Starting the Fifth on the Fifth

I know I have been MIA for a while on the blogging front---time flies!  I noticed while checking the blog for info on one of my tree posts that it has been four months since posting. Facebook has allowed me to post just bloom pictures every day and many of my non-blogging friends seem to really enjoy it. It is time to update the blog with this year's garden progress report.

Without further ado- let's see how the gardens have changed over the past few years.  We moved here in 2010 - so we are starting our fifth year living on Lake Greenwood and enjoying retirement. With phone in hand to take photos that match last year's post, I set out in the yard.

The photo below is a side by side of the left hand side of the backyard from 2010 and then one year later 2011.  Besides plants being added, weeds, deer, voles and chipmunks help change the landscape. Many plants are lost to the elements...never to be seen again. Just a good reason to buy more, right?

2010 & 2011

 Here is the jungle of today. The trees have certainly filled in a good bit.  While it looks like a lot of plant material, at ground level there are a lot of open spots that may or may not be able to support something planted. With the mature trees taking up most of the water, the shade area is really dry.  I have two trellises in the garden, one has the Carolina Jasmine and the other has a Coral Honeysuckle growing on it.

The right side of the backyard was originally sunnier than it is now. As the mature trees filled out each year, my window of sunshine has gotten smaller and smaller.

2010 & 2011

The beautiful Japanese maple 'Garnet', almost invisible in the picture from today, has filled in nicely.

2014

Apparently last year I did a panoramic shot of the whole back garden. What I find interesting is the later blooms this year. It was a hard winter, many plants didn't bloom. Some plants died back to the ground and took a long time to show signs of life.  Many of my hydrangeas didn't bloom this year as we had another cold snap after buds were starting to emerge.

2013 Panorama view

From the water the views early on were pretty stark. 

2010 & 2011

A step to the left corner, the view back up to the house across the yard shows the lower gardens.

2013

The amazing change this year is how slow the elephant ears are filling in. The garden bed with the elephant ears is filled with daylilies-- many of which had the buds eaten by Bambi and her momma. I have bamboo stakes posted through the garden and fishing line wound around like a spider web...to deter the deer. Some puppy dog went through the lines and broke many of them....now I have to restring them. The deer found the open spots-- and tasted many daylily buds.

2014

Walking down to the water and checking out the bank....another blank palette a few years ago.

2010 & 2011

Add a few colorful chairs and more elephant ears, some grasses (ignore the weeds!!) and the bank is colorful and filling in nicely.

2013

This year, again, check out the difference with the elephant ears from last year to this year. The shrubs along the steps are really getting big!

2014

The front was raw when we first moved in...lots of construction destruction, compaction and lots of gravel.

2010 & 2011

The Chinese Fringe tree, Chionanthus retusus is getting really tall. In 2013 it didn't bloom, it did this year, but at the upper reaches of the branches....hard to photograph.  Last year the Lantana took a long time to bloom.

2013

This year the Lantana is blooming! Now if the Daylilies, Hemerocallis 'Sammy Russell' the Lantana AND the new Tiger lilies would all bloom at the same time..... I would have a nice show of color..all hot colors.

2014

The grasses along the driveway and the Crepe myrtle are doing surprisingly well, considering this is a seldom watered area.

2013

This year I added some Sun Coleus in a large container...adding some color along the drive. 

2014

The front garden is still a work in progress-- some of the Gardenias are doing very well, and some, not so much.

2013

The Loropetalum 'Daruma' are very happy under the bay window.  One perennial that I  was very happy to find is Japanese Aster, Kalimeris pinnatifida, it is a nice pop of white sprinkled through the garden.

2014

 Check out the difference in size of the Cercis canadensis 'Ruby Falls'  from last year 

2013

To this year....what a beauty!

2014

Another shot of the Japanese Asters, Becky daisies, and Coral Bark maple.

2014

The side yard is mostly shade. It is the 'Green and White Garden' 

2010 & 2011

This garden is Deutzia gracilis 'Nikko' blooming white tiny flowers in the spring, a couple variegated Hydrangeas (which are not going to bloom as all the buds from last year froze) and this year I added the white and green Caladiums. It is an easy garden bed to tend to.

