Sharing Nature's Garden Archives | Page 54 of 124

Zen and the art of umbrella handling

We enjoyed a few dry moments at Buffalo’s Delaware Park Japanese Gardens before the sky opened up again.

But I was intrigued by the rain’s mirror effect on the lake as we took in the beautiful sights.
Many of the private gardens we toured in Buffalo had an Asian theme, perhaps influenced by the lovely structures in this public garden.
There were many different vignettes throughout the garden, offering structure and contrast to the viewer.
And all the structures in the park were designed to flow seamlessly from nature, appearing to have been there for years.
Not to be outdone by the floral explosions in the home gardens of the city, the Japanese garden also had its share of beautiful blooms to complement the lush foliage and trees.
Garden bloggers strolled and took in all the sights – enjoying the serenity of the setting.

Then we all enjoyed a delicious lunch at the French Bistro Rue Franklin, including Marmee of Things I Love, Gail of Clay and Limestone and Frances of Fairegarden .

Such a fun-filled day, it will require two posts to get it all in…stay tuned for more!

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:27:26-06:00July 21st, 2010|Blog, Buffa10, Buffalo, Japanese garden, Sharing Nature's Garden|0 Comments

Cottage gardens enchant and enthrall…

What’s my favorite style of garden?

I don’t have to think about it — beyond any shadow of a doubt, it’s the quintessential cottage garden.

There’s just something endearing about the layers and the textures and the colors and the magic marriage of a quaint cottage garden.

And the cottage gardens we toured last Friday morning in Buffalo didn’t disappoint.

While each garden shared the cottage style — they were all unique in their presentation and plants.

My favorite was one filled with bright, tropical plants and colors, mixed with more traditional cottage-style offerings.

I loved this Clematis meandering along the quaint white picket fence framing the front yard of this house.
These little individual succulent planters made from tree fungus lined a short fence leading into the back yard.
This beautiful seating area was surrounded by plants with rich, tropical colors and lots of vertical interest.
The front picket fence was chock-full of cottage goodness and offered a plant paradise for any birds who stopped by looking for a cool drink of water.
Because these cottage gardens were so intimate (read: small!), they were perfect backdrops for garden art on their walls and fences.
We enjoyed these gardens with a steady dose of rain, however, which stuck with us all day. Not to be deterred, we shielded our cameras and kept walking. The rain couldn’t stop Gail, of Clay and Limestone, from smiling as she strolled along.
There was always the next garden, drawing us along, mesmerizing us with its wonderful setting and amazing (albeit, wet) plants.
The sun peeked out occasionally, and let me capture this moment between fellow bloggers Kathy of Cold Climate Gardening, and Dee, of Red Dirt Ramblings.
The days rain left tell-tale signs and a little garden art of its own on the plants.
Though my favorite was the tropical cottage garden, I was also totally charmed by this shabby-chic garden, with its ecclectic mix of flowers and art.
And even more vertical fun in small spaces.
As with most of the houses, no fence or post or eave is left unadorned.
If I had included more individual plant shots my post would have taken a week to do! But these just begged to be shared with you!
And then there were the cottages themselves…so quaint and historic and adorable.
It was just all too cute. My only regret was that I couldn’t bring one of those lovely cottages back on the plane with me!

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:27:26-06:00July 18th, 2010|Blog, Buffa10, cottage garden, Sharing Nature's Garden, spring fling 2010|0 Comments

Buffalo gardens amaze & impress

As I traveled home from a delightful time in Buffalo for the garden bloggers’ Buffa10 gathering, I tried to think of the best way to describe the gardens I’d seen.

It wasn’t easy.

We had a whirlwind 4 days — seeing sights, touring gardens, meeting and making friends and smelling the roses.

Our hosts, Elizabeth Licata of Gardening While Intoxicated and Jim Charlier of Art of Gardening took us on a fairytale tour of their beautiful city and its gardens. They were perfect ambassadors who opened our eyes to not only the gardens of the city, but the art and the architecture and the city’s rich history.

A wide variety of gardens and gardeners welcomed us with open arms as we descended upon the city.

And while they ranged from jam-packed cottage gardens to simple, zen-like Asian gardens, they all had one thing in common.

They were lush.

Really lush.

There — that was it, that was the word that captured all the gardens we had the good fortune to see. According to Thesaurus.com, there are many ways to describe something lush.

