Flotsam and Jetsam

The above phrase has become a composite meaning "odds and ends". So on this Labor Day Weekend - a time set aside to honor the working woman/man - I'll show you some odds and ends existing in my life at present.

Look how tall the Impatiens have gotten this year! This picture was taken from inside looking into the window boxes, and is a record for us.

Physotegia - "Obedient Flower" and new foliage of the Grape Hyacinths.

BAD! BAD! Sedum Autumn Joy

Properly trained Autumn Joy!

Wood Aster in the perennial garden and a wild white aster.

Pretty Snapdragons - Doubly lovely because there were too few this year.

Beginning blossoms of Sweet Autumn Thug - Oops - I mean Clematis and the flower of nearby Fountain Grass.

Why on September 2nd have I only gotten about 4 ripe tomatoes off this dwarf plant? Because the deer kept "pruning" it each time a new branch would start growing! Notice the Alyssum right next to it - the tomato plant was meant to be small - but not that small!!

Hot Hungarian Wax and Jalapeno peppers managed very well except for a little slug damage to the leaves once the drought was over.

The Golden Rod was covered with all sizes of wasps and this fat, vitamin C -filled Rose Hip is a sure sign of Fall.

We like to set booby-trapped , dilapidated lawn furniture around the yard to surprise unwary guests. That's a very thorny shrub rose growing between the seat and the back of this chair. ( Many years ago Ashley and I rescued these from houses that were being demolished not far from here. They were old then!)

"Leaves of three, let them be." My older brother, who sometimes talks in maxims, quoted this as we walked the Poison Ivy infested paths. These ripening Jack-In-the-Pulpit seeds don't look real - something like those plastic picks you stick in Christmas bouquets.

My ubiquitous mushroom picture. I guess it wouldn't be a genuine "Alyssa" blog without a fungus somewhere! These are rather unique - they are only 1/4" or less tall !! (See, I told you they were special!)

Pumpkiny-looking gourds growing in a flower bed right outside the patio doors. Why are they there, you ask? I'll admit it, in the dead of winter I found some molding gourds left from Thanksgiving in the house (I don't know how that happened!) and I didn't feel like plowing through snow to the compost bin, so I just threw them out the doors into the flower bed. And there they sprouted. The flower is a Sedum of some sort.

It was a very good year for pond plants (right Mary) and I have another container that looks just like this. I can't bear to toss them into the compost bin. And a feathery piece of perfection!

Gardening stuff Sale Time!

A Target bargain - a Smith and Hawken watering can, originally $24.95, marked down to $6.95! I can't imagine who'd pay 25 bucks for that thing....

Three grape plants (see the tags) and a thornless Boysenberry plant marked down. I looked up in my "Gardening in Wisconsin" book and none of these were listed as hardy in my zone! Same on the Internet. The thornless Boysenberry is hardy to 5 degrees according to a web site I found. The tag on the plant says it is hardy in my zone. Now who do I believe? I'm going leave the picture tags on - That could be the only grapes I'll get off the plants. Same with the boysenberry.

I know this Juniper will do well here. This was not very cheap even with 30% off, but I told Steve it was a present for him! He was admiring one just a few weeks ago. I always have a feeling that Monrovia takes malformed trees, lops off a few branches here and there, calls it a bonsai, and then jacks up the price 4 fold! Now, all we have to do is figure out a place for it - we have NO idea.

Rummage Sale Bargain !!

Aren't these pretty? They are only a tiny fraction of green glass containers an old woman (she's dead now) had collected! Her niece was selling them all and they were marked down to a couple dollars a piece. The most expensive was the small vase, farthest to the right - supposedly hand blown - or mouth or whatever - in Finland. It has a tiny sticker with a little man blowing glass and says "Finland". I especially like the chicken covered bowl so I will give it to my sister.

This weekend was the first time this year we sat in our lovely gazebo. I know, BAD! BAD! Steve and Alyssa! Look on the center of the table and you'll see green onions standing in a glass. That was dinner - no, just kidding. We also had grilled chicken and yuca mojo (I'll explain the yuca mojo another time.) It was very nice and .......

this is the view from the other direction. I snapped this just before the fire in the pit started to show real flames. I like the way it looks here though. It got pretty dark but we had a candle going and we listened to the loud crickets, toads, and a lone owl. Well, then we started to feel guilty about the pugs in their crates and went to get them. They both pooped and it was so dark we didn't want to step on any "surprises" so in we went.

It has been a very nice Labor Day week end so far.

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I have long been of the opinion that if work were such a splendid thing, the rich would have kept more of it for themselves.

Bruce Grocott (1940 - Observer 22 May 1988)

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Bye for now,

Alyssa