ON THIS LAST DAY OF JULY...

Summer is surely slipping by fast, it does seem that the older you get, the seasons just starting flying by...remember when you were in elementary school how long the summer seemed to be? In all honesty, I don't care for the dog days of summer too much. I enjoy the mornings and evenings. This is the time my gardening duties slip. Thought I'd post my version of the bee on the coneflower photo and a couple of my Marguarite daisies. I've realized that not only do I love the Daylilly...I love the strap-like leaves to photograph with other flowers, foliage and insects...as shown here with the Damselfly. The Hibiscus was a freebie that I recieved from a nursery while ordering some Japanese willow trees and a flowering dogwood bush. I placed that clear across the pond on the edge of the woods because of its' growth habits. It is one of the main feasts for my Japanese beetle visitors, that, and my weeping cherry tree are their favorites. Everything else are the dessert I suppose! I have 16-1/2 acres here ... can't they spread the love?! The Endless Summer Hydrangeas are also a favorite of mine...I like to play with the fertilizer and create some of my bushes in pure blue and some in pinks and purple. I also have two of my bushes in full sun and this variety does fine with that. I just saw that heart shape and had to photograph it! On one of my walks, while gazing into the pond, I happened to catch this Daylilly reaching out over the bank. The reflection of the tall tree next to the Lilly I thought was worth taking a shot. And last, but definitely not least...this daylilly, along with the majority of my others, came from an elderly woman who sold them to me. She has an extensive collection of daylillies, but can't remember the names of all of them...this one she said she remembered because she got it from a young hybridizer...supposedly he called it Georgie Jetson??? I don't know if that's correct or not. This beauty is my husband's absolute favorite.

CURIOUSER AND CURIOUSER!!...

Right here in Wishnik wonderland...kind of neat, huh? Now, when I start telling you about the talking rabbit with the pocket watch and the deck of cards chasing me...then it WILL be time to make that call! My family always tells me that I'm spending way too much time by myself back in the woods!! This year, despite plenty of rain...I've seen no slug damage on my hostas...now I know where they are hiding out!...Check out the last photo. Well...I really must go...I just saw a huge stripped cat with this enormous grin on his face, sprawled high up on a branch staring down at me!

Just one more?...

This climbing rose isn't the perfect rose...it's just one more rose...I've already had my two rounds of bloom that this plant normally produces for me during the summer... this was a late straggler(hmm... is that a word?). As the last bloom faded, I remember thinking well maybe I'll get just one more...a few years ago, my husband, mother and I built this rustic arbour on my late fathers' birthday...I think he would've loved it! Who knows, maybe this was handed down to me by him! The white flower is growing among the base of the roses...I can just look into that small flower forever and stare at that little star. Can anyone tell me what it's name is? The daylillies are shown just because... I can, and speaking of fading blooms, this is the last flower on my Houttuynia. Though this creeper has its' place and I enjoy the variegated leaves and white flowers...I just wish that I hadn't planted quite so much! And then there's Bandit...old faithful who follows me on every walk. Here she is playing some sort of cat and mouse game sneaking on me along the damn. I just wanted to share this photo of her, can't you almost(o.k. - really stretch your imagination!) see her as a panther in the jungle?!

MORNING HAS BROKEN...

I am a very early riser, so I'll start off with the moon saying good-bye. Last night, I went to bed with worries floating in my head. My husband drives an hour and a half to and from work everyday...rising gas prices are threatening my one true "calm". Sooner, more so than later, we will probably have to move back closer to his work( I am thankful for what we do have)... and then I laid in bed thinking of some of the other blogs I've read just before bed. Some mention their worries...disabled children, role reversals with elderly parents, depression, discrimination and even animal abuse. Needless to say, I needed my "calm" this morning. Even after an evening of horrible thunderstorms...morning still survived..mustering up all her energy... and I thought how nature survives...no matter what. I tried to capture the mist caught in the sunbeam over the waterfall, the hummingbird anxious to start a new day, and the fact that the most delicate flowers held their own through the night and still hold themselves up proud. And so to those few who read this post, I hope you find your "calm" on the days you need it most. My thoughts are with you...we all have to remember there is promise in the morning...and a new day begins....

SIMPLE PLEASURES...

It's been said that the best things in life are free...that is true...isn't it? Even if you can't afford the initial (and usually on-going) investment of creating a garden...you can find all that nature has to offer anywhere ...your neighbors' yard, a public park, even most shopping centers aim to please somewhat by creating gardens! It was a crazy and tiring day at work today..and where did I go as soon as I took care of all my animals? You got it! ...As I took my walk this afternoon...I thought how pretty the wildflowers looked just growing foot loose and fancy free cuddling up to my daylillies. Don't you just love the baby soft pastels on a new hydrangea bloom? The contrast of that five foot tall purple coneflower against the pond background I enjoyed. One day I was weeding just under my hostas and swiped a bug aside off my forehead...as I did that and looked up thinking I just intruded a spiders' web possibly...I saw this view...so today I went and snapped that same view! YUP!!..I"m a nutcase! And last, just look at that heavenly golden bronze color of that lilly pad...a few of them are that color...others are green...even in the sunlight! mmm??? Being in the garden helps us just breath a little slower when we need it!

