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the-kr8tor · 10 months ago

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PLEASE, PLEASE FAE HOBIE X READER PLEASE I NEED IT AGAIN YOUR SERIES KILLED ME EVEN IF I LOVED IT AND I NEED MORE FAE HOBIE X READER. I NEED POSSESSIVE FAE HOBIE X READER PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE (IVE BEEN WAITING FOR YOUR REQUEST TO BE OPEN PLEASE I BEG OF YOU MORE FAE HOBIE HES PLAGUED MY THOUGHS BC OF YOU.)

IT CAN BE ABSOLUTELY ANYTHING WITH FAE HOBIE (BESIDES ANGST I HAD ENOUGH OF THAT WITH YOUR SERIES/HJ /PF)

I UTTERLY NEED TO KISS AND JUST NEED FAE HOBIE. YOU GOT ME OBSESSED WITH FAE HOBIE GUENGUENAHJFSBIAHDNSHSNFUD 🩷🩷🩷

Hi, bestie! I blacked out while writing this (a side effect of writing for fae Hobie 🤣🤣 he does things to me) I tried my best at making this as fluffy as possible but if you want it fluffier pls feel free to send another prompt! (Fae Hobie still has my heart) thank you for requesting!! 🫶

Pairing: Fae! Hobie Brown x Fem! Reader

Tags: No use of Y/N, no specific physical description of the reader, cw food mentions, Fae AU, Fae! Hobie Brown, a bit of hurt/comfort, fluff.

ʕ⁠·⁠ᴥ⁠·⁠ʔ

You definitely remember planting your tulips just yesterday. At first it was your cabbages growing large just after a few days of planting, then the tomatoes and now the tulips. The colorful bulbs sway in the breeze, the fragrant flowery smell relaxes your bones. Yet you can't help but feel creeped out by the weird phenomena.

You just moved in recently to a quaint town that's settled right on the edge of a dense woodland area. You've heard of the stories when a human has captured a fae’s attention, and it looks like this is the case for you. All the stories don't always end well for the former. But if the extremely fast growth of your garden says anything, it's that this particular fae means well. Hopefully.

So as a thank you to the kind entity, you place a bowl of milk and honey right under where your tulips are planted. You've even left a plate of salad all made from the crops you've lovingly planted and bloomed after just a few days of planting. You think for a second that maybe the soil under your feet is healthy and bountiful but there's no harm done if there isn't any mythical creature helping you. The worst case is a raccoon eating your offerings.

Bewildered is an understatement, your eyes are the size of dinner plates once you see something shimmering on the ground. Whatever you did, the fae seems to like it. They left a crown of daisies on your doorstep the next morning, the petals are all adorned with flecks of gold. The flowers run like silk under your fingers.

You look past your garden to the woods, the fog swirls around the edge. In your vision you see the mist form and shape into a tall slim figure. Your hand tightens around the crown of flowers, hands shaking in disbelief.

You didn't go out that day.

More gifts appear outside your home, tiny trinkets woven carefully to create something beautiful. A bouquet of flowers on your windowsill, a figurine of a spider made from vines that's left hanging by the large oak in your backyard. They all appear outside your house so there's no cause for actual fear. If only you stop feeling eyes on you whenever you go outside.

A friend from the city visited you one day, telling you how much they've missed you, gushing on how much you've missed while away. They ask if you ever feel lonely out in the outskirts of the country you could always come visit them.

The same eyes you feel outside can be felt in your bedroom that night.

Whatever latched on to you seems benevolent, watchful, yes but not evil or controlling. You've gotten used to the presence after a few months of living at your cottage. You've even started talking to them during the day when you have no one to turn to. You tell them stories of your almost forgotten childhood and your old life where the houses are made of glass and grey stone, where they stood high above, almost touching the heavens. They've never responded, always listening and ever present.

He wants to respond though, tell you tales of old, where the flowers used to sing and dance, where the woods reigned supreme above all. He misses them, yes, but he misses your voice more. Is it possible to miss your touch too even though he's only imagined it before? Perhaps your hands feel like the finest silk spun upon his skin, your fingers weaving through his like a glittering river, waking him up from his centuries of stagnant waters.

He's seen you laugh and cry, and tend to your garden like it’s your own children. He wants nothing more but to join you in harvesting your bounty, to converse with you and listen to you mumble about your day. Gradually he appears behind you when your back is turned, watching as you make your dinner, observing you plant something new. Then in a flash, he vanishes when you turn around. Leaving you feeling empty

You enter the gates of your garden with tears in your eyes, words barely coherent by your sobs. Kneeling in front of your tulips, you grasp the grass underneath, pulling and ripping out the blades. A sudden hand circles around your wrist, warmth enveloping you in a crashing wave.

He appears just behind the tulips, your eyes soften when your vision focuses on his handsome and otherworldly face. He doesn't know what's gotten you upset but what he does know is that it'll be alright for now on. Because he's—

“Here, ‘m here” His voice calms you down like a thick blanket in the winter.

Without hesitation, you embrace him, the smell of sandalwood and flowers almost stops your heart. You grip him tight, his strong arms envelope you securely, his face nuzzled right between the space over your neck. You do the same, already feeling at home on his skin.

“You're here. You’re real, aren't you?”

“As real as you” he leans back to look at your tear stained cheeks, wiping it with his thumbs. “And here to stay if you want me to”

“Please” you lean on his touch.

He nods, placing a weighted kiss on your forehead. Suddenly you know his name. You call it sweetly amidst the tears, it feels welcome on your tongue.

For the first time in years, Hobie smiles and chuckles, kissing you atop your eyelids with a promise to never leave your side.

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kariachi · 4 months ago

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A pokemon starter description list, with links, to go with The Great Ben 10 Starter Polls series. Grouped by region.

Bulbasaur, the Seed pokemon! A loyal and nurturing grass/poison type toad capable of using vines to pull itself into trees. They can survive for days at a time without eating, thanks to the flower bulb that grows on it’s back. The final form is also grass/poison and is at it’s strongest in summer, when it can absorb the most sunlight.

Charmander, the Lizard pokemon! This reptilian fire-type exhibits pack behavior, looking out for each other. The flames on their tails can reveal their health and mood, with ill and tired Charmander’s flames burning weakly. Their final form is a fire/flying dual type capable of breathing fire at heats that may even melt rock.

Squirtle, the Tiny Turtle pokemon! This water-type swims at high speeds thanks to it’s rounded shell, which it retreats into for safety. In battle they shoot foamy water at their enemies with great accuracy. It’s final form, another water-type, gains powerful water cannons it can use to pierce through concrete and perform quick charges.

Chikorita, the Leaf pokemon! A cute grass-type, this pokemon isn’t known for it’s battling. Rather it wafts a soothing scent from it’s prominent leaf, calming those around it, and even uses said leaf to gauge temperature, humidity, and find good sunny spots in which to relax. Their final form, a pure grass-type, is known for it’s soothing and docile nature, and it’s breath can revive dead plants.

Cyndaquil, the Fire Mouse pokemon! Not very mouse-like, despite the species, this fire-type is known to be quite timid. Still, the fires on their backs burn powerfully, especially when they’re upset. It’s final evolution has two forms depending on the region- one pure fire-type known for the explosions and vast heat it generates when angered, the other a fire/ghost type with a graceful, gentle disposition.

Totodile, the Big Jaw pokemon! A playful crocodilian water-type that can be a little rough and tumble, even sometime biting it’s trainer in good fun. These bite are very powerful though, and can cause serious injuries. It’s final form, a pure water-type, is agile and fast, using it’s large jaws to intimidate enemies and catch prey.

Treecko, the Wood Gecko pokemon! A lizardy grass-type with a calm, collected nature. Still, it's very territorial, attacking anyone who approaches the nests they build in tall trees. Also a grass-type, it's final form is capable to cutting down thick trees, but tends instead to tend lovingly the plants around it.

Torchic, the Chick pokemon! This fire-type pokemon is prone to fears of the dark, and will follow close to it's trainer on wavering steps when afraid. Their flame sack exudes enough heat to them pleasantly warm, making them very huggable. In their final form, a fire/fighting type, they become courageous martial artists with powerful legs.

