My Lovely Garden … Mon Joli Jardin

February 13, 2015
by thedogwalkinggardener Leave a comment

Sweet little visitors came to my yard …

Friday, February 13, 2015

As I typed today’s date .. I thought back to the last time that I blogged .. it has been months since I’ve done that. And I just love blogging .. writing about things that happen in my yard, places I’ve visited around town and things like that.

And photos .. hundreds of photos of birds, nature, skies, ocean, beaches. And visits to various places.

I do feel quite happy, creative and energized when I make the time to post some photos and express my thoughts, just letting them flow from my fingertips as they tap along the keyboard. It is really a decadent pleasure, writing. Having loved writing since I was a kid, I mostly wrote in my mind until I learned about blogging!

Having the discipline to write daily has opened up the dusty doors of my imagination and how exciting it is to let loose the treasure trove of thoughts that I’d kept hidden away. My mind really feels like Aladdin’s Cave .. full of precious and sparkly thoughts. What a delight it is, to read my thoughts at a later date. I wonder sometimes, where the words come from. And I do have to laugh sometimes at what I’ve written.

Anyway, I’ve decided to polish off that discipline and delve back into that treasure trove. So today, I will show some photos of some lovely feathered friends that are in my yard. Nesting in the tall trees that we planted over 30 years ago

Here is one of the Red-Breasted Nuthatches visiting a suet block. They look like little bandits and they are often quite difficult to find because they are quick to fly away, preferring to stay hidden away. So I’m quite happy when I see them and I don’t even breathe, while I click-click away with my camera.

And there are quite a number of Chestnut-backed Chickadees. They are clever little birds and chirp away when the feeders are empty, as a reminder that they need to be replenished

There is a family of Downy Woodpeckers, this is the female, the male has a band of red at the back of his head. They always announce their presence with their cheerful little chirps “here I am”. The sound is similar to a Robin’s cheerful chirp, I think.

Sweet little Bush-tits, they are social little birds and always swirl their way into the yard. A few months ago, I was outside, digging away in the garden and overhead flew the largest flock of them I had ever seen. I was so enthralled by the sight that I didn’t even want to waste time getting my camera case open. It seemed as if there were hundreds of these little Bush-tits flying over my head … straight through the yard and aiming for a tall tree in the front yard.

Yesterday, there were only a few and after they ate some suet, they took some time to groom themselves.

I felt lucky to zoom in on some of them, they flit about so quickly it’s challenging to focus on them and take some photos!

A healthy looking Robin was tucked away in the branches of an apple tree, seemingly content to just stay hidden away for a while. He was there for quite a long time.

He kept an eye on me while he sat there, surveying the yard.

Just a few Bush-tits at a suet block. The others were either perched nearby or in the midst of the tree, grooming themselves. How very sweet they are.

And I was so focused on getting a photo of the little Anna (upper middle area) that I completely did not see the Bewick Wren staring right at me! What a surprise that was, when I looked at this photo! Can you see it, almost in the middle of the photo .. tail feathers spread out in a fan shape. There is a family nesting somewhere in our yard and I feel honoured to have them here.

Some lovely skies a few days ago .. graceful sweeps of frothy clouds .. eye candy for the soul.

Here is one of the Bewick’s .. lovely singer

I was extremely fortunate to take more photos .. I think this one might be the baby, nearly grown now. Their nest must be hidden away quite well .. these birds are very challenging to find.

Little Anna, sipping away. I must start making the nectar 4:1 soon, as the weather is quite balmy and they don’t need the 3:1 sugar right now. Must do that tomorrow and clean and refill their feeders.

A few weeks ago this hawk was settled into the wild and crazy tree. Eventually he flew off. Quite a beauty, isn’t he.

Darling little Black-Crowned Sparrow. Very distinctive. I’ve heard a few Gold-Crowned Sparrows, but not many, yet.

I don’t see this squirrel around much . .I think she is Squirrely’s daughter. Love the white markings on her chest.

Well… blogging is continuing. I’ll share my Mason Bees adventures when they are put outside to hatch. Right now they are snug in their container in the fridge’s crisper drawer. Their house is all cleaned up. And at the end of February or beginning of March (I am told) I can put the cocoons into the top drawer of their house and put them outside!

