Hello, Gorgeous!

Today I was treated to these beautiful blooms. It's the third time this orchid has blessed me with its sunny flowers. It gives me a sense of hope.

Sweet Bells

These might possibly be the most expensive bell peppers ever grown. When you factor in the window sill planter, Miracle-Gro soil, seed packets and seven months worth of watering, waiting, checking, anticipating and hoping - these babies are priceless!

Initially when they began to actually grow, I was worried that I would end up with green peppers and not the vibrant yellows, oranges and reds I had hoped for. So, when I first saw them begin to blush in the sunlight, I was overjoyed!

They are so pretty, I am almost afraid to pick them, but no way am I going to let them go to waste.

Mum's The Word

I couldn't stand it any longer! The hot pink petunias and periwinkle lobelias just didn't fit in with the whole Autumn thing anymore, so I ripped them out of my flower box to replace them with some more season friendly colors. Don't worry, they were dying out anyway. As I took out the massive amounts of lobelias, I discovered that my poor perennial grasses were over taken by the showy annuals. I think they enjoyed seeing the light of day again.

I am happy to say that I LOVE the new flowers, mainly mums, that are joyfully showing off right now. The combination of the greenish-purple leaves of the coral bells and the lilac and sunset hued mums is striking. And I can't wait to prop some miniature pumpkins on the window boxes to fill out the space. It's just what I wanted!

While I was busy yanking out the old flowers, I kept seeing something dark and moving out of the corner of my eye. Much to my delight, it was a little frog that had taken up shelter in the damp forest of foliage. He was so cute, I named him "Bernard". Then I saw a second frog, his wife I presume, in the same planter and I named her "Bertha", "Bertie" for short. I let them hang out in the box while I was busy planting the new flowers, but without the shelter of the old ones, they promptly jumped out.

Bertie (in front) and Bernard before they disappeared, probably in search of a cozy little hideaway.

This evening I plan to enjoy a cup of hot cider to celebrate my gardening accomplishments, and soak in every moment of this beautiful season.

They Like It Here

Today as I was heading down our street to meet my daughter at the bus stop, I grabbed my camera and started snapping away at our flower boxes. The lobilium is not very good at sharing and has taken over the space, allowing very little room for the petunias to peek out. I sort of think that perhaps I should cut it back a little to allow other things to shine, but I enjoy the lacy texture of the little blue flowers that spill over the sides - and it would seem, so do the bees:

I can't believe I got this shot! The large black bee would buzz the loudest as his face was buried in the sweet periwinkle bloom.

I was a little afraid to get too close to this guy; I'm pretty sure they are territorial.

I am tickled that I provide a sanctuary for these hard workers. And who wouldn't want to hang out in a place like this?

Try It On Before You Buy ... Or Build

Ever since we moved into our house three years ago, I have wanted to have colorful flower window boxes. There are two windows in the front of our house that are perfect candidate for a vibrant splash. And in my grand tradition of trying something on before buying (and because I am a control freak and like to know exactly what I am getting into), I digitally built flower boxes to see what color to paint the box, what flowers to get and what colors would look best.

Here I painted the box the same Warm Stone color as our house. I think it blends in too much and is a little boring.

This box is the same as our trim, Wool Skein. Not bad, but not enough color for me.

Sun-Dried Tomato is a good choice. It adds color, but my concern is that it would be too much with the same colored front door.

Black was my first thought to compliment the black light fixtures and house numbers. Looking at it now I think it is much too dark ... like a big black mustache in the front of the house!

And the winner is ...

Natural cedar stained boxes! I think this is the perfect choice to compliment the fence, and will allow the colors of the flowers to pop!

Today I want out and, with the help of my daughter, chose pink and red Petunias, waterfall azure mist Lobelia, and I hope to find some hearty sea grass to plant as well. My husband has already started to build the boxes and I can start planting right away.

Ah, I love it when a plan comes together!

Green Blades of Goodness

Last year I bought a pot of herbs and thought that was the last I would see of them. Much to my delight, the chives came back in great abundance! I find something so satisfying in heading out to my back yard with my kitchen shears in hand and snipping off a few blades. They taste great on potatoes, in cream cheese, I am much more inclined to eat eggs if there is a handful of chopped chives mixed in.

Hmmm, I wonder how some thyme would do in my backyard ...