My Pond

Sit awhile and I will tell you about "my pond."
There is something almost hypnotic and soothing about the movement of water. The trickle of moving water is mesmerizing and draws me close. Listening to the sound puts me into a peaceful
meditative state of deep relaxation. The trickling water moves with energy dissolving into a sparkling still !! Raindrops dimple the water's surface! The sight of water is cooling in the heat of the summer and most tranquil to sit by.
When there is water, there is life! Soon my resident frog I name "Dalty" will poke his head from under a water plant or rest on the stone edging. My pond......a very important element in my
garden.
Pictured is my "spring" pond alive with growth and activity. The corkscrew willow shades
"my secret garden" located behind the pond. (see post "Beginnings" Apr./06)

Eye Candy

Nature's perfection...
delights our eyes

(enlarge these photos)

Garden Treasures

dove family

baby and mom

What we see when we look out into our garden is of utmost importance. Not only does it give us pleasure but supports and nourishes our senses. "Treasures" in life come to us in many ways.
Yesterday I played in my garden in the rain loving every moment! Decked out in my yellow rain coat with matching yellow garden boots I clipped, weeded, tidied, and snapped photos!
No sooner I came indoors and dried myself off, I recieved a phone call from my neighbor who is a treasured friend. She insisted that I run over immediately with my camera to take a photo of a family of morning doves perched on her deck outside her kitchen door.
What I saw was truy a "treasure!" A dove family with baby tucked under moms wing protected from the damp rain! I felt intimately connected with these 3 little souls and I became teary eyed. I had posted "Miracle Moment" March 23 .... could this be the same doves but now with "their treasure!" My friends' gentle spirited husband took my camera and went outside and captured these photos for me. The doves got nervous and one by one flew off.
My friend said "I feel when doves come to my garden space that they are signs of peace and blessings!"
I'd like to add......and love!

I share with you a "garden treasure" with these photos

Raining

Japanese maple

tulips

peony

Its' raining not pouring so I am off to the garden. Oh yes I do have my camera in hand.

click on pictures to get a better view of raindrops

Snail

April showers also brings out...

Something precious at my feet
round full and glossy.
Out it came from its' protective shell !!!

Earth Day

Today is "Earth Day" and naturegirl and husband will participate in a "tree-planting program" along what is known as the Niagara Escarpment.
As part of a conservation watershed reforestation effort, a local enviromental agency is launching a tree-planting program. Forests not only add beauty to our landscape, but more importantly, our forests are vital to ensuring biodiversity, healthy streams, clean drinking water and clean air.
Volunteers will help plant 2,000 trees. The aim is to plant 500,000 trees over five years to increase forest cover in a local watershed.

"We cannot underestimate the value of trees and forests to the health of people and wildlife"--
quote by chairman of Conservation agency

The photo... my "self portrait"

Low Angle

I leave the dentist office dressed up in a dressy pant and a fashionable pair of "high heel shoes." I decide to take the scenic route home and stop by a local nursey. As I journey along a country road with its' peacefull scenery I noticed a patch of cheery daffodils growing near a gully alongside the road. Their blooms are bright and beckoning!
Armed with my new camera never leave home without it, I knew I had to stop and take a photo.
I tiptoed through the brush to get a closer look. I have learned to take a "low angle shot" you must crawl on your belly like a reptile. Not possible I am all dressed up!
I get down on my hands and knees with my behind facing the passing traffic.What are those passengers thinking!! I clicked away and I captured the result ...cheery bright wild daffodils!

"What we must do in the search for the perfect picture!"

Hint of Spring

The garden is bursting with "buds"! After slumbering through the winter there is a riot of activity! Sprouting through the ground my glorious Casablanca lilies! Two full days of Spring sunshine and you can see what a difference a day makes!
I took these photos one day apart.