Mudkip, the Mud Fish pokemon! A docile water-type capable of even pushing boulders around despite it's small size. Thanks to the fin on it's head, it can detect not just changes in air and water currents, but also bodies of water nearby. It's final form is a water/ground dual type with impressive physical strength, keen eyesight, and the ability to predict storms.

Turtwig, the Tiny Leaf pokemon! This grass-type turtle maintains itself mostly through photosynthesis by the sprout that grows on it's head. It also consumes plenty of water, to keep it's sprout healthy, and it's shell hard and moist. In it's grass/ground final form it sometimes migrates in large groups, though is often so sedentary other pokemon build nests and live lives on it.

Chimchar, the Chimp pokemon! An agile little monkey of a fire-type. The flames on their rear seem like a tail, but in fact are powered by gasses produced in their stomachs. Their final form is a fire/fighting type possessing unrivaled agility and speed, and whose battle style is comparable to dance.

Piplup, the Penguin pokemon! This water-type tends to be quite proud, and may even refuse food from it's trainer. Still, it's a strong swimmer and diver, and can ever fly for short distances. It's final form is a water/steel type capable of slicing through ice floes with it's wings, though it prefers to avoid disputes.

Snivy, the Grass Snake pokemon! A serpentine grass-type starter with a calm, loner temperament. This pokemon engages in photosynthesis and uses vines to make up for the small size of it's arms. It's final form, a pure grass type, has a regal, intimidating bearing and amplifies the power of the sun within itself.

Tepig, the Fire Pig pokemon! This little fire-type porker in known to be gluttonous and excitable. They're quite nimble, and like to dodge and confound their foes. Their final form is a tough and relentless, though affectionate, brawler, a fire/fighting dual type.

Oshawott, the Sea Otter pokemon! A cute little water-type that wields a clam-shell-like item as a weapon, using it to block opponents attacks and slash at them in return. It carefully maintains it’s shell, and can grow a new one if needed. It’s final evolution has two forms depending on the region- one an honorable samurai brand water-type and the other a dishonorable water-dark dual type.

Chespin, the Spiny Nut pokemon. This mammalian grass-type tends to have an optimistic and curious nature. Their bark shell grows sturdier the more they eat, and the quills on their head, while normally soft, stiffen for battle. It's final form is a gentle and protective grass/fighting dual type that can take hits like a tank when it enters a defensive stance.

Fennekin, the Fox pokemon! A temperamental little fire-type that tries hard for it's trainer. They vent air hot enough to bake a cake from their ears, and enjoy chewing on twigs. Their final form is a fire/psychic type that carries a stick as if it's a wand, they light these sticks for battle, and use them to leave burn marks on the ground.

Froakie, the Bubble Frog pokemon! Seemingly carefree, it's actually a very vigilant water-type that behaves otherwise to throw off enemies. Light, strong, and fast, it attacks opponents with the springy bubbles in it's mane. Upon reaching it's final evolution into a water/dark type it becomes swift and graceful, capable to forming water weapons and using it's tongue to detect unseen foes.

Rowlet, the Grass Quill pokemon! An orbular owl of a grass/flying dual type, they’re nocturnal and known to enjoy tight dark places, including their trainers’ bags and shirts. This pokemon fights with kicks and shark feather projectiles. It’s final evolution has two forms depending on the region- one a grass/ghost type known for it’s cautious nature and quick archery, the other a fierce grass/fighting type known for devastating kicks.

Litten, the Fire Cat pokemon! A fire-type feline with a solitary and slow trusting nature. This pokemon will scratch people who get too familiar too soon, and are known to use oils in their fur to cough up flaming furballs. Their final form is a fire/dark type heel, sometimes disobedient and overly aggressive, and worse in front of an enthusiastic crowd, but caring towards youngsters.

Popplio, the Sea Lion pokemon! A hardworking little water-type seal known for the bubbles it blows. Their bubbles can burst with great force, they often use them for acrobatics when on land, and are constantly experimenting with making them larger and larger. The final form, a water/fairy dual type, is a theatrical pokemon that uses bubbles and song to battle and will tease it's opponents.

Grookey, the Chimp pokemon! A very curious grass-type pokemon prone to drumming out beats with the stick it carries. This stick gains special powers from being used, and it's rhythm has even been shown to make grass grow. It's final form is a kind, calm grass-type that is highly social and determines hierarchy by playing beats on a stump each carries with it.

Scorbunny, the Rabbit pokemon! A high energy fire-type, it loves to run. While it has a flame sac in it's chest, it's feet can become hot enough to start small fire, and it uses it's powerful legs to perform flaming kicks against opponents. In it's final fire-type form it performs feats of impressive footwork, which it utilizes to turn pebbles into blazing fireballs it kicks at it's opponents.

Sobble, the Water Lizard pokemon! A timid water-type, they're capable of changing their colors and patterns to hide when in water. Should they be threatened, they cry tears that sting the eyes of those around them, allowing them to escape. Upon reaching their water-type final form they are known to be chivalrous and highly intelligent, with many hidden capabilities.

Sprigatito, the Grass Cat pokemon! These mammalian grass-types are typically quite attention-seeking, and will sulk if ignored. Their fur releases a calming fragrance, and they groom often to keep it moist. Their final form is a grass/dark dual type known for it's showy and jealous personality which uses slight-of-hand to plant flower bombs on foes.

Fuecoco, the Fire Croc pokemon! This fire-type reptile typically has a laid back nature. It enjoys eating to the point of dreaming about it, and uses it's scales to absorb ambient heat to turn into fire energy. A fire/ghost dual type accompanied by an avian spirit, it's final form is meddlesome but caring, with singing that soothes those around it.

Quaxly, the Duckling pokemon! Earnest and tidy, this water-type hates to get dirty. It's feathers secrete a gel that keeps water and grime off, and it's legs are very strong. Upon reaching it's final form it gains a cheerful and energetic nature, though it takes learning and practicing the dance moves it uses in battle very seriously.

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wingsofanillyrian · 7 years ago

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A Winter Proposal (Elriel)

@dreamingofazriel asked: “ Did I send, Azriel proposing to Elain?”

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To say I was nervous would be an understatement.

My hands shook as I dried and styled my close-cropped hair, agonizing over my reflection in the mirror. By force of habit, my eyes snagged on the scars marring my hands. I was learning to love them though, thanks to Elain.

Gods, she was the perfect woman. Smart, sweet, and kind. There wasn’t a High Lord or Lady that could come close to her effortless beauty. Soft, sunkissed skin dusted with freckles from her time in the gardens. Lovingly warm brown eyes that held all the wonders of the world within them. Lips that were plump and pink, and were absolutely breathtaking to kiss.

She was everything I had ever hoped for and more. I had planned to wait until spring, but when I got the ring back from the jeweler… I couldn’t wait anymore.

I checked my reflection one more time before deciding I was ready. My heart hammered in my chest, and I swiped the small velvet box off my nightstand before flinging open the terrace doors. The chill of the wintery air cleared the fog from my head.

“Now or never,” I reminded myself, and took a running leap into the sky.

**************

Elain was waiting for me on the roof of Rhys and Feyre’s townhouse. She had her sisters help her get ready for tonight. Both had known what I had planned, and thus had taken great care to curl and pin her hair in a way that was elegant and accented her delicately rounded face. A long white cloak was pinned over her shoulders to ward off the chill, almost entirely covering the dusty pink gown she wore beneath.

“Hello,” I murmured, wings flaring as I touched down in front of her. “You look wonderful.”

“Hello, Az.” She smiled, her fingers instantly reaching for mine. “You look very nice, too.”

I supposed that was true; I’d had my suit tailor made for tonight. I rolled up my jacket sleeve to show her what I considered the real treasure of my attire. Tiny purple and blue flowers had been swirled around the cuff, the careful embroidery leaving no doubt as to who the creator was.

“I found these when I pulled this shirt out of the back of my closet.”

Scarlet stained her cheeks and she giggled nervously. “I’m sorry?”

“Don’t be.” I kissed her temple, fixing my sleeve and pulling her into a hug. “I was going to ask you to continue your work on my other dress shirts.”

