Alabama is under one of its most severe storm, tornado, and hail outlooks in quite some time. Last night, one and a half inches of rain fell here at Highland Lake, and that was just a mild prelude to what is expected tomorrow. I'm writing this post in the 18 or so hours between the …
Two Six on Saturday posts in a row! I feel as though I'm on a roll. I'll begin by noting that the two drought and cold distressed camellias I mentioned last week, ‘Grace Albritton’ and ‘Lady Vansittart Sport’ are now in generous flower, albeit with damaged blooms. But, I'll take freeze tinged petals over none. …
It has been five months since I've published a "Six on Saturday" post. There have been a couple of "Wordless Wednesday" photos, but the long interval is indicative of just how uncooperative the Alabama weather has been at Highland Lake. There have been drenching rains, periods of dry skies and blustery winds, unseasonably warm days, …
Travel, Master Gardener obligations, drought, and generally just the way of the world has gotten in the way of "Six on Saturday" updates from me since May. Of all of those, drought has certainly been the most significant. As a result, there has been very little blooming recently, but there are a few, as the …
It looks like another post of essentially plant and pot pictures with little about projects this week, but I think I have an interesting place to begin. It's a record of something I've not seen before: 1. Sempervivum, or Hens and Chicks, blooming. The feature image shows some buds in bloom. The two images below …
Today's six are a quick rundown of some colorful blooms that are finally appearing in the garden. For participation guidelines for joining this Saturday sharing of six things going on in our gardens and for links to many more posts, see Jim Stephens’ Garden Ruminations, the gathering point of our posts. 1. I'll start with a …
A couple of weeks ago I posted some photos of wildflowers blooming in the garden and noted that others were on their way. Today's short post contains some of those others. For participation guidelines for joining this Saturday sharing of six things going on in our gardens, see Jim Stephens’ Garden Ruminations, the gathering point …
The wildflowers are coming up! Six of the most prolific here in the garden at Highland Lake, Alabama, are my subjects this week. 1. The first is my favorite---rue anemone (Thalictrum thalictroides ), a native, woodland perennial. Wonderfully delicate, and really rather tiny, it is easily overlooked among winter's left-over leaves and pine needles. To illustrate …
1. I'll begin this week's six, which is mostly images, with one of those shrubs that typically announces the beginning of spring: forsythia. There are several forsythia bushes throughout the garden, but none of them blooming quite so vigorously as they have in the past. 2. The Lenten Roses or hellebores (Helleborus spp.), too, are …
I realized today as I sat down to post a quick Six on Saturday that I haven't posted one in 2024! My focus has been on writing a series of guides for a tour of English gardens and Roman sites I'm leading with a colleague in June. Also, the weather here in Blount County Alabama …
After Eden 