Pam's Garden Space

Celebrating Black History Month

2011-02-06T04:30:00.004-06:00

It's February and time to recognize some of the African Americans who have helped to make our lives better.

Since my passion is gardening, I thought that I would focus on some inventors who through their inventions directly affect me.

Lets start with Benjamin Banneker: He was a free African American who lived from November 9, 1731 - October 9, 1806. He was an astronomer, mathematician, surveyor, almanac author and farmer. He also fought against slavery and was one of the first African Americans to gain distinction in science.

Woodcut portrait of Benjamin Banneker in title page of a Baltimore edition of his 1795 Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia Almanac

Now lets take a look at one of my favorites, George Washington Carver! He is believed to have been born in January 1864 and lived until January 5,1943. He was an American scientist, botanist educator and inventor. This amazing man turned down an invitation to work for a salary of more than $100,000.00 to continue research on behalf of his countrymen. Mr. Carver discovered 300 uses for peanuts and hundreds more uses for soybeans, pecans, and sweet potatoes. This agricultural chemist encouraged southern farmers to plant these crops, among others to help themselves economically.

These two gentlemen I have known about since I was a child, but the next group of inventors I discovered while doing research for this article. I hope you will enjoy meeting them.

Can you imagine life in the garden without a lawnmower? Well neither can I. And apparently neither could John Anthony Burr. On May 9,1899, patented an improved rotary blade lawn mower. Mr. Burr designed a lawn mower with traction wheels and a rotary blade that was designed to not easily get plugged up from lawn clippings. He also improved the design of lawn mowers by making it possible to mow closer to building and wall edges. Thank you John Anthony Burr!

An early Victa rotary mower - National Museum

Now in keeping with the lawn theme, lets meet the African American inventor credited with completing the first rotary lawn sprinkler in 1897, making a spinning head that sent water from two exits. That would be J.H. Smith.

My last tribute goes out to Powell Johnson. Safety glasses protect the eyes from flying material. While eye glasses were invented in the late 13th century AD the first United States patent for eye protectors was issued on November 2, 1880. Mr Powell Johnson, an African American was the inventor of eye protectors. I don't mow or trim without mine.

So here are just a few of the African American inventors that made contributions that have made all of our lives better; especially when it comes to gardening.

I hope this article has been educational as well as interesting and entertaining

I certainly had fun writing it.

Until next time,

Happy Gardening

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY 2010

2010-05-31T06:07:00.002-05:00

Let's celebrate this Memorial Day by giving thanks to the men and women who served in our Armed Forces and gave their lives so that we could live in the land of the free and home of the brave. Let's be thankful for what we have and who we have in our lives.

Today while we are enjoying our extra day off from work and while we are enjoying the cookouts and parades, lets stop and remember why we are afforded these privileges.

Freedom isn't free. Freedom comes at a price. And sometimes we have to pay the ultimate price for our freedom.

For those who have paid the ultimate price, America has set aside this special day to honor them. So lets stop and say thank you to those brave Americans who died so that we can be free.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Memorial Day.

Until next time,

Happy Gardening and God Bless America!

Make A Day of Intent

2010-05-19T17:55:00.000-05:00

Sometimes we wonder why things aren't going right in our lives. Sometimes we wonder why others succeed while everything we do seems to fail.

To find the answers to these questions, we need only to look inside ourselves. While we may not like to hear it, the answer is; we are responsible for everything that happens in our life. If you don't believe me, take a moment to think about what you think about.

Do you tell yourself that you are beautiful, rich and loved? Or do you tell yourself that you are overweight and ugly, in debt, and unworthy of love? The recording that you hear playing over and over in your head becomes your reality.

In order for us to become happy and successful, we must replace the negative things that we say about ourselves and to ourselves with positive affirmations about ourselves.

Tell yourself "I am beautiful!" Say to yourself "I am powerful!" Declare often "I love myself." Start a new dialogue with yourself that makes you feel good about you.

Create a new reality for yourself. Tell the Universe what you want. How else can we attract what we want to ourselves if we don't ask for it? You don't have to know how it works, all you have to do is put in your order to the Universe and it will be filled. The Universe is always working to fulfill our desires. It's just that we don't focus on what we want most of the time so we end up with what we don't want.

These principles work for me because I believe they will work. I ask for what I want, I believe that I deserve it, and I receive it in gratitude. I am by no means rich, but I do have the tools to help me reach my life long goals.