“Really?” Her eyes sparkled in the setting sun, and I nodded.

“Really. They’re all so dull and boring. They could use a splash of color.”

“Alright,” she beamed, circling her slender arms around my neck as I scooped her up in my arms. “But only if you’ll tell me what you have planned for us tonight.” I smirked at her, taking us airborne before responding.

“That would ruin the fun.”

Her pink lips pouted playfully, and I couldn’t resist kissing them.

“You’ll like what I have planned, I promise.”

My words were enough to reassure her, and she snuggled tighter to my chest as we flew. I’d scouted the path ahead of time, simultaneously making sure it was safe and choosing the most scenic route.

“Look,” I murmured, dipping low over the Sidra. The flowing water resisted freezing thanks to Rhys’ magic, and the native rainbow-colored fish that inhabited it jumped from the water as if greeting us. Her breath caught at the sight, her face bright with amazement.

“They’re gorgeous.”

“So are you.”

She blushed again, ducking her head back to my chest. She was such a modest creature. I had seen males and females alike stare at her with unabashed longing, but she never seemed to notice.

I flew us to a small garden at the edge of the city. I knew that it held a special place in Elain’s heart; it had been one of the first she had planted in Velaris. As I searched for a place to land, she peeked over her shoulder to the land below.

“Oh! The Moonlight garden!” She smiled, causing pure, uninhibited love to blossom in my heart. How one small gesture could affect me so much, I still wasn’t sure.

Though the ground was dusted with snow and there were no blossoms to be found, she still radiated joy and happiness as we touched down. She crouched among the empty beds, no doubt picturing what the space would look like come spring. It would be a field of blues and purples and golds, each bulb planted by her hands and by those she cared for.

She stood, and I wrapped my arms around her waist. It began to snow, the white flakes drifting from the sky and sticking in her hair. She sighed, snuggling closer to my chest.

Rubbing my hands over her arms, I whispered, “I’ve got a surprise for you.”

“Oh? What’s that?”

Untangling our limbs, I let her to a corner of the garden, where I had built a greenhouse. It wasn’t anything elaborate, just a metal and glass pane shed lined with shelves and stocked with gardening tools.

“What- where did that come from?”

I shrugged, a bashful smile curling on my lips. “I made it for you.”

“It’s wonderful, Az.” Silver lined her eyes and she walked ahead of me on the cobblestone path to the modest structure. She reached out a gloved hand, swiping away the frost coating the windows. Cupping her hands to the glass, she peered inside and gasped.

“Tools! Watering cans and spades and shovels… Oh, Az!” She turned to wrap me in a bear hug, squeezing with all her strength. “Thank you, so much!”

Of course, I knew that what she was seeing was a glamor concealing what was really in that shed. Something she would find much more exciting than gardening supplies-or so I hoped.

Smoothing a hand over her hair, I murmured, “It was nothing. But I do have another surprise, if you’d like to see it.”

“I don’t see how anything could top this-“ She gestured to the greenhouse- “but okay.”

“Close your eyes.”

She did, but not without a curious quirk of a brow. Taking her hand, I carefully picked our way over the stony path and creaked open the greenhouse door. I shut it behind us, trapping our warmth inside and halting after a few steps.

Blood roared in my ears, my hands shaking with nerves as I double and triple checked that everything was in place.

“Okay,” I said, standing behind her so she could take it all in, “Open.”

Candles covered every available inch of the shelves, casting a warm, romantic glow over the space. White rose petals were scattered over the floor, and carefully laid out among them were pink petals, spelling out two words:

Marry me?

Her hands flew to her mouth, and she whispered: “Oh my Gods.”

I slipped the velvet box from my pocket and dropped to one knee.

She turned to me, eyes wide and teary.

“Since the day we met, I have loved you with my whole heart. I have seen you on your best days, and I have been by your side on the bad days.” My voice trembled at the memory of her on a battlefield, but I pushed on.

“When I gave you Truth-Teller, I gave you a piece of my heart; of my very soul. And since then, I have willingly given you more of those pieces, and you now hold my entire heart in your warm, gentle hands.” Her brown eyes watered, tears of joy threatening to spill over.

When I popped open the tiny box, a sob caught in her throat and a single tear traced down her cheek. A long time ago, she had told me that she despised diamonds. The sparkling white gems reminded her of an engagement to a cruel, heartless man that she would much rather forget.

“If we get married,” she had told me, “get me sapphires. Something to match your Siphons- so that I will look upon the ring and see only happy memories.”

And I hadn’t forgotten that.

“Elain Elizabeth Archeron. Will you make me the happiest male to ever walk this green earth and be my wife?”

She had started nodding before I had even finished asking.

“Yes, Azriel, a thousand times yes!”

I hastily slipped the cobalt gem onto the fourth finger of her left hand and swiftly stood, wrapping her in my arms and peppering her face with sweet kisses. Her laugh was one of pure ecstasy and overflowing joy.

I felt light enough to touch the stars.

I don’t know how long we stood there, murmuring our affections to one another and shedding happy, unbelieving tears. It could have been minutes, or hours, or years before she pulled away and wiped her nose on her sleeve. She held out her hand, admiring the sunburst-cut sapphire set in the silver band.

“Az?”

“Yes, flower?”

“I love you.”

Her tone was one that promised forever and caused warmth to spread from the tips of my toes all the way to my ears. I smiled, pulling her in for another kiss.

“I love you too.”

#elriel #elriel fanfiction #elain archeron #azriel #acotar #acomaf #acowar #a court of thorns and roses #a court of wings and ruin #a court of mist and fury #a court of thorns and roses fanfiction #my writing #winter writing

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bethestaryouareradio · 4 years ago

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Some like it Hot!

https://www.lamorindaweekly.com/archive/issue1412/Digging-Deep-with-Goddess-Gardener-Cynthia-Brian-Some-like-it-hot.html

By Cynthia Brian

“Summer afternoon -- summer afternoon; the two most beautiful words in the English language.” Henry James

The blackberry bushes flanked the horse stables on my grandparents’ ranch. My grandmother was a genuine horse whisperer. She lovingly cared for a herd of adopted steeds and rode in parades in her fancy Western wear. She even trained the horse for the television show, My Friend Flicka. Together, after an early morning gallop through the fields and vineyards, she would give my cousin and me an empty pail and challenge us to a blackberry picking contest. Our reward was a big bowl of berries with fresh cream dusted with cereal. I adored my horse-loving grandmother and those luscious summer blackberries.

Although I’ve always treasured horses, I stopped liking blackberries when I started growing my own. The thorns are menacing, and the bushes sprout everywhere with their underground runners. In the heat of summer, my days are filled with pulling out blackberry vines from flower beds instead of picking fruit. But this year I have a bumper crop of big juicy berries in an area where I’ve allowed them to flourish. I decided to risk the scratches to re-live the free-flowing glory days spent with my grandmother riding horses and gobbling blackberries in rich purple cream. It’s a short season for blackberries and they like it hot.

Meteorologists have predicted that 2020 has a 75% chance of being the hottest ever recorded. The good news is that we grow many specimens in our gardens that thrive in the heat. The bad news is that the Artic is rapidly warming and climate change is sinister. We must strive to reduce our carbon footprint while we indulge in the summer flavors of favorite fruits and vegetables and the beauty of heat-tolerant blossoms.

Unless you can water deeply and daily, August is not an optimal month to plant anything. But it is a month to enjoy the high-temperature lovers. Tomatoes, tomatillos, beans, peppers, eggplant, beets, zucchini, basil, and corn are a few of the vegetables that demand six to eight hours of sunshine to flourish. Summer fruits that require heat to ripen include peaches, pears, plums, nectarines, cantaloupe, watermelon, apples, blueberries, figs, and, of course, blackberries. Limes are the only citrus that require a blistering summer to be at their best. By growing your choices in containers, specifically tomatoes, peppers, and herbs, substantial sunlight can be guaranteed by moving the pots to different areas and watering when necessary.

I have a pistache planted in a large ceramic cask that has already turned a vibrant red while other in-ground pistache trees are still a brilliant green. Crape myrtle trees, hollyhocks, and agapanthus pop into magnificent blooms when the thermometer rises. Lavender, salvia, sage, and roses grow vigorously in summer. Ubiquitous oleander and the common geranium beat the heat with a profuse of petals lasting until the cold weather begins.

