A Lovely Season -

Keeping busy preparing for Easter as springtime envelopes the landscape. Bluebells are ringing........narcissi perfume the air in that rare, brief loveliness of the last cool days before the intense heat arrives here in the southeast.

Not quite 'hopping' along as the influx of rabbits seem to be doing, but enjoying the 

days leading up to Easter as all around the garden bursts forth with fresh new

 color and loveliness.  Staying busy meeting up in person with friends 

'misplaced' over the years for one reason or another - springtime often brings

 that, fresh new starts after Winter hibernation. I'll be back soon to share

 azaleas, garden birds. . . . . . . and some travel plans for this year!

Wet Saturday -

I wasn't going to post today as I had a lot to catch up with.

  I was so busy yesterday, starting PT for my right leg pain with a nice

 therapist named Kenny. . . . . . . .then a trip to the airport to pick up 

granddaughter Jasmin, and her boyfriend, who returned from a

 five day trip to Alaska for a friend's wedding! 

Jasmin was the photographer and I can't wait to see her photos.

From info gleaned from two very tired overnight travelers - with flights

 delayed several times, today's norm - the wedding took place

 outdoors, on a mountainside, in snow, rain and very cold temperatures!  

According to them it was a marvelous adventure . . . . . thoughts of

 'roughing it' like that made me feel really old!!!

 

Today long awaited rain here. Fortunately not too heavy which we hoped 

would be the case so it wouldn't wash away the newly sewn grass seed

 now germinating.

Our resident all grown up rabbit - no longer a baby bunny - was busy this

 morning. Luckily he chose a breakfast of tender new grass which was

 accidentally sewn beyond the lawn perimeter. . . . . . .which works out fine

 for him and us!

Chomp on bunny, it's yours for the nibbling, just stop this side of the bricks please!

Robert Louis Stevenson ~ 1850-1894

A Child's Garden of Verses

Autumn notes -

Small original oil found at a thrift shop years ago.

I'm so behind with everything - here's a quick catch up of what's happening around us. I'm trying hard not to be sad about not being in England now as planned, but I am so missing seeing my family and friends there. 

With October close I feel Autumn days are here despite not much color in the trees overhead yet. Golden leaves fall silently from the fig tree and Bob gathers them daily. The oaks haven't started dressing for autumn, but cooler nights are here so all will be changing soon. Acorns will rain down, followed by crisp brown leaves requiring several weeks of raking to the curb for the annual collections by the city. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks"............easy to see why.

Today our lawn will be aerated and over-seeded, this will require daily watering as there's no rain in the forecast for at least a week. I cannot help much in the garden as it looks like the pain issue in my hip/thigh/knee, now three weeks with no resolution, is coming from my lower spine.  A doctor visit yesterday will see me having PT soon - I'm in a lot of pain - and perhaps an injection down the road. 

Aging is not pretty. 

While at the doctor's office Bob and I each received a high-dose flu shot, suggested for the elderly, and then made appointments for the #3 Pfizer COVID booster vaccination on October 6th. We will then feel even safer regarding the pandemic, ready to get on with life and enjoy a bit more freedom to roam hopefully.  A beach weekend this fall would be awesome, and we are looking forward to visiting family in Arizona for Thanksgiving.

Snippets of autumn last year.

If you've been wondering about the house next door - it has sold. In fact it sold just a week after the sign went up, and at a really high price! Our neighbor, who just bought the house 11 months ago, but did do a lot of interior renovations, made a great profit. We are sorry to see him go but wish him luck in his new job in Washington, D.C. His moving truck pulled up this morning and is being loaded as I write. Best news is the buyers are a young couple who will be living here. . . . . not flipping the property, not renting it out, or tearing it down thank goodness!

Not much color in the garden to share, however a late blooming cluster

 of hydrangea blossom was a welcome surprise this past weekend.

I'm assisting my granddaughter Jasmin as she prepares to fly to Alaska for a best friend's wedding. Besides being a bridesmaid she is the official photographer which is really rather awkward.  Fortunately her boyfriend is accompanying her and can help with camera equipment - my fingers are crossed they will have safe flights and good weather.

