Hiya!!
I am back 🖤
I have returned and am ready for some serious fun.
You?
I have had a very busy week filled with friends and work and fun.
Boys playing music in the garden.
Singing like mad.
Good food, laughs, friends.
When you are really busy you don't really notice that plants get dinosaur size overnight.
Until you look at them and are gobsmacked.
Amazing what a little heat can do for the green, eh?
We set out on our rounds.
The hydrangeas are turning up.
I have two big bushes in the shady part of the flower garden.
Love seeing them.
My little brownie always cuddles up to me when I am pulling weeds or taking photos.
Or if I am fast asleep.
While I was squatting down taking photos he was leaning on me, sniffing my hair, etc.
He is such a curious kid.
Love is on his terms.
I am loving the huge amount of hollyhocks that have turned up.
I know you know that already, but even other colors are turning up.
And there are so many shapes and different ruffles.
Oh oh, and I can't get over this perfect red rose.
Isn't it something?
Feel free to click on the rose pic for non-blurry version.
(the pic is crystal clear in person, but my reds get blurry on my blog, weird right?)
One of my fave things is to jump into my garden swing as the warmest golden morning light shines though the garden.
I sit in the shade and just watch the sun make everything glow.
The big rose bush is about done.
Some people down the street have roses all summer.
I must look into this.
I did read about how you can fertilize in a way to get roses all summer and fall.
Liquid fish emulsion maybe??
Do you know anything about this?
It's all so green, it feels like summer just about.
Bright and hot and wilty flowered.
Last of the Oriental poppies.
And bees.
What would the garden be without the buzzing?
Here's something curious.
My coral rose bush got one bunch of white flowers that slowly took on a coral tone.
See them there?
That was wild.
I had never ever seen that happen before.
As it gets warmer the poppies fade away.
Did I tell you, hollyhocks even turned up over by the courtyard garden outside the office, gallery and gypsy wagon?
Thank you hollyhocks!
My sister washes linens and hangs them outside the cottage to dry.
Isn't that so darling?
I was getting worried because the bees seemed to be coming less and less over the last few weeks.
At first they were here in droves, then faded away a little.
And, being obsessed with the bees, it alarmed me.
But then…
I got a little closer…
And noticed them up to their elbows in work.
Buzzing about.
Squeezing their little bodies in…
Then I was happy.
Amazing…
Little…
Creatures.
Aren't they?
We need those bees, love them so.
I have one last giant fairytale pumpkin from my garden last year, waiting to be roasted.
The seeds from another are doing quite well.
I didn't put in a proper pumpkin patch this year.
But I am letting all sorts of vines grow around wildly.
It's the first year I am letting both the flower and vegetable garden mostly do what it wants to do.
The veggie garden is moving really slow this year.
But I see tiny arugula and basil and tomato sprouts doing their thing.
And of course…
It seems, we are being graced with the year of the hollyhock.
I love seeing them dance around the front porch.
I for one am ever so glad for that.
Sometimes, you have to just let things go wild.
Our property has a little bit of a wild feel.
Or maybe a lot a bit 🙂
The wind blows pollen off of endless tree catkins everywhere.
Oleander leaves and flowers tumble around.
And I tip toe around, wondering what all these hollyhocks make of everything?
Well, time to put the finishing touches on some party planning.
Plus, my sister turned up with a new and improved hoola hoop.
So, I best go look into that asap.
Back super soon with tea sipping details.
Loooove, V
I am sooo repeat obsessing on this song right now.
Natalie Taylor.
Check her albums out on Itunes.
I just bought all her songs, she is quite refreshing and good.
Your gardens are so very beautiful. I love the close ups with the bees. It is all so lovely.
Happy summer days ahead…,
Oh, your lovely garden, Miss Vanessa!!! It’s just too, too lovely!! I keep an eye on the bees in my part of the world too. The ones we have here are big old furry things (some are almost as big around as a dime!!). I call them the flying hamsters! When I see them slowly floating over the flowers, I just drop what I’m doing and go away so they can just do what they do! And speaking of which, I got the attention of the flying hamsters and hummingbirds today by planting so many lovely pansies and violas in pots for the porch today! So many pretty colors: deep velvety-purples and magentas, sweet pastel peach, butter and periwinkle. And in one of the viola mixes, one plant of bright yellow flowers so sweet they smelled like honey! I even did it in the rain (was protected by the porch) and collected rainwater to water them! Fun!
I’m already working hard on my blog post for the Mad Tea Party. I can’t wait!!!!
Wishing you and your loved ones a lovely Sunday evening,
Betty
I love the hollyhocks! So pretty! Everything in your garden is so pretty! I’ll have a new spot to play with in a month and am looking forward to being able to create a garden I can actually handle caring for. Yours is so inspiring to me!
love & blessings
~*~
ps…hugs & kisses to Matty, Miles and Douglas (if he’s still there!) 🙂
I miss gardens!!!I had several until We moved to Coffeeberry Cottage, but I do love My cottage and the patio filled with succulents.Boy oh boy they love Rancho Cucamunga 🙂
Whee! So many gorgeous flowers!!! =D
My seeds have just sprouted. They’re maybe an inch or two tall now… but give them a month or two and they’ll be blooming all over the place. ^___^
And the bees… I love bees. I can’t get enough of them. I love to see them buzzing around my porch. There was the biggest bumble bee bumbling about the other day… I thought it was a humming bird at first. He was so fuzzy & BIG… anyways…
It’s rainy and cold today, so I don’t mind that I’m stuck inside at work, but I hope your weekend stays beautiful & warm! =D
XOXO
Oh my… flying hamsters indeed! That’s exactly what they look like! =D
While your photos are always brilliantly gorgeous, those closeups of the bees are beyond amazing!
