Fern Walk

 Bob had a "secret" place he wanted to take me to on Saturday, but GPS took us to the road to a mountain lake which ended at a private drive only to find out the only real way to get to it was by foot and a six mile hike.
 

The Palmetto Trail was close by, so we decided to just take a nice walk, the temperature was at least 10 degrees lower than in the foothills, it was a beautiful day.

We crossed a foot bridge and there they were! Ferns everywhere! The whole walk was ferns! This might have been better than Bob's surprise lake.

We did find a lake on our walk, Orchard Lake. The lake Bob had intended to go to was Melrose Lake.  I think we need to do the hike in cooler weather and when all these ferns are turning color for some more photos.

  Sweet autumn clematis was in bloom everywhere and smelled so wonderful.

   Gorgeous, almost black, maple tree.

Late lunch, early dinner at the Purple Onion in Saluda.

Looking forward to cool/cold weather to get back out on the trails!

Just Another Day at the Office

    Been seeing a LOT of bears lately in town and the lines are wrapped around the city to see Trump tonight.  
 

Rock Wall

                   A project that has been in the works for a while, and why I started to get back to it in 90 degree weather with high humidity is beyond me.  I tried to do a little in the mornings before it got really hot, but now there is rain and I am on hold. 
 

                   I'm uncovering the rock by removing ivy and roots. Eventually all the ivy will be gone and in this section I plan on putting in pink lily of the valley along with the lime clumps of monkey grass for summer interest. This hedge trimmer I got from my mom's house really helps in making this project easier.

           The rocks are more like boulders which have a silver sparkle in the sun. It's really pretty. These have been covered for decades. They need to be seen!

            When my mom passed and I went home for the very last time, a lot of items were left in her garden shed and most of them made it home with me. This heavy iron hook might be the best piece I got. I have done so much with this in my yard work. My mom was short, so I'm sure this came in handy for her in the yard, too. When I told my aunt that this piece was the best thing I got from her belongings, she told me my uncle had made that 40 years ago, so it's an antique!!

                     The area I uncovered, still covered in mud, but the rains have taken care of that. Once I get back to it, the ivy should come out really easy because of the rain.

                 I plan to continue all the way up the driveway to the main house. There is another 50 feet of the big boulders and ivy, then closer to the house the rock gets smaller and all I will need to do is remove these clumps of mondo grass. I wonder how many years this will take me?

Southern Nights

 Noisy Frogs & Cicadas

Peonies

 

  Each year the peonies get better and better.  I still need to get to the peony farm in SC to add to the collection, but first I'm going to try to get the seeds from these peonies to grow.  That should be interesting.

          The effort in spring to cover in multiple frosts paid off!

Wisteria Fantasy Land

 On my way to get some special eggrolls for Bob for dinner at a little obscure restaurant and at lunch before they sold out, I turned the corner on the road where the restaurant is and saw this!  I have lived here 10 years and have never seen wisteria like this maybe because I rarely travel this road, but you can bet I will every spring from here on out!
 

This was definitely the year for wisteria. The mix of white and purple is rarely seen and it stretched for a mile. The aroma was intoxicating. I walke the railroad which is no longer in use and took it all in. It was exhilerating!

 Not only was it low and long, it was high up into the trees.

 Sadly, by time I got to the restaurant the eggrolls were sold out.

Spring is Here to Stay!

                        Bob is so right, it is never winter until spring. This week in a panic to get out the frost covers and try and save all the blooms on the wisteria, azalea buds, and all the other things emerging, but it was a hard freeze not a frost. I think everything made it, only time will tell.
 

                                                    This tree!!

                             Timber is as excited as I am with my seed orders arriving, the special ones from Floret just arrived!!

          The lizards have emerged from the dog blankets and are now hanging out in the sun with Geisha.

       Last fall I bought muscari instead of daffodils. I love the ice blue almost white, and really loved the pink I placed at the farmhouse only to be eaten by who knows what :(

         The spring Easter mantle is decorated using the floral paintings from my bedroom for a big change in the living room.

      The willows in town are so pretty when they just begin to sprout their leaves.

                          I hope one day there is an estate sale at what I call "the pagoda house". I love this place and am dying to see the inside. 

              Thousands, could be millions of baby rose of sharons are in my farmhouse garden. I can't just throw away any plant, so I am doing bundles and selling them in the marketplace. I will be looking for plant swaps this spring to make sure all get a good home.

                                          Maybe the raccoons ate my pink muscari?

                               My view has never gotten old.