I'm also cat/house sitting again this week as my other neighbor heads to Massachusetts for a funeral. Unfortunately his fridge/freezer died over the weekend and I've been storing food for him. . . . . .do you have any idea how difficult it is now to even find a replacement appliance? Can you imagine some models cannot even be delivered until end of November.......if you're lucky!  COVID has changed so many things in life and there seems no light at the end of the tunnel yet. Businesses, some many years old, continue to close down, others are struggling with lack of employees.

This morning baby bunny was busy in the garden - all grown up now but staying close by, at least for the time being. 

Look at the size of those back paws - no wonder they can make a fast getaway!

   

Happy Autumn days to all.

September morning and it's raining -----

My baby bunny is growing! I was really concerned we had lost it to the hawk

 who visits the fig tree. Yesterday, while watering, bunny popped out of the

 large pot of ivy - the one on the left of the bird bath and potted hydrangea

 in the photo below. It hopped across the lawn to the acer and munched

 on grass for some time - long enough to get my camera and catch a little

 mouth wiping with a soft paw, so sweet.

As expected, rain arrived today. 

Remnants of Hurricane Ida have reached North Carolina, bringing us

 much-needed moisture, a little this morning, heavier with possible wind

 and storms later this afternoon and evening, so we'll be battening down the

 hatches until around midnight when it should all be over. 

Then a few days to look forward to with sunshine and lower temperatures

 at long last.

Welcome to the lovely month of September.

Beat the heat - if you can!

The garden is suffering after many days of really oppressive heat. This is the time when I start pulling plants out, especially annuals which I know will never regenerate now that August is here. Spring is definitely the best time in the garden here in the southeast. Biggest disappointment this year is that the morning glory and moonflower seeds just didn't flower well at all - yesterday I cut them all down as they looked really untidy struggling on the front porch. 

Luckily, I still have a few great pots of healthy basil so pesto making will continue for a couple more weeks and there will be plenty of little pots stashed in the freezer for the winter soups etc.

The Celeste figs are now ripening fast. Bob picked a lot yesterday and we've started sharing with neighbors who enjoy them. Today I'm planning to bake a fig and peach crisp - or crumble as we call it in England.  Served with a scoop of good quality ice cream (I'm loving Talenti Madagascan Vanilla Bean Gelato) it will be perfect after a mixed salad/grain bowl which has become my daily meal in this heat.

As you can see, the squirrels really love figs. The ones they drop under the tree are then nibbled by what have become our live-in bunnies. . . . .the baby one below and a larger one who might be its mama!

This little guy actually comes up on our front porch now and

 doesn't appear to be afraid of us!

Canna lily above, Rose mallow hibiscus below, blooming but requiring a good

 watering every day in this heat.

We visited Raleigh's local sunflower field before leaving on the New England trip. The blooms were just opening and were lovely. Today we're returning to see them once more and hope to take some photos before wet weather arrives tomorrow. Sunflowers bring back wonderful memories, especially of summer visits to Provence.

Hope you are enjoying your summer days.

Welcome back to the garden -

The usual suspects were waiting!

Our return and activity in the garden doesn't seem to bother them one bit.

Robins and rabbits!

They obviously get along well.

There are dozens of robins, adults and juveniles (spotted breasts) all over

 the lawn visiting the fig tree, filling their faces and tummies with the now

 ripening figs from the gigantic Celeste fig tree. 

Fruits knocked to the ground are being gobbled by a mama rabbit and

 her baby who has grown quite a bit in the time we were away.  

Today we rehung the bird feeders - as always the cardinals arrived first followed 

by the squirrels! The weather is unbearably hot, heat index reached 105F 

yesterday, thankfully a little cooler today.

The garden is parched and much is very sad looking despite my kindly

 neighbor's watering efforts. After a week loving the gardens of cooler

New England, I'm wondering what the heck I'm doing here in the south

trying to be a 'gardener' in summertime!  It's just not worth the effort once

the heat and humidity arrives.

 

Heading to the farmers market this morning for fresh eggs and veggies.

Must admit that I truly enjoyed not having to cook for over a week. . . . . 

having done so almost every day since the pandemic reared its ugly head!

Have a wonderful weekend friends.

Run rabbit run. . . . . . . .

. . . . . . .or just stay and nibble in the garden!