2014

The favored plant in February and March, Edgeworthia chrysantha was quite full last year. 

2013

The winter took its toll on it this winter. As it is a zone 8 plant and we had single digit temperatures, I am lucky there was only a little dieback.

2014

Another area that took a hit with the freeze was this Hydrangea area.....

2013

Only one of the hydrangeas is blooming now- it is one of the Endless Summer series. The Callicarpa dichotoma 'Issai' is huge. I am thinking about taking them out as they are reseeding everywhere.

2014

The lower side is slowly getting swallowed up with honeysuckle vine, blackberry brambles, and other wild things from the woods.

2013

This winter I am getting in there and cutting it back.... not now, too many bugs.

2014

 So now we are back to the front -- my view from the front door.

2013

And this year's view....and no, the shutters aren't painted and put on the shed yet. 

2014

I will be back on a regular basis....I promise. Can't wait for our Portland Fling. Hope to see you there!

©Copyright 2014 Janet. All rights reserved. Content created by Janet for The Queen of Seaford. words and photos by Janet,The Queen of Seaford.

This Year is For The Birds

**Picture heavy post**

Well, not really, but they do help fill the gardening void in the winter! We love watching the birds and feed them all year round. Keeping birds in your gardens help with insect control...a nice benefit.

Some of the regular visitors to our yard, especially in the winter, are Redheaded Woodpeckers and Red-bellied Woodpeckers. While in the lower part of the yard (closer to the lake) I was watching a Redheaded Woodpecker peel off bark - or was it insects under the bark?- and then cache these treasures in another tree.

Here he is putting the newly acquired treat into his secret hiding spot.  Redheaded Woodpeckers are wonderful to see flying- the bold contrast of white and black are quite distinctive.

This guy went back and forth multiple times, he was quite busy!

Other Woodpeckers also cache their food - this female Red-bellied Woodpecker thought the soffit of our screened porch was a perfect spot to hide nuts she got from the feeder.

She used this spot a number of times, I guess she thought we wouldn't clean out the soffit.  Female Red-bellied Woodpeckers have red on their heads but only on the back part, males have red all the way from the back collar area to the beak.

Where did they get the nuts to hide? In the feeder hanging on the deck. I use a fruit and nut mix with sunflower seeds added, it is quite a favorite for many varieties.

See the red on her head? This is the female Red-bellied Woodpecker. 

It is hard to tell male and female Redheaded Woodpeckers apart...so I don't worry about it. Guess they are the ones who need to know!

Yes, the Redheaded Woodpecker waiting its turn at the feeder. 

He will share the feeder with the smaller birds. Here he is with a Brown-headed Nuthatch. Love those little guys, their song sounds like a squeaky toy.

This Red-bellied Woodpecker also has a cache in the hickory tree near the deck. He (yes, see the red coming between his eyes?) likes to use this spot while the female uses the soffit.

Sometimes the birds are hard to see while on the ground.  Can you spot the female Eastern Towhee? She has muted colors of rust and tan.

No? Well here is another picture of her closer---

Some birds aren't really wanted around the house.  One of the neighbors had a bunch of Vultures hanging out on his roof.  Those with the red heads are Turkey Vultures. 

Here are his friends-- waiting in the nearby tree. These birds do a good job with roadkill. 

One of my favorite little insect eaters is the Eastern Phoebe. It is such a sweet little bird and isn't very skittish around people. Her song sounds like her name- Phoebe.

These are the sweet little Brown-headed Nuthatches with a Carolina Chickadee. It was not unusual to have four or five nuthatches on the feeder at once.

 One woodpecker who doesn't come to the feeders but checks out all the trees is the Downy Woodpecker.

Like the mess on my deck? I bought one of those dried mealworms blocks and then it rained...a lot! The Pine Warbler and the Cardinals were just as happy to eat off the deck as on the feeder.

And now, it is time for the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds in our garden. I plant a lot of trumpet shaped flowers for them as well as keeping a couple feeders on the railing of the deck.  March 31st was my first sighting of a male Ruby-throated Hummingbird. Since I was watching the hummingbird migration map, I was ready for them, had the feeders out and was keeping watch.

