Category Archives: Country Life

Gifts

Country Life, Gardens, ,

Plants are amazing things. From tiny seeds, or sometimes bulbs, an entire plant springs forth. For most of the plants we are past the stage where they invest all their energy in growing stems and leaves. Now the buds that developed are bursting open and into flower.

The plants put on a show and enter one of the most beautiful times of the year. Certainly the most colorful.

These are all plants from our gardens and around our yard. We are blessed to live with such beauty.

This bed has plants that are loved by butterflies. We are just recently started seeing butterflies for the year but I anticipate many more to come.

And we must not forget the plants that bless us with beautiful scents. My husband brought this gardenia bush inside and tended it all winter. This is the year’s first blossom. It is the first of many as the bush is loaded with buds. On a summer’s eve few scents are sweeter.

May you enjoy similar such gifts from the lowly seed.

A Weekend Well Spent

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, Gardens, ,

How many times can you go swimming in one day? Many times when it is 92 degrees with high humidity.

The majority of my three day weekend was spent in the garden with dogs. I lounged in my pool chair and read while drinking Fresca and cold water. I am sharing with you the view that I had while I bobbed around in the water.

This is how people without air conditioning (or at least we) survive. Given this week’s forecast there will probably be more of the same when I’m not at work. I’m so thankful to have the entire area fenced in now so I don’t have to choose between being in the garden or being with dogs.

Life is good!

The Face of Innocence

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue Happenings,

He is innocent. Just ask him. Here is a further tale of living with a smart dog who suffers from separation anxiety. Zekie thinks he should be with us, especially me, at all times. Usually he will stay in the pasture with the other dogs until I come home.

However, today he heard my husband on the patio. Zeke knows that he likes to hang out on the patio.

Here is a picture from the weekend of Zeke having a good time on the patio while I read. So when he heard my husband there he broke out of the pasture and ran to join him. Not wanting to encourage escapist behavior my husband told Zeke “that’s a bad dog, you’re going to have to go in your crate “. As they walked towards the house and the crate, Zeke ran back to the pasture and broke back in, pushing through the gate and putting himself back with the other dogs.

Having a smart dog is not necessarily an easy thing.

Peonies

Country Life, Gardens, ,

These are my Sarah Bernhardt peonies. I’m so glad I planted them. Peonies are my favorite flower and all my other types are fading and nearly spent. But this cultivar is just now peaking. They extend my peony bloom season for nearly two additional weeks.

I researched peonies and while I did not find a repeat bloomer, I did discover that there are peonies that bloom at five different times from spring through early summer. I apparently only have two of the five covered so I will have to see if I can find others to extend the season.

My other peonies are of the type above. I’m not sure what they are. They were here when I bought this house and since it was built in 1830, I have no idea how old they are. They could be very old or a more recent owner could have planted them. I did move them about 10 years ago because a large ash tree was shading them out.

The peonies outlived the tree though. We lost it to the invasive Emerald Ash Borer, as we have lost all our ash trees. This did leave us with plenty of firewood. So plant more peonies!

(I think the lesson is beware of invasive species, but in my opinion you can never have too many peonies!)

Short Garden Tour

Country Life, Gardens, ,

First pictorial garden walk about for this year. This year’s addition to the garden is a new flowerbed. The perimeter is planted with pink blooming spirea. Sunflowers are planted along the back fence line for this year. We’ll have to see what plantings are in store for next.

My favorite urn needed about a dozen plants to fill it up. It holds sweet potato vine, coleus, spikes, nicotiana, and assorted petunias.

This much smaller urn contains verbena, dahlia, and petunias.

The rose garden finally seems to be making a comeback. We had so many extra cold winters in a row that I was beginning to wonder if it would survive. The jury is still out on my America climbing rose. It lost a lot of canes.

More garden photos will be forthcoming. I am tired now from helping to cut down a pine tree and haul off the branches. Plus I have to watch the basketball game. Go Cavs!

