My 15 minutes of Fame

I cannot believe I have missed the past 4 challenges. I have drawn the tiles but somehow never managed to list them. This is my submission for weekly challenge 17 sponsored by Laura Harm AKA Diva.

 I hope to get on a  more organized schedule and get things done on time, but it is spring and flowers are blooming and seedlings are waiting patiently for their new pots and I just want to be "gettin dirty" playing in the garden.

Blooming this week are my irises and a few clematis. Lots of azaleas a few camellias are still strutting their stuff and the coreopsis, ajuga and pink oxalis are really putting on a show.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Happy St. Patricks Day! I'm doing it AGAIN..................

Happy St. Patricks Day!
                           Wear the Green!

The weather this week has been better than fabulous so yes "I'm doing it again!" I am starting seeds. A while back Samantha G asked me to write a post about my baggie method for seed starting.... Here it is:

I soak the seeds first in hot water. Water about the heat that you would hand wash dishes in is fine. Too hot and it can kill the seeds. I sometimes soak them overnight, but I have also soaked them for just about an hour at the time.  These are cat food cups that I have an abundance of and they only have about 1-1.5 ounces of water in them.

I then fill a cheap  ( from the dollar store)quart sized ziplock baggie. 1/3 full with my seed starting mix. ( usually miracle grow potting soil because it is easiest to come by and it is light weight.)

Then I dump the seeds and the water they are soaking in all into the baggie. I seal it up and label it and then put it in a warm spot and wait...........and wait...........and wait...... ( I am not very patient sometimes.)

Most seeds like temperatures in the low 70's-80's for germination and some like light and others dark. Most of the seeds I am planting will take anywhere from 7 days to 2 months to germinate.
I then check on them at least every couple of days. As long as there is condensation in the baggie, there is enough moisture and humidity for them to do just fine. You don't even have to open the bag. When I use quart sized bags and the seedlings reach the top or have at least 2 pairs of true leaves, I know it is time to take them out and transplant them into pots, or their growing spot. Depending on where you grow them, you may need to harden them off for a few days before planting out in full sun.
This week I have started : coneflowers, rudbeckias, stokesia, jasmines, vines, and tons of other things. When they all come up I may need help getting them planted.
There are many many methods of seed starting, but this one works best for me. Since I have started growing in bags, my germination percentages have increased exponentially.
Good Luck.

If you have a way to start seeds that really works well for you, leave me a comment and let me know. I love to experiment.

Day Lilies are blooming!

It is that time of year again! I love it too. The daylily plants surprise me everyday with a new flower. I just can't get enough, even though I am really running out of space. There is always 1 more that just needs a home. Besides, if I plant more flowers, I have less grass to cut right? Actually, I don't mind cutting grass with a pushmower, but years spent landscaping have led to an outright hatred of weedeaters.

I just love going outside in the mornings and seeing new blooms.
I can't wait to see what will be blooming tomorrow. I didn't work outside today, I went shopping instead. It has been so hot out that I just didn't want to endure the heat and biting bugs today. I still have some hybrid cross seedlings to pot up, but instead of potting them, I might just plant some around the birdbath.


It will be interesting to see the flowers on the seedlings for the first time. You never know what you will get when you cross pollinate them.
My bottlebrush tree took a beating during the winter when it snowed and I had to cut it in half yesterday.






I wanted to cry, it was huge and beautiful, I just keep telling myself, it will grow back. I am planning to mix up some homemade fertilizer and feed everything. I think I will start with the bottle brush and then move on to the daylily plants.


Hope your day is full of flowers!

Stop and consider God's wonders. Job37:14

Bungee Jumping OOPS!

No, not me silly,( I have and will hang glide in a heartbeat but i'm not jumping off of anything!) but my laptop. I guess it was a little bored just hanging out on it's shelf, so it decided to take a plunge. The problem was the cord was just a wee bit too long....... and it couldn't snap back up to the safety of the shelf...so..... Yes, it crashed. I spent 3 hours on the phone with a really nice computer tech person in India and finally got it running again. I am very thankful for warranty service.
Now that we ( the laptop and I) are back to normal, I can send a big THANK YOU to Campbell Jane. She featured my black and white daisy earrings on her blog. Woo Hoo! I haven't been featured before. Check out her blog when you get a chance. Everything there is black and white. It is so cool.
She has a picture posted there in black and white of some gorgeous African Daisy blossoms, that is pretty it will make your eyes hurt to look at it.

On the gardening front, I have had some seedlings emerge in my little baggies of plumeria and daylilies. I love growing anything from seed. I will have to set a clock and work early in the mornings to get them transplanted. This evening it was still
92 F at 8pm. I sure can't take The heat like I used to.
In the studio, I finally found the pictures I had taken of my most recent pieces. They were taken with my phone so I didn't have them downloaded.

I think I will use my real camera tomorrow and take some more photos.
This is my first attempt at chain maille. I was instantly addicted. I just need more jumprings and a lesson in aspect ratio.


I also used some sea shells I picked up from the beach to just make some fun things.
I would like to use more shells in my work, I just need to stop procrastinating and go work up these ideas I keep seeing in my mind.
Next project.... Transplant those seedlings and fill the aeropropagator.

Happy Gardening!
No! don't jump

C'mon, let's get planting!