Last year we had quite a bit of hummingbird activity. Was really tickled to see so many at the feeder at once.

Having hummingbirds is a regular event at our house, but this past year we had a hummingbird's nest just off the railing of the deck.  With binoculars or the zoom on the camera we could watch mama feeding her babies or sitting on the nest.

We watched and watched, waiting for the eggs to hatch. A couple babies!!!

Mama took care of the babies for a while and then they were gone.  Was hoping we would be able to watch them fledge, but missed it.

We did get a short video clip of the mama feeding her babies- 

About the time the babies left we had another visitor- a Rufous Hummingbird! This hummingbird is typically found west of the Rockies or wintering along the Gulf Coast. Some other sightings of Rufous were in Georgia and along the coast of South Carolina. You can read about Karin's Rufous and its banding here and here.

See how orange he is? His coloring really jumped out at me. 

He claimed the feeder and chased off the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds for a couple days........then he left.

So if you are on the fence about putting up feeders - either suet or mealworms or seed or nectar- just do it! You will have hours of entertainment!

©Copyright 2014 Janet. All rights reserved. Content created by Janet for The Queen of Seaford. words and photos by Janet,The Queen of Seaford.

Harbingers of Spring

(här′bĭn-jər)  One that indicates or foreshadows what is to come-thefreedictionary.com 

Some of you are still in the grips of old man winter, I am so sorry.  We are fully embracing spring in my little area of South Carolina. It is time for the Winter Walk-off, hosted by Les of A Tidewater Gardener. The rules are simple, walk and take pictures (though not of your garden) and link to Les' blog.  I have participated in Les' Winter Walk-off in 2013, 2012, and 2011. Most of my walks begin the same way...with the dogs and our long winding road. So let's get this show on the road....literally!

Here are my two companions getting ready for the walk.  As they have gotten older they are less interested in a long walk....

And would much rather enjoy a free run. Newton is 12 now and getting whiter around the muzzle.

Skyler is Mr. Energy, a 10 year old Australian Shepherd.  He loves to run and is seldom far away from his ball.

I love how the light plays through the woods.  It won't be too much longer and you won't see this far into the forest. 

Many of my previous Winter Walk-off posts have been wide views, so today, we are looking for those smaller signs or harbingers of spring, starting with the beautiful and much aligned, Henbit, Lamium amplexicaule. Such a pretty little flower, one I like seeing in landscape.

See the little polka dots? Who wouldn't love this little flower?

Mosses are putting out new lime green growth, water droplets hanging on each stem.

Another 'weed' with a sweet little flower, Bittercress, Cardamine hirsuta.

Many of you know the little Houstonia pusilla, some are white and some are blue.  My favorite harbinger of spring.

Earlier this winter when we took a walk after a snowfall (yes we got some as well!) this fern was peeking out of the cover of snow.  This time, it was hard to find, hiding with the other green growth. I am not a fern authority, so I will leave this guy unnamed for now.  Thanks to Marian we have a fern ID- Christmas fern, Polystichum acrostichoides. thanks Marian!

After seeing ground level signs it is time to look up, into the trees for signs of spring.

Cornus florida 'minarets' plumping up, ready to open

Maples in the woods, possibly Chalk Maple, Acer leucoderme,  sporting bright reddish pink blooms.

Pines putting forth new candles and emit a heavenly pine scent--nothing like the pine cleaners!

A tree I have been eyeballing for a while, trying to get a firm ID has its spring catkins. Final verdict, Cottonwood, Populus deltoides.

Almost a trash tree, Winged Elm, Ulmus alata, blooms early in our woods. Don't you love the fuzzy seedpods?

In addition to the sights and smells of spring, we have the sound of water rushing through the creeks/streams that feed our lake.  You can see the stream through the trees. 

One last sound of spring, the frogs singing their spring song. So I leave you with a small clip of the frogs searching for love.... 

Enjoy! 

(be sure to visit Les!)

Randy says these are most likely Southern Chorus Frogs, thanks Randy!

©Copyright 2014 Janet. All rights reserved. Content created by Janet for The Queen of Seaford. words and photos by Janet,The Queen of Seaford.