Fluffy Flowers

from a couple of sticks to a beautiful Confederate Rose

Y'all know I'm new to this gardening stuff, right? I barely know how to get a plant into the ground. Well, last year about this time we were visiting my mother in law in Dublin, Georgia and I saw the most beautiful blooming plant ever.

It had white and pink blooms on the same beautiful bush! Amazing.

"What is it?" I asked my mother in law.

"Confederate Rose" she responded.

"Wow" said I.

Wow, indeed. "I have to have some of that plant!" I screamed.

My mother in law is a kind and generous woman. She took me at my word and, on a visit a couple of months later, I found three long sticks in a five gallon bucket of water to take home. Three sticks. In a bucket of water. I thanked her profusely and dutifully carried the sticks home where I promptly stuck them on the back porch for about, oh, six weeks or so. I did add water to the bucket periodically.

You see, I had no earthly idea what to do with those darn sticks. How exactly does one deal with three long sticks in a bucket of water? She told me to plant them in the ground but somehow my brain just couldn't process that information. I mean, come on, how do I plant them in the ground? They're sticks! How deep? Where? Then what? You've probably figured out by the myriad of questions that ran through my mind that I was paralyzed with fear. I had no idea what to do!

Y'all can probably guess what happened next. Eventually my mother in law came for a visit to my house and there those sticks were, still in the bucket. I wasn't home at the time, but I heard from my sweetheart that she was none too pleased. Those sticks had to go into the ground. Soon!

Somehow I managed to gather my strength and resolve, along with a spade and that bucket of sticks, and get them planted in the ground. As I stood back to observe my handy work all I could think was, "this can't possibly work". But I spent the rest of the summer dutifully putting water on those jokers every single day. I was determined to make them live but if they did die I certainly didn't want to be faulted for lack of watering.

And then an amazing thing happened. Those sticks started to sprout! Eventually those sprouts turned into beautiful green leaves! It was a miracle I tell ya. Through out all of this sprouting period I dared not hope that the sticks would produce blooms. In fact, I chastised myself every time that stray hope wandered through my brain. Until one day while shopping the semiannual Master Gardener's Plant sale a couple of months ago I got to chatting with a lady about my sticks. She disagreed with me when I mentioned that I figured they wouldn't bloom this year. She told me to go home and look for buds.

Well folks, I'm here to tell ya I started to get a little hopeful and a wee tad excited. The next day I got out there with that lady's words ringing through my head and checked out each nook and cranny of those sticks and their sprouts. And lo and behold, I found flower buds. Wow! I was out there every day after that, marveling as bud after bud appeared on all three sticks. The dark cloud of doubt still hung over me as I watched those buds mature and realized that I would be out of town for a few days very soon. Would I miss the first bloom?!

Turns out that I didn't miss it at all. The first bloom popped out the day before I headed out of town. And what followed upon my return was a flush of plump, beautiful fluffy flowers that were beyond all of my hopes and dreams. It was nothing short of a miracle, I tell ya. And I am so utterly amazed by this entire wondrous process called gardening.

Erica Glasener of HGTV's A Gardener's Diary

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/croatoan_found/512177446/

Last Friday night I got to hang out with Erica Glasener, host of HGTV's A Gardener's Diary. Yep, it was me, her, and about fifty other folks! Erica came down from Atlanta to give a lecture at the Garden Club here in Macon.

She is just as sweet in person as she is on the show and I really enjoyed hearing her speak and watching her slide show. I recognized several photos from gardens she's visited on the show including Lucinda Hutson's garden which I absolutely love.

Erica spoke about creating a four season garden here in Georgia. Now this is a topic after my own heart! This is what I've wanted forever but what I couldn't articulate. I simply didn't have the words to express this desire until I read Mrs. Greenthumbs. She was the one who explained it in terms I could understand. Mrs. Greenthumbs explained my want, which is similar to hers, to have multiple climaxes in the garden. Y'all know what I mean! I want color to bloom and be beautiful in my garden all year round, not just in spring when you can throw a few annuals in the ground to march in rows like little soldiers. No, I want a proper cottage garden with oodles of perennials that bloom year round and flop around on top of each other. Erica was kind enough to share with us some of her favorites and she even provided a handout with plants broken down by blooming season.

