..

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My first lilac blooms!

and the rhubarb is ready for harvest

Hooray!

I think Cleo ate all the flowers off the strawberry plants. Boo!

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today I put together a list of the bulbs/plants that I will put into the bulb garden this fall:
10 tet-a-tete daffodils
18 early snow drocus
10 pulchella iolacea
15 dwarf purple fritillaria
15 snow crocus
5 giant hyacinth mix colours
8 giant jonguils
5 red dynasty tulips
12 grape hyacinths
4 apricot tulips
6 dwarf iris
5 parrot tulips4 gueen of the night tulips
5 hardy glads
8 english wood hyacinth
10 lavender mountain lilies
3 asiatic lilies
8 allium roseum
and 12 tall dutch Iris.
all in a 8' x 8' bed

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WHOA!

That's gonna be poppin' with color.

I assume it rotates according to season?

I trimmed back patch of irises today, following Piffka's advice, looks much better. My hanging basket million bells don't look so good. Not sure if it's the lack of light or lack of water -- I water them a lot but they dry out fast. I worry that my baskets are the problem -- they're pretty, terra cotta, (so I guess pots not baskets, but do you say hanging pot?), but too shallow I think.

Finished up the roll with the flower pics on it so hope to develop and post here soon.

Peonies are starting! Just about my absolute favorite fragrance. The lily of the valley/ irises/ peonies run has been great, fragrance-wise.

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dyslexia wrote:

today I put together a list of the bulbs/plants that I will put into the bulb garden this fall:
10 tet-a-tete daffodils
18 early snow drocus
10 pulchella iolacea
15 dwarf purple fritillaria
15 snow crocus
5 giant hyacinth mix colours
8 giant jonguils
5 red dynasty tulips
12 grape hyacinths
4 apricot tulips
6 dwarf iris
5 parrot tulips4 gueen of the night tulips
5 hardy glads
8 english wood hyacinth
10 lavender mountain lilies
3 asiatic lilies
8 allium roseum
and 12 tall dutch Iris.
all in a 8' x 8' bed

I love Queen of the Night tulips, specially with pure red or white tulips.

Had to see what these pulchella iolacea were -- nice!

They say that if you shake some Virginia Stock seeds over your bulbs every couple of weeks, you'll have a nice cover for the spent leaves. I dunno if you'll need it though, Dys. Wink

Sozobe -- The woman I bought my pre-planted hanging basket told me that the Million Bells didn't like to dry out (said plastic pots were especially hard on them) and not to water when the sun was shining on the leaves because they'd burn. This pot is about seven inches deep, 10-11 inches across (can't get up there without messing with the plant), and is made out of that dark corrugated paperboard.

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Mine's about the same width, but maybe 5 inches deep. Good tip about not watering them with the sun on them, thanks.

That could explain why the urn ones are doing so much better, it's much deeper (maybe 20 inches) and pretty much never dries beyond the first inch or two, if that.

The urn ones are doing GREAT! I made up the combo, it's looking wonderful together and all of the plants are thriving. Already looks much better than when I took pics.

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Urns are nice; I wish I had some. I don't remember the pictures but I'll go back & look. What kinds of plants did you use besides the Million Bells?

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BBB
I had a diseased 10-foot tall Pinion tree removed from the corner of my rear yard yesterday. It was infected with the terrible beetle that is ravaging the Pinon forests in New Mexico. I have three larger Pinions remaining, two in the back yard and one in the sideyard of my corner lot. They all seem to be healthy.

I didn't have the stump ground out. Any suggestions for the best method of killing the stump and roots of the removed tree?

BBB

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I haven't posted pics yet, haven't developed 'em either. Hopefully soon.

I have million bells, (cherry and deep violet)

http://www.pwcertified.com/photolib/MediumJPG/66774.jpg

http://www.pwcertified.com/photolib/MediumJPG/56716.jpg

some snowflake

http://www.pwcertified.com/photolib/MediumJPG/41628.jpg

Verbena:

http://www.pwcertified.com/photolib/MediumJPG/68855.jpg

Geranium:

http://www.pallensmith.com/gardenhome/shows/year03/images/apt302o.jpg

(much deeper pink -- other pics are pictures of the exact brand I got, exact colors, this one's an approximation)

and asparagus fern:

http://www.canadogs.com/images/Asparagus.jpg

Obviously, smaller amounts of each.

Will be listening with interest to suggestions for BBB, one of our little pines (not sure of type) was decimated when branches fell on it during our ice storm. Need to figure out what to do with it.

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took this last night about dark 30: I was sitting on the patio while Lady Diane was hanging candles in the trees. what you see is the fountain/gold fish pond surrounded by some flowers and a couple of the solar powered lanterns in the background:

http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0TgABAxUYfb2WeRybuDCaFxH4wOAWpGYm75LkRSB5aym1Doy9yCGBnVcuU6TaOFtLzWUbT*Y7Z2m*XJbCeeU17OkP5mOHjFPTmhb02W4nVdI2P1gFiBW*hA/evening%20002.jpg

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looking the other direction:

http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0TgD*AhQYPb2WeRybuDCaF8pVKVYNRI9EmobtcI932zCAMsMjVCq!5GvCwEQSmBwDX6aEdNO2YKUy3Nt0gT20Wom1nhRyMrrhQxu*2RwApsCDMnNxbWCwGw/evening%20001.jpg

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Re: BBB

BumbleBeeBoogie wrote:

I had a diseased 10-foot tall Pinion tree removed from the corner of my rear yard yesterday. It was infected with the terrible beetle that is ravaging the Pinon forests in New Mexico. I have three larger Pinions remaining, two in the back yard and one in the sideyard of my corner lot. They all seem to be healthy.

I didn't have the stump ground out. Any suggestions for the best method of killing the stump and roots of the removed tree?

BBB

Grinding is really the best. On a few big fir stumps we tried the method where you drill a few holes in and drop in some nasty chemical but it didn't work and we finally had somebody come back and grind them out.

If you're not too worried about insect infestation, you could always stick a pot of flowers on it... call it good. Very Happy

Sozobe -- those look nice together! I love the asparagus fern. Those are so hardy, too. Great plants. I put a couple of pink verbena in the ground --- ought to check on them.

Putting things in flower pots has been one of my favorite summer projects -- great looking and fun to mix & match the colors & textures.

Dys -- looks like a beautiful evening in your garden.

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Diane: Here's how my twenty five year plus old Christmas cactus looks today-- not at its best, as it is shedding right now. This fall, toward the end of October, it'll send out some new growth along with a few flowers. It's nicknamed Old Timer, and is placed out in the backyard in a shady spot for the summer.

It started out as a rooted cutting in 1978.

http://sc.groups.msn.com/tn/9A/10/TheRavensRealm/7d/2073.jpg

(click thumbnail)

Added by edit:As it looked October 2002.

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Weeds! It hasn't rained much in a couple weeks. I've been spot watering my plants but the weeds are having a field day. I've been too busy to get out there to tend to much and I'm fighting my first-ever battle with a poison ivy rash, grrrrr.

I deep watered this morning and I hope to spend tomorrow morning weeding. Mr B's extended family is in town this coming weekend and I'd like them to see something other than my weed beds.

New in bloom: "Johnson Blue" geraniums, roses (today), "Tiny Rubles" dianthus, columbine, catmint, valerian, chives and sage (I grow both for flowers as well as cooking). Also, one of the Canna bulbs finally poked through. I think I just needed to wait for the ground to warm up a bit.

Lovely pics, everyone. I'm enjoying seeing them all.

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