Main Entry:	lush
Part of Speech:	adjective
Definition:	profuse and delightful
Synonyms:	abundant, ambrosial, delectable, delicious, deluxe, dense, elaborate, extensive, extravagant, exuberant, flourishing, fresh, grand, green, heavenly, juicy, lavish, luscious, luxuriant, luxurious, opulent, ornate, overgrown, palatial, plush, prodigal, prolific, rank, rich, riotous, ripe, ritzy, scrumptious, sensuous, succulent, sumptuous, teeming, tender, verdant,

Oddly enough, the weather when my travel companion Pam, of Digging, and I arrived, was actually hotter than in Austin, Texas! Back home – 86, Buffalo – 91!
On our first afternoon, we enjoyed a walking tour of the Allentown Gardens, including a stop for happy hour at Elizabeth’s garden.
Then we were treated to a fabulous dinner and a tour of the 20th Century Club and its gardens. See that sun?!
Garden bloggers Leslie of Growing a Garden in Davis, Robin of Bumblebee Blog and Kathy of Cold Climate Gardening are probably discussing the uncharacteristically hot weather in Buffalo as we wait for dinner.
And now, more lushness.
The beauty was blurred, one stunning garden after another, as we stumbled along – not knowing which street we were on or whose garden it was, just struck by the amazing displays of annuals, perennials, trees, shrubs and garden art.
And then there was the amazing architecture, including some borrowed views of historic buildings like this one.
Each garden delivered a new perspective, a different plant list and a unique feel to our troupe of 70 visitors.

And I, for one, will carry these amazing memories with me for a long time. Buffalo is a beautiful, historic city, and one I would gladly visit again and again.

There is so much more to see — stay tuned for more posts about our amazing adventure. This just covered the first 6 hours!

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:27:26-06:00July 13th, 2010|Blog, bloggers, Buffa10, cottage garden, garden bloggers, garden tour, Sharing Nature's Garden|0 Comments

The garden supervisor

I went out yesterday morning to capture a few shots of water (yes, really, in Austin in July) on the garden.

I didn’t realize until I was outside that I had some supervisory assistance!

Dakota sat and watched me until she couldn’t see me any more. I’m not sure if she was wishing she could come outside, or if she was just thinking in her little pea-brain, “What in the world is that alpha-dog-woman doing now?”

Don’t you sometimes wonder what they’re thinking? I was even wondering about the squirrel who stopped in his tracks on the way up the tree when he saw me watching him through the window.

It was lush and green and moist in the garden this weekend after our several inches of welcome rain last week.
The drops on the Caladiums look like puddles on an abstract painting.
And, like most things, the droplets were dwarfed by the huge blooms of the Moy Grande Hibiscus.

And the moisture helped me see this huge spider web that spanned about 5 feet — from a tall coneflower plant to a neighboring tree. Couldn’t see anymore when I got far enough away to get the whole thing in the shot, but clearly the spider had lured in some lunch.

The rains gave everything in the garden a huge boost — so welcome since I am leaving before the chickens are up on Thursday morning — heading to Buffalo for Buffa10, our annual garden bloggers meet-up. I’m so excited to visit with friends from across the country and meet new ones, while touring amazing gardens.

Will I see you there?

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:27:26-06:00July 5th, 2010|Blog, Buffa10, Dakota, Moy Grande hibiscus, rain, Sharing Nature's Garden, spring fling 2010|0 Comments

When it rains…

…other little things pop up in the garden.

With 4 days of steady rain here in Austin, oodles of tiny little mushrooms are emerging from the water-soaked ground.

They almost look like tiny aliens in the garden.

Certainly the rain seems alien!

By Diana C. Kirby|2016-04-14T02:40:14-05:00July 3rd, 2010|Blog, mushrooms, rain, Sharing Nature's Garden|0 Comments

Bye bye birdies…

For several weeks now, we’ve had baby cliff swallows in this nest high above our front door under the eaves. At first we could only see the edge of their beaks, and couldn’t tell how many were up there as they would come to the edge and then go back.
But they soon grew and began jockeying for position in the ever-shrinking nest. Five abreast, pushing up, up, and up to the edge of nest – they waited for mom and dad to bring breakfast, lunch and dinner.

And then they learned how to turn around on the edge of the nest and leave me with presents that required pretty much daily clean-up of the front porch.

Then one afternoon last week, I watched the mama (or dad) fly all around the nest, chirping intently and landing all around the nest — clinging to the side of the walls and landing on the hanging light fixture.

I’m certain she was saying, “Come on out, you can do it, just flap your wings, come on now!” They kept opening their beaks for food, but mama wasn’t bringing them food, she was giving them a lesson.
And sure enough, the next day, one lone little swallow ventured out to the lamp. He sat there, looking very alone and a little forlorn, with all his siblings across the way, safely cocooned in the nest.
But soon he was joined by another sibling. And for the last 3-4 days, they’ve all be flying around and around our house – soaring in the blue sky, chirping happily to one another — 5 not-so-little babies and two proud parents.