As a child, the Four O’clocks lining our country road opened daily exactly at the prescribed hour. The ones that perennially sprout in my Lamorinda garden germinated from those ranch heirloom seeds do not live up to their namesake. My errant sun-worshippers open at 8 a.m. and close by 4 p.m. Blissfully, right on cue, just as my hillside is looking drab, dry, and dismal, my Naked Ladies poke their long necks out from their mounds. Every year I delight in their ability to shimmer when most everything else is withering.

The big question in the cauldron of August is when and how-to water. Just because a plant is drought resistant or heat-tolerant doesn’t mean it doesn’t get thirsty. To keep our garden healthy, we can’t under-water or over-water. What’s the secret? The optimum time to water is very early morning to prepare your garden for the day. The roots will retain the moisture and the plant will stay hydrated. Watering in the afternoon wastes water as it evaporates before it can saturate the soil. The evening is also a good time to water as long as the leaves have enough time to dry out. Watering at night encourages fungus, insects, and rot. Deep-root watering is always better than sprinkling. Adding three inches of mulch around all plants and trees will aid in keeping the moisture level correct while keeping the roots cooler.

If you have a swimming pool, pond, or fountain, you may discover that honeybees appear to be suicide bombers this month. Rescue them. When it is scorching, bees search for water then return to the hive to let other bees know the location of the source. A group of fifteen or more may tap the pool surface bringing back the droplets to receiver bees. According to entomologists, the water is then deposited along the edge of the wax comb while bees inside the comb fan their wings to circulate the air conditioning. Bees prefer hive temperatures of 95 degrees Fahrenheit, so they like it hot, too!

August will be a sizzling month. Make sure you and your garden stay hydrated. Enjoy the fruits, vegetables, and flowers that relish the swelter. Pick a basket of blackberries, with or without horse-back riding.

Stay cool and enjoy a summer afternoon of hot, hot, hot!

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Happy gardening. Happy growing.

Photos and more: https://www.lamorindaweekly.com/archive/issue1412/Digging-Deep-with-Goddess-Gardener-Cynthia-Brian-Some-like-it-hot.html

Cynthia Brian, The Goddess Gardener, is available for hire to help you prepare for your spring garden. Raised in the vineyards of Napa County, Cynthia is a New York Times best-selling author, actor, radio personality, speaker, media and writing coach, as well as the Founder and Executive Director of Be the Star You Are!® 501 c3. Tune into Cynthia’s StarStyle® Radio Broadcast at www.StarStyleRadio.com. Buy copies of her best-selling books, including, Chicken Soup for the Gardener’s Soul, Growing with the Goddess Gardener, and Be the Star You Are! Millennials to Boomers at www.cynthiabrian.com/online-store.

Cynthia is available for virtual writing projects, garden consults, and inspirational lectures. [email protected]

www.GoddessGardener.com

Keywords:#garden,#outdoors,#plants,#patio,#furniture, #august gardening, #hot, gardening, #cynthiabrian, #starstyle, #goddessGardener, #growingwiththegoddessgardener, #lamorindaweekly

#Keywords:gardenoutdoorsplantspatiofurniture august gardening hot gardening cynthiabrian starstyle goddessGardener growingwiththegoddessgarde

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goddessgardener · 4 years ago

Text

Some like it Hot!

https://www.lamorindaweekly.com/archive/issue1412/Digging-Deep-with-Goddess-Gardener-Cynthia-Brian-Some-like-it-hot.html

By Cynthia Brian

“Summer afternoon -- summer afternoon; the two most beautiful words in the English language.” Henry James

Stay cool and enjoy a summer afternoon of hot, hot, hot!

 High-quality gardening products including umbrellas canopies, gazebos, hammocks, furniture, and more with a 15% off sale through August 10th , Use Code SELECT15: https://bit.ly/30L5yUA

 An extensive selection of live plants, seeds, & gardening accessory products, plus trees, shrubs, fruit trees, perennials, & bulbs. https://bit.ly/2P6FAFL

 Automatic gates: Go direct to https://bit.ly/2ZUxJB4

 Fountains, firepits, hammocks, carts, umbrellas, bird feeders, relaxation products, and more. https://bit.ly/3eXqNHU

 Get a Free Flower Coloring book download at https://bit.ly/39CnSDv

 For beautiful botanical art and a variety of seeds, go to https://bit.ly/39spMXe.

 And if the pandemic will be ushering in a new baby in the family soon, congratulations, check out the gear, furniture, and décor at https://bit.ly/2WQv7lJ

For photos and descriptions list https://www.cynthiabrian.com/home-garden-products

Happy gardening. Happy growing.

Photos and more: https://www.lamorindaweekly.com/archive/issue1412/Digging-Deep-with-Goddess-Gardener-Cynthia-Brian-Some-like-it-hot.html

Cynthia is available for virtual writing projects, garden consults, and inspirational lectures. [email protected]

www.GoddessGardener.com

Keywords:#garden,#outdoors,#plants,#patio,#furniture, #august gardening, #hot, gardening, #cynthiabrian, #starstyle, #goddessGardener, #growingwiththegoddessgardener, #lamorindaweekly

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foresthillsirisgardens-blog · 7 years ago

Photo

Bluebird Haven Iris Garden a labor of love

http://www.bluebirdhavenirisgarden.com/

http://www.bluebirdhavenirisgarden.com/siteV2/catalog.html

Driving on a South County country road hugged by spring-green fields, you near an ornate gate that has a sign: Bluebird Haven Iris Garden. Suddenly your car slows down as you hear a loud “Gasp!”

Startled, you quickly realize it was you — so you pull in through the gate to see whether all those glorious, gorgeous, eye-popping flowers that overwhelmed your senses can possibly be real.

And they are. For three or four fabulous weeks that affirm God’s appreciation for fine natural form accompanied by incredible depth of color and creativity, the iris bloom turns 3 acres of Mary and John Hess’ 10-acre spread into a color-blended blanket of beauty.

Asked whether she ever loses her excitement in waiting for springtime to unveil her garden’s gifts each year, Mary, 66, smiled widely and exclaimed, “Oh! Oh, I can hardly wait for the bloom each year!”

This from a woman who has been lovingly coaxing her iris to greater and greater displays for 25 years at the site along Fairplay Road at Dorado Canyon Road — and has cherished the flowers since 1967 when she acquired her first bulb.

“It is so cool, checking on each bloom in each row and saying to myself, ‘I know who you are,’ making sure of the discovery — and then moving on to the next one.”

Mary’s excitement is doubly remarkable in that except for the spring bloom, the Bluebird Haven Iris Garden is a lot of work.

A lot of work.

The care

Instead of spotting colorful iris waving in the springtime breeze, motorists cruising along the lovely country road in summertime months instead will spot occasional puffs of dust as Mary goes about her daily chores. In the long, hot days of summer she is busy showing the iris how much she cares by weeding, digging, re-planting and conducting the latest skirmishes in an ongoing battle with gophers and, more recently, ground squirrels that consider the iris rhizomes (bulbs) a grand meal.

“I wish that the public understood that when they kill off the predators — the coyotes, foxes and even hawks — that gives the gophers and ground squirrels too much room to become problems,” said Mary, who despite her profound love of flowers and other beautiful things should not be confused with being a pushover. “I take the gophers I kill and freeze them to give to Sierra Wildlife Rescue later, to feed to their animals.”

It takes a tough gal to tackle the land and turn it into a gorgeous garden. It also takes the support of a loving husband who despite the fact that he refuses to weed, has backed his wife in all other things “iris.”

Love at first sight

And Mary has loved the iris since she laid eyes on a batch at a relative’s house up in Oregon, shortly after she married John, with the couple making their home in El Dorado.

“We got married in 1967 and I dragged my poor husband up to Oregon to meet my relatives,” said Mary, eyes crinkling at the corners. “One of my relatives, I don’t remember who … I was admiring her iris and before I know it, she grabs a shovel and digs some up, sending me home with a bunch of rhizomes and an old iris catalog.”

