Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn.  ~Elizabeth Lawrence

Good Morning.  Yes, please take time to view Mother Nature.  :)   Oh, and listen to music.  An uplifting, joyful music.  Something to sing along with.  In the car, on a train, riding the bus, while walking, during a jog, take music along.  It will certainly lift your spirit.

Just like daylilies will lift your spirit during a walkabout in your yard/garden.

Hope you have a good and until next time, Happy Gardening.

 How beautifully leaves grow old.  How full of light and color are their last days.  ~John Burroughs

Aren't autumn colors just the prettiest?  The oranges, browns, greens, yellows, well they are very soothing to me.

Do you have any reblooming daylilies showing themselves?  Panda Bear is currently reblooming.  One lone very showy bloom stands out among all the green foliage.  What a treat!

How many of you out there, like to listen to music?  And a variety of music?  The weather here is absolutely gorgeous and my  house windows are up, music is turned up loud, am enjoying the sunshine and singing so joyfully.

Hope everyone is having a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

For man, autumn is a time of harvest, of gathering together.  For nature, it is a time of sowing, of scattering abroad.  ~Edwin Way Teale

Yes, what a beautiful time of the year, AUTUMN.  It was always a great time of the year, growing up in southeast Indiana: early frost, pumpkins, fairs, brown leaves, hay rides, chilly night air, cool sunny days, leaves to rake, and farming tools to clean/store for winter.  What fun!!! And now in north central North Carolina, autumn approaches. Our autumn weather/chores/activities come at a slower  pace.  We are still mowing yards, harvesting vegetables, cutting/baling hay and today still wearing sleeveless shirts, shorts and sandals. 

Wherever you are, hope you will have a great beginning to this 2012 Autumn Equinox.  Sunday,
September 23, 2012 will be the first full day of autumn.  Hope you enjoy, all.

Until next time, Happy Gardening.

Summer Games, are you watching?  During rest breaks from outside activities, I like to take sneak peaks at  what I like to call, Not so Ordinary Events, ie Judo, Dressage, White Water Rafting, Skeet.  I wonder how many different events there are?  And the coverage appears to more widespread this year.  Thanks, MSN and others.

Hope you have a good day. 

Summer is the time when one sheds one's tensions with one's clothes, and the right kind of day is jeweled balm for the battered spirit.  A few of those days and you can become drunk with the belief that all's right with the world.  ~Ada Louise Huxtable

Shedding ones clothes, say for a bathing suit, hmmm.  Makes me think that today would be a good day to go swimming ... in the pool, in the lake.  Yes, swimming, that will make all right with the world.

Hope you have a good day.

Nature never goes out of style.  ~Author Unknown

I think that I may have posted this one before, however, it is so simple and so true. 

Hope you have a good day.

To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter; to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird's nest or a wildflower in spring - these are some of the rewards of the simple life.  ~John Burroughs

While sharing a bountiful pear harvest from the orchard yesterday, noticed a bird nest, just above my reach.  I wondered what type of bird had built the nest, when eggs had hatched, where all were now ... and guess what?  Bird was sitting in the nest.  Much to my surprise, she was not frightened by my presence.  I backed away, not to disturb.  Hope she will continue her life there .... she can have all the space that she needs.  A moment of Mother Nature at her finest.

Three quarters of an inch of rain last night.  And the "Light Show", oh my!!!!!!  

Hope everyone has a good day.  

A man says a lot of things in summer he doesn't mean in winter. ~Patricia Briggs

Ahhhhhh, doesn't this rippling water look refreshing?

Was visiting friends today at a family cookout and we overheard a group of men talking, as they were cooking hamburgers, corn on the cob, on a gas grill in the hot summer sun.  The story of the "biggest fish ever" was the funniest, yet none of the men were laughing.  They just talked louder, hands waving indicating the "size" of the fish, stories getting longer and longer!  What a great day! 

Lower humidity today.  Hot, still! 

Hope you have a good evening.
 

On cable TV they have a weather channel - 24 hours of weather.  We had something like that where I grew up.  We called it a window.  ~Dan Spencer

Oh, yes, I do remember when!!!

Oakville Farm weather can be checked out anytime at OFW.

Hope you have a good day.

