Tin Pumpkins

These cute pumpkins were made out of recycled tin cans.

A few of my neighbors and I get together once a month and make “Kindergarten” crafts.  Kindergarten crafts are crafts that don’t take much time to make, so we have more time to eat and visit.

I love this tree!

This flowering crabapple tree was in our back yard when we moved here 17 years ago.  It is hard to believe we have lived here 17 years.  Time goes way too fast. 

I just love this tree. In the spring it is covered in beautiful blossoms and gets these wonderful berries that stay on the branches all winter.  The birds and squirrels just love them.

Well this fall we had a major sewer project in our small town. Everyone was required to be hooked up to “city” sewer. This meant no more mound systems or septic tanks.

With is project came loss of gardens. It also meant loss of our grass that we had looking pretty nice. My back yard is such a mess it makes me sick to look at it. Hope to make it into something better next spring.

This brings me back to this tree that I love.  They wanted to cut it down.  I just couldn’t let them do it.  It would take too long to get another tree this size.  I got my way.  They left the tree.  It took a beating, but I think it will live.  A couple branches are splitting where it was hit by the machines.  I will have to remove them, but I think it will be okay.  Yeah!

These photos were taken on Sunday.  I just couldn’t believe all the Robins in our yard.  I counted 18 of them in the tree and on the ground in the back yard.  Some of the berries fell to the ground when the contractors where working around the tree.

Today is Outdoor Wednesday. Please check out the others here.   Thanks to Susan at a Southern Daydreamer.

Zinnia's & Asters

Two plants that are still blooming in my garden are zinnia's and asters.  I love the color!

Today is Bloomin' Tuesday! Please check out the others, thanks to Jean at MsGreen "thumb".

Dahlias

Dahlia plants


Because I live in zone 4, I have to grow Dahlias as an annual. Dahlias bloom from midsummer all the way up to frost. Many times their displayed will become more spectacular as the weather cools. This has been a great year for my Dahlias.

But, all good things must come to an end. I had to clean up my annual flower bed and it was so hard to remove these Dahlias, but it did it right after I took these photos.

This is one plant I hope to grow again next year.

Quilting with my friends - Block 3

This is the 3rd block we finished. The pattern we are making is Memory Lane 2009 Block of the Month.  Please check out the free pattern here.  Thanks to Block Central.

I still have color in my garden!

The geraniums are just gorgeous.  They have been blooming like crazy.  I hope to winter a few of these over.  I am not sure which method I will try this year.  One method is to just bring a plant inside. Geraniums actually make decent houseplants.

I like to have the geranium as houseplant throughout the winter, than I can take slips off in the spring.  I have so many geraniums I like; picking just one is a problem. It is recommended that you prune them back by about 1/3. It may seem harsh, but it will help them adjust in the long run. Also, I have to be careful to remove the Asian beetles before I bring it into the house.  I just hate those bugs in the house

Another method that has worked for me is to pot up the geranium and allow the soil to dry out.  Cut the plant way back and cover the plant with a brown paper bag.  I store them in the basement.  In the spring I just start watering them and place them in the sun and they start to come back to life.  They look bad for a few weeks, but look wonderful by the time you put them outside.

 I can’t believe my impatiens haven’t froze yet.  I just love all there color!

Red Salvia, also called Scarlet Sage. It grew gigantic this year.  It is so much fun to have in my garden. It is still blooming like crazy!!!!

Gaillardia, sometimes known as Blanket Flower. I have shown this plant before, but it is still blooming and looking great!

 

Zinnia flower.  I just love the color of this zinnia.  Orange is my favorite color!

Hyacinth Bean

Hyacinth Bean is one of my favorite annuals. It is so easy to grow.

I will collect the seeds in a few weeks, at the end of the growing season, and saved them in a cool, dark place until next year. I usually put them in a brown paper bag.


To plant hyacinth bean vine, soak the seeds overnight in warm water then plant them one inch deep in soil that will receive full sun. You can start the seeds indoors if you like, but do not put them outside until after the danger of frost has passed.


Select a sunny location for the vine. Although it does grow in partial shade, the more sun it has the more it will flower. It can be grown in a container for an unusual hanging plant or used for ground cover.


Hyacinth bean pod is a beautiful vine that twines around fences, posts or trellises. It grows rapidly in a single season, reaching up to 20 feet. The vine is a dark maroon, covered with deep green leaves. The blooms are spikes of fragrant pea-like purple flowers. It is also drought-resistant. 


It is just a fun inexpensive plant that looks gorgeous and the flowers smell wonderful.

Please help me identify

I was dead heading my coneflowers when I saw this little guy.  He was the brightest neon green.  I have never seen anything like it before.  What is it?