I guess by now you are asking yourself how did she get to be so smart? Why should I listen to her? Well the truth is I didn't learn these methods overnight and I am still a work in progress.

My new journey began when I read a copy of the book "The Secret" by Rhonda Byrne. That book led me to read "A New Earth" and "The Power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle. From there I read "You Can Heal Your Life" by Louise Hay. All of these books teach the power of positive thinking and the power in loving yourself.

Whether you ever pick up one of these books and read it is up to you, but from this day forward, you can not say that you did not know.

There is hope and help for all of us. All we have to do is ask!

Learn to plan the kind of day that you want to have. In order to reach your desired results, you have to let the Universe know what it is that you want. I am going to leave you with a positive affirmation that was given to me and that has worked with much success for me.

A DAY OF INTENT

"I am taking this time to design my day and I am affecting the quantum field. Show me a sign today that you paid attention to any one of these things that I created. And bring them in a way that I won't expect, so, I am surprised that I experienced these things.

And, make it so that I have no doubt that it has come from you."

Say this affirmation out loud and with conviction. And see what happens.

I hope that I have helped make some one's life better today, because that was my intent.

Until next time,

Happy Gardening!

2010 - A New Beginning!

2010-01-05T23:36:00.043-06:00

Well I've spent the first few days of the New Year making some changes around the house and planning how to implement some of my new ideas for a new garden for next spring. The first thing I did was to rearrange my bedroom to include an office space.

This has made all the difference in the world in my attitude when I walk into my bedroom. I feel more inspired and creative now. That makes me happy.

And me being happy is the most important thing in the whole scheme of all of my big plans.

The next thing that has gotten me excited about this year is my plan for a new garden here at Chesapeake Gardens. Last year I added a rose garden. My EarthKind Rose Garden was a wonderful success and I am so very proud of it. Here are few of my favorite pictures of the rose garden.
Left to right: Spice Rose Bush, Spice Rose, Caldwell Pink Rose Bush, Ducher Rose, Climbing Pinkie Rose, Sea Foam Rose.

Now that winter has set in, I am concentrating on my plans for a White -Theme Garden

which would consist of Sweet Violets, Trailling Petunias, Zinnia Elegans, Impatients, Marigolds, Iris, and & Daisies or an Evening Garden.

This garden will consist of flowers in pale shades, and silvery foliage that glow in dwindling light, and flora perfumes that scent the evening air. Shade loving perennials placed under a tree already in the garden with perennials for sun such as Aster, Arternisa, and Veronica will complete the layout. These free-form garden spaces are best suited around a patio or deck.

As you can see I'm very excited about my new garden plans and look forward to sharing my new adventure with my fellow gardeners. I hope that you will follow me on my new journey.

I get my ideas and garden plans from many sources. These are two of many courtesy of Better Homes and Gardens. You can visit the website at http://www.bhg.com/.

Take care and until next time,

Happy Gardening!

2010 Day 2

2010-01-02T09:45:00.016-06:00

Good Morning New Year.

Good Morning 2010.

I'm having my breakfast right now. I'm eating a big bowl of black eyed peas doused with hot sauce, a fresh slice of homemade cornbread dripping with butter and drinking a fat mason jar filled with raspberry tea! Yes I said breakfast.

I'm indulging myself this morning because that's what I'm going to do all day today and everyday. This New Year is going to be my new beginning. I've been doing things the "right way" , now I'm going to do them "MY WAY"

Ummmm, these peas are sooooo good.

Just wanted to put the Universe on notice that Pamela is coming. Let the fun begin!

Happy New Year Everyone!

HAPPY NEW YEAR - 2010

2010-01-01T05:24:00.020-06:00

Seems like just a few weeks ago we were all so excited about reaching the new millennium! Where did all those years go so quickly? From the year 2000 until now, the 1st day of 2010, time has gone by so fast that it seems almost impossible.

I can't begin to tell you how much I've grown in the past ten years. My spiritual growth is what has helped sustain me throughout these difficult and often almost unbearable times.

I have learned that it is not enough to just believe in God.
I have learned that I have to believe in myself as well.
I have learned that I can choose my destiny. I can not only dream a dream, but I can make that dream come true.

Having faith in myself has been the most important thing that I have learned over this past decade.

Loving others is wonderful, but loving myself is a gift to the Universe. A gift that will never stop giving.