When you're chewing on life's gristle
Don't grumble, give a whistle
And this'll help things turn out for the best...
And...always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the light side of life.
Monty Python's Life of Brian

Yes, I hope that you will find something to laugh at today.  Flowers, friends, creatures ... find a smile!!!

I just saw two goat kids with heads down, horns in front, running towards each other in a threatening way.  And ran right past each other, as if to change their minds, or if wanting to miss each other or just "pure t" misjudging!!!!  I laughed and laughed and laughed.  Maybe you had to be there, however it was just waaaaay to hysterical!!!

Thank you Claudia for your recent daylily order.

Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

(Let me see, is that a Venus Fly Trap?  Oh my!)


Flower, flower grow for me,
Become a flower from a seed,
Grow your roots and a stem,
Let the water come right in

Flower, flower you are true,
You make me happy when I am blue,
You became a flower from a seed,
You did all that just for me   ~Author Unknnown



Hope you have a good day.

Welcome Monday.   Today will set the tone for the remainder of the week.  Make it good .....

What a curve ball thrown today!

Not so sure today!!!!

PHEW!  Relief is on the horizon!!!!

Nature never goes out of style.  ~Author Unknown

Oh, so correct!  Those stilettoes, gauchos, ponchos, mini skirts, leisure suits ... yes, but NATURE, Never.  Nature is always IN.

Nature was on a roll last night ..... Oakville Farm received about a third of an inch of rain.   The rain was very beneficial, the type was slow and steady with rest in between.  Accompanied by a light show that went on for hours!   And more is forecast for today.  Hmmm, wonder if it will be here?  Wishing for!


Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there.  ~Thomas Fuller

And sometimes those "unplanted" make an addition to a flower arrangement.  You know, we usually pick known flowers, ie roses, daylilies, tulips for the arrangement.  And yet, others, ie crinum, golden rod (be careful allergy sufferers) make for nice color and texture in a flower arrangement.  Be creative, look in own flower beds as well as wooded areas for textured, different colored, seed pods and alike to add dimension to arrangements.  Think that is what I shall do today.


Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

Shall we compare our hearts to a garden -
with beautiful blooms, straggling weeds,
swooping birds and sunshine, rain -
and most importantly, seeds.
~Terri Guillemets

Life is much like a garden.  To be cultivated, weeded, fertilized, watered, shared.  Hope you will find time to enjoy your family/friends and time outdoors.

Weather continues to be HOT.  Check it out at OFW.  Heard much thunder in the distance yesterday afternoon and saw pop up storms on the local radar, however, no rain fell here. 


What daylilies have you blooming today?  Visit Oakville Farm website to see what daylilies we have for sale.  Peruse on over and see the really great deals.


Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

"It's difficult to think anything but pleasant thoughts while eating a homegrown tomato."
-  Lewis Grizzard 

Fresh tomatoes.  Right off the vine.  Yum, yum!!!  I love this time of year for the fresh vegetables.  Walk out your side door, to the  tomato plant, pick a yellow one, bring it inside to finish ripening, then enjoy sliced on bread with a bit of Duke's mayo.  Hmmm, Hmmmm.  Gonna go.  Am hungry.

Have a good night and until next time, Happy Gardening.

Freedom has its life in the hearts, the actions, the spirit of men and so it must be daily earned and refreshed - else like a flower cut from its life-giving roots, it will wither and die.  ~Dwight D. Eisenhower

Thank you to soldiers past, present and future.   Thank you for preserving our freedom.  Happy Birthday America!

Hope you will spend time today with family and friends.  Cook-outs, parades, picnics, playing horseshoes, listening to music, fireworks, boating.  Have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.


1812 Overture ....


Just a few sights from this years local July 4th Parade, held this AM @ 10.  Folks come from all around to share in this event.  Always a treat.

 Beginning with the Grand Marshall, Lt. Col. Moseley.

Thank you veterans, you are our special guests of honor.

A Belgian standing a mere, if not more than, 18 hands high.

Boy Scouts, a must have tradition at the parade.

A spectator in her "cool shades".

