Introducing...Our Pond!

For ages, we've longed for a pond.

I'm not sure if it's because of the time he spent in Japan, admiring beautiful ponds filled with Koi, but Peter, especially, always planned to build a pond. Early in our marriage, he began accumulating bits and pieces for the future pond: a pump for a birthday, a gift card toward pond equipment for Father's Day, a few books about ponds.
 

But life happened. There were greenhouses to build, a house to remodel, a company to start and run. 

So, the nature-crazy kids finally took matters into their own hands.

And created a pond. Yes, that's one of my storage containers they pilfered.

Kristen and Michael spend more time outside than inside. Throughout the year, they explore the forest, mess around in the river, and collect specimens to observe. They also return their living treasurers to nature after a brief stint at Chéz Adolf. It's our rule--what comes from nature returns to nature.

Spring, though, finds the kids at our neighborhood pond. There's a very short window of opportunity to explore the pond, because as soon as the South Carolina heat and drought ramp up, the pond disappears.

This spring, though, with our weeks of rain, the pond is filled to the brim with amazing treasures.
 

Salamander egg sacs--a new find for the kids! I posted the photo on my Facebook page to see if anyone could guess what it was...and I'm proud to report that after many replies of tadpoles, catfish eggs, and various other aquatic creatures, one person guessed correctly. Personally, I had to look it up when the kids came home with not just one but three egg sacs.
 

When the baby salamanders, which I'm certain is not the scientific terms for them, began to emerge, you'd think it was Christmas in April. I love that our kids are so excited about nature.

Of course, no pond is complete without tadpoles.

Look! One of the salamanders grew legs!
 

The kids add fresh water collected from the neighborhood pond to their habitat weekly to make certain the animals have the microorganisms they need to grow and survive. They also added a few clams they found in the river for biodiversity, plus they made certain to include rocks for the salamanders and frogs to enjoy "land time." The rocks also provide a good hiding spot for the smaller animals.
 

One thing they lacked, though--water plants. I splurged and bought a few plants for the kids to include in the habitat.

Our kids amaze me. How did we end up with such creative, nature-loving, funny, silly little people?

I may not love plastic bins as the focal point of our garden, and I admit, I'm crossing my fingers and toes that we win a pond in the contest sponsored by Laguna Ponds and P. Allen Smith. Honestly, can you imagine the amazing adventures the kids would enjoy with a real pond? 

Still, I know that in just a few years, I'll miss the storage bin ponds littering the garden. 

Happy Memorial Day weekend to you!

XOXO ~

Julie

 

Thank You, April Showers, for These May Flowers...Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day.

It's been a weirdly wet and wild spring here. With the upcoming Carolina Farm Stewardship Association's Upstate Farm Tour just around the corner on June 1 and 2, the wet and chilly weather made me a little nervous, trying to find a dry spell to plant the gardens. After all, who wants to visit a garden filled with empty raised beds?

Fortunately, the rain abated, the sun peeked out, and the main gardens are planted. Now, come on, rain, you're cordially invited back to help those veggies grow!

I suppose I should have waited to wish for rain. A week ago, our oldest son graduated from college during a torrential downpour. Fortunately, the university implemented Plan B, and we celebrated the graduates inside, where their new diplomas wouldn't disintegrate. 

We're very proud of Tyler, who graduated cum laude with a major in music composition. If you need a symphony written or a funky electronic piece composed, give him a call. Please.
 

And, look! A photo of our whole family! That's a rarity, as I'm usually behind the lens. (Note the rain-soaked hair. This is why I prefer being behind the camera. Also note Kristen's thrilled expression. It was quite a long ceremony for the siblings.)
 
I've warned Tyler that we'll be revisiting his campus to fake some outdoor photos in cap and gown. As you can imagine, he's thrilled.

Still, the rain--although ill-timed--did its job. The May blooms are popping throughout the garden, just in time for May Dreams Gardens' Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day.

Walking by the pool, through the woods, around the chicken coop, and along the back seating area, the sweet, sweet scent of honeysuckle lingers in the air. What announces spring better than the fragrance of native honeysuckle? It's delicious. 
 

The edible gardens host lovely flowers, hinting at the yumminess to come. Chives...
 

...culinary green sage...

 

...'Provence' lavender, just about to bloom...

 

...and strawberries. Oh, the strawberries. I wish you could taste these organic beauties. The cute little flowers blanket the beds, and we're stuffing ourselves with the first flush of sweet fruit. Honestly, is there anything better than eating a sun-warmed strawberry straight from the garden, juice running down your chin? 