We have all heard about bee numbers dwindling and things we can do to save their environment. I know the bees must be telling all their friends to swarm towards your yard!
There wass a major interstate truck disater a few weeks ago – a bee transport, and beekeepers were called in to capture the queens and save the hives.
This year my friends are all talking hummingbirds. I would love to see more in my gardens and at my feeders.
Somehow, even without a “formal” pumpkin patch this year, I believe your gourds will be delightful. You introduced me to the idea of pumpkins in trees. Now others are copying.
We also had some cross polinated (naturally) flowers. Don’t ask me the name, but the colors that invented themselves are stunning.
Waiting for a date so I can share the tea party!
Sooo gorgeous V… thanks so much for sharing your beautiful garden!!!
xoxo,
Deb 🙂
Oh it’s so beautiful everywhere! I love the bees in the blossoms photos! Maybe the graft grew on the coral rose bush?
Your flowers look wonderful, Vanessa! I love the images where they are against your pretty white picket fence. Such a cottagey look! I read recently that there is some concern that bees are disappearing. I didn’t read the whole article so I’m not sure what the details are, but your mentioning bees in your garden reminded me of it. Perhaps a global warming thing?
I want to come to your garden! It is so beautiful and your photographs are fabulous!
Oh my gosh Kathy, I have watched all the movies and read so much about the
bees. I am a bit obsessed. You can watch lots of Bee documentaries
on Netflix, its so alarming and scary. Poor beeeeeees 3 love
them so.
Blog: http://www.aFancifulTwist.com
Website: http://www.VanessaValencia.com
In a message dated 5/26/2014 5:08:18 A.M. US Mountain Standard Time,
That’s a dream garden right there. You guys have lots of property, so I suppose you aren’t able to peer into the neighbour’s yards too much, but sometimes around here people have every bit of laundry hung up on the line, itsy bitsy undies and lingerie included! My neighbours put their clothes out year round, even in the dead of snowy winter! Bonkers!
The hollyhocks and your divine red rose are to die for!
Reminds me of ‘We’re painting the roses red…the Queen has lost her head…’
Which I am all psyched up for the Mad Tea Party!!!
I prune the dead roses off my rose bushes after the roses have bloomed. I go down to the next ‘fork’ in the same twig(?) the rose bloomed on making a diagonal cut. It depends upon if the rose bush is huge or tiny, so it can be three inches down, or two feet down. My husband made the mistake of just cutting the dead blooms off right below the rose, and no roses came until I pruned the bushes way back further down the ‘limb’s. Then, the roses keep blooming, but I thought you do that too? So, I wouldn’t know why your roses wouldn’t keep blooming off and on all year. Hmmmm….
It’s been a busy three-day weekend here.
I love it that your sister hangs her vintage linens out to dry. You have good air quality there, our air is laced with pesticides, mold spores, and agricultural dust, plus the breeze, if it is just right, from a few dairies in the area, lovely dairy air. I do hang dry some things in the house, so that does work too.
Can’t wait for the date of the party!
My oldest son showed me how to turn off a photo program which was messing up my computer when I uploaded photos from my camera. So hopefully, my computer won’t crash this year for the party! I isolated the problem and knew it was that program. I just didn’t know how to shut it off.
I got some cool ideas for the Mad Tea Party at a Flea Market in Venice, CA I saw over the weekend. There is a Flea Market EVERY SUNDAY at Fairfield High School (maybe it is in Venice, or Santa Monica)laid back vendors, vintage stuff, clothing, bottles, books, Shabby Chic goodies!!!
Ta! Ta!
Miss Teresa
You are sooooo lucky with your flea market. Oh oh, yes I do trim
prune my roses and get a few more all summer. But some people down the
street get spring like gobs of roses all summer. All their roses in all
colors. They also have a lawn that makes one cringe in the desert, which
is bright green. So, I am wondering if I need to get a few tips from
them??? I just dont like to use chemical though…… Must look
into this!! xoxo
Blog: http://www.aFancifulTwist.com
Website: http://www.VanessaValencia.com
In a message dated 5/26/2014 3:32:15 P.M. US Mountain Standard Time,
I love bees so much. I am like a hawk reading and watching everything I can about them. They are so crucial to our existence, my goodness.
We have so many hummingbirds, they flutter about. One is brave and comes really close to me buzzing right up to my face, it’s crazy!
Well, I have spied about 50 pumpkin vines, let’s see which ones take off. I didn’t put them in a proper patch, but they are free to roam wherever they would like this year 😉
I snuck in some gourds here and there too.
And of course, some are going up the tree they go up every year. Love them so!!
I am so glad you have yours going up tree too. It’s one of my fave things.
Party details coming asap! Thank you for joining in!! 😉
Oops! FYI
The flea market I went to on Sunday is called:
Melrose Trading Post at Fairfax High School in Los Angeles every Sunday.
It’s really neat!
Ooh! I just planted a baby hollyhock on Sunday….I’m hoping our dappled shade is not too…er, shady, for it…tee hee. But I just had to try! ; ) Oh yes yes, pictures on my silly little blogling do that too..sometimes they look blurry…or just….off….as opposed the file…I don’t know why either. Your garden is SO lovely!! Your thumbs must be ever so green! tee hee Happy gardening, and painting, and sculpting of magical wee elves and creatures and tea sipping and treat munching time to you!! : )