Erica has a bit of a sense of humor too. She doesn't mind adding non-native plants to her garden. I agreed with her when she said "nothing is native to asphalt." :) Like me, she's also anti Crepe Murder. That's where folks cut those beautiful trees down to sticks in the winter. Who on earth came up with that idea anyway? Erica encouraged us to personalize our gardens and to mimic nature whenever possible. If you're in or traveling through the Atlanta area then Erica recommends shopping at the Garden Hood plant nursery.

Overall, it was a fun and informative evening. But I saved the best for last because that sweet Erica brought prizes! She gave her lecture standing next to a huge beautiful bouquet of flowers and fluff picked from her garden. And she also had three small potted hydrangeas to give away. The first two were snapped up mighty quick by a couple of brainy folks who answered her plant species questions from her bouquet. I just sat there racking my brains thinking to myself "uh, asparagus fern, maybe?" It was not asparagus fern.

Anyway, to make a long story endless, for the last plant prize Erica asked for an audience member whose birthday was today. Nada. Ok, how about someone whose birthday was this week, she asked. Nothin'. Alrighty then, who has my birthday, October 16th, she asked. Not a peep. Erica was stumped! The audience started calling out other plant giveaway question ideas. None of them floated her boat. Finally, Erica was thinking quick on her feet and she said, ok, who here is new to gardening?

Well folks, I'm pretty sure there was less than a nanosecond for my brain to process this thought and run down to my arm because I shot my hand up in the air so fast I'd swear I'd been through some sort of space, time continuum. Yes, I thought, yes, I AM new to gardening! And because I had strategically placed myself directly in Erica's line of site, in the middle aisle seat at the back, her eyes landed right on me. That's when she said some sort of pretty words about giving it to that "enthusiastic young lady there". Yes, Erica, that was me and I really, really love my prize. You must have known, surely, that hydrangeas are my absolute favorite plants. I'm sure you must have known that for months I've been planning to install several in my front yard. And, surely Erica, you must have known that as a relatively new gardener I could use all the help I could get in the form of a fabulous plant aptly named Hydrangea Invincebelle Spirit. Yes, Erica, I'm sure you must have known all of this when you kept asking your questions, waiting for me to come up with the answer. Because now, you see, I have every desire in the world to keep that plant alive, to plant it in the ground and see it grow, to photograph the beautiful blooms in the cottage garden of my dreams. Thanks Erica, for the inspiration!

how to recover old camp stools

We have here a couple of not too pretty, old camp stools. I think its time they received a makeover.

Of course I'm going to do this the super lazy and easy way just like when I recovered Slash's chair. So first I pried off the ratty old covers with a screwdriver. A butter knife would work just as well.

Hey, speaking of Slash, this sweet kitty wants to help out.

Ah, much better with those horrid covers removed.

Now it's time to shine up that dried out wood!

I use a bit of Pledge extra moisturizing. Ok, I use A LOT of it actually.

While I let the wood dry I ran inside to cut out the fabric. Hum, might need to iron it too.

I used the old ratty cover as a pattern and just sort of cut around it. Then it was off to the the sewing machine to sew up the edges. Sorry, I forgot to get photos of me wrestling with the sewing machine beastie. Ya know, I was rushing along with this project, trying to get it done before dark and forgot to photograph the next step too: stapling the covers on. It's just as well that I didn't photograph it because in addition to the ginormous heavy duty staple gun it also required a hammer and a lot of the time I was sweating and grumbling and wondering why I took this project on in the first place. Yeah. Anyway, I did finally get them finished.

Ta da! Here they are all revamped in their new fluffy flowers fabulousness.

Aren't they awesome? Totally groovy even?

I adore them! And I'm delighted that they turned out so well.

They're perfect for an outdoor tea party to for a camp out. Best for children though, they probably wouldn't hold the weight of an adult. If you love them and want them to spiff up your cottage they are for sale over in my shop.

road trip

I was in Columbus, Georgia last week for a couple of days.

Stayed in the super fabulous Rothschild-Pound House Inn.

It was a delightful little bed and breakfast.

It was surrounded by cute little cottages.

And I got to stay in one of those sweet little places.

It was prettily decorated.

Complete with fresh flowers.

And lots of books to read.

With extra spots to stash guests.

And pretty little garden spaces.

