Gardening, anyone?

Good morning ladies, well do I ever have a hummingbird story for you this morning! I was out doing some work early in the back yard and gardens as the sun was coming up and got near my desert willow tree that is blooming. I noticed there was a little broad bill hummingbird there grazing off the pink blossoms. I was very close to the tree and bird when I saw this, and just stopped and stood like a statue watching the little bird having it's breakfast. This little fellow circled his way up from the lower part of the tree, and at one point was within less than a foot from my face enjoying the nectar from one of the blossoms. I could see every detail of it's tiny body, and then, my little friend came closer to circle my head, head so close I could hear it's hum loudly and feel the breeze from it's wings on my face. Talk about a gift from nature on this saturday morning.

Here is a photo of the desert willow. I did not have anything to take a photo of that little bird, but think the memory of this will remain etched in my mind forever.

Jazzy- wonderful story! I think of these things as little (sometimes not so little, such as this one) gifts from nature. I just love hummingbirds, they were special friends to me during my surgery recovery. I still stop what I'm doing when I see them come to the feeder outside my big window. I've missed I don't know how many important points during Wimbledon during the last week!

This sounds like a magical moment, and I'm sure you won't need any photographic record to remind you. But thank you for sharing. Made my morning

Jazzy, great hummingbird story. I love when I visit the West, so that I can see the different varieties of hummers.

FlaviaRose, we're so close! I'm in a little town nobody ever heard of, quite near Mt. Snow,and about 45 minutes from Bennington. My parents bought the place as a summer retreat when I was tiny. As a teen, I'd have lived anywhere in the universe except here, but eventually it called me and I've been a year-round Vermonter for just about 20 years.

Thank you :-)

Brookside, we are close! All I can say is: New England winters aren't for sissies!

The Hot weather here in Washington put a speed on my tomatoes,

they are ripening very fast. And OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

so good.

My aloe vera normally blooms once in the winter and once in the summer. This summer, first time it has had two flowers!

my vegetable garden over-run with poppies

I just love coming here and seeing the beautiful photos. Jazzy I've never seen an aloe bloom. 70charger beautiful lilies. I had a lot of lilies and the chipmunks dug them all up. I only have daylilies now. Speaking of that, I thought I had transplanted a lovely tall yellow daylily to my front bed, and today I see it blooming and its orange. That's OK except it is near my dolce blackcurrant heuchera, so it kind of clashes. Hmmm... This is like the time I bought a cantaloupe plant for 25 cents. It got tiny cantaloupes on it and I thought, oh how weird that they don't get that webbing look on them until later. Well later never came and I finally realized I had honeydew! The tag said cantaloupe.

charger and Flavia: what a fabulous treat to see all of these delightful pics. I love an overrun with poppies veggie garden! I've never seen such a beautiful one. It shall be my new standard of excellence for vegetable gardens!

Jazzy- how special to see an aloe in bloom!

And Two hobbies, very funny story about the melon. For some reason today I wondered what we are going to show each other when the winter months come. We should try to recruit some ladies from down under, NZ, and S. Africa, etc., so we can have beautiful summer all year long here.

I have nothing to share today, but thought of all of you when I drove by several huge stands of naturalized foxgloves. They have exploded here on the Oregon Coast and are Just gorgeous. But I was late to a vet appointment and couldn't pull off the highway and do them justice. Earlier in the year, each year, we have naturalized lupines that cover the hillsides right up to the cliffs overlooking the ocean. I think of them as our Oregon bluebonnets.

Edit: after I posted I saw your smashing hollyhock, Daylily. Nice!

I let foxglove and mullein (they're both tall biennials) grow wherever they want in my veggie garden, then plant veggies and marigolds in the leftover places. If you haven't guessed, I like flowers better than veggies. I think I plant veggies only because I so enjoy the geometry of their rows and patterns. Of course, planting around the flowers kind of defeats the geometry thing.

Just looked at my side garden and bee balm is finally in bloom. About half in full bloom, half still working at it.

Jackbirdie, I've never been to Oregon, but have seen pictures of the coast and it is stunning. I've been daydreaming of what would be the ideal place to garden year round, and I'm wondering if Oregon is it? You don't have the water problems that California does, right? Does it freeze where you are?

Flavia- Oregon has many climates and zones, but on the southern Oregon Coast where I am, it's pretty close to perfect. We do have plenty of water, enough sun, no hard freezes. The temp where I am ever gets much above 80. Sometimes it gets to freezing temps, or just under, for a couple hours at night. Wind is probably the biggest problem. I've lived here 5 years now. Born in CA, left when I was 30, and have done the East and Midwest. I felt a sense of home from the first here, though sadly, I'm not close geographically, to family. Here is a little taste of what's near me:

The photos are just beautiful everyone.

The black hollyhocks are really something special too Daylily. Never seen those but love hollyhocks of all colors.

Flavia- a garden overrun with poppies is a good problem to have, yes?

The pics make me want to take a road trip to visit all your gardens (and oh yes, you too!)