 "It is only when we are aware of the earth and of the earth as poetry that we truly live."   -  Henry Beston, 1935


Just looked out the window and the ground is wet.  Not dew, but rain.  It rained last night.  Yeah!  The flowers say Thank you, the plants say Thank you and the grass says Thank you.  And the weather forecast is for temperatures below 100 degrees today.  Isn't that something for one to be glad for daytime temp of 97?

Headed outdoors.  Will return.  Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

Well, have returned. Want to show another "beautiful bloomer" ...

Moonlight Orchid

Daylily Moonlight Orchid is blue lavender and white brushed lavender bicolor with green throat.  It is an early mid season rebloomer with a large over six inch wide bloom, standing over two feet tall.  Light, elegant blossom atop a strong thin scape.  A nice, subtle color.

"No bought potpourri is so pleasant as that made from ones own garden, for the petals of the flowers one has gathered at home hold the sunshine and memories of summer, and of past summers only the sunny days should be remembered."
-  Eleanor Sinclair-Rhode

We have heirloom roses, in white and in pink, and the rose hips produced are quite nice.  The Butterfly bushes emit a nice sweet aroma.  The Gardenia sends out a nice aroma. And there are many fragrant Daylilies.  Daylilies such as, Hyperion and El Desperado.  Both are fragrant yellow daylilies.

Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

"I pledge allegiance to my flag
and the Republic for which it stands,
one nation indivisible
with liberty and justice for all."
-  Francis Bellamy, 1892 

The Pledge of Allegiance has been modified four times since Bellamy's initial writing.  In 1954, "Under God" was added.  It will certainly be said during this month!  July, yes, can you believe that it is July?  And in three days it will be July 4th, Independence Day.  Parades, flags, family gatherings, barbecues, fireworks, celebrations abound.

My favorite Independence Day activity is to watch the celebrations from our Nation's Capital.  The 1812 Overture elicits a sense of American patriotism.  Marching bands, orchestra, all the "grand" sounds that abound!  Love it!

Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

 "One who plants a garden, plants happiness."  ~Author Unkown

Visited a garden yesterday and saw several  "Garden signs"  ...
"Cats Welcome"
"Nana's Garden"
"Old gardeners never die, they just spade away"
"Love grows here"

All in different colors, sizes and forms.  So fun.  I like whimsical, fun, creative items in the garden.  Yard art, ya know.  :)  What yard art do you have?

Hope everyone was safe in the HOT weather yesterday.  I believe that the official temp in the area was 105 degrees.  The kind of day when the heat was radiating from the ground and the sky.  And the same is forecast for today.

Heading outdoors now, want to get a bit of yard work done before the heat sets in.  Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart.  ~Celia Thaxter

"Bloomers" ... 

Always Afternoon

Daylily Always Afternoon presents a medium mauve edged buff with purple eyezone and green throat.  It is an early season rebloomer that is over five inches in diameter and stands about two feet tall. 

Holly Hill Strutter

 

Daylily Holly Hill Strutter is lavender rose blend with purple eye and yellow green throat. It is a mid season bloomer that is over seven inches in diameter and stands near three feet tall.  The bloom rises well above the foliage. 









It is very HOT out there this morning, so when you get indoors near a computer, check out other daylilies that are for sale here  at Oakville Farm.  


Good to hear from you, Libby.  Always like to talk "daylilies".  :)  And L & A, thanks for your support.  Daylily family and friends are Wonderful!

Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

If friends were flowers, I'd pick you  ~Author Unknown

Want to say "enjoyed y'all" to my friends who visited yesterday.  The collective years of daylily knowledge that we all share ... oh my, more than a hundred years!!!!

The weather, oh the weather .... it is the TOP story on all the "information highways"!  It is gonna get SUPER HOT, triple digits starting tomorrow and lasting for at least five days.  So if outdoors, please stay hydrated with lots and lots of water, wear light colored clothing, work early in the morning, take many breaks.  Be safe.

More "bloomers" ...

Double Reward

Daylily Double Reward is a pale yellow self.  A mid season bloomer that is over six inches in diameter and stands about three feet tall.

Here’s how to plant your garden: 

First, you Come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses For the Garden of your daily living, 

Plant three rows of PEAS.
1. Peace of mind
2. Peace of heart
3. Peace of soul. 

Plant four rows of SQUASH.
1. Squash gossip
2. Squash indifference
3. Squash grumbling
4. Squash selfishness. 