On the last day things turned a little ethereal.

But before leaving town I was sure to wander by Gina's Junk.

Just as the sign on the front door promises, it was crammed full of useful junk. This place is not to be missed! Lots of selection, good prices, and clean, unbroken stuff. Loved the place.

Slash in the garden

I've been a little remiss in pointing out my constant garden companion.

Slash aka Slashables the kitty cat is always out in the yard with me.

If I'm there, then he's there too.

I love having him around!

Gives me someone to talk to when I'm muttering about some garden chore I'm dealing with.

And it's always fun to glance up every so often to see what he's up to.

And he's mighty cute too!

fall

I love fall. Too bad here in the south it takes such a long time to arrive.

 

Believe me when I say we're still wearing short sleeves around here.

 

And even though the trees are still as green as they can be, we love to decorate with those beautiful autumn leaves even if it means surrounding our cotton with the fake ones...

 

...and filling our wagons with faux pumpkins.

But we do always insist on real flowers. Its just not the same when it's not the real thing.

 

Can you believe I saw all these cute fall goodies at a store called Roche's in a small town in Georgia?

zen Ginger

Ginger was hanging out with me the other day.

It was a warm and lovely day.

I think she really enjoyed herself.

fall front yard

Every year I get pretty excited when fall rolls around. We're still a little ways from it here in Georgia with temperatures in the the 90s (30s C) but the calendar on the wall is telling me its time.

So I dug around in storage to find my girl scarecrow from last year and did a little shopping for pumpkins and mums and the like.

And I simply couldn't resist adding this cute character to the scene this year. Isn't he the cutest crow scarecrow ever?

Yep, I think this little lady is pretty happy with her new friend. Happy fall y'all :)

The Cottage Garden

I had no idea when I picked up The Cottage Garden at the library several years ago that author Christopher Lloyd was THE guy when it comes to horticulture. I just liked to look at the pretty pictures. But I was reading the best gardening book ever written and it mentioned Christopher Lloyd. A lot. And the funny thing was, I kept thinking she meant Christopher LOWELL. Um, yeah, that's a totally different guy. Anyway, eventually I figured out my mistake and was happy to be introduced to an amazingly inspirational British gardener.

This time when I sought out this book again at my library I was ready to actually learn from it's pages. After years spent pouring over the beautiful photos in gardening books and wondering how the heck they managed to create such beautiful gardens, I'm finally, slowly learning how to craft my own beautiful gardens. And what I found out is that not only is this book a delight for the visual sense but it's also crammed full of helpful information. Its an excellent overview of the history of cottage gardens and the plants within them. And not just plants and flowers but all the other aspects that make up a cottage garden too: gates & doors, fences, walls, & hedges, ponds, streams, & ditches, pathways, containers, furniture, and outbuildings. Wow!

If you are at all considering establishing a cottage garden at your home I highly encourage you to find this book. And if you have a cottage garden already then you'll love it too. Sadly, Christopher Lloyd is no longer with us. But thankfully he left behind a body of work that can be read and savored for years to come.

British Car Fayre

We were out and about this past weekend and made a slight wrong turn on our way back home. Lucky for us, we ran across an awesome British Car Fayre sponsored by Taste of Britain in the historic town of Norcross, Georgia.

Mr. Fluffy Flowers practically jumped out of the car to rush over and see all the cars on display.

I didn't really mind though since it was a beautiful afternoon with lots of pretty things to see.

And Mr. Fluffy Flowers had some mighty sore smile muscles by the end of the afternoon. I think he enjoyed himself :)

I know I did! There was so much to photograph in this cute little town.

And oodles of MGs to see. Mr. Fluffy Flowers loves MGs. There's one sitting in my backyard right now. I've never had a ride in it though. It seems to be in need of a little TLC before its ride worthy.

I did manage to drag him over to the local British pub, the Iron Horse Tavern, for a shandy and a quick bite of bangers and mash.

Loved that cute pub. It even had a phone box outside.

And, of course, I really loved it because there were oodles of fluffy flowers all over the place.

Mrs. Whaley and Her Charleston Garden

I've had a lot of luck with good things to read lately. I don't know if y'all know this about me but I usually have three books going at one time: an audio book in the car, a fiction book by the bed, and a nonfiction book in the sitting room. I just finished reading a delightful memoir called Mrs. Whaley and Her Charleston Garden by Emily Whaley. This book was entertaining from start to finish.