I think not.
 

Although, I have to admit, peas come a close second. Adorable blossoms in purple and white add ornamental beauty to the kitchen garden, plus our kids will actually eat peas without much complaint. Perhaps that's why I tend to overplant this crop.

The kids also eat grapes without complaint, and our first hint of summer yumminess is making a show in containers by the pool. Here's hoping for a stellar crop!

The herb gardens also sport a few blooms, with the valerian about to burst with white blossoms. 

Wildflowers throughout the property make gardening easy. Who doesn't love free, surprise blooms, like this cheerful daisy...

...or the bright blue of lyre-leaved sage? It spread beautifully by the herb gardens, and I'm loving it. The foliage is beautiful, too.

Isn't it cute?

While I love the wildflowers, the perennials and annuals take center stage in May's garden.

Fuschia baskets brighten the shady corners of the back garden.
 

Wisteria hugs the arbor leading to the pool, which we finally uncovered this week. With our 90 degree temperatures today, the kids are anxious for the murky waters to clear so they can begin the swimming season.

Encore azaleas continue to produce a few scattered pink blooms, while the gumpo azaleas in the front garden have just begun to show a few blooms.

One of my favorite plants, fringed bleeding heart, will produce blooms throughout most of the summer. It's such a workhorse for a shady garden.


This poor clematis was hidden by our behemoth viburnum, which I finally pruned after its spectacular show. I love finding plants I forgot about hidden under other plants...oops.

Our new woodland garden by the garage is progressing nicely. I just added it in the fall. With hostas, hellebores, Solomon's Seal, Oakleaf Hydrangeas, and fraise des bois, the only blooms currently showing are the recently added woodland phlox. I think in a year it will fill in nicely.

While I love roses, our (extremely) shady gardens allow only enough sun for three bushes, crammed together by the street. My rose bushes are sentimental garden additions, given to me by my mother and moved from my first house to our current home. 
 

The roses are bursting with blooms, enjoying the spring weather before the heat sets in and the pests come out in full force. I'm determined to deter my arch nemesis, the Japanese beetle, this year with strategic companion planting. Stay tuned.
 

Our cute ice plant also holds sentimental value. A sweet older lady who owned a small nursery gave it to our daughter when Kristen was an itty bitty thing. Truly, gardeners are the nicest people.

Last weekend, I finally changed out the mailbox garden, pulling up the tired pansies to make room for the summer perennials. I tucked in a new clematis, along with purple fountain grass and vinca, knowing we'll need the splash of color mid-summer. Of course, 'Miss Huff' lantana in this bed always provides decent color all summer until frost, attracting hummingbirds and butterflies. 

'Miss Huff,' it's time to make an appearance, please! (It's coming along behind the grasses.)

This poor, variegated weigela--how I love its sweet blooms. Sadly, it's listing to one side, stretching toward the sun...which is the result of my pushing the envelope, trying sun-loving plants in our shady garden.  Lesson learned.

The irises, however, are more forgiving. They've bloomed beautifully all spring.

The baptisia also blooms well in its patch of sun, attracting pollinators and adding a splash of brightness to the front walk garden.

Mexican evening primrose springs up each year in unexpected nooks in the garden, and I don't have the heart to pull it. I know, I know--I should be brutal and yank it out. Still, it adds such a sweet bit of color wherever it appears.

And even if I never intended for it to co-mingle with coreopsis, it's still kind of cheerful, don't you think? 

OK, I KNOW...it doesn't belong together at all. Next year, I swear, I'll be strong and yank that sucker out.

It's been my dream to grow peonies, even though I know our garden is too shady. Still, I tucked six small peony bushes in any bit of sun I could find...and each bush has one single bud. Crossing my fingers that next year I'll be cutting dozens of peony blooms to arrange inside. A girl can dream...
 

And finally...you know summer is upon us when the mandevilla blooms make an appearance. Soon, the vines will wind their way up the trellises by the pool, adding a tropical feel to the area.

With less than three weeks of school remaining, soon our days will be spent lounging by the pool rather than racing to activities.

I think I'm looking forward to summer vacation even more than the kids!

Did April's weather provide for many May blooms in your garden? What's your favorite spring bloom?

Happy Bloom Day to you!

XOXO ~

Julie 

 

A Sucker for Succulents.

