Good Advice

I received an exclusive email offer today from one of my favorite catalogs, Charley's Greenhouse & Garden, and they were offering T-shirts for sale with these messages....

Love the bright red color of this one!

....Great advice, no?


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This was a day brightener for me. Just wanted to share it with any of my garden blogger friends who might be having a case of the winter blues! :-)

First Snowfall

It was raining when we went to bed last night, but sometime during the night it turned to snow....

This late bloom on my yellow English rose 'Graham Thomas' was heavy with wet snow, and resting on the post of the picket fence.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"The first fall of snow is not only an event, it is a magical event. You go to bed in one kind of world and wake up in another quite different, and if this is not enchantment then where is it to be found?" ~J. B. Priestley

Calendula 'Pink Surprise'

I have chosen a special Calendula as the subject for this week's 'Keepers' post. I grow several varieties, but a favorite for the past few years has been 'Pink Surprise.'

Of course, it is not really a true pink, but more of what I would describe as a blushed apricot. The center petals usually show more yellow, which makes for a very nice, soft effect. There can be quite a variation of tones from plant to plant, which adds an interesting element of surprise.

Calendula's are like sunshine in the garden! They bloom both early and late, and are prolific self-sowers. I bought one packet of 'Pink Surprise' seed 3 years ago and have been rewarded ever since with more seed than I could ever use! It has been one of my hottest items for seed trading on the Garden Web Seed Exchange forum.

A couple of twin blooms, wearing a bit of morning dew!
(Click to enlarge)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


"Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful; they are sunshine, food, and medicine to the soul." ~Luther Burbank