🙂

December 30, 2014
by thedogwalkinggardener Leave a comment

Relaxing times and some things that bring me great joy .. throughout the year and every day, as a matter of fact!

Oh, doesn’t the time fly by sometimes, though! I was taking a “few days” away from my blogging and how I have missed it. This is my chance to write my daily thoughts, my dreams, my joy … and I love looking backwards throughout the year to see how my daily life unfolded. My photos help me out a lot. Sometimes life is so busy and so it is nice to look back and see what was happening.

Still having fun learning how to take photos with my Panasonic 30x camera … bringing little worlds up closer to look at:And even closer … such tiny little flowers growing away ..

While in the back yard …I think this is little Squirrely’s daughter …hungrily munching on a peanut …they have to survive. Little Squirrely was a frequent visitor to our yard last year – we haven’t seen her for a long time. This little one has lovely white markings .

The new eco-friendly (aka bamboo) bird feeder is a welcome addition to the yard … below is one of my impromptu “raised beds” planted with lots of garlic. I was going to be more moderate in my plantings of Elephant (sigh, yes, a member of the leek family) and Kazakhstan garlic. However, I ended up just going a little crazy and began planting like mad. More photos in the next few months showing their progress. Also, I’d learned in a garlic class that we shouldn’t plant sprouted garlic. I was abiding by this wisdom until I saw the many sprouting garlic cloves. And I remembered that last year I’d planted sprouted cloves in December that grew quite well so I succumbed and planted many more garlic cloves.More eye candy .. a fallen oak leaf .. splendid in its natural beauty and natural surroundings. I have a billion such leaves covering my garlic beds at home …..treasures, each and every one!

And then .. DH & I went flying … thank goodness for digital cameras .. I click away as the beauty unfolds ..

This was on Christmas Day … lovely skies …

We flew over the old racetrack .. soon to be partial development, part common gardens, I believe .

Low clouds, fluffy and soft …

Sky art … lovely and fresh ..

Such beauty …

Time to land …after a number of circuits …

Well .. that is where some of my time has gone over the past few days.

Time to get on with the day. Things to do .. one of which is quite important and that is to make a listing of the oh so many Heritage seeds that I’ve purchased from Annapolis Seeds, Salt Spring Island Seeds and .. drum roll…. Richters Herbs.

I actually visited Richters Herbs in Ontario, during November. Having ordered various seeds from them over the past 30 years, I was thrilled to actually visit this venerable seed company. And …. yes .. I did take lots of photos. That is for another day.

Speaking of another day .. another Seedy Saturday is coming up in February. I am so looking forward to volunteering in this annual event. This year I shall purchase more Heritage potatoes … i grew fingerlings last year in large pots and they did grow well. I took photos of each pot’s harvest as I unearthed them. That is for another day.

Today is here and I’m up up and away!!!

🙂

October 18, 2014
by thedogwalkinggardener Leave a comment

What I have seen in the garden during the past few days!!

The birds are used to the new feeders! Actually this was sold in a gardening center for placing air ferns inside. I immediately saw “birdfeeder” and bought about 5 or 6! One of my many dreams coming true .. seeing the little Chickadee perched there. Dreams can be about absolutely anything .. I love dreaming and have joy in seeing them come true!

And then I saw this darling little Anna … busily chatting away to another Anna in a nearby tree.

Another opportunity to play with my new Camera .. learning as I go, what the best settings are. I’ll study the “how to” manual on a rainy day. For now I will just take lots of photos …

These tiny birds are so lovely to watch .. but they are tough little birds. My cat once caught one, many years ago. I’d heard an unusual sound from the yard and on investigation, found a tiny Anna that she had somehow brought to the ground. Carefully I picked up the stunned little bird, surprised at the solid little weight it made in my hand – They are so small I visualized them as being as light as a feather. It was an adventure that ended well for her. I carefully put her in a room, opened the window, shut the door and shortly after that I saw the little bird Anna quietly on the branch of a nearby tree.

I think this Anna is the baby, still learning from the parents …

ok .. just one more photo .. I love them!

Strawberries are still flowering, bearing fruit even though it is mid-October. This is a wild strawberry, the tiny yellow type which will easily invade your yard if planted. I discovered that this summer. Thought it would be nice to have a few varieties of wild strawberries planted among the veggies. I soon found out that they will send out runners “till the cows come home” and ended up putting some in pots and the rest in the compost. Hmmmmm … I realize that I will be getting a few hundred of these plants next spring from the compost! Well, I can always share them.