A Tribute

Now there are three. Yes one more "collectable" to add to our feline family! A sweet spirit we name Halo. A "covergirl" as she made the cover of a pet photo calendar! I cherish the moments shared with my feline family. Always at my side while I tend to my garden. (only time I allowed them outdoors) Walking through the soft grass in spring or chasing summer butterflies as they danced through the flowers. On a warm summer day each curled up in bliss under the shade of a tree or shrub enjoying the soft breeze against their whiskers. They are my feline companion gardeners. Investigating every corner carefully studying the flowers and plants, and yes preying on the bird that lands on the bird feeder!
Casper and Halo have passed away so this post "a tribute" to their memory. One of my sad tasks is to "plant" them in their respectful place in my "memory garden." A quiet corner of the garden filled with lilacs, forget-me-nots, lily-of-the-valley, and LOTS of catnip. Paisley will surely visit. I will think of you fondly as I stroll through our garden remembering.........now there is one.

"If we measure lives not in time but in grace, in the joy with which they are lived, and in love they leave behind, then we have much to learn from our cats."

Gentle Giant

This and the previous post is for all you "cat-lovers."
Our furry whiskered four legged "creature comforts" are our angels, friends, teachers and at times healers. Anyone who loves their pet would agree.
The nature of the magical bond between cats and humans can be understood only when you have one.
A friend once said to me..
"cats are collectables you can't have just one."

Window Seat

Casper sitting on the outside ledge. Little Paisley on the inside ledge.

Beginnings

It's always the beginning-that's the thrill, reward, and challenge of gardening. How well you "begin" each planting and how you carry through determines how much satisfaction gardening will give you. A lot of gardening is just housekeeping outdoors. I find it a lot more pleasurable than "just housekeeping" indoors. One of the greatest rewards of gardening is that you can express your own personality. One sure thing about gardening- you learn and benefit enormously by trying and doing. Nature allows you to correct your mistakes quite readily. One of the most enjoyable aspects of gardening for me is visiting garden supply stores and nurseries! Today I did the necessary " outdoor spring housekeeping" in my secret garden pictured above.
"It isn't the stooping-down that bothers me it's the stooping-up !!"

Through The Gate

Time to turn to the never-ending pleasures of gardening. A time to review past garden photos and notes made in my gardening journal. I came upon this view "through the garden gate".

Gardens of the Soul

Our garden is a place of peace, refuge, and natural beauty. A garden is a gift to ourselves for our soul. A garden that speaks to our soul can restore or preserve our internal balance. There is no substitute for feeling the crunchy soil roll through your fingers as you part the earth's flesh to accept a seed or a plant. A garden connects us with the wheel of life in a direct measurable way. We learn through experience that sometimes effort doesn't always equal reward.In addition to providing an outlet for those of us who enjoy digging in the earth and watching plants grow and thrive,a garden can be a source of inspiration.

"The path to happiness is often paved with the effort spent on caring for the world surrounding us. As a garden is nourished, so are our dreams."
NANCILEE WYDRA

Spring Splendour

Today the sun is winking at me, beckoning me to go out into the garden and explore. The sturdy perennials laugh at cold weather and are a treat for my flower starved eyes. I feel the "new energy" from the stirring buds and peeping petals as I walk about exploring. Although it is still too chilly to sit in the garden what a delight to my eyes! I see an explosion of crocuses carpeting a sunny corner.Love to plant them for both sun and shade areas. As I examine them closely, I notice that their foliage is gone but the flower remains? The rabbits have oviously feasted on these fresh greens! I think to myself the leaves help replenish the bulb and prepare it for blooming next season, so damage has been done.I make necessary notes in my garden journal.As I continue my search I notice more signs that the rabbits have been nibbling in my spring garden!I learned in the past that tulip bulbs continually fall prey to squirrels so this year the dwarf daffodils add the punch of color creating the "spring splendour." As I take time to examine each tender budding plant I am pleasantly surprised in seeing my treasured peony bush sprouting through the warm soil! The climbing hydrangea planted in the fall has survived it's first winter sending out an abundance of buds. The clematis that wraps over my arbor leading into the garden was given tough love last month. I cut both plants down to about 2 feet an happily see that the pruning has not destroyed their cycle as the branches are filled with tender buds ready to burst open.I notice the green foliage of the creeping phlox and the forget-me-nots.Under the lilac bushes that burst with buds I notice the sweet scented lily-of-the valley beginning to poke through the mulch. I enjoyed this stroll seeking out the sleeping beauties that have awakened.Clearly spring is very much welcomed!