Plant four rows of LETTUCE.
1. Lettuce be faithful
2. Lettuce be kind
3. Lettuce be patient
4. Lettuce really love one another. 

No garden is without TURNIPS.
1.Turnip for meetings
2.Turnip for service
3.Turnip to help one another. 

To conclude our garden we must have THYME
1. Thyme for each other
2.Thyme for family
3.Thyme for friends. 

Water freely with patience and cultivate with love. There is much fruit in your garden because you reap what you sow.

Thank you Cathy for sending this garden poem.  Vegetable and fruit gardens are sending out a very bountiful crop this year, ie potatoes, green beans (string beans as folks here call them), zucchini, squash, onions, corn.  And the list goes on and on and on!

When you are ready for flowers for your "other" garden, check out all the daylilies here at Oakville Farm.  Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

A garden requires patient labor and attention. Plants do not grow merely to satisfy ambitions or to fulfill good intentions. They thrive because someone expended effort on them. -Liberty Hyde Bailey  

 High temps yesterday then a cold front came thru.  Skies darkened, winds blew, rains fell.  For a short, quick 20 minutes, the rains fell.  Almost a third of an inch of rain.  Yeah!  And today, temps are supposed to be below average, low humidity, bright sun, cloudless sky  ... just a great, great summer day here in north central North Carolina.  

Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

"A garden is a delight to the eye and a solace for the soul." -- Sadi 

Was driving around today and noticed that not just here but in a 60  mile area from north to south, lawns are brown and dry. There are not any lawn watering restrictions that I have heard of, however, did not see any lawn sprinklers working.  Heat index is 100 degrees here, just providing more evaporation.  Yikes!   Check out the weather here at Oakville Farm, OFW, when you get a chance.


"Bloomers" for today .... 


Hyperion

Daylily Hyperion is an older well established daylily been around for more than 80 years, having been registered in 1924.  It is green yellow light self.  It is fragrant.  A mid season bloomer which multiplies very quickly and is easy to separate when dividing.  It stands almost four feet tall.  The blooms are high above the foliage.   It has been a good seller this year. 

Check out this and all other daylilies that are offered here at Oakville Farm.

Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.

Gardeners: People who try to keep plants alive in and around their homes. They're divided into the following categories based on their level of expertise:

*novice gardener: Someone who hasn't gardened long enough to kill one hundred plants.

*experienced gardener: Someone who's gardened long enough to kill one thousand plants.

*expert gardener: Someone who's qualified to tell others how to kill ten thousand plants.  ~Author Unknown

So there it is.  Thought was soooo cute.  Which type of gardener are you?  Guess I am an Expert Gardener!!!  

Thank you my many daylily customers.  Just great spending time with you yesterday.

Great "bloomers" for today ...

First Knight

Daylily First Knight is cream yellow with gold edge and green throat.  A early mid season rebloomer that is six inches wide and stands more than two feet tall.   Petals/sepals are thick.

Martha Fawcett

Daylily Martha Fawcett is light beige pink with rose pink eyezone above yellow green throat.  It is a mid season reblooming daylily with bloom standing  near two feet tall and spreading over four and a half inches in width.  The bloom lays right above the foliage.  Here in Zone 7 it is a nice daylily, blooming from late June until frost.


Hope you have a good day.  Be it outdoors, with family or friends, working, relaxing.  And until next time, Happy Gardening.

Summer has set in with its usual severity.  ~Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Thunder storms around here yesterday.  More than six inches of rain in places and yet .... not a drop here.  What's up with that? Hmmmm!

More Oakville Farm "bloomers" .... 


Black Eyed Susan  

Daylily Black Eyed Susan is a butter yellow with red purple eyezone.  A midseason bloomer  that stands over two feet tall and presents a five inch wide bloom.  Very showy under overcast days or under bright sunlight.  It does not fade.

Pink Super Spider

Daylily Pink Super Spider is rose and pink cream blend with cream green eyezone and green throat.    It is a midseason rebloomer.  Bloom is over ten inches and stands near three feet tall. 

Want to share a few photos of another part of Oakville Farm ....

These are Boer Goats.

All for this time.  Hope you have a good day and until next time, Happy Gardening.