At last, what a treat .. I was able to see the baby Bewick Wren!!!!! They must be nesting somewhere in the yard …We planted many trees over the years and they have become home to Bush-tits, Chickadees, Juncos, Downy Woodpeckers, Sparrows (House, Gold Crowned, White Crowned) Flickers, Nuthatches .. on and on ..

This was a rare treat to see this baby and I was ecstatic! I had heard the parents “talking” to the baby over the summer and didn’t dare hope to ever see it. Yet another one of the million delights in a backyard garden. Right now, he is looking at the suet block below. I must have made a little noise because after this photo, he abruptly flew away.

There are still a few tiny little squash growing along. I haven’t the heart to dig them up and will just leave them for awhile longer. They are cheerful looking and brighten up the garden.

Speaking of beauty it is all around us .. the ever changing skies overhead.

Another treat from the compost, a surprise squash. It is only tiny and might just grow a little bit more.

I so love this plant, everything about it . .. even the name is cheerful “Peppermint Stick”. I’d acquired it a few years ago and planted in the shade. This year I moved it into the sun and like magic .. it showed me how happy it was in the new location by growing and growing and growing! I was admiring the appearance of the raindrops and sunshine scattered along one of the broad leaves. And here is a most interesting link that I found when looking for the proper name of this grass, I guarantee that you will find this blog most interesting :http://www.louistheplantgeek.com/a-gardening-journal/491-arundo-donax-peppermint-stick

Although I’ve harvested and composted the majority of tomatoes in the yard .. this is one of the few remaining and you can see why I’ve left them in place. They look like cascading jewels, adding yet more beauty to the yard.

The same reasoning works for these squash plants. I’ll deal with them after the frost visits the yard .. there are still a number of weeks before that happens.

And another sky photo …

It’s been a busy few weeks .. having lots of fun in the yard, getting it ready for winter. Harvesting the Scarlet Runner Beans, the Cherokee Trail of Tears, the tri-colour bush beans. Surprises every day.

Gardening is so magical, ever changing and satisfying.

🙂

October 11, 2014
by thedogwalkinggardener Leave a comment

A Bean Worth Drying: The Scarlet Runner

I’ve been harvesting my Scarlet Runner beans .. quite loving how they grow! How they attract butterflies, bees and the hummingbirds. Enjoying the harvest of young beans and the giant seeds for drying (for next year’s crop and for cooking!)

I came across this most well written blog and wanted to share ….

October 6, 2014
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My Mason Bees were absolutely amazing … and I have concerns over Bees and Neonicotinoid Pesticides!!!!!!

Yesterday I finally cleaned up my lovely Mason Bee Cocoons! I’d bought my little MB condo and about 16 cocoons at the North Saanich Market 2 years ago.

Last year was my first session of cleaning the cocoons for winter and my pal D and I sat out in the sunshine doing this! We opened up the channels of the MB house, cleaned up the cocoons and put them away in a container for the winter.

The cocoons stayed put, in their clear container (from the Crown Bee website) until March when I put the cocoons into the top tray of the Mason Bee house, and set them in a sunny area of the yard.

Oh the magic of seeing them hatch and fly away. The industriousness of the 2 females (one of the three females didn’t survive) who worked steadfastly through the warm summer months to lay eggs, leave pollen .. making many trips to do so, seal the space with clay and repeat this many times.

I was so excited .. how many cocoons would I get this year? Well as it turns out … yesterday when went through the cleaning process .. I counted 57!!!! Yes!! 57 from 2 females from a total of only 16 cocoons that survived. Happy am I??? YES!

So here is my little Mason Bee Condo .. see .. there are 8 channels filled:

Here is the top layer, only one channel and you can see where a few eggs didn’t mature into cocoons, for whatever reason I don’t know .. and I didn’t take photos of the other trays but they had missing sections also. Nature’s way? I need to research what could have gone wrong. There seems to be a fair bit of pollen and, I’m guessing – mites in the empty sections so this must have been the reason.

After 3 rinses in clear, cold water .. the cocoons are floating on the clean water. This is a good thing, only cocoons which are alive float so I was very relieved to see this!

