Add A Little Vintage To Your Picnic ~

Vintage pop crates with their great graphics are fun to use for displays.  I've used them in a variety of ways but I recently came up with a very simple use for them.

 

I was getting ready to go to a picnic and had just taken the cheesy potatoes for the picnic out of the oven. I was having trouble finding  something to use to transport the hot dish in when I spotted my Coca - Cola pop crate. I thought it looked about the right size. After lining it with an old feed sack I placed the baking dish in it.

 

 

 

It was a perfect fit and kept it from moving around in the

 car.The crates are sturdy &  the handles make it easy to carry something hot! It also adds a little vintage to your picnic!

 

My Yellow Hollyhocks After the Rain ~

These pretty pale yellow beauties were glistening with rain drops after the storm~

 
 

Momma Turkey & Her Babies Come To Visit ~

I found this wild Turkey & her babies lying in this dirt area above where my compost pile is, next to the field. Keeping real close to the ground, I was able to sneak up on her to take pics. I was surprised at how close I was able to get to them. Wild Turkeys have excellent vision & hearing which is why they are able to elude hunters.

She was flapping her wings, dusting herself & her babies with the dirt. They do this to clean themselves of ticks, mites or other bugs that might get on them. It also helps to keep their feathers from becoming greasy or matted. This was so cool to see!

 

 

I didn't realize how many babies there were until she stood up & they all started coming up out of the dirt. I just kept counting.....she had about 12 or 13 babies! 

 

 

 

 

Hen turkeys usually lay about 8-15 buff colored eggs which she incubates 25-31 days. The baby turkeys are called poults.

 

 

I've read that when turkeys find a spot for dusting that they will often times come back. I've seen them a couple times since but haven't been able to get as close to them as I did on this day!

 

 

When the mother started to leave, all of the little ones quickly followed behind, marching in line.

A New Spin On A "Potted Plant"

I love finding unique pieces to use as planters around my home & potting shed. I've used several old bedpans that I've found at flea markets & auctions for planters the last couple Summers. The bedpans aren't very deep so usually I plant succulents in them because most of them have shallow root systems. This Summer I decided to try to find another way to use them ~

  

 I thought that if I turned it on end & hung it so that the deeper end was on the bottom I would be able to plant something different in it. So I drilled a hole on the back so I would be able to hang it on my Potting Shed. I then placed a piece of landscaping fabric in the bottom so that potting soil wouldn't fall out of the spout opening. I planted Ivy in the bedpan, thinking that  would look interesting spilling out over the bottom of it.  It's a unique planter & I think every garden can use a little bit of humor in it!

Handmade Gifts Are The Best!

I love handmade gifts ~ they're always a little more special! My husband made this pine cabinet for me as my Valentines day gift. He wanted the finish to have a similar appearance to that of an antique blanket chest that we use for a coffee table. The blanket chest is a worn & weathered barn red. He chose a solid siding & deck stain by Olympic in Navajo Red for the cabinet. He applied the stain to a small area at a time & wiped it off quickly, trying to get a variation on the depth of color ~ some areas lighter & some areas darker. The raised panels that he made for the sides & the bead board backing add extra interest to the piece.

The cabinet is a very versatile piece which can be used to display items or as a bookcase in any room.

  The bead board backing makes a great background to display items.

The bottom raised panel on the cabinet.

A closer look at the top raised panel of the cabinet.

Sweet Summertime Memories ~

Lightning bug on some Queen  Anne's Lace ~ Remember how much fun it was to catch them when you were a kid? They were that magical sparkle in the night sky! You'd find the perfect jar...poke holes in the lid...then run around outside trying to catch as many as you could...Making your own little night light ~ Sweet summertime memories ~

One Smart Robin!

Ever feel like you're being watched? I noticed this Robin on the bird bath, watching me as I worked. He stayed there almost the whole time that I was  weeding & digging up that area of the flower bed. As the morning went on I realized that every time I left to go get a drink from the porch or to get something from the potting shed, he'd be down in the area where I'd been working when I returned. He was helping himself to all of the worms that I'd stirred up with my digging! One smart Robin! ~ he was just sitting there letting me do his work for him!

Star of My Shade Garden ~ Solomon's Seal (polygonatum)

This stately perennial is quickly becoming one of my favorites for the shade garden.

This perennial is very much at home in shady borders & woodland or naturalized areas.

Solomon's Seal is spread by rhizomes & slowly forms dense colonies of graceful arching stems. It blooms mid-Spring here in my zone 6a garden.

It's name is said to come from the roots, whose leaf scars look like the seal of King Solomon.

The chipmunks love to hang out on the stone wall near the Solomon Seal. They have tunnels all through the wall & up into the front of the bed....Busy little guys!

Watching the little critters that we share our gardens with is one of the perks of gardening!

 

 

All You Can Eat Buffet!

This bunny has been spending a lot of time at the salad bar, also known as my flower bed. I wish they'd eat the weeds with as much gusto as they do my flowers. Oh well ~ can't get too mad at them because they're just so cute!