Perennials!

The pinks, the whites, the lavenders along with the greens are popping up in our back perennial garden!  What a welcome sight!  Enjoying the beautiful colors of Spring is always a treat after the snow disappears.  Our weather is a bit warmer now, so the blossoms are here.  It's so very cool that so many shades of color are now found in our yard.

We are enjoying!!

 

Saving Zinnia Seeds

This summer and now in autumn we've been enjoying the colorful, abundant Zinnia blossoms in our gardens.  Shades of pink, yellow, orange and white blossoms were admired day after day.  Now that October is here it is only a matter of time when a frost will end the Zinnia season!  It has not happened yet, but that is in the near future.

For that reason I've been snipping off the colorful blossoms to save.  Then, they are dried.  Cut down tissue boxes make great storage boxes for the blossoms to dry out.

Looking at the first box of my collected colorful blossoms, I noticed that there were no white ones.  Another trip to the garden and a few more blossoms were snipped- this time only white ones.

The flowers are now dried, so next week the seeds will be harvested from the dried blossoms.   To do this:  Pull the dried petals off the flower and "tear drop" shaped seeds will be found.  These are the seeds to plant for next year.  I will store them in a labelled sealed envelope.  Next spring they will be planted in our gardens. 

This has become a tradition with me- saving the Zinnia seeds.  After saving and then planting the saved seeds for about 5 years, the flower blossoms will become smaller.  That is my clue to purchase new seed packets to plant the next year.  Then, the saving and replanting starts again.

Enjoy!
Happy Gardening!

           

~Zinnias~

First there was one.
Now, there are some!!!
Summer is here
and the colorful Zinnias are blossoming!!!

Enjoy!

 

February in April!

First Flowers, Then Snowflakes!

Sure is February in April!  At least that's what it looks like & how it's felt yesterday & today.  Oh wait- I live in New England!  

Last week we were enjoying the colorful flowering bulbs in our back perennial garden.  Some of us stored away the snow shovels & snow blowers for next winter.  However, yesterday & today the back perennial garden has an absence of color.   There were a lot of flakes floating down! 

Spring is just around the corner- again.  :)

Enjoying the seasons,

    

~Guest in the Garden~

Colorful garden along driveway

The past two days have brought cooler weather!  What a change from the HHH long lasting heat wave of mid July!  Yes, we are enjoying our pleasant weather!  It feels like the early days of September.  An added plus is that the Zinnias are robust!  They will be blossoming until frost.  Before I know it, it will be time to save the dried seeds for next year's planting - around Memorial Day.

Yesterday, just as my DH & I were walking past the colorful Zinnias on the side of our driveway, a butterfly gracefully flew past us.  Perhaps it was a Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly!  It landed on another Zinnia in the garden on the side of our home and we watched it move from one flower to another.  Who can resist a good photo op?  Up the driveway we went!  The smart phone was in hand and a photo was taken:

A Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly?

The smart phone camera came in handy!  :)

Enjoy!
      

~ May 1 ~

My view from my kitchen window!

A beautiful time of year!

Enjoy!

Another Look...

The elevated perennial garden in our backyard changes in appearance every season. This afternoon was so comfortable with temps in the 50°'s.  We were heading out shopping and I took a quick glance outside from our Family Room.  Then, another longer look.  A fox was basking in the sun under our large tree looking very relaxed.  That was a surprise!

The fox was comfortable enough to give me time to get my camera for a photo op.  Definitely, I took the pic from inside!  :)  I'm accustomed to deer, squirrels, skunks, chipmunks, rabbits and even a fisher cat once, moving through our yard.  Today brought a surprise.  A fox getting the rays!

That fox sure was enjoying the sun!

        

Saving the Seeds

Dried rust, golden, and red colored leaves were bouncing on the pavement as they blew down the street two days ago.  The sun was shining on a beautiful fall day!  As I enjoyed listening to the leaves I remembered the Zinnia seeds that were drying on our Family Room window sill.  All summer we and our neighbors have enjoyed our ever blooming Zinnias.  Shades of orange, yellow and red blossoms were constantly opening!  This year I purchased packaged seeds that would grow in three different heights.  The blossoms were also different.

Zinnias with pink Impatiens

Some looked like cone flowers.  In the autumn I save some of the dry flowers in order to further dry out and store the seeds.  My plan worked well two weeks ago.  I harvested my bounty one afternoon and we had a "hard frost" that night!  

 

Currently, there are 3 lunch sized paper bags on my window sill that contain the seeds that are drying. 

Tear shaped Zinnia seeds attached to petals

The seeds are tear shaped and still attached to the dried colored petals of the previously colorful flowers.

 

In a couple of weeks the dried seeds will be packaged in envelopes - and labelled according to height.  They'll be ready to plant next spring.

 

Not only do I have plans for next year's gardens, today I learned how to add arrows using Photoshop!  WooHoo!

 

Do you harvest seeds to plant the next year?

 

Happy New Year!

Section of multicolored map (23' x 30') at Stanley Park
made of New York Slate

It was so pleasant this Christmas with the lack of white powder on our lawns! We had way too much snow in October!  At this time last year we in the northeast were digging our way out of the Nor'easter that arrived the day after Christmas.  It fell with a frenzy causing trying travel plans for many.  The MetroNorth schedule to NYC changed drastically during that period.  Months later a tornado, a microburst, an earthquake, a hurricane and then the infamous Halloween Nor'easter all made their appearances during the year - some in small and others in very large ways - some at and some very close to home.

Fortunately in the 'Meadow, the tree debris from our Halloween surprise has been collected, chipped and removed!  Other towns and cities are still recovering from the June 1 tornado.

During the winter months I always anticipate visiting the beautiful gardens at Stanley Park in Westfield, MA.  Stanley Park is about 35 minutes from my home.  This gem in Western MA is open from May to November and is a gorgeous area to visit and to collect gardening ideas and tips for the home landscaper.  The slate map above is located in front of the Carillon Tower.  The Covered Bridge and the Rose Garden are also always fave spots to visit.  

Taking a peek at the Rose Garden

The colors and the varieties of annuals blend together!   

With less trees in our backyard there will be more sun this coming year.  Perhaps an Herb Garden will have a spot!  It's time to start planning!

Happy New Year!!!