Life is a never ending journey, but as long as my path is paved with love and gratitude I am sure that I will be blessed beyond belief as I travel along my way.

May this New Year be filled with love and peace throughout the world. This is not an impossible dream if we all choose to believe that it is possible.

My love to you all,

Happy New Year!

Pamela

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T13:06:00.005-06:00

Merry Christmas to all my bloggin' friends. I hope everyone has a very happy holiday season filled with love, peace, and blessings!

My Christmas wish this year is that we would all spend more time showing gratitude for our family and friends by praising and blessing them.

Let us all take care of each other throughout the New Year as we continue on our journey for personal growth.

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and as always, Happy Gardening!

The Corner Succulent and Cacti Garden

2009-10-25T11:20:00.000-05:00

When planning my garden spaces I've tried to keep it somewhat native. I've designed wildflower gardens, butterfly gardens, humming bird gardens, perennial gardens, shade gardens, and even a water garden for the pond. But the garden that I wasn't so sure about was my Cacti and succulent garden. I thought about putting container gardens in the area where I wanted this garden, but I also wanted to keep that area rather rustic looking. So I decided to plant a corner garden with a Yucca plant Vera Jameson Sedum and a couple of cactus.

The pink blooms of the Yucca plant and the pink blooms of the ground cover that the Sedum provide make for quite a bright surprise in the fall.

Til next time,

Happy Gardening!

Changing Seasons in the Garden

2009-10-13T06:33:00.000-05:00

The days of summer have come and gone and autumn is now upon us. This is the second year that I have been able to plan and design my own gardens, and I have had the most wonderful experiences. The many flowers and trees that I planted over the past two years seem to have been the perfect choices for my gardens. I have enjoyed with great pride and awe how my gardens have flourished without a whole lot of stress.

I'm not saying that the process has been easy and without failures. Because it was hard work and there were a few casualties. But all in all I've decided that what grows and what does not grow are both examples of lessons that are taught to us by Mother Nature. Lesson that must be appreciated.

My first big project this summer was the planting of my Earth Kind Rose Garden. I planted nine rose bushes and developed a garden around the bushes.

The second project was to landscape my two tier pond that I installed last year. I kind of went away from the usual water plants and designed a butterfly hummingbird garden around the pond which has a peach tree for a backdrop.

(I've never eaten any of the peaches, the squirrels always get to them first.)

That idea proved to be an excellent one! The butterflies showed up daily to drink the sweet nectar of the flowers and flaunt their beauty. The hummingbirds made their appearance in late summer.

The sound of the waterfall in the pond - the fragrance from the zinnias, cosmos, sunflowers,salvia, and blanket flowers - the constant visits from the butterflies - not to mention the array of songbirds that stopped by for a drink, made for a very tranquil and beautiful space in my gardens.

Summer may be gone, but autumn is no slouch. Most of my gardens are still in bloom and now the mums and asters have made their debut. They are bursting out all over.

I know the fall will be just as beautiful as the summer was.
I used to think that spring was my favorite season. But now I can't decide. I guess my favorite season of the year is the one I'm experiencing right now.
I hope you have enjoy my look back over my summer of 2009. The holidays are fat approaching and this yer will soon be over. I've discovered that life goes by much too quickly so we must always stop to smell the roses or whatever flower that we are blessed to be near.

Until next time,

Happy Gardening!

Mellow Yellow Monday - Yellow Mushrooms in the Garden

2009-09-21T13:00:00.000-05:00

I know they may be a little creepy to some, but I think these little yellow mushrooms are cute. I found them in my garden this morning and thought they would be perfect for Mellow Yellow Monday.

Happy MYM to all!

Ruby Tuesday - Roses Are Red

2009-09-14T21:07:00.000-05:00

Finding candidates worthy to post for Ruby Tuesday has become one of my favorite things to do. This week I'm going to the garden again. Here goes.

Red Knock Out Rose Bud

Red Knock Out Rose

The Knock Out Rose is a member of the Earth Kind Roses Family. They are easy to grow, disease and insect resistant and above all beautiful.

These Knock Out Roses led me to plant a rose garden comprised of 5 different varieties of Earth Kind Roses. I highlighted the process in an earlier blog My Earth Kind Rose Garden .

I hope my Ruby Tuesday selections bring you joy.

Til next time,

Happy Gardening!

