2011 Northwest Flower and Garden Show

Inspiration....

creates....

anticipation!

(Photos of just one of the many gardens displayed

at this year's Northwest Flower and Garden Show)

Longing for days in the garden from

sun-up to sunset!

How about you?

Joining Amy at Homestead Revival

Hand Crafted Grapevine Wreath

The deer got into the garden and ate EVERYTHING

which included raspberry plants, blueberry plants,

Marion berry plants, pole beans, 40 tomato plants,

and my Grapes which were nearly ready to harvest!

But, every cloud has a silver lining (and reasons such

as this is why I have 'silver threads among the gold' if

you know what I mean!)

So I took advantage of the leafless vines to do a bit

of pruning.

With the trimmings, I tried my hand at wreath making.

This is what I did.

~*~

Trimmed away the leaf stems and extra branches

leaving single, long whip-like vines with all of

the little curly tendrils attached!

You will need about ten to twelve

5-8 foot vines.

Found something round to wrap the first and longest

vine around. In this case, the bucket will determine

the size of the inner circumference of the wreath. Use

whatever you have handy that is about the size

of your desired finished wreath.

~*~

After wrapping this vine around the bucket and overlapping

it on itself, I wove the small end into a gap in the vines.

Holding on to the starting point, I carefully removed the

base of the wreath from the bucket.

~*~

With another piece of vine, I poked the large end into a gap and

snaked the vine around the entire wreath base, tucking the

small end again, into a gap in the vines to hold it secure. I repeated this step

several more times until the wreath was the thickness

I desired, always starting with the thick end of the

vine in a space around the wreath like at the numbers

on a clock face.

~*~

As these were freshly cut vines, they were supple

enough to be bent without breaking. If your vines are

more brittle, you might want to try soaking them in

warm water for several hours before you begin.

(See how the vines serpentine around each other)

I think it turned out pretty well for my very first

Grapevine Wreath!

I just love those little tendrils!
~*~

Joining Susan for

Why not hop on over and see more

fun Outdoor Wednesday posts!

From the garden

Lilacs

Snowball Viburnum
~*~
Joining Kathleen at Faded Charm for White Wednesday
and
Susan at A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday

The Garden in May

The Pink Dogwood

Hitchhiking Viola
Came in a potted Peony I purchased.

Chinese Red Poppy

Bridal Veil

Double White Lilac

(I've named it Breath of Heaven ~it's scent is so divine!)

Double purple lilac

Blue Columbine

(I'm saving seeds of this one. They will be available

at Lady Farmers Seed Swap soon!)

Rescued Rhododendron

Ajuga (with bee) in the 'wild' (read=neglected, unweeded, forgotten) part of the garden.

Solomon's Seal in the shade of the Banana Apple Tree.

Ages old Red Rhododendron nicknamed "Grandma's Lipstick"

(My Grandmother's favorite shade!)

Pink Bleeding Hearts

Green Hellebore Seedpods.

Dainty Sweet Woodruff.

Winesap Apple Blossom.

Diminutive Weed!

(This little plant is sooo tiny ~ the stem stands about 3 inches tall!

The wee little flowers are so precious! I don't have the heart to tear it out!)

~*~*~*~*~*~

Joining Cindy for Show and Tell Friday!

Head on over to see what other's have to share!

The Spring Garden in January

The sun was shining warmly, between showers, and I couldn't

resist the call to go out and play in the dirt!

The afternoon was spent tidying up the Spring garden

along with....

my gardening crew!

~*~

Upon discovering this...

one thinks, "Can spring be far behind?"

Being green

Garden Rhapsodies Garden Tour 2009

Come along with me on the Garden Rhapsodies Tour!

(Presented by the Master Gardeners of Thurston County)

~*~

Theme for this year's tour is gardens using drought tolerant plants

and/or

Eco-friendly watering/planting methods.

~*~

Garden 1

Drought tolerant planting

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Play area for children...

...and birds!
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Many birds were feeding and 'hummers' buzzing all over the garden

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Garden 2.
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Beautiful harp music in the garden.

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Learning about Vermiculture!

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Beautiful woodland garden.

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Mixing veggies and flowers!

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Daylilies

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Stately lillies!

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White Echinaecia

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Campanula

(which blogger likes sideways!)

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Heuchera (coral bells) and Hostas in the shade
~*~

Perennials line the walk to the front door

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Garden 3.

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Goldfish in the water collection pond

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Dragonfly or perhaps a Damselfly, perched on waterlily frond

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Unknown plant growing along the path through a small woodland

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Garden 4.

Unusual color delphinium

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Bed of daylilies

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Music with a country flair

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I loved this vignette with the "Shagpoke"

(our name for Heron)

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Hydrangea

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More daylilies

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Sweet volunteer Poppies 'escaping' the compost bin

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Garden 5.

A variety of lacecap hydrangea

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Hosta and Brunnera in the shade

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Beautiful stacked stone wall with plantings

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Bear's Breeches

(love the name!)

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The planting on the top side of the stacked stone wall

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Garden 6

New garden with arbor planted with evergreen clematis

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The new Potager

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?

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Brunnera and a bench to rest on after a beautiful but long hot day!

~*~

I hope you enjoyed the Garden Rhapsodies tour with me!

We will have to go again next year!