It was the old catalog that did it, Mary confessed all these years later.

“That first year, I ordered $30 worth of rhizomes, then the next year I spent $60,” she recalled with a soft smile, sitting on a loveseat inside the softly lit living room of the Hesses’ stunner of a Victorian home on the iris farm. “Then it was $120, then $240 — my garden in El Dorado was so pretty I felt guilty about hogging all this beauty.

“So I had the gem and mineral society (of which the Hesses are members) come out and one of them said, ‘Have you ever considered selling your iris?’

“I figured, if I could sell them, then I wouldn’t have to dip into the household account anymore.”

And that worked for a while, until the day the couple found 15 cars parked in the driveway at their El Dorado home, all customers waiting to get to Mary’s magnificent iris.

“I told John, ‘We have to move.'”

John Hess is a civil engineer and at that time was working for the Army Corps of Engineers.

The move to South County

“He is such a good husband (for an iris lady), with his knowledge of dirt and soil, sun requirements,” smiled Mary. “Plus, he had lots of topographical maps.”

Even armed with such knowledge, though, it was pure happenstance that brought the Hesses to the Fair Play property where they would end up building a breathtakingly beautiful, two-toned blue Victorian mansion, the perfect complement to the Victorian-inspired iris plantation.

Blame it on the wine, Mary said with a laugh.

“We came out here for a wine festival, on a hot summer day,” recalled the iris lady. “We had been tasting wine all day; we were hot and tired — but as we were going home, we spotted a ‘for sale’ sign that was nearly covered in weeds. John said, ‘Want to look?’ and I lied and said, ‘Sure.'”

Mary said after the couple crawled and scraped their way through “really obnoxious weeds,” she finally stood on her husband’s shoulders so she could get a good look at the property near Dorado Canyon Road.

“The price was right,” she reflected 27 years later. “We had it bulldozed and cleared, cleaned up the slag piles left by someone we heard had come in and logged the place then left it a mess.”

Moving the flowers

Then the really tough part began, Mary said, as the daunting task of transferring her flowers from El Dorado to Fair Play began.

“It took us two years to transplant them all — including 70,000 daffodils.”

Today those daffodils join the more than 100,000 iris that unfurl their fabulous secrets each springtime, with the bloom beginning roughly the last week of April through the third week of May. Mary said her garden has 4,000 different varieties of iris, which might sound like a huge amount until one considers that there are 80,000 to 90,000 registered iris variations, she said.

“I learned that from the American Iris Society,” of which she is a member.

Of Mary’s 4,000 varieties, a great deal of them are “historic,” meaning they have been established and registered for at least 30 years.

Mary also is a member of the Historic Iris Preservation Society and is proud of the number of tried-and-true iris that grow at Bluebird Haven.

Special flowers

What Mary also has come to realize is that many of the iris in her gorgeous garden are extremely special, having come from the Camino acreage where world-renowned iris hybridizer Lloyd Austin had grown his special flowers. The first director of Placerville’s Institute of Forest Genetics in 1925, Austin’s achievements as a breeder of plants were widely recognized and applauded.

“A few years after Lloyd Austin died, his (widow) Grace had me come up and dig up some of his iris,” said Mary.

Then, when Grace had to leave the property known as Rainbow Iris Garden in Camino, Mary said she was summoned again to dig up any and all the rhizomes that she wished.

That was in the late 1960s, and Mary said, “I really didn’t realize at the time what I was getting.”

The offshoots of those long-ago iris are contained within the treasure trove of tangled roots that wind through the property at 6940 Fairplay Road today. And despite all her careful cultivating and attention to detail, the lineage and even the type of iris there are not all known to Mary Hess, much to her chagrin.

“I do a tremendous amount of computer work these days and as a result I have found that when you order a flower and people send you one — they are not always correct.”

Unknowns

Mary let her words sink in for a moment, then grimly confided, “There are 750 unknowns in my garden.”

(The tendency might be to chuckle, but don’t do it in front of Mary.)

“My reputation is that when you order a flower, it is right on,” she explained. “As a member of the American Iris Society, I started seeing some of them — their names — and thought, ‘That doesn’t look like my iris. That one doesn’t look like my iris, either.'”

It turns out that an iris, by any other name than its own, does not look as sweet — not to the serious grower of the gorgeous gals.

Although Mary spends much of her day doing research, poring through tens of thousands of iris images, she said she knows she will not be able to make her garden completely “pure.”

“I have been able to match up five or six a year, using the internet …” she said, her voice trailing off as her listeners did the math. It appears the 750 renegades will range freely at Bluebird Haven, never to be identified.

Unless they are dug up and tossed instead of being dug up and replanted.

“Ideally, the iris would be dug up and separated, redone every four years,” said Mary, wiping her hands on her britches after checking a gopher trap (empty). “I have 24 blocks (50 feet by 16 rows) and have gotten one or two blocks done a year, so you can see I am running behind.”

The iris are thinned out, separated and then re-planted, with Mary’s goal of keeping 10 of each variety for her own, to continue the preferred varieties.

Preserving the rare

“The stuff I have got is so rare,” she said. “I have been told that I have one of the highest number (of rare, historic iris) among not only commercial gardens but private as well.

“I want to preserve that genetic potential.”

And that takes a lot of work.

A typical day for Mary is up at 5:30 a.m. and outside turning on “the first water” by 6. “Every two hours I change water lines — it used to be every three, but that’s my concession to the drought.” Mary wraps up the watering about 6 or 8 in the evening.

“During the summer I am weeding, planting, digging up the iris, putting space between the rhizomes.”

Asked, “How’s your back?” Mary offered another grim smile and said, “No trouble with my back but I am having some hip trouble. I never thought I’d be one to complain — and I do find that the more I work, the better I feel.”

Those are strong words from the tough lady, but Mary said she has to admit that the years might be catching up, just a bit.

“I’m 66 — could be 67, I’m not sure — but my mom Dorothea worked outside and she was 94 when she came inside from working and ended up falling in the bathroom, breaking her ribs.

“She was never the same after that, but she made it past 95. My mom was my No. 1 weeder.”

Mary said these days she “follows the shade” as she works her garden and quits toiling in the summertime heat by mid- to late morning. “That’s because I had an episode not too long ago. I overheated and ended up in the ER.”

That’s when she retires into the cool and pleasant interior of the Victorian, where she goes to work on her computer, trying to identify — for certain — each of her beloved iris varieties.

A favorite

Her efforts have been fulfilling, especially when it came to one of her favorites, an iris called “Persian Smoke.”

“Persian Smoke is just a gorgeous, gorgeous flower,” Mary began her tale, pointing out on her computer the salmon-colored standards on the iris in question. (The “standards” are the frothy part of the flower that exuberantly burst from the top, while the petals that sweep downward are the “falls.” Other parts of the iris include the “tongue” or “beard,” with some having “horns,” little protuberances that are self-explanatory.)

“Well, I got an e-mail from a woman who said, ‘Your Persian Smoke is incorrect.'”

Those are fightin’ words in the world of the iris, according to Mary, who can set her computer to smokin’ with the best of them.

“I hate to sound like I’m bragging, but it turned out that I had it right,” said Mary, her smile rounding like the curve of a flower’s fall. “A guy from Australia ended up deciding the point and I had it right and everyone else had it wrong.”

The issue of the Persian Smoke was put to bed.

While Mary is eager and willing to talk about her beloved iris, she also indicated that by doing so, she had cut into her morning routine of tending to the little lovelies. When the team from the Mountain Democrat jokingly offered to help weed to make up for the lost time, Mary came uncomfortably close to accepting.

That’s because last March, the iron lady of the iris fell and broke her wrist pretty badly, leaving her “desperate to catch up.”

“I have fallen behind and I could use some help taking the weeds out, clipping back the foliage, cutting the iris back and clearing up the dead leaves,” said Mary, once again checking an empty gopher trap.

“My husband doesn’t weed,” she added. Her two children, Eric and Erin, also are long-grown and unable to pull garden duty.

“The interesting thing is, last spring was the best we’ve had here in four years, probably because of the rains,” she said. “The year before, on Mother’s Day, we probably didn’t have more than five or six visitors. But this year, it was great.”