Mellow Yellow Monday - Friends in the Garden

2009-09-13T22:15:00.000-05:00

Well it's Mellow Yellow Monday again! Hope everybody had a great weekend! I spent mine watching the rain come down. I'm not complaining it was great weather to stay inside and watch football.

Here are my entries for MYM! I hope they bring you joy.

Turks Cap is one of the favorite plants of the Cloudless Sulphur Butterfly!

These two Fiery Skipper Butterflies found more than just nectar when they visited this beautiful Zinnia in my garden!

This little bee found more than enough pollen in this bright yellow Cosmos that I planted near the pond in the garden!

Happy Mellow Yellow Monday!

Water Smarts in the Garden

2009-09-12T14:59:00.013-05:00

It's Saturday afternoon here in Arlington, Texas and its been raining for the past 2 days. Being a gardener, I must say that I am very appreciative of the rain. But it got me to thinking about all of the dry hot days we experience here in Texas.

While most of my gardens are comprised of native plants, lets face it, they all need lots of water. I try to conserve as much as possible, so I'm always looking for new ideas to help me learn better ways to help me do that and help environment at the same time.

I ran across an article in the September/October 2009 issue of "Gardening How-To Magazine" entitled: Get Smarter About Water. It had some great ideas and I thought that I would share one of the tips that I really liked and thought that I would be able to do.

BRING INSIDE WATER OUT:

Garden water isn't limited to rainwater or the outdoor hose--use kitchen water too. If you've just boiled eggs, pasta, or vegetables, pour the leftover hot water on weeds and they'll soon wilt and die (great for weeds in driveway crevices and along walls). Let the water cool and you can use it on any of your plants--they'll especially love the cooking water's trace minerals. And don't dump water out when you rinse your almost-empty coffee pot. Instead, pour it on acid-loving plants like impatiens, begonias, irises, hydrangeas, aloes, and azaleas.

Look at the ways water goes to waste in your house and put it to good use. Place a pitcher on the kitchen counter for "recycled" water; whenever someone doesn't finish a glass of water, pour it into the pitcher. When it's full, use the water on houseplants or patio container plants. If your bathtub faucet leaks during your shower, put a bucket under the faucet, then use the water on an herb pot or window box.

I hope you find this article helpful. Like I said there are many other good tips on the website if you would like to visit www.gardeningclub.com.

Until next time.
Happy Gardening.

Ruby Tuesday - Red Hat

2009-09-08T06:11:00.000-05:00

As you can tell by my blog title, I love gardening and spend a lot of time in my gardens. While that is my passion, I must say that there is another thing that I am quite passionate about.That is spending time with my Red Hat Society sisters.
For those that don't know, the Red Hat Society was started about ten years ago by a woman who was determined to enjoy life past the age of fifty. She wanted to celebrate life with her girlfriends around the same age. Donning Red Hats and Purple outfits the tea parties, vacations, and other fun outings began.

From one woman's determination not to let life

pass her by, an international phenomenal has swept up women around the world.
I'm proud to say that I am one of them.
So for this Ruby Tuesday post I thought that I would share a few of my favorite red hat things.

Mellow Yellow Monday- Pandora's Box Day Lily

2009-09-06T23:32:00.007-05:00

Pandoras's Box Day Lily

Happy Labor Day!

Hope you enjoy my Mellow Yellow Monday Selection.

This day lily is reblooming from early spring.

It was quite a surprise when saw it a couple of days ago.

TODAY'S FLOWERS - NASTURTIUM

2009-09-06T20:52:00.007-05:00

NASTURTIUM

I discovered this delicate white bloom in my Butterfly & Hummingbird Wildflower Garden. It only started blooming just a few days ago. What a lovely surprise. I hope you enjoy it as my Today's Flower entry.

Until next time,

Happy Gardening!

SkyWatch Friday - Happy Labor Day

2009-09-03T22:01:00.011-05:00

I'm a proud American and this flag graces my home each and every day. With the upcoming Labor Day Weekend approaching I thought that this shot captured by my daughter early one July evening would be perfect for SkyWatch Friday. I hope you agree.

Until next time,

Happy Gardening!

Ruby Tuesday- Red Rules

2009-09-01T06:00:00.015-05:00

Good Tuesday morning and welcome to my first Ruby Tuesday post.
I hope you enjoy my selections.

This red bloom is Turks Cap. It thrives
easily in my garden and the humming-
birds and butterflies love it. So do I!

