Tag: blooms

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May 23 – Walk Through Gibbs Gardens and Ball Ground, Georgia With Me!

Sunday was nothing short of fabulous! I’d visited Gibbs Gardens in Ball Ground, Georgia with my sister-in-law in April 2022 on our way to Asheville, North Carolina for a girls’ trip over Spring Break. The daffodil hills and the flowering cherry trees, at that time, were in full bloom. The thing about Gibbs Gardens is that no matter when you go, there’s something different on the blooming menu. Even their website tells you what is currently in bloom and lets you scroll pictures taken the previous week or so.

So I texted my driver early Sunday morning from my side of the bed: Want to go to Gibbs Gardens and stroll through the wildflowers and poppies?

Sure, he texted back across the dogs snoozing between us.

I can be ready in 15 minutes, I replied, prompting a mad dash race to be the first one dressed.

We tied for the win. Jeans, shoes to climb the hills, sunglasses. We set out on the one hour and 45 minute drive north as I bought tickets en route online just in case they were nearing garden capacity. During peak season, I didn’t want to take any chances.

We took in the sights – the Manor House, the Japanese Gardens, the poppies and wildflowers, and the rose garden. The highlight of the day was a hummingbird’s appearance in the wildflower garden, where I was able to capture a few seconds of video before it flew off to another section. The butterflies were flitting about in rich abundance as we strolled the gardens, and the dragonflies darted around shimmering their wings faster than twinkle fairies.

After our visit to the gardens, we drove into Historic Ball Ground for a visit to Feather’s Edge Vineyard where they were having live music as we rested and cooled off with fresh mint mojito wine slushies, and then on to The Ball Ground Burger Bus, a hamburger joint made from an actual bus that ran its last route in Atlanta, Georgia in 1965. We saved room for ice cream after dinner, since our indulgences had already left no room for any more guilt.

Come stroll along with us as we show you the sights on a photo tour.

I’ll be re-living these moments jam-packed with memories for a long, long time! We’ll return in the fall when the bloom list offers a whole new lineup of sights to enjoy.

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May 20 – Propagating Hydrangeas

Successfully rooted hydrangea

A few years ago, a childhood friend on St. Simons Island gave me a hydrangea she’d propagated from her own plant in her yard. I was home visiting, so I brought it home to middle Georgia and nurtured here on the farm until it took solid root. I put up some hideous plastic fencing around it to keep it safe until it got past its first year, and for the past couple of years it has bloomed magically in shades of brilliant purple, violet, and blue.

I clipped it back earlier this spring and stuck the clippings in a large pickle jar to see if I could create several smaller plants from these prunings. I think it has finally taken root, since I see new growth on the leaves.

Today, I’ll try my hand at transplanting these rooted stems into their own containers with fresh potting soil. I’m hoping to plant some more of these on the farm in other locations – namely, out in the butterfly garden. Butterflies are attracted to hydrangeas as nectar plants, and hydrangeas are a great choice because unlike annuals, they live for years and are fairly low-maintenance plants. I found a helpful resource, and can’t wait to get started with my hydrangea expansion project. I plan to leave them in containers until late summer or early fall and see how they are doing before making the decision to put them in the ground.

I’m learning new things about plants all the time, and I’m particularly excited about propagating this hydrangea that was a gift from a childhood friend.

Propagate Hydrangea Cuttings {99% Success Rate}
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#VerseLove April 10 – Whimsical Science with Brittany Saulnier

Today’s host for Day 10 of #VerseLove at http://www.ethicalela.com is Brittany Saulnier, who inspires us to write whimsical science poems. I chose to focus on outdoor science – nature and all its discovery and wonder about the world! I have just gotten my flower presses out of the old barn over the weekend and can’t wait to gather flowers and greenery to press on a long walk one afternoon this week. So much of science is soothing, just pure medicine for the soul. Brittany’s gift of a prompt that invites peace is particularly appreciated on this Monday back to work after spring break. Today, my poem is a first-word-Golden Shovel Tanka (5-7-5-7-7) string. I took my striking line as a quote from a birding journal by Vanessa Sorensen: “Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Bloom!

adopt a mindset~
the practice of noticing
pace your amazement

of observing more fully
nature: less is so much more

her covert moments
secret discoveries ~ what
is our big hurry?

its blessings beckoning us
patience blooms on every stem