It's more than just a book about a garden and a gardener in her eighties. It's a wonderful glimpse into the life of a southern woman raised in the country during the early part of the twentieth century. It's also a celebration of that life and the people around her. She gives credit to all those folks who where important in her life including her dog, Rosie.

What is really fabulous about this book is the style of writing. Its really more of a conversation than anything else. And Mrs. Whaley's voice, and her opinions, are loud and clear. This lady tells it like it is! I found myself nodding my head and chuckling more than a few times at her sage advice.

Really folks, it's an easy, short read that is thoroughly delightful. You can read more about Mrs. Whaley's garden over at the Stencil Library's blog.

almost Fall

The days are getting cooler here in the deep south. Its been in the 80s (~30C) the past couple of weeks. And the nights are down too. But it will still be a long while before we put our short sleeves away.

The last of the summer flowers are making their stand now. Many of them are beautiful to the end.

Easy Gardens for the South

I haven't spent a lot of time on the computer lately so my blogging seems to have turned into a sporadic adventure. One thing that has kept me away from the computer this summer is hard work in the yard. I've spent the past several months working diligently to turn this place into a pretty cottage garden.

For years I dreamed about gardening, imagining a yard filled with beautiful blooming flowers. I've spent many an hour browsing inspirational photographs on flickr and perusing gobs of library books which I usually check out a dozen or two at a time.

I spent a lot of those years confused by the conflicting information I would read in different sources. I noticed that the "right" way to do things was often exactly the opposite for the same problems from different "experts". I stayed confused most of the time. Their information only served to create fear that rendered me immobile, rooted to the same spot and unable to move.

There was a gradual shift in me over this past year that put me in a place where I finally built up the courage to get my hands dirty and get to gardening. We are talking, after all, about plants. This isn't rocket science! After researching gardening and thinking about things, I finally jumped in with both feet. This time I've actually gone beyond the stage of dreaming about gardening and I've finally, finally taken steps to create a garden of my own.

I'm super glad that I drug home a million gardening books from the library over the years. I've found a few gems that have really inspired me. Easy Gardens for the South by Pamela Crawford is one that I absolutely love. The plant information is organized so well that even I can figure how how to select plants for my gardens. I'm going to purchase my own copy of this one so I can spend the long, cold winter planning out my gardens. What I love about this book is that is focuses on plants that do well in my area. And by "do well" I mean can survive when I forget to water them for a while or forget to prune them or otherwise neglect those pretties. I highly recommend that you seek out gardening books that discuss plants for your state. And if you don't know where to start, then ask your local librarian, cooperative extension office or master gardener. 

Oh, and one more exciting thing for those here in the middle Georgia area. Erica Glasener, host of HGTV's Gardener's Diary will be giving a lecture at the end of October. I love her show and will definitely be there!

Flower Confidential

Thought I'd share some of my other fluffy flowers adventures with y'all. So here's what I've been up to lately when I'm not reading or plush making.

I have, in fact, been gardening. Lasagna gardening. This little weedy mess is the lasagna garden that I started a few months ago. Its a simple method of layering compostables and letting them rot while planting the bed at the same time. I never actually got around to planting this spot so a few weeds have sprouted up.

Too bad the weeds look so pretty cause these suckers have got to go.

And this sucker has really got to go! I have it on good authority that this weed truly is super invasive here in the state of Georgia so out he comes asap.

It's taken me nearly three years to decide exactly how to establish a garden in my backyard. I've been cutting the grass back there and yanking out the weeds but that lifeless expanse of grass and concrete feels like a dead zone. About the only life that can be found are the neighbors and their penned up prisoner dogs that can be clearly seen through the fence.

But finally, after reading and thinking, watching Gardener's Diary and note taking, and perusing GardenWeb forums, finally I think I've got my plan. And I've been slowly putting my plan into action the past couple of months.

One part of my plan involves establishing oodles of new flower beds in my backyard. I long for it to be a secret garden hideaway where I can enjoy lots of fluffy flowers. But beauty is hard work y'all! And hauling around mega pounds of cow poo is no easy task!