Like most of my current obsessions, I blame Pinterest. Honestly, I have such a love/hate relationship with that site. While I adore and drool over the beautiful, artsy, stunning creations and pin, pin, pin until I'm bleary--I'm not a crafty girl. Truly. 

For instance, I found an adorable birthday banner on Pinterest and decided I needed to make it for both Kristen and Mikey's recent birthdays. Now, most people could whip those banners together in a heartbeat. 

Instead, there's craft-challenged me. 

Six hours. Times two. I lost 12 hours of my life creating birthday banners to hang for a day. 

Actually, Michael's banner still remains hanging from the mantle, although his birthday was April 18. I left it there as a cautionary tale, reminding me to stay away from Pinterest.

But then, in a moment of weakness, I stumbled upon a photo of a succulent wreath. The original Pin was from a Better Homes & Garden project. You can see it here.

It. Was. Divine.

Lush foliage, subtle colors packed into a living wreath? Yes. I needed it. Our poor, bare front door deserved this wreath. It would proclaim--a gardener lives here! (As if the flats of plants on the driveway and the gloves on the front doorstep didn't already give it away.)

As I researched the steps involved in creating the wreath, my courage waivered. I thought of the birthday banner debacle.

Fortunately, fate arrived in the form of a gift card from my sister to The Urban Planter--just as they announced openings for a succulent wreath workshop.

Hooray! Not only would I have a support group to help me if my lack of craftiness usurped my gardening ability, but The Urban Planter would also provide all of the materials needed. 

No running out mid-project for more succulent cuttings. No prep work. No mess in my house. And an evening out with grown-ups? 

It was kismet.

So last night, fueled with much Diet Coke, I joined the lovely owners of The Urban Planter, as well as three other gardening-obsessed ladies, to create my highly anticipated living wreath.

The variety of succulent clippings provided was worth the price of the workshop alone.

We each received a pre-made, pre-soaked sphagnum moss wreath form. 

If you're playing along at home, you can build your own wreath form using mesh tubing stuffed with moss, a wire wreath-shaped frame, and fishing line to tie the tubing onto the frame.The pre-made form also included a chain for hanging the wreath, as well as "feet" to keep the wreath from laying flush against the door. If you make your own wreath form, you'll want to add plastic to the back of the wreath to prevent the moist wreath from damaging a wooden door.
 

The only additional tools you'll need besides your clippings and the wreath form are a pencil (or similar sized object, like a chopstick) to poke holes in the wreath and possibly some pins to hold heavier cuttings in place.  I only used a few of the pins.

 

As with any container or floral design, think about form and colors when selecting and placing your clippings. I tried to use groupings of three--but I found I needed more groupings to fill the form, so I used groups of five.

Select your cutting, removing any bottom leaves so that you have at least an inch of clean stem. Poke a hole in the form and insert the stem into the moist moss.  

(Obviously, these lovely, manicured hands are not mine. Thank you to my hand models!)

If the cutting is heavy or hanging downward, you may want to add a pin to secure it.

(Yep. That's my raggedy, non-manicured hand. Shameful.)

Poke holes, insert clipping, repeat. 

It's really that simple.

Of course, the fun is putting the combinations together:

While the image on Pinterest is obviously packed full with succulents, you'll have gaps in your newly-created wreath, which will allow the succulents room to grow.  

 Paul, the owner of The Urban Planter, created this stunner last night.

Once you've filled your form with cuttings, allow the wreath to rest for a week or two before hanging to allow the cuttings to root. Lay it flat in indirect light. After a few weeks, you can hang your masterpiece.

Remember, though--a living wreath needs water. Every two weeks or so, give it a good soaking. Succulents don't like to be over-watered--but don't forget them, either. (Not that I would ever forget to water a plant...) 

And now, drum roll, please:



TA DA! A Pinterest project that only took 1-1/2 hours to create! And I didn't lose my sanity!

I'm looking forward to watching how the wreath develops. I may find a few more succulents to sneak into the gaps--or I may just leave it alone and practice patience.

We'll see...

Thanks so much to The Urban Planter for hosting this very fun workshop. If you live in Upstate SC and want to attend one of their workshops (or if you just want to find the most beautiful garden treats and living arrangements), check out their website for class schedules. Please tell Paul, Tara, and Becky I said hello!

And, if you create your own succulent wreath, stop by my Facebook page and share a photo of it. I'd love to see what you make!

Happy wreath making!

XOXO ~

Julie

P.S. Shared with The HomeAcre Hop and The Creative HomeAcre Blog Hop--check them out for more great ideas.