Decisions decisions....
I know you are looking at the picture above and wondering what you are looking at AND why is this on the Garden Blogger's Bloom Day. The green plant on the left is a volunteer...a vigorous growing volunteer. A volunteer I hadn't seen since we lived in Virginia. It is a Passion vine.
Passiflora incarnata. See the white twist tie? And the dark 'stick' going up through the middle of it? THAT was a Sassafras tree sapling (
Sassafras albidum). I planted it (along with a lot of other saplings) last
December. Sadly I knew this Sassafras stem was not alive, it was given the scratch test a couple months ago. This is a test where you scratch the stem, peeling back a little bit of the bark, if you see green, it is still alive. I did not see green, it was brown....dead. I did another test, pulled it a little bit, and whatever was below ground held fast. I left it alone. Crossed my fingers. Talked to it as I walked by. Let's look at the above photo again. At the base of the dark dead stem are green leaves!!!! Yes, I have a small Sassafras emerging from the roots!
So now it was decision time. Passion flower vine is a native, host to Gulf Fritillary and many other butterflies. Knowing how strong the root system of the Passion vine is, I decided to dig up the vine and move it away from the tiny tree. Even if the vine doesn't survive, I know the root system is still there. There will be another one popping up nearby.
For now, I am thrilled to have this great native tree, small but alive!
Let's get on with Garden Blogger's Bloom Day. I have had an explosion of color in the backyard. Hooray!
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| Phlox paniculata 'Robert Poore' and Blackberry lily Belamcanda chinensis |
Karin from
Southern Meadows shared a Sunshine Award with me. I am going to fudge a little, I will answer the questions, but instead of sharing it with five other bloggers, I am opening it up to my followers. If you would like to share a little Sunshine, please do!
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| Clearwing enjoying a Monarda |
Karin lives pretty close to me across the state line in Georgia. I hope sometime this summer we can get together. It was great meeting fellow bloggers at the Fling, want to continue the fun!
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| Unnamed White Phlox |
Part of the Sunshine Award is to answer some questions about yourself.
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| Phlox paniculata 'Laura' |
1.
Favorite color-- Depends, blooms-- I like purple, cars-- red, walls-- blue, clothes-- magenta.
2.
Favorite animal-- Pets, we have dogs, have had a cat. In the wild-- love bird watching.
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| Lonicera sempervirens still blooming! |
3.
Favorite number -- Um?? 6! Ask me tomorrow, might be different. (I really don't have a favorite number)
4.
Favorite non-alcoholic drink-- Iced tea, unsweet. Gotta get away from sugar!!
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| Lonicera sempervirens berries!! |
5.
Facebook or Twitter-- I play on Facebook more than Twitter.
6.
My passion-- Gardening, photography, and enjoying our slice of heaven.
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| Gladiolus |
7.
Getting or giving presents-- I love it when we come up with a great idea for a gift. Some are hits and some are misses.
8.
Favorite pattern-- As I write this I have on a polka dots t-shirt. I really have no favorite.
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| Hibiscus moscheutos 'Kopper King' eaten by small caterpillars |
9.
Favorite day of the week-- Since Charlie has retired neither of us know what day of the week it is!!
10.
Favorite flower-- Oh, I am so fickle! Whatever is blooming currently is the center of my attention. Right now some of the oriental lilies are about to open.....new fav!
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View across the garden, where the washout was last month. Still need to do some
rocks and mulch to repair the open soil spots. |
One of the best things about blooms is bringing them inside to enjoy them a little longer.
Be sure to stop over to Carol's blog,
May Dreams Gardens to see all the other Bloom Day posts. It was great to meet Carol at the Fling. Super having faces to go along with names!!
©Copyright 2012
Janet. All rights reserved. Content created by Janet for
The Queen of Seaford.
words and photos by Janet,The Queen of Seaford.