Mary sells her iris by taking orders at the farm, where visitors are welcome to walk among the rows of insanely beautiful flowers, marveling at the colors, textures and shapes that set the imagination aflame. She also sells online, but the website for Bluebird Haven is being refurbished and likely won’t be up and running properly until the beginning of next year.

“The best thing to do is to e-mail me your wish list and I can let you know what’s available,” said Mary. “The sad thing is, I have 500 new varieties this year and no way to get them on the website.”

That means folks will just have to set aside a day or two to take a trip to South County in the springtime, pulling into the driveway that leads to the color-splashed hills where the iris await. Mary’s prices are reasonable but as you negotiate your purchase, remember one tip: If you don’t want Mary Hess to know just how much you covet her iris, try not to gasp.

Bluebird Haven Iris Garden may be reached at (530) 620-5017 or e-mail [email protected]. Mary Hess said she would welcome anyone, service clubs or individuals, wishing to volunteer to help in her garden.

https://www.mtdemocrat.com/prospecting/bluebird-haven-iris-garden-a-labor-of-love/

Bluebird Haven Iris Garden 6940 Fairplay Rd. Somerset, CA 95684 (530) 620-5017 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.bluebirdhavenirisgarden.com

Notes: Mary Hess has been selling historic iris for many years. She has a huge selection and is adding new ones all the time. Many hard to find cultivars, for which they are the only source. Email your request list to Mary.

http://www.bluebirdhavenirisgarden.com/

#Bluebird Haven Iris Garden

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katiedodgshun81 · 7 years ago

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Finding Fate through a Stranger’s Garden by Amanda of Alluring Blooms

Everything from the yard except peonies and garden roses (my callas, garlic scapes, astilbe, snaps, rosemary)

Divine intervention. Fate. Kismet. Whatever you want to call it, I am grateful for it everyday.

I’m Amanda, the owner of Alluring Blooms in Madison, Wisconsin. I do floral for weddings and events with the help of my wonderful husband Matthew. When Alicia reached out to me asking if I’d be willing to share the story of our new home I happily said yes. I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason and the universe guides us in the direction we are meant to go. I hope by sharing our story it inspires others to be bold – you never know where it might lead you!

Like I said, I do flowers for weddings and events. Flowers are my passion, they bring me so much joy and I love sharing that joy with others. That being said, health insurance is not something our family can afford out of pocket, so I also work full time outside the studio. When Matthew and I purchased our first home almost ten years ago we really wanted a house in the city. We looked at homes in our “comfort zone” (we didn’t want a 30 year mortgage) and it quickly became obvious that our budget was going to force us to look outside the city. We found a perfect house for us 45 minutes north of Madison. It had a huge yard for our future dog and future kids and plenty of room for gardens. The daily commute was rough and we talked about moving into the city with each passing year. Unfortunately we never found the right place and eventually gave up on the idea… Until one fateful day in August 2016.

I have a coffee addiction (in this industry that shouldn’t be a surprise, lots of long nights). This means I know where a Starbucks is wherever I may be working in town. There’s one near my flower wholesaler. I’ll often grab a cup on my break, then cut through the back roads to run and grab flowers. I would always drive past this street and notice the amazing lacey tardiva hydrangea bushes in the front yard of one of the houses.

Sooooo, there was a wedding I had planned on using MY tardiva hydrangea for. As luck would have it, there was an early fall frost and my hydrangea started to antique much earlier than they had in years past. I needed white for this wedding. Antique pink just wasn’t going to cut it. Then I remembered the hydrangea house. They didn’t get frost in the city 45 minutes south like we had up north. What’s the harm in stopping to ask if they would sell me some stems?

THIS is the wedding that started it all!!!! Photo credit: Laura Zastrow Photography

Another pic from the wedding that started it all!!! Photo credit: Laura Zastrow Photography

I mustered up all my courage and knocked on the door. Heart pounding. Palms sweating. Was this really what my life had come to? Rehearsing what I was gonna say so the owner doesn’t think I’m a lunatic when they answer the door. No answer. Are you kidding me? I went back to the car and wrote a note:

“Hi! My name is Amanda. You don’t know me but I absolutely adore your hydrangea and am wondering if you would sell me some stems to use for an event. Please contact me if you’re so inclined.”

I tucked it into the door, and went on my way. The next day I got a call from the owner – a wonderful woman named Sue. She said to please come over and prune all I wanted. She often used them for arrangements in the past but hadn’t the last few years. I was thrilled and so grateful.

I stopped by later that week and went back up to that front door. This time knocking wasn’t so scary. She greeted me with a smile and the fire in her eyes immediately made me feel at ease. She showed me around her yard. Years and years of plants she had lovingly planted, now huge and wild. She told me about the tall pines that once stood in place of these now huge perennials. I was in awe. I think she could see the amazement in my eyes. She asked if I wanted to see the back yard. OF COURSE! Rock walls and stone paths and wood decks and boardwalks with boards that had seen better days. It was an oasis in the heart of the city. I told her it was gorgoeus. She laughed her big laugh and said “You wanna buy it?”. I laughed back, surely she was joking. I picked my hydrangea and headed home.

Once I got home that night I told the story about the amazing lady I had met. How I was so happy she responded to my note. How she laughed and asked if I wanted to buy the house. Matthew said “Was she serious?”. I was quiet. “No. Surely not. I don’t think so? I didn’t ask. I thought she was joking. Should I ask?” I wrote her a heartfelt note and made her a big arrangement as a token of my thanks.

The home and garden

In my note I told her if she ever was seriously in the market to sell, let us know. She called me the next week and said she was serious. She had talked to a realtor to list it a few years back and they told her she would have to clean the yard up and seed or sod some areas if she wanted the best chance of selling. The very thing I fell in love with they told her was a detractor. The other caveat, Sue said, “The cat comes with the house”. Hahaha. Matthew said “OK!” The last puzzle piece was closing. She needed someone who could be flexible with move in. She had a specific retirement community she wanted to move in to, and she didn’t know if the wait list would be 2 months, 6 months, a year or even more. No problem. We had given up on our dream of living so close to work. Surely we could wait however long it might take.

The next thing I knew we were writing offers and making plans. We ended up closing on our new home in June 2017, over 10 months after that fateful day. We kept Sue’s cat. He’s a big orange furball who is friendly enough when he wants to be. He loves cuddling with Matthew – I’m kind of jealous. Ok. I’m really jealous. We also kept her standard poodle. He’s a smart, sweet boy who has stolen our hearts. He and our dog are learning to be friends. We’ve spent the last 6 months moving, remodeling, and working in the yard. The list of projects is never ending. I’ve thinned out hundreds of hostas and pulled hundreds of redbud saplings. I’ve planted thousands of bulbs and can’t wait to see them up in the spring. There’s still so much more work to do. But with each weed I pull and each new plant I put into the ground, I am SO GRATEFUL that the universe put Sue in our life. That hydrangea house is now our home. We still see Sue often – we spent Christmas day together in our newly remodeled kitchen which was once hers. We drank and laughed and made plans about what the garden has in store for 2018. We were given such an amazing gift – a home, cherished pets and a one of a kind forever friend.

The house and cutting gardens — and the cat that came with the house!

So be brave! Knock on that door, whatever your “door” is. You never know what is waiting for you on the other side!

Amanda and Matthew with their dogs

Everything from the yard except the quicksand roses (my hosta flowers, wigeala, scabiosa, queen anne’s )

from Florist News http://ift.tt/2DHyxA3

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dawnajaynes32 · 7 years ago

Text

Finding Fate through a Stranger’s Garden by Amanda of Alluring Blooms

Everything from the yard except peonies and garden roses (my callas, garlic scapes, astilbe, snaps, rosemary)

Divine intervention. Fate. Kismet. Whatever you want to call it, I am grateful for it everyday.

THIS is the wedding that started it all!!!! Photo credit: Laura Zastrow Photography

Another pic from the wedding that started it all!!! Photo credit: Laura Zastrow Photography

“Hi! My name is Amanda. You don’t know me but I absolutely adore your hydrangea and am wondering if you would sell me some stems to use for an event. Please contact me if you’re so inclined.”