I patted the cocoons dry on the paper towels and then put them all into the clear container (seen in the first photo) and now they are in the crisper in the fridge until spring. Oh this is so exciting.

I’ve been paying attention to pesticides and bees and have read that neonicotinoids (pesticide) have been the cause of bee deaths. And I’ve read that some Ontario beekeepers have launched a lawsuit over this pesticide:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/canadian-beekeepers-sue-bayer-and-syngenta-over-neonicotinoid-pesticides-1.2754441

The chemical companies know full well the outcome of the pesticides which are not needed anyway. Healthy organic farming practices negate the need of any chemicals.

I was so distraught when I finally bought some annuals (I normally don’t buy these) in the spring. Feeling decadent and seeing these pretty flowers at two shops .. I decided to buy quite a number of flats. Once planted .. I read about the chemical. With a feeling of dread, I contacted the two shops and asked them to check with the growers to see if this chemical was used and I was assured that it wasn’t. However, I do wonder if the seeds had been treated .. how would I know? The flowers themselves look so pretty .. and I’ve watered them with EM (effective microorganisms) and this is why they are still flowering like this (plus the sunny October weather)!

So perhaps I’m over-worrying .. but I want good plants in good soil. The neonicotinoid pesticide lives on in the soil and when the bees visit the flowers, they are poisoned. Oh I hope I can trust the growers who supplied the shops where I bought the plants.

Well .. next year I plan to start my own annual flower seedlings .. I have purchased quite a few packets of organic flower seeds and so I will know for sure, without any doubt, that the beautiful flowers will be safe for the bees.

Recently I’ve been discovering the magic of my new (Panasonic 30 x zoom) camera and taking photos of the moon … here is a shot from last night .. the moon seems like a close neighbour .. not as far away as I’d thought! And we are going to be treated to a most wonderful red moon (I think) on Wednesday morning!!

This tiny little squash is growing away in one of my containers .. thanks to EM and the warmth of the sun. I wonder how big it will get to be? There are quite a number of little baby squash growing now … I will have to keep a close eye on their growth, harvesting when the frost hits! I think this is another volunteer from the compost soil .. how fun.

Nasturtiums in the sun from this afternoon …

And this little sunflower caught my attention .. with the swirling, ever-growing tendrils of a squash plant growing up the stem .. looking like one of those crazy English hats! Quite a sight, don’t you think?

There are so many things to do in the garden right now! I’ve finally sorted out the Red Wigglers from the compost container. What a job that was. I’ve had the worm compost for three years and finally took the time to sort out the lovely rich worm castings from the wigglers. After about a week .. I think … I’ve finally sorted them all out and now have a fresh compost containers .. and a container of rich castings for my plants .. plus a container of wigglers to give to a friend!

Finally, this was done, my Mason Bees were cleaned and put away in the fridge. Now I can focus on other things to do in the garden. One of these things is to figure out what plants I have and where to put them. Imagine my surprise when I found this lovely Pussy Willow .. it needs sun, but managed to survive in the shade. Oh lovely darling ..I moved you to the sun and tomorrow will treat you to a drink of EM ..

Well .. it’s been a day .. and now JaneE and I are away to watch Coronation Street!

🙂

October 5, 2014
by thedogwalkinggardener Leave a comment

Joy in the garden …

There is magic at work in the garden .. a tiny pea seed equals a flourishing plant! A joy to watch.

And the same with a tiny tomato seed …

And always the beauty of the skies above

October 4, 2014
by thedogwalkinggardener Leave a comment

Spiders and seaweed .. some of the things I have in my garden. Plus some photos of the moon .. how fun

This is one of 2 Silverberry plants that I bought many .. many years ago. Tough as nails these plants are. They survived neglect (kept in a plant pot out in the garden .. forgotten) and although they didn’t grow much, they didn’t give up. Bless em. 4 years ago I finally planted them and last year they started to flower. These plants are quite large now and I’ve begun pruning them. The flowers are a positive sign that they are happy …and I’m loving them for hanging in! This is just a small section to show the flowers up close .. there are hundreds of these tiny little beauties of joy.

A few days ago I was removing plants that had come to the end of their growth .. trying to make some space for kale,spinach and mizuna plants. I noticed this spider had settled in on the squash vine .. so, not wanting to disturb him … I left the removal of this spent vine for another day.