A Day In My Life With Zekie

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals,

I realized that I haven’t given an update on Zekie in a while. I wish that I had more progress to report. Because it would be great if he suddenly became a normal dog. But I know that is not going to happen. I’ve been told, and I quote, “You are not happy unless you have a crazy dog. You should be fulfilled.” There may be some truth to this. Although I don’t go out looking for crazy dogs. They just seem to find me. One with problems comes along and I feel like they need me. And I do like to be needed. And also to solve a good problem.

Zekie is still doing the disgusting drooling thing in his crate when he is left home alone. When he is put in his crate for a time-out while someone is home, he is fine. He lays quietly with no drooling and little noise.

He also does not tolerate being separated from me well. When he is home with my husband, he will stay out in the pasture with the other dogs most of the time. But once I get home, he escapes from the pasture to be near me. He finds a way to squeeze between the gates and run to me. I don’t like to reward him for this so we were putting him in his crate in the house when he does it. He lays there and is good. Especially if I stay in the house. Sometimes I give him a second chance. I tell him, ok, you stay in the pasture or you are going in your CRATE! Sometimes this works. Sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes when I go to put him in the house, he tries to sneak back into the pasture.

He comes running to me with such joy on his face when he makes his great escape that it is hard to be mad at him. I also don’t want to ever yell at a dog that comes to me. This may make him not want to come to me one day when it is necessary. So rather than yell at him, we end up with just calmly putting him in his crate without comment. He shouldn’t be rewarded with freedom for his escape.

I figured out that he is pushing the two gates apart and getting through them. He hurt himself one time doing this so we are trying to come up with a solution. The gate is fastened at the top with a latch. It is the bottom where he makes his escape. So my last attempt involved fastening the two gates at the bottom with a leash. This worked for about 20-30 minutes. I didn’t see Zekie coming after me so I thought, well that’s taken care of. Ummm, no. He figured out that he could chew threw the leash. I thought about using a chain leash to fasten the gate but I’m not sure that is a good idea either given his penchant for breaking teeth off.

Back to the drawing board!

Native Plants

Country Life, Gardens,

Walking around our property I see that many of our early bloomers are native plants. The bleeding heart or Dicentra looks so delicate.

And we are lucky enough to have a trillium with five stalks. They are not very common. I just learned recently that another name for trillium is wake robin.

Our grapevines are leafing out . They have tiny buds right now.

The dogwood in the front yard is nearly done blooming but is beautiful nonetheless.

And the honeysuckle is open now.

Mother Nature provides us with many gifts.

Scents of Spring

Country Life, Gardens, ,

There are some flowers that I plant primarily because of their scent. The vase contains viburnum and lilacs. My first encounter with a viburnum was some years back. I was walking into the library when I noticed this most wonderful smell. I walked up and down the sidewalk until I determined from which plant it was emanating. Then I started poking around until I found a tag which identified the plant. Not too long after that, I was the proud owner of one of these plants.

I don’t find it to be the prettiest of bushes but the scent makes it well worth having. Mine is planted underneath a window so that we are often blessed with its scent. I also cut at least one stalk to have in a vase at all times during the bloom season.

The simple lilac is another gem. It is pleasant to look at but I consider the scent to be its greatest offering. I think many would agree with me as its flowers have been made into perfumes for many a year. Walking around the yard is a treat for the senses during the month of May.

And the humble honeysuckle will be offering up an olfactory delight shortly as well. The month of May offers an awakening of the senses after a long, frigid winter.

American Redbud-Lesson From a Tree in Our Yard

Country Life, Gardens, Thoughts On Life,

If you don’t like where you are at, move. You are not a tree.

I don’t know who first said this but I love it. We have the ability to change our lives.

Don’t waste it!

Dogs in Spring

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals,

This weather is making for happy dogs! It has been around 70 degrees for most of the past week.

The pack gets to spend a few hours outdoors if it doesn’t rain, and there are walks and frisbeeing too.

Of course all that running and frisbeeing makes a dog thirsty.

I’m not sure that anyone told Cassius that he’s a retired racer. That dog does love to run. He is also a silly boy

Although Shelby the sheltie says that she is too dignified to run, thank you very much. Each of our dogs is enjoying this fine weather in their own way.