The home and garden

The house and cutting gardens — and the cat that came with the house!

So be brave! Knock on that door, whatever your “door” is. You never know what is waiting for you on the other side!

Amanda and Matthew with their dogs

Everything from the yard except the quicksand roses (my hosta flowers, wigeala, scabiosa, queen anne’s )

Finding Fate through a Stranger’s Garden by Amanda of Alluring Blooms syndicated post

0 notes

mmwm · 7 years ago

Text

The garden is in full swing now, even though the first week of June was cold and rainy.

Usually high temps in the first two weeks of June average 74-77 degrees F. For the first week of June, we ran 10-20 degrees F below those, with highs in the low 50s to high 60s and lots of rain. That was right after I planted my cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, green bean, and herb seedlings, some annuals, and arugula, Swiss chard, and lettuce seedlings. Not a happy state of affairs for anyone except the arugula.

This last week, nature sought some sort of perverse balance, setting the solar death ray on stun. Highs ranged from 78 to 95F, which is almost 20 degrees F above average. Some years we don’t have temps in the mid-90s even in July or August. It’s been in the 80s and 90s since Saturday. This the veggies like better, but I had to mulch and water those that survived the first week to to protect them from climate whiplash. So far, I have replaced about half the cucumber plants.

Anyway, there is a lot to talk about now, and to show, including the veggies, but also the perennials, shrubs, trees, weeds/wildflowers, compost, insects, etc.

Bulbs: The only bulbs really happening at the moment are large purple alliums (shown with variegated Solomon’s Seal) …

… and scilla (aka wood hyacinth), which just seems to have sprung up in the front yard without my planting it.

So-called Weeds: Some of the prettiest flowers in the yard.

orange hawkweed

white violet

pink and purple ajuga flowers

blue violets with ‘Turkish Delight’ sedum

a veronica of some kind

large dock plant

lesser stitchwort flower (very tiny flower)

Perennials: Where to begin?

An all-time favourite of mine is Rodgersia, a plant that not only likes shade, hallelujah, but looks positively tropical. And the flower, which is about to bloom, smells heavenly. If you don’t have one, get one. Or six.

The pasque flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris) is entirely kaput, but I like it that way.

Centaurea (perennial bachelor button) always looks fabulous, with a very photogenic deep blue and purple bloom.

The geraniums are starting to bloom like crazy; these were plant sale buys whose names are lost to history.

The hostas are happy campers, except that the deer keep eating them, especially Gold Standard and So Sweet. I’ve shaved some Irish Spring into their leaves, which has always nipped this nipping in the bud, so to speak. We’ll see. They’re not blooming yet, so just a couple of photos now, with more to come in later months.

Next, a couple of nice ground covers, Mother of Thyme, which spreads quickly, and yellow archangel, a false lamium that I’ve read can be very invasive but it certainly isn’t in my gardens in Maine and New Hampshire.

Mother of Thyme

Mother of Thyme, close

Lamiastrum galeobdolon (yellow archangel) and Japanese lantern in the shade gardens

Baptisia and amsonia are spring perennial mainstays in my area. This year, I was given some more yellow baptisia by a neighbour, what a gift. I transplanted them less than two weeks ago and they seem to have adapted:

I also have other yellow baptisia (not shown yet), and some of the more common blue variety as well, in four different parts of the yard.

I’ve got two kinds of amsonia, ‘Blue Ice,’ with dark blooms (the first three photos), and an Amsonia tabernaemontana, with a paler, more delicate bloom (the last photo), planted in three different spots in the garden. It’s just starting to bloom now.

Speaking of things blue, salvia …

and lupine …

And then there are pink things, are there not?

Like ‘Pink Profusion’ Bowman’s Root, another favourite.

And comfrey, which is sort of pinkish purple. And it needs its first chop-and drop, for instant mulch, soon, before I have to stake it.

And dianthus, in the back and front borders.

I should also mention the woodland plants, mostly in the rock wall, but some are tucked into other spots as well.

bunchberry (with hosta)

lily of the valley

Canada mayflower with white violet

Solomon’s Seal

pink-white columbine

pink-white columbine flower, close

A hodge-podge of a few other perennials coming to life now:

a variegated euphobia

sweet cicely (Myrrhis odorata), from a friend

trollius blooms in the rain

anemone sylvestris flower

anemone sylvestris leaf

anemone sylvestris — It spreads

anemone sylvestris … It REALLY spreads … I transplanted a couple of plants here two years ago.

two lady’s mantle in the rock wall

Shrubs & Trees: I planted a new umbrella pine, weeping larch, and weeping white spruce this spring, and replaced a buddleia with a small nine bark (“Little Devil”) that I bought at a local plant sale. The umbrella pine and ninebark are shown below.

This is the time when the rhododendrons make their splash. I didn’t plant these but I have been hacking away at them for seven years; it only encourages them.

part of the rhodo show

red and purple rhodos

purple rhodo

red rhodo bloom

white-pink rhodo

purple irises (from neighbours) and red rhodos

blue baptisia and purple rhodos

I also didn’t plant these cream-orange and red azaleas, but I LOVE them, especially contrasted with the boulder and the Japanese maple tree.

Lilacs are about finished — here are Ludwig Spaeth, Beauty of Moscow, and Sensation before they lost their oomph —

but the little Miss Kim is going strong.

The pagoda dogwoods have flowers now.

The buddleia, which should reach about five feet in height, is off to a slow start, but it’s growing. The photo on the left was taken on 1 June, the one on the right on 14 June.

Food Crops: Not much happening yet, though most have been planted by now.

The peas are flowering:

And the peach trees have so many peaches on them that I will have to remove 5/6 of them to get a good crop of decent-sized sweet, juicy peaches. Apparently there should be one nub the size of a dime every 6-8 inches on a branch. It’s going to be farming torture to thin them next week.

Fungi: I don’t know who, but they’re growing in the rock wall.

Compost: I am actually using compost I have lovingly handcrafted from kitchen scraps, tossed cut flowers, leaves, some grass clippings, dirt, pruned shrubs and perennials that aren’t diseased, and whatever else finds its way into the bin. It’s dark and crumbly!

Animals: You know, insects, deer, fox, bears and cubs — the usual suburban garden fare. (Some photos courtesy the motion camera.)

wasp

lady bugs mating

bee or a mimic fly of some kind

red fox

deer at 11:30 a.m.

bear with two or more cubs

I’ll finish up with a few landscape shots.

part of the sunroom border

shade garden

shade garden with ‘Ivory Halo’ dogwood

front yard with rhodos, leucothoe, hostas, baptisia, etc.

Thanks for stopping by!

____________________________________________

More GBBD, hosted at May Dreams Gardens:

… danger garden – always fun for me to see interesting spikey things that don’t grow here

… Late to the Garden Party (south coastal California, so exotic!)

… Commonweeder in western Mass. is more my speed

… Southern Meadows (northeast Georgia, zone 8a) has great insect shots

… Dirt Therapy in Vancouver, WA

… Rogue Eggplant in Maryland

June Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day The garden is in full swing now, even though the first week of June was cold and rainy.

#allium #amsonia #baptisia #blooms #Bowman&039;s Root #centaurea #flowers #Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day #GBBD #geranium #hosta #June #month of June #peas #rhododendron #Rodgersia #woodland

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medicalmarijuana-news · 8 years ago

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Illinois Grow Revolution

Less than two hours outside of Chicago, a team of experts in cultivation and extraction is setting the standard for large-scale medical cannabis production, processing and lab-testing. Our senior cultivation editor reports on his exclusive look behind the scenes at this awe-inspiring facility serving the medical marijuana patients of Illinois.

Start a Revolution

Deep in the farmlands of central Illinois sit two identical medical marijuana facilities owned and operated by Revolution Cannabis. Each one boasts an enormous 75,520-square-foot footprint on 10 acres of farmland. Revolution Cannabis–Delavan, located in a town of less than 2,000 residents, is by far the largest and most technologically advanced indoor medical-marijuana-cultivation facility I’ve ever seen. And it has the ability to expand!