Finally all the seaweed sacks were emptied, the seaweed either dug into the soil or put in the compost bins. These were then rinsed thoroughly and draped on the conduit frame and bamboo, wherever there was space .. to dry and soak up the sunshine. Ready for another trip sometime in the future.

At the end of the day …. spider was still there … he looked settled in so I left him in peace.

Part of an old window from our house and a little stained glass sunburst them I made years ago. Just waiting for me to re-purpose them into something artsy for the garden. For now they will just stay put .. pretty to look at and not in the way of anything.

Last year my pal D and I went to the beach shores in Sidney, there is a small section which receives a lot of broken ceramics and bricks .. washed ashore from a nearby island. Lots of treasures to be found .. I might sprinkle some into a fairy garden, they would be perfect.

Each sunflower is different, some have broader petals, smaller faces .. each one is beautiful.

The moon two nights ago .. I was playing with my camera to see how close I could aim with the 30 zoom (Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS40) …. loving this camera .. here are some views that I took ..

The moon doesn’t really seem that far away .. shapes and craters can be seen ..

And just as I finished my little tour around the garden .. I noticed that a potato had been growing away in bean container. Fancy that .. I must have used some compost here .. it will be interesting to see if I harvest any little taters here!

Well .. its’ a new day, lots to do .. .which includes a garlic workshop at the Victoria Compost Centre later on in the day. I intend to learn a lot about this lovely crop!

🙂

October 2, 2014
by thedogwalkinggardener Leave a comment

Calm and serenity in my back garden ..

Yesterday was such a lovely sunny day … it started out with our exercise group hiking around the hilly areas of Oak Bay, climbing some very steep stairways to a lookout and then around a variety of streets and back to the start.

At one point I saw a very noisy Blue Jay perched on a branch, screeching away at something while trying to hide a treasure. No camera with me yesterday, of course!

Finally .. back at home .. in my lovely little garden. I’ve been driving a lot lately .. traffic has been heavy and I’ve just longed for the peace and quiet of my garden. I badly needed a “fix” of just being surrounded by all the greenery that is growing lushly there.

So, mug of Yorkshire Tea, IPod playing gentle music, camera at the ready .. I just slowly wandered around .. having a good tour of what is happening.

First .. there were the lovely skies overhead:

Followed by more lovely skies overhead .. ever-changing artistic paintings ..

Then I spent some time looking at the House Sparrow and male Downy Woodpecker .. each eyeing the suet .. each waiting for the other to move in first ..

Two ways to view this – either the woodpecker was a gentleman and let the sparrow feed first or the sparrow was pushy and claimed the prize .. either way it was a sweet scene of patience and gentility.

sigh ….. I’m torn between looking up at the sky, watching the birds or looking through my bean plants to see if any are ripe enough for picking. And there is also the work factor – this comes after my play time is done (it never is really done, though!)

I’d recently fallen off the wagon ( of my firm decision to not buy more plants!)and bought a few more plants … these Burgundy Baby Weigela plants attract hummingbirds, so of course I must have a few of these.

Another year of self-sowed Sun-chokes .. there are at least 4 of them in the yard, each are at least 10 feet tall … I’m going to cut them down soon, the stalks are quite sturdy and I’m curious as to whether they will dry in a firm state and I can use them to stake up plants. Here is a good site with lots of information: http://www.canadiangardening.com/gardens/fruit-and-vegetable-gardening/you-say-jerusalem-artichoke-i-say-sunchoke/a/35286 Although I didn’t plant these, I suspect the birds did! And they are now in a variety of places .. even though I dug them all up & gave them away last year .. some of them had hidden themselves away to grow this year! And this year I will try them to see what they taste like. Just a little bit, to try.

I’d been rinsing out my seaweed gathering sacks and some water made its way to the sunflowers .. adding a sparkling look to this cheerful flower

Besides the sparrows and woodpeckers that I saw in the garden, I also saw the Bewick Wren (the juvenile) these birds are evasive and swift, so I counted myself lucky to have seen it. The darling Bush-tits were around a few times. I can only imagine what other birds visit the yard when I’m not out there (hawks, crows, eagles up high). What lovely gifts these are .. to see these birds up close.