This week we seem to have a family of rabbits, large, medium, and 

a cute as a button tiny baby appeared yesterday. All are rollicking across

 the lawn, hopping across the back deck, climbing up on flower pots

 and biting off leaves, nibbling the grass as in these photos from yesterday,

 and taking a shady break under one of the big hydrangea bushes in front

 of the porch as 90+ degrees return.

Note our grass is getting too long - rabbits like this I think.

Our neighbor borrowed our mower and accidentally damaged a wheel

 so it's out of commission until we can get it repaired. May have to hire a

 service to mow before we have a meadow rather than a lawn!

 I know they can become pests, however right now I'm enjoying them, would

 love to cuddle the baby. . . . . . . . but at least they don't jump on the feeders

 and gobble the birdseed like the darned squirrels!

There is nothing more delightful than a garden alive with butterflies, bees, 

birdsong, and small creatures. Natural habitats are often eroded and it 

seems our gardens, even those close to cities and highways, are now

 offering them much-needed refuge. With so much building going on in

 our neighborhood woodland has almost disappeared. Some wildlife

 can be dangerous that close to home, one has to be aware, but many

 creatures are delightful to see just outside the window. 

Nature really is wonderful.

Here I'm sharing my list of actual sightings recalled over the 35 years

 we've lived in this house (at last one, very often an entire family) - other

 than the many different birds and insects - seen in my garden, and we

 do not live in the countryside!

Grey Fox
Grey Squirrel
Chipmunk
Rabbit
Deer
Lizard
Frog
Toad
Opossum
Raccoon
Mouse
Feral Cat
Vole
Mole
Coyote
Various Snakes 

So, who's "coming to dinner" in your garden?

Our property is only a quarter acre but sometimes I feel like I'm

 living on a farm. Actually it was a farm years ago!

Enjoy your Sunday. Very hot here with afternoon rain - as if

we didn't have enough on Thursday when Elsa went through.

Thankfully we survived - just a lot of water pooling in the 

low spots, but no wind gusts to cause damage.

The fig-eating bunny - neighbors - hurricane watch!

Welcome to a new month. 

Almost can't believe we are this far into the year. . . . and haven't been away

 anywhere since early February!  

When we headed to the North Carolina coast for that chilly, but fun, weekend

 break, we never dreamed it would be the only trip away from home for

many months.

Our planned visit home to England in spring never happened. I'm so missing my

family and friends, and still don't know when we will be able to go.

Dreams of a cruise this year came to a halt. Plans to leave home are on

the back burner right now.

So here we are in August and the only excitement - of the scary kind - might

 be brought by a hurricane with the name Isaias, which nobody seems to know

 how to pronounce!  We are inland but still always have to be concerned as 

hurricanes have often wreaked havoc this far from the coast, and we've

 had severe property damage in the past.

This morning our dear neighbors are in the process of moving out after renting

 the house for over 12 years!  We are going to miss them so much as they cared 

about us, made sure we were safe. . . . . and that we woke up each morning if our

blinds weren't open!!!

The property has been sold and we are now on tenterhooks as to what will happen.

As the purchasers are a contractor/realtor couple who purchased as soon as the

 FOR SALE went up, we feel they will probably not live here but will either renovate

 and flip, renovate and rent out again, or (and this is happening all around 

our neighborhood when older houses go on the market due to its prime location),

 knock down and replace with a larger new build!

Time will tell - trying to stay positive as we don't want a bad situation which could

mean our own For Sale sign going up!

A bit of happiness among the somber goings on this morning, was our own

 'Peter Rabbit' quite unconcerned by moving trucks and many strangers on his turf!

He popped out at 7:30 am for a breakfast of dropped fruits under the fig tree.

Meanwhile, the birds, mostly catbirds, mockingbirds and robins, have taken a

break from serious pecking at the figs high up in the tree. . . . . I know they'll be 

back later though.

Sunny Saturday morning. . . . . . . perhaps a weather lull before the storm arrives.

  Very hot though - heat index predicted to reach 105-107F this afternoon!

Tomorrow I start my cat sitting job for three weeks as our other next door neighbor 

will be away.  It takes Ms. Nala cat at least a week to get over being left by her 'dad' 

and become happy to see me twice a day.  By week three she may even climb into my 

lap for a cuddle!  I will also be harvesting the tomatoes, peppers, basil etc.  

Hoping this late summer month will be a good one for us all.