This little Red Barn is a replica
of the many signs that you
will see while traveling through
the cities near Lookout Mountain,
Georgia. I found this bell at the gift
shop in Chattanooga, TN's airport.

A bright red Zinnia was just the spot
for this Swallowtail Butterfly visiting
my garden.

Mellow Yellow Monday- Flowers From Chesapeake Gardens

2009-08-31T04:00:00.000-05:00

Moss Rose

Marigold

Sunflower

Hi Mellow Yellow Monday Submitters! I found this site visiting SkyWatch Friday blog submissions. I love the color yellow and decided to see what the Mellow Yellow Monday family was all about. I must say I have seen some very interesting, funny, and most of all, beautiful photos devoted to the color yellow. Here is my first entry. These photos are from my gardens. I hope you enjoy and Happy Gardening!

SkyWatch Friday - Blessed In Texas

2009-08-27T20:28:00.009-05:00

On August 1, 2009 I stepped outside my front door and witnessed this beautiful summer sunset. You know it is said that everything is big in Texas, I just say I'm blessed in Texas. I hope you enjoy my SkyWatch Friday entry.

Until next time,

Happy Gardening!

The Roses of Chesapeake Gardens

2009-08-20T17:41:00.016-05:00

It's summertime in Chesapeake Gardens and the flowers are beautiful. Especially the roses. I have enjoyed every step it took to get to this place in the gardens. If you've followed my blog you know that I planted my Earth Kind Rose garden this spring and have been logging the success up until now. I've made two slide shows so I can share the beauty of my Earth Kind Roses and also my less talked about Moss Rose Collection. Take a few moments enjoy what I see everyday. Until next time:

HAPPY GARDENING.

Butterflies in the Garden

2009-07-18T14:47:00.032-05:00

While I took a break from blogging, my gardens have continued to grow and flourish. While I choose not to bore you with the reasons that led to my absence, I will say that through it all my garden was the one place I could always go to find comfort and peace.
In my garden I am never alone. I have lots of friends. The birds, the squirrels, bees and dragonflies and damselflies. But I think my most special friends are the butterflies. There are so many different kinds. So many beautiful colors. I never know who will show up on any given day. Whether its early morning, high noon, or late evening, they are my constant companions in the garden. I can always count on their presence to cheer me up. I hope you enjoy the images of my friends that I captured while strolling through my gardens.

Female Black Swallowtail

Fiery Skipper

American Snout

Gulf Fritillary

Gulf Fritillary

Giant Swallowtail

Cabbage White

Monarch

Visualization and the MRI

2009-05-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

Monday, May 18, 2009.

I had a wonderful experience today, and I want to share it with my gardening friends and with all who follow this blog.

Normally you don't hear the words "wonderful experience" associated with the MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan procedure.

But let me tell you my story. I practice visualization to attract positive results in my life. I visualize a positive result before I undertake most any task.

Well today I had to have an MRI because I am experiencing sever pain in my left leg. I may have a pinched nerve in my back.

I've had MRI's before and I was not real excited about having this one. If you've never had the experience it goes something like this; You are laid down on a narrow cot and placed in a huge tube that is about an inch away from your face and asked to stay perfectly still. If that's not frightening enough the machine starts making these loud banging noises as it takes images of your body. This goes on (in my case) for about 40 minutes.

Anyway. That's an MRI. So today before I got to the clinic I made myself relax, Even though I overslept this morning, I drove the speed limit and listened to some of my favorite music on the drive there.

Once I was placed in the MRI machine, I closed my eyes and started visualizing walking through my gardens.

I talked and walked through the gardens stopping to train the climbing roses on the arbor.

Smelling the sweet scents of the petunias and Mexican plum tree. I stopped to pull stray grass shoots from the flower beds. I could feel my feet on each stepping stone.

It was amazing! I knew that the noise was there, but at times I could not hear it. I never felt enclosed. I only felt like I was walking outside in my gardens. I seriously almost fell asleep I was so peaceful.

When it was all over, I felt refreshed and relaxed. I've never experienced anything like it.

As soon as I got home, I went straight to my gardens to say thank you to the universe that I live in. Thank you for my peaceful place. I am blessed knowing that no matter where I am or what the circumstances, I have a safe place.

Thank You God.

MY EARTH KIND ROSE GARDEN

2009-05-16T01:48:00.031-05:00

My new rose garden started with an idea and a sketch. I had the idea and my daughter did the sketch.