The Cherokee Trail of Tears beans are just treasures .. I will always grow them. Prolific, with sturdy vines .. each growing an abundance of beans. They are growing into the trees so I will harvest the dried pods at the end of the season and plan to share them with friends.

Here is a young bean and you can see the round beans growing inside .. the mature dried beans are blue! I’ll take some pics when these are harvested.

Looking up (important in the garden!) I noticed a group of at least 9 hoverflies! I was able to get a little photo of one and the group kept moving about so I wasn’t able to take a pic. However, I found this clear video on Youtube, it’s just marvelous: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xh9BlbUaAU

This sky was like a summer sky … lots of gentle ripples ..

My dear Lady JaneE .. sleeping soundly in the sunshine ..

Sleepily waking up ..

And back to sleep again …

The overhead beauty continued …

And the teasel plant is flowering. Quite pretty with the delicate lavender flowers.So I did actually get to work. Washing out bags of plastic gardening items for recycling. Raking up the debris of the pear trellis leaves . infested with rust from some juniper tree in the neighbourhood. This rust is an annual issue and I had it under control 2 years ago (multiple spraying of EM got rid of most of it then) and last year I wasn’t so diligent and about half of the leaves have the rust. Next year I will be more vigilant, spraying with EM and then with liquid seaweed .. just as the leaves emerge! And then after the flowers are finished. I’ve read that the rust settles in by August so I’ll make sure that I take care of this tree.

The leaves are not compostable (so I’ve read) so I’m bagging them up for disposal. It breaks my heart to do this but it is for the best. I don’t have a hot enough compost to ensure that everything breaks down. The rust is ugly .. seen up close. I won’t post pics, it’s bad enough looking at them up close, yuck.

Finally, calling a halt to the work day .. I exited my garden and back to the house. Totally tired but happy from nearly a full day in the garden.

So .. going back out there today … what a treat!

October 1, 2014
by thedogwalkinggardener Leave a comment

Organic straw for the garden and a few more bird feeders for my friends in the yard…

So yesterday was one of those days .. one where all I really wanted to do was go outside and tackle some outdoor chores. I have a long list of these things to do outside and somehow quite enjoy ignoring them while I wander around the yard … soaking in the beauty of vines, plants, flowers .. all growing vigorously … watching the darling birds.

But .. yesterday I had a few places to visit throughout the city and I am really glad that I did. One of the reasons that made me happy was a chance visit to a garden centre by Sears! There was a sale! And my lovely DH had given me a gift card for this shop (Cannor’s!!) which I happened to have with me. He gives me a card for my birthday (recent) and one for Christmas. I always try to get the maximum use out of these great gifts, so a sale just beckons me!

I bought a few (8 of them!!) items that were actually for air ferns. Well when I looked at them .. I saw “bird feeder” instead. So I now have a good supplies of these feeders for my little winged friends. Here is one which I filled with sunflower seeds and am now waiting to see little birdies happily munching away. These are shaped just nicely for the little guys to settle in, and feast away. I can hardly wait to see them using it!

Here is a second type, sort of bowl-shaped, with cutouts! I have 2 of these .. and as of today I am still waiting for the little birds to discover them. They will, it’s just a matter of time. However, seeing that I’m impatient I would love to see them “Now”! 🙂 Nature is patience so I must wait. sigh.Here is another lovely item that I bought at the garden shop yesterday … right now I put a little bit of water in it to see if the birds would like to bathe in it … no takers so far. And I might be tempted to put birdseed in it sometime, who knows! Not sure if it is meant to be outdoors in the winter .. time will tell. It is made of metal with a type of clear coating over the metal. Should it happen to weather during the winter, well .. that will add more of a personality to the patina!

And I travelled to the heart of Central Saanich to buy 2 bales of Certified Organic Straw .. a treat for my garden .. no chemicals or pesticides. Lovely. I’ll be spreading this over my garlic once it is planted and then will add some as a winter mulching around my perennials. It isn’t easy to find Certified Organic Hay or Straw and so I was quite happy to find Ryan Vantreight’s organic farm! He is passionate about organic gardening .. we need more people like him!! 🙂

Sweet little squash flowers .. growing on. I can see tiny squash here and there in the yard .. there is still a month of growing let so I think I will be able to harvest a handful of tiny squash. How fun that will be.

