Tag: Garden

The Lazy Days of Summer are HERE!

Published on by Cecelia Futch14 Comments

 

Summer is the time to be outside as much as possible. So I am. Outside, that is. It is easier this year to stay out-of-doors than in the past because now we have our place. I LOVE to garden and it has been years since I’ve been able to dig in the dirt and plant and watch things grow or sit on a porch and watch the chipmunks at play. I still have my studies, but when my head is not in the books or I’m not writing a paper, I am outside watering plants, mulching the flowerbed, digging up new garden plots, etc. I imagine that is the way it will be for the rest of the summer. Growing things and watching a yard come to life is my idea of heaven! So out in the yard is where you’ll find me even on the hottest of days.This year the yard may look bare and scraggly, but next year we should see the beginnings of what promises to be lush gardens.

Russian Sage and Lavender: The beginnings of a butterfly and hummingbird garden.
What my cone flowers will look like next year!
Echinacea (a.k.a. Yellow Cone Flowers). Planted next to the purple cone flowers. Mine will look beautiful, too, next summer. 🙂
These tiger lilies grew in our yard this year. My sister-in-law gave me more day lilies to add to these for next year.
This is one of my peonies this year. My sister-in-law gave me more to add to the few that I have, and of a different color, too. I can’t wait to see my peony garden next year!
A rose-bush grows beside the deck but it has not been pruned for years. I will cut the bush back this fall so that next year roses will fill the branches with healthy, fragrant blooms.
We have at least three rhododendrons in our yard! I cut them back at the beginning of summer and new growth has already sprouted. 🙂

There’s more but these are the photos I have. If you have suggestions of what might look good in the yard for next year, please do tell! 😉 I have a big yard and it will take a few years to create a real garden with veggies, flowers, trees, and other wildlife. I plan to make some “proper” birdbaths to place out in the yard next year, something other than old pie tins that I found lying around. I also have ideas for various bird feeders with different food to attract birds of all kinds. And yes, I’ll also put up a squirrel feeder for my furry friends. Do you think that will keep the squirrels out of the bird food?

I’m not around the blogosphere as much these days. On one hand I miss my regular blogging routine. On the other hand, who wants to be inside all day every day when the sun shines, the temperatures are warm and the out-of-doors beckons? Thank you to those of you who check in on Inspired Vision regularly, or just pop in occasionally. Once the cold weather and dreary days return, I’ll jump back into my blogging habits. Until then, enjoy the summer. I know I am. 🙂

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Nuttin But Orchids Orchids Orchids!

Published on by Cecelia Futch26 Comments

Now that I’ve had a chance to go through the photos and do some editing, here is what I went to the Cleveland Botanical Gardens to see!

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Orchids! Orchids! and then there were more Orchids!

Published on by Cecelia Futch67 Comments

What a gorgeous day it was! I was on break from classes, the sun was shining bright, the temperature was almost balmy. It was a great day to hop a bus into Case Western Reserve, wander a bit through gardens, and finally pay a visit to the Cleveland Botanical Garden to see Orchid Mania that is in its last week here. If it is possible to overdose on flowers and beauty, I sure did! The problem I face now is how to choose which of  hundreds of photos to share with you. (Don’t worry, I’ll only give you a sampling!)

I hope you enjoy the following slide show.

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Thanks for stopping by. Hope you enjoyed the show. 🙂

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Tiny (2)

Published on by Cecelia Futch30 Comments

Every summer Brookside Garden in Silver Spring, Maryland, hosts the “Wings of Fancy” butterfly exhibition.  Part of the greenhouse morphs into a butterfly house with oodles of different butterflies from all over the Americas, and some from Europe, too, I believe (but don’t quote me!)  At any rate, this little fellow was one of the smaller ones.  I shot this in the summer of 2010. He is charming, don’t you think? And he is tiny!