I wanted a rose garden planted with only Earth Kind roses. I found Chamblee Rose Nursery in Tyler, Texas to order my roses from. After many hours of researching all of the Earth Kind roses, I chose six that I thought would be suitable for my garden... I decided on Climbing Pinkie, Caldwell Pink, Spice, Ducher, Sea Foam and Marie Daly.

I placed my order in January and in February I began to to prepare the site that would be the home for my new babies.

First came the arbor.

Once it was in place I prepared the rose garden bed. I filled the garden bed with a mix of garden soil and compost. I tried to keep the outline of the bed as close to the original plan as possible.

When my rose bushes arrived in mid March, I was literally jumping up and down with excitement. I couldn't wait to inspect them to be sure that all was well with the shipment. To my relief, they were in perfect condition.

After a few days I started planting them. It took me 2 days to get them all planted, but it was very gratifying when I was done. Here are some of the early photos of my new rose garden.

My Earth Kind rose garden is in its infancy stage and I look forward to watching it grow. I have planted perennial seeds to fill in the spaces and I await the summer months to see how they grow up as well. I can' t tell you how pleased I am already with the progress of my new Earth Kind rose garden. I hope you will continue to follow their growth with me.

Until next time,

Keep Gardening!

Stormy Skies Over Texas

2009-03-27T09:57:00.013-05:00

On Tuesday the 24th of March, My daughter and I thought we were going to get in a few sets of tennis when we went to the park. Instead we were greeted by threatening skies and wind gust so strong that we had a hard time just opening our car doors.
So instead of playing tennis we took these great pictures of the clouds that were rolling by overhead. Needless to say the storms were not far behind.

Springtime In Pam's Chesapeake Gardens

2009-03-05T13:41:00.063-06:00

With Spring fast approaching,
I felt the need to share with you what has
been happening in my gardens.

After beginning the winter clean up I began seeing a few signs of Spring.

The first sign was the return of my Pandora's Box Daylilies. I have 3 of them in my Grass Garden.

My Carolina Jessamine began blooming shortly after that.

And then the Snap Dragons burst onto the scene. They began blooming around the 26th of February and I must say it looks like they are here to stay. They are vibrant and beautiful. I took lots of pictures and I hope they make you as happy as they do me.

These beauties are not the only early arrivals in my gardens.
Take a look at 3 of my Rose Bushes. Here is the Climbing Blaze's new growth.

And the Blue Girl Rose Bush is right in step. The two Knock Out Rose Bushes in the garden looked a little tired a few days ago, but look at what I found when I went out to my gardens this morning! This little blossom is really trying to get it on the act .

And now take a look at my Dusty Miller...

They share a garden bed with Lantana and purple Salvia.
I know they can't wait for their beautiful companions to join them this spring. I know I can't!

There is much work to do to make my garden space the enchanted garden that I so lovingly refer to it from time to time.

My garden is a labor of love and the place where I find my peace always.

I hope that you will find joy and peace also as you visit Pam's Garden Space in the coming days.

Until next time,

HAPPY GARDENING !!!

MY TRIBUTE TO BLACK HISTORY MONTH

2009-02-03T06:59:00.004-06:00

Born into slavery in Missouri, Carver later earned degrees from Iowa Agricultural College. The director of agricultural research at the Tuskegee Institute from 1896 until his death, Carver developed hundreds of applications for farm products important to the economy of the South, including the peanut, sweet potato, soybean, and pecan.

SkyWatch Friday - Dawn Of A New Day

2009-01-30T13:00:00.000-06:00

These photos were taken in the early morning hours of December 18, 2008.

I was facing north in my backyard.

I love this time of day at my house. There is usually a beautiful sunrise and all is quiet and peaceful.

Watching the new day unfold in such a glorious display is always uplifting.

It gets me motivated to create. To somehow add my little bit to the universe.

Pam's Raised Winter Vegetable Garden

2009-01-28T01:14:00.000-06:00

A few months ago I was inspired by a post that I read on a blog titled "Living with a Chronic Illness". It was an article about different ways to grow your own vegetables.

And how to plan gardens for small spaces. One was called a keyhole garden because once constructed it resembled a keyhole made with large stones. There was also a bag garden. Vegetables and seeds literally planted in huge bags. The people planting these gardens were women and young children in under developed countries. These gardens were their main source of food. The videos really touched me and I couldn't stop thinking about these very resourceful people.

I vowed to myself to plant my own vegetable garden and take some control over what I ate.