But gosh y'all, I think it's worth it. Because in my mind I can just see that new garden, can't you? And it doesn't really matter how long it takes. I'll just keep plugging along at it and taking all the necessary steps and making all the mistakes and reading all the books until I make it my own fluffy flowers magical land.

And speaking of reading, you might find Amy Stewart's book Flower Confidential: the Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful very interesting. This selective, historical account of the modern flower industry is fascinating! It reads almost like fiction (until she gets to the math section where my non-mathematical mind glazed over) with lots of interesting, in depth stories of folks in the industry. Run by the library and pick this one up when you get a chance.

Guess I had to slip a little reading in this story somehow! When next you find me I'll probably still be scrubbing at the dirt under my nails...

arboretum

It was my birthday this weekend.

I had myself quite a fluffy flower good time indeed.

Among the festivities was a road trip to Lockerly Arboretum.

Tucked away in the sleepy Georgia town of Milledgeville, this place was a true wonder. 

This antebellum town has quite a history.

It was even the home of author Flannery O’Connor.

I'd highly recommend a road trip.

And a stop off at this beautiful place is a must.

Can't wait to go again in the fall.

And if you visit then you just might see some of my fluffy flowers creatures there.

around the yard in 7 pictures

Whenever we visit my mother in law I always tour her yard with my camera.

She usually insists that nothing is blooming...

...so there won't be anything to photograph.

Initially, she was at a loss as to what I could find to snap a picture of.

Then after the first few times she just let me go...

...because she realized that I'd find SOMETHING to photograph.

 And I never fail to find some adorable rogue gnome.

on the porch with cats and flowers

I stepped out on the veranda this fine, humid southern evening to snap a picture of these fabulous bluish purple hydrangeas that have been blooming so prolifically outside my front door.

While I was snapping away for the best shot, I spied a four legged creature off in the distance.

A very elusive four legged creature indeed.

It's nearly impossible to snatch a picture of Piglet (a.k.a. Faux Dog) because she's constantly on the move. Her other nickname is the Wriggler. This cat rarely holds still. So I did my very best to capture her on film (actually, digital) while she was unaware.

As I was scootching around to the other side of the porch I was momentarily detracted by the beauty of this just blooming gerbera daisy.

Had to take a closer look inside.

Perhaps just a little closer inside this pretty.

And finally on to our quarry! Ah, this baby cat looks super tired, doesn't she? Probably she's had a hard day of bug chasing and is ready to settle down for a nice long nap.

Observing all this stealthy behavior of mine is Slash (a.k.a. Slaskables a.k.a. Mr. Pink Nose). I do believe he thinks my shenanigans are rather silly.

But he's always quick with the turn of his head to make sure that distant sound is no threat.

Nothing to worry your pretty little head about my dear.

"And why is that thing in my face again, lady?"

But I do believe I hear that sound off the porch, out in the distance somewhere too, Slash.

Ah! It's the sweet little ol' neighbor kitty. Hi kitty whose name I don't know! Glad you're enjoying this fine summer evening too :)

there be gnomes here

Best to have your camera ready at all times.

You never know when you might run across some gnomes...

...or a sky just the perfect shade of blue...

...or critters crawling across beautiful flowers.

Macon Secret Garden Tour

I just realized that I hadn't yet posted the best garden on the Macon Garden Tour! Oops.

But I did save the best for last.

And this house and gardens has got to be one of the best I've ever seen.

Rogue red poppy!

Oh I'd love to take a dip in this beautiful pool!

Pretty orange flowers.

This spot seems like it exists in another time...

An amazing wrought iron gate.

My favorite picture from the entire day. Texture, color, and droplets of water.

Don't you just want to know what's around the corner?!

The subtle pink color on this beauty is amazing.

Delightful tinkle of water.

Hop on over to my flickr page for even more pictures from this fabulous place.  You can also see more gardens from this tour here, here, here, here, and here. Enjoy!

doggies in the Georgia grand canyon

Bet ya didn't know we had a grand canyon in Georgia.

Well, it's more like a white and red clay valley created from water erosion.

But it still looks groovy and the doggies love it. Ginger sort of blends right in, doesn't she?

And here comes Lucky the cowdog, top speed, over the hill.

Looks like he's on Rat Patrol!

But never fear, there are always lush greenery and wildflowers nearby.