Its sister facility, Revolution Cannabis–Barry, is located over 130 miles from the Delavan site. With a combined total of more than 150,000 square feet of cultivation and laboratory space, these facilities make Revolution Cannabis the single largest grower in the state by square footage. Both facilities are named after the towns in which they’re located, paying homage to the communities that welcomed Revolution with open arms.

Founder and president Tim McGraw tells me that his goal from the start was to bring a new level of professionalism to the medical-marijuana-production industry. From Revolution’s initial applications for cultivation licenses, to the buildout of its facilities, to the dedication of its staff, McGraw has left nothing to chance. The folks who showed me around the Revolution Cannabis–Delavan facility beamed with pride at what they’ve been able to do so far. “I started Revolution with a desire to advance the science of cannabis and create the cannabinoid medicines of tomorrow—and that’s what you see being accomplished here today,” McGraw says.

Typically, growing on this scale would mean serious compromises in the quality of the finished product, since the prevailing wisdom holds that it’s impossible to produce excellent cannabis in such large amounts. But the experts at Revolution Cannabis have managed to prove this adage wrong: The flowers they cultivate so lovingly are simply amazing, and the concentrates produced in their labs are clean, potent and pure.

“Patients need safe and efficacious cannabis medicine,” McGraw says, adding that there are stringent quality controls in place at every step of the process to ensure product integrity. “We take our responsibility as a cannabis-business licensee very seriously. We are producing medicine that, for many patients, can improve their quality of life.”

The drying rooms are climate controlled and impeccably clean.

Specs-tacular!

What sets Revolution Cannabis apart from other large-scale grows? Each of its two facilities is now capable of producing over 20,000 pounds of cannabis per year when fully operational. There are multiple layers of security in place here; it felt more like I was visiting a power plant than a marijuana-cultivation site. All visitors are required to wear head-to-toe scrubs to ensure cleanliness and keep all areas free of pests or any other contaminants that could compromise the health of the plants.

The state-of-the-art environmental controls are completely automated, enabling the growers to manage, track, record and analyze temperature, humidity, CO2 levels and lighting in each cultivation room and even access that information in real time via smartphone. This allows them to see the history of each room down to the second and eliminate any micro-environment problems that might be tough to track otherwise. This attention to detail ensures that they’re creating consistent and reliable medicine for Illinois’s patients. “We’re utilizing the latest technology to create tightly monitored environments, which allows us to maximize each plant’s genetic potential,” McGraw tells me.

All of the water used here is carbon-filtered and deionized and goes through reverse-osmosis (RO) filtration, followed by ultraviolet (UV) filtration as well. The Revolution growers also have the ability to recycle all of their cultivation-room runoff (gray water) and HVAC condensate through the filtration system. Close to 70% of the water used at Revolution Cannabis is recaptured, making this a much more environmentally sustainable operation than many others. “We engineered our facilities to have as little waste as possible,” McGraw notes.

Plants vegetate under fluorescent lighting.

Divide and Conquer

Each of the 20 cultivation chambers is sealed off and sanitized individually. This compartmentalization fosters cleanliness and keeps any potential issues isolated to one area. The rooms are 20 by 80 feet, for a total of 1,600 square feet, and lit with 45 1,000-watt double-ended E-Papillon high-pressure sodium (HPS) bulbs to evenly cover the canopy with an emphasis on indirect crossover lighting. All of the cultivation rooms are protected with 1,200-pound magnetic locks and automatic door closers.

For the medium, the Revolution growers use an enriched semi-soil mix made in-house that includes perlite, coco coir, organic soil, humus and worm castings. The medium is fed with compost teas to enhance the health of the plants. The philosophy is to utilize the soil microbiome to work synergistically with the plants’ root structure, because a happy plant below ground is typically a happy plant above ground. Revolution operates one of the most advanced grow labs on the planet, but nothing beats the science of evolution and what has been perfected over the millennia by Mother Nature. The Revolution team maintains precise control of the environment to mitigate pests and disease; everything else is as nature intended.

The plants here spend anywhere from four to 10 weeks in the vegetative stage, depending on the strain. Then flowering is induced and, as the plants approach ripening, they receive a thorough flush. Chief operations officer Dustin Shroyer tells me, “Flushing is of utmost importance to quality. We use nothing but 0 ppm [parts per million] water for several weeks leading up to harvest.”

I ask about the use of pesticides. “What I love most about the Illinois program is that pesticides are greatly restricted and only allowed in the vegetative space,” Shroyer replies. “We only use living organisms and have grown very fond of various types of nematodes. Nothing is ever sprayed on a plant, and that’s the only way to ensure there is no residue on the final product. After all, cannabis isn’t intended to be washed off like fruit, and it’s pretty evident when crops get treated even with natural pesticides—anything from sulfur to neem—that they degrade the quality of the final product.”

Lab Report

Each Revolution Cannabis extraction and formulations lab has over 3,000 square feet of space. The company produces a variety of refined cannabis products through multiple processes that include sifting, low-temperature pressing, and the use of supercritical-fluid CO2, butane, propane and ethanol. The Revolution team can further process extractions through fractional distillation to create ultra-refined cannabinoid and terpenoid concentrates and remove any residual solvent. “Our analytic capabilities mirror the pharmaceutical industry and ensure purity, efficacy and consistency in the finished product,” Shroyer says.

The extracts, edibles, sublingual sprays and topicals made here are produced by experts in the fields of chemistry and microbiology. All Revolution Cannabis products are also sampled and tested by an independent lab to ensure the absence of pesticides and other impurities, including residual solvents, which are legally required to be below 10 ppm in Illinois.

After harvesting, plants are processed according to their final outcomes.

Due Process

Intense quality control is maintained throughout the post-harvest handling. All harvested bud is processed on parchment-covered, stainless-steel work surfaces and hand-trimmed in order to inspect each flower and sort them into A+ and non-conforming groups. The A+ group will be sold as premium cannabis, and all non-conforming grades go to the lab for whole-flower refining to make an array of products through extraction and distillation.

Every piece of cannabis that is not fresh-frozen for live resin is hang-dried and cured on the stem for seven to 10 days before hand-trimming and inspection. After slow-drying, each batch of cannabis is cured for at least four weeks, and the moisture level of the cannabis inflorescence is closely monitored the whole time.

Once the final moisture content is achieved in week four, every batch is sampled by the third-party lab and tested for mold, mycotoxins, pesticides and other contaminants, as well as a plethora of cannabinoids and terpenoids, prior to being packaged and released for final sale. The entire process can take up to six weeks, and sometimes longer, for particular strains to achieve their finest quality.

Breeding the Future

Revolution Cannabis specializes in rare and high-quality genetics with maximum potency and unique cannabinoid profiles. Because the focus is on pleasing patients’ palates and achieving the best medicinal effects, Revolution works with a broad spectrum of cannabis varieties. While I can’t mention specific strains due to state advertising rules, some of the favorites here include OGs, Kushes and high-CBD varieties. “We’re continuously breeding in-house to upgrade our lineages and create new elite varieties,” Shroyer tells me. “We plan to create over 200 F2 crosses and F1 hybrids in our first year of the program.”

The air curtains at each breeding room’s entry point are controlled by motion sensors. Multiple small rooms are used, each with its own HEPA filtration, benching and double-ended lighting to resemble a scaled-down version of the main growrooms. The replicated environment allows for the selection of genetics that thrive in conditions similar to the larger rooms, while trapping pollen to avoid cross-contamination.

“We don’t grow pounds; we grow eighths,” Shroyer says. (This is my favorite Dusty quote.) Revolution isn’t about growing huge colas: All of the large clusters of cannabis inflorescence will still have to be cut into smaller units, and they’re full of stems and more prone to contamination by mold. The majority of Revolution’s premium flower is sold in 3.54-gram units. Therefore, the Revolution team focuses on growing beautiful high-quality flowers that receive even light from all sides. The result is a consistently superior quality in every harvest and package of Revolution Cannabis bud.

Related: 4 of a Kind—Las Vegas Grows

For all of HIGH TIMES’ latest grow coverage, click here.

from Medical Marijuana News http://ift.tt/2jDlS6a via https://www.potbox.com/

#Medical Marijuana News

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