If these people could do it. I could do it!

I decided to plant a winter vegetable garden and use a raised Grow Bed.

I knew nothing about growing vegetables, so I read articles on the Internet. I bought a instruction book on growing vegetables. And last but not least, I asked my daddy.

His advice and encouragement was the final spark that I needed.

So armed with my new found knowledge, off I went to the neighborhood garden center... I bought cabbage and broccoli plants. I decided to plant seeds for my other plants. I chose green beans, peas, turnip greens and onions.

I had everything planted by mid October. After that the rest was easy. I just watered and watched my garden grow. And grow it did!

I'm really proud of my first vegetable garden. And I'm very happy with the yield.

I can't wait to plant my next crop. I'm thinking I might need to purchase or construct at least one more Raised Garden Bed.

Going the the whole process of planting my vegetable garden has been very rewarding for me.

I've eaten some of the brocolli and I must say it is delicious. I'll let you know how everything else turns out.

Here are pictures of my vegetable garden from the beginning until now.

Til next time,

Happy Gardening!

Chewy's Playtime

2009-01-25T01:31:00.001-06:00

SkyWatch Friday - Great Sunday Morning

2008-12-19T05:02:00.001-06:00

As I opened the curtains to my patio door Sunday morning (12/14/08), I was surprised by the full moon staring right back at me high in the early morning blue sky.

I quickly got my camera and began to snap pictures. What made this so exciting for me was the fact that I had been practically bed ridden for the past 3 or 4 days. I had recently injured the bursa sac on my right knee and was in a splint up to my thigh and hobbling around on crutches.

I suppose I had been down in the dumps, not so much about the injury, but because I could not get outside to tend my garden or just to sit in my garden.

The view from above cheered me right up. Got me outside in no time at all. On crutches I took these awesome photos. The moon shots were what I saw to the south of my house. The clouds were my view when I looked to the north. Vastly different skyscapes from nearly the same area on my property.

What a beautiful heavenly display. For a little while I forgot about the knee and just enjoyed the moment. It was a great way to start my Sunday.

TODAY'S FLOWERS - MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM TEXAS

2008-12-18T05:30:00.002-06:00

This is my first entry on Today's Flowers. I am an avid gardener and somewhat new to blogging. I am so happy to have found this site. I thoroughly enjoy it.

In celebrating the Christmas Holiday, I would like to share a few photos taken during the season. I hope that you will enjoy them.

Merry Christmas!

I took great pride in decorating my home. Take a look.

Next take a stroll with my Red Hat Society Sassy Sisters through The Gaylord Texan at Grapvine Mills Mall in Grapevine, Tx.

The buffet was delious !

The Texas Santa uses cows to guide his sleigh!

The Sassy Sisters pose with a magician!

Of course a carriage for the Princess !

Back home our Brave Nutcracker guards the doors to ensure a safe & Merry Christmas.

SkyWatch Friday Nightlights

2008-12-04T20:05:00.002-06:00

I was trying to get a moon shot but ended up taking this cool picture of a car speeding down the street at the corner intersection of where I live. I like it !

I did get this beautiful picture of a rainbow letting me know I should keep trying. Keep looking up. There are great shots up there.

My Knockout Roses Collection - Earth Kind Roses

2008-12-04T06:44:00.001-06:00

These beautiful roses brought me many days of joy during this past spring and summer. They are Knock Out Roses. Because I so enjoyed these roses, I began to think about planting a rose garden for next spring. During my research I learned that the Knock Out rose is a member of a group of roses called Earth Kind Roses. Earth Kind is an important designation given to select roses by the Texas A&M University Agriculture program. Others include the Marie Daly, The Fairy, Caldwell Pink, and Belinda's Dream , just to name a few. Check out this interesting web site for more information. http://earthkindroses.tamu.edu/EKroses.html

The only thing that I knew about these roses was that they were pretty and easy to grow. Now I've stumbled on to a whole new rose culture.

I am very excited about planning my new rose garden. I can hardly wait to decide which Earth Kind Roses will become my new favorite rose.

If you are interested in learning more about Earth Kind Roses, please go to the following web site.

http://earthkind.tamu.edu/EKnew/EKTV.html

Happy Gardening !

Heavenly Sunset

2008-11-27T05:13:00.000-06:00

This photo was taken at sunset in Randol Mill Park
in Arlington, TX. Very majestic!