This is the little bird-cage that I bought last summer in Port Alberni .. the top of the cage is hinged and hangs at the back. I’d placed a cheerful geranium inside and look at the tiny little sunflower that is growing alongside of it!

Some afternoon skies from yesterday.

My running around yesterday also included a trip to the Casino, for my yearly $5 Happy Birthday gift. I had troubles with my card at first, it kept showing up as “invalid” and then after 2 trips to the Customer Service desk I finally had everything right. I chose to play the 1 cent machine. And I could do no wrong! Kept winning 8 free draws and line wins and then my $5 gift had blossomed to $10.62. I went wild and bet the 62 cents and then decided to cash in my winnings and walked out, $10 richer than when I went in. There is a slippery slide to gambling and I choose to not do the slide. Tempting, though .. and they know it! All those bells & whistles and free spins with lots of credits piling up. As I walked away, I thought .. should I just play a few more games? No …………. and off to Lee Valley Tools I went!

Wise choice and I spent a few happy minutes in there .. love that place.

So yesterday was a fun day, caught some sales, won some money and finally .. oh joy .. was able to spend a little time in my garden … my favourite place to be!

🙂

September 30, 2014
by thedogwalkinggardener Leave a comment

Museum visits and the Bewick Wren is singing away

A few days ago, my DH & I went to a water features shop and admired the koi in the pool .. this one was quite chubby, and he was trying his best to get us to throw him some food! The clerk told us that this fish was the chocolate lab of koi! Always looking for food, even when just fed!

We went to the Victoria Museum, really to see the amazing Viking show .. and as photos weren’t allowed .. I clicked away at other areas of the museum. Here is the mighty mammoth!

And I am so glad that this huge lion no longer roams our area ..look at those teeth!

This cougar looks real .. so sad that their habitat is slowly being taken away from them. There was a large cougar habitat up-island where families were raised for many years .. was … because it was destroyed, how sad .. where can the cougars go now ..

This looks so like a forest ..except in this one, the animals don’t move an inch!

This was beautiful .. full of sea life and we stood there for awhile, like kids, pointing out the movements of the various little creatures .. lots of fun.

Now if there wasn’t a sign there, this would really seem to be a photo taken at the ocean.

I don’t imagine that I’ll ever be this close to a sea lion .. but that is ok!

Very realistic .. so much so that I had dreams about bears chasing me .. argh..

This is really the survival of the fittest, if 3,000,000 seeds are scattered and only 1 survives …

Many of these artifacts came from North Saanich and surrounding areas, here on Vancouver island …huge tusks! I wonder if they were found on someone’s farm, were they found during road construction .. or … ????? Quite an impressive collection for all to see.

And we ventured into Old Town .. it has been quite a few years since I’d visited this area and I’d quite forgotten about the upper level.

There were few people around so I could click away and take lots of photos.

I wonder if this would be a Drawing Room, Front Room or guest area? In any respect, it would have been quite a cosy setting in the cold weather, with a lovely fire going in that old fireplace.

This is a rather formal section of the upstairs …

A nice comfortable bedroom, well appointed ..

Beautiful sideboard …in the upper hallway.

Ye ole saloon … it was fun looking inside, seeing glasses and mugs half full of pretend whiskey and beer.

This dressmakers shop was wonderful with lots of storage inside, well appointed.

Back home .. I heard, then saw the Bewick Wren .. atop the wild and crazy tree (pear trellis stock gone awry)

They are definitely nesting somewhere in the yard …I’ve heard the parents training the youngster(s) throughout the summer. The father teaches the songs .. quite interesting, see: http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birding/bewicks-wren/

And here he dives down into the air .. off on a mission

So much going on lately .. and we quite enjoyed the Museum visit (it was on my Birthday wish list!) Lots of activity going on in the yard.

Today I picked up 2 organic bales of straw for the garden’s winter cover. And lots of bird feeders (that weren’t intended as bird feeders!) I’m taking them outside for a which wash and will fill with sunflowers .. looking forward to some happy pictures to share!

And the fall weather is a mix, here in Victoria! Yesterday pouring rain with brilliant sunshine in the late afternoon. Today started out as sunny with some rain showers and now it is back to sun .. so outside I go!

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