BIRDS' EYE VIEW...

Let me start by saying that I have my photos in the exact reverse order as they should be (in reference to my title)! As I went for my walk around the pond today , I stopped short nearing the waterfall..perched on a rock close by my Dream stepping stone...there was a robin just staring up at the waterfall...she eventually was aware of my presence and flew away. That was when I decided that I had to go get my camera. I came back and took a snapshot from her view! No... I was not lying on my belly for this photo...I didn't feel like meeting a brown recluse spider eye to eye! The daylilly against the waterfall was her view. The geranium photo I thought was a pretty shot...most of you know..but for those who don't..it's a hummingbird moth, affectionately known as "mothra" to us. The peach daylilly on the ponds' edge is just so interesting if you enlarge it(something I do with all of my photographs). The sun shining on the tips of the grass actually look exactly like stars. Just to the right of the reflecting sun, look at that golden dragonfly...It's worth it.

AND SHE MAKES HER ENTRANCE...

Here she is...my first waterlilly plant..she's a beauty...this is actually the third bloom in two weeks since we brought this baby home. Last year I had ordered two bulbs - pink and yellow - "planted " them in the pond and waited ...and waited...and nothing!! We followed the instructions to a tee, I wonder if our fish ate them?...or maybe the spot was not sunny enough for them to get a good start. Regardless, I'm hoping this waterlilly makes it through the winter...any helpful hints anyone? It is located in a quarter acre pond with Bass and Blue gill (no beautiful koi!) The top photo has a damselfly resting on the flower in the upper right corner, when you enlarge the picture...she looks like she's all eyes!! Thanks to all for the offers of help on my new blog...eventually I'll get this blogging thing!!...(baby steps) Daylilly...what Daylilly?!?

THIS SIDE IS BETTER!!...

This interesting little guy just seemed as if he wanted me to take his photo, he wouldn't leave me alone...so, finally he perched himself on the cattails(which are about 6 feet tall now) and looked straight at me. I took his picture, and then he flew down a tad and turned to the side...can you just imagine him saying... Oh, I look sooo much thinner from my side profile!! He sure is comical looking!!

A FEW MOMENTS OF TRUST...

On this early morning as I took my walk, I came upon a dragonfly, or was it the other way around?...we bonded for several minutes...we both moved our heads side to side..almost mimicking one another ...we were within one foot of each other...I finally reached out and pet his wings, ever so softly, quite a few times. It was amazing...as this was happening...I wondered if this other being was thinking as I was...two different species in complete trust. His wings were delicate...but yet truly strong to be able to go about his life. Ralph came out of the cabin and witnessed this. After our walk...we went into the cabin and Ralph answered a call...his friend and co-worker from work had just died this morning...I never met Jerry..but Ralph always spoke so highly of him...so I know he was a good man. After the call, I thought about the dragonfly and I thought about Jerry...both delicate...yet so strong to go about their daily life.

RAINBOW OF COLORS...

Just breathtaking!!!...I love walking around and seeing what's new in the gardens..my idea of relaxing!!

ALONG MY WALK ...

This is one of my very favorite daylillies in my collection, wish I knew the name of it..beautiful, aren't they?? This dragonfly is unique to my other dragonflies, it was quite large and is all black, with a satin gold stripe down its' entire length (if you click on picture to enlarge - might see it better). I hope to see more of this type dragonfly....I also saw an all blue body with shimmery gold wings...of course, didn't have the camera at that instance. Wish I could capture a really good photo of my hummingbirds. I guess these photos I've been posting are my "take time to stop and smell the roses" photos... just some of the things I experience in my own little paradise here.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY...

No Clint Eastwood...the good..butterfly....the bad..those pesky Japanese Beetles(that I catch and feed to the fish) and the ugly..the large mouth bass..Billy Bob...no comments on what category I fall under!!! I probably catch at least 100 beetles a day..they eat my weeping cherry tree, the endless hydrangeas, the japanese willows, the coneflowers, the weiglas, daylillies, etc. I guess I'm not a very good Mother Nature by feeding those beetles to the fish!!!

UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL WITH THE ORB...

Going back to my first post...this is a close up of the "fairy orb"...still can't see it as good as on my screen when I zoom in the original...my son Brad was out over the weekend and did some cropping to get this close-up..it most likely is a dragonfly or some other flying insect caught in the rain..but it's vertically positioned..mmm??...just fun to think what it could be.

CALMING...

What is it about water that is so soothing to most people? This is the start of our new waterfall across the pond, beginning in the woods. There are a series of 13 smaller falls, within a "creek" down to the pond. We originally had a waterfall right next to the dock, beautiful as it was, you had to be right on the dock to see it, and it was a little loud if you were talking. So, this is what Ralph has been working on for about 2 months. I put a little hidden seating area in the woods near it. Now we can see the falls from the cabin and most anywhere. I gathered up some ferns and other plants from the woods to plant behind the falls, so when everything grows in it should look very lush. I'd say my husband did an excellent job!!