There’s not been much going on in the garden lately though I have been pleasantly surprised that the kale has bounced back after the big three week freeze. We’ve finally had a few more “warm” days and some rain. Speaking of rain, last night it was as though the clouds pulled out all the stops. It would seem we received between three and four inches of rain last night. I can’t say I have ever heard rain like that before…not even during several well known hurricanes I have experienced. The difference was that last night it was all rain and no wind. When we first moved to this part of South Carolina three and a half years ago the area was experiencing an extended drought. We’ve been gaining water nicely this past year, but last night was a real drought buster.
Today there are several new paths in the back yard where the rivers of water ran down to the creek. I missed getting a photo today. I’ll try to get one tomorrow. How’s the weather in your neck of the woods?
Well, I went searching on my hard drives and found one partial picture of the front of the house. This was taken some time ago. The bushes under the picture window come up to the bottom of the window now. There are two varieties, a couple of light pink camillas that bloom in the fall flank two other bushes whose names I can’t remember. They also have pink flowers, but are a different type of bush. the hydrangeas are just out of sight to the right. The tree is a pink dogwood. The gigantic magnolia trees are to the left.
I’ll look for a few other photos of the country garden and then focus my attention back on the Carolina Victory Garden for a while.
My eldest daughter got engaged over Christmas. She and her fiance want a garden wedding at her grandpa’s farm, the place I call the country garden. The challenge is getting the yard and garden in shape for that kind of company. There is plenty of room in several different parts of the farm to have a wedding. All are lovely, but neglected. We go as often as possible, but it is difficult to keep up with all that needs to be done. There is a good foundation though. My mother-in-law has planted many bulbs, flowering shrubs and trees…There is something blooming pretty much year round, but there are also a lot of blank spaces and cudzu.
We have time to get the place in order I think. The date is tentatively set for April 30, 2011. I would like to have the place really shine for my father-in-law and to honor my mother-in-law’s memory as this date is her birthday and she loved a good wedding. Over the next year, I will be including photos of parts of the place. Perhaps you will be able to give me some suggestions on plants to plant, move or remove. If you remember, I have shown pictures of some of the old roses and the view from the sun porch looking east.
I am hoping that you will be able to give me some guidance as we move forward with this project. I would like to create an atmosphere full of good memories for my daughter and her new husband ot their special day. Here is another photo…this one from outside the sun porch on the driveway looking up toward the main road. Yes, it is a long, winding driveway. The top of the driveway is in front of the white house at the top of the hill.
I will add a little whimsy to the garden. This year I added a statue of a yellow lab puppy very similar to Loki my four legged garden helper. This year I would like to add a couple of other items…There is a wooden, jointed statue in one of my husband’s woodworking books. He olds a tray or basin for feeding or watering birds. With luck, I’ll be able to convince him to make one for me. I would like to add something else, but I haven’t decided what. I might be open to other ideas.
I will learn more about my camera so that I can take better photos of the Carolina Victory Garden in 2010. I have a Nikon D70 digital SLR with two lenses…the one that came with and a zoom lens…power I can’t remember at the moment. The camera is about 5 years old. I can take adequate photos with it, but think I could do better.
- I will seek out a couple of photography blogs and see what I can learn from them.
- I will seek out a photography class or workshop that I can take. Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden offers one or two reasonably priced classes.(non affiliate links)
- I will check the library to see what resources I might find there as well.
- Practice makes perfect.
Any suggestions?
I will make pickles AND chow chow.
- I will get out my recipes early.
- I will gather all the spices and containers needed.
- I will take a couple of afternoons to process the recipes.
- I will enjoy a year’s worth of pickles and chow chow!
Do you have a favorite pickle or chow chow recipe? I have several that I will share during the year.
I will plant a couple of things that are just for fun and experimentation.
- Study my new seed catalogs
- Ask for suggestions
- Make smart choices.
Last year I planted Kale and Swiss Chard for the first time ever and my teens discovered that there are greens they actually like!
Janet over at Queen of Seaford blog suggested the addition of Winter Savory. Do you have any other suggestions? Last year’s planting list can be found here.
I will plant more herbs in front of the house.
- Complete goal #5.
- Identify5 herbs that will thrive in full sun in a southern garden.
- Locate sources for those herbs.
- Add 5 specimens to the garden, both annual and perennial varieties.
I will learn more about soil rehabilitation and apply that knowledge to the flower beds in front of the house. Especially the one on the right as I face the house, I have lost a number of plants on the downhill end. I can only surmise that they have died due to poor soil as the plants were very healthy when planted.
- Read up on soil in The South Carolina Master Gardener Training Manual and my newest addition to the library The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible (non affiliate link).
- Check The Complete Compost Gardening Guide (non affiliate link) out of the library and read it.
- Apply what I have learned by Spring.
- Purchase a soil analyzing kit or take samples to the Cooperative Extension.
We spent a wonderful Christmas in the country this year. One of my favorite things about being in the country garden is the view from the sun porch at sunrise. Each day is a little different depending on the weather and what critters may drop by. There were no critters this time, though there have been deer, fox, muskrat, wild turkeys and buzzards depending on the year and season. This year, the neat variable was how the weather changed the view each day. Here is a view of the same spot on three different days between 6 and 7 am. I am sure that you can see why it is one of my favorites.
I hope you had a nice Christmas as well.