SkyWatch Friday Dawn, Dusk, and a Monarch Moment

2008-11-14T15:35:00.006-06:00

Just before sunrise in my front yard.

An early morning visit from a Monarch Butterfly!

A quiet moment at the end of the day.

The White- Lined Sphinx

2008-11-11T23:06:00.004-06:00

I would like to inform the readers of this blog that all pictures and videos on this blog were taken by me in my gardens.

The White-Lined Sphinx Moth

One October in late afternoon, I gathered my book, a glass of tea and of course my camera and headed to my favorite swing in the garden to get in some reading before the sun set.

Before I could get situated and get my book opened, I saw what I thought was a hummingbird hovering over the flowers around the pond. I called my daughter because we had been anticipating the arrival of hummingbirds all day. By the time she got outside, I had figured out that what I was seeing was not a hummingbird. But what it was I did not know. I had picked up the camera and started filming. Now mind you my camera is a Nikon Coolpix L5, so I was just hoping for the best.

Once my daughter saw it she knew what she was seeing and she told me that it was a moth but she wasn't sure what kind. Well I never knew that moths got that big. I certainly never knew that they could maneuver like this one was doing. We did a little research and identified it as a White-lined Sphinx Moth. It would be an understatemet to say that I was excited.

When I planned my garden I expected to attract birds, and butterflies. I must say this moth was a pleasant surprise. I hope you enjoy the video. It is my first attempt and I'm thankful that I had a chance to capture this experience on tape.

Attributes of Hyles lineataFamily: Sphinx Moths, Hawkmoths (Sphingidae)Subfamily: Macroglossinae (Macroglossinae)

SkyWatch Friday Texas Rangers Ballpark in Arlington

2008-11-07T09:23:00.009-06:00

My First SkyWatch Friday Entry!

A view of the Texas sky from inside the Texas Rangers Ball Park in Arlington.

Finding My Passion And Myself

2008-11-07T01:35:00.002-06:00

Anyone who knows me will be surprised to know that I am the author of a blog. I have always been a private person. Keeping most at bay, not wanting to give too much of myself for fear that more might be asked of me. I kind of floated along, not really caring about the needs or wishes of others. I thought that I was happy. That was my way of surviving.

And then one day I found myself sitting in a doctor's office listening to the words "you have stage 2 breast cancer" ! In shock I asked the question, "how life threatening is it?" I was told maybe 50/50. At that moment my life was changed forever. I went from being a keep your distance kind of person to being an Onion whose layers were slowly peeled away. There were no more secrets, no more hiding, no more being locked away inside myself. For once in my life everything about me had to be out in the open in order for my doctors to help save my life. Not only was my life saved but my soul was saved in the process.

You might be wondering what all this has to do with gardening. And why do I need to go there? I need to go there because now 6 years later I'm still cancer free & I have a whole new outlook on life. I've grown like a plant. For years was just a pretty little bush hanging out in the garden of life. But now I'm blooming!!! I'm blooming with love, hope, trust, honesty, respect & loyalty. I feel like a tree reaching toward the sky. I'm growing new branches daily and I want to extend my branches to others.
I've learned that we can not live in this world alone. We are all connected. We must stay connected if we are to survive as a human race. This is my attempt to reach out and get to know others who have a need to be connected to someone with like experiences.

Once I came out of my cloud of depression and started living again I found gardening. I have lived in apartments for most of my adult life and always had house plants. But a little over a year ago I bought a house and that's when I found my passion. It's a modest home, big enough but not too big. What I found exciting was that the front and backyards were almost totally void of any plants except for grass. Blank canvases. Since I'm retired, I had all the time in the world to devote to transforming my front yard and my backyard into gardens. And that is just what I have done. In just about a year and a half I have created a living paradise. I call it my enchanted garden.

Not only are there flower gardens, but I've installed a 2 tier pond, bird feeders, fountains, chimes, sitting areas and stepping stone paths throughout the gardens. It is truly my sanctuary... I read, meditate,visit with my friends,or just sit and enjoy the beauty of nature. The birds & butterflies are my constant companions.

My goal here is to share my gardening experiences in the hope of making someone else happy. If I can do that, then I can share my blessings and my love with the world.

BlogLog Verification

2008-11-06T03:27:00.000-06:00

Undergoing MyBlogLog Verification

First Entry

2008-11-06T01:43:00.000-06:00

I'm excited about creating my blog. This is my first entry.