Photo by me.

Though your nose may still be covered with frost and your toes are cold, it’s not too early to start planning your summer garden.  My friend Aunt B. is already considering sunflowers, basil, okra and peppers. She doesn’t mince words when it comes to finding revenge on the bushy-tailed ones that have been munching her crocuses,

I think someone ate all my crocuses in the small bed by the creek. I saw them starting to sprout last week, but didn’t see any in there this week. Well, [BLEEPED] that then. I may put some daffodils in there next year, but I’m giving up on crocuses. I also have half a mind to go into the squirrel nests and take bites out of things they like.

B. goes on to ask for advice on what to plant in a wet spot to the north of her driveway. Let us know if you have any gardening suggestions for her!

Photo by Muffet from Flickr Creative Commons.

We’re having a heat wave here…. it’s supposed to get above 50 degrees this weekend!  To celebrate, here’s a video clip of someone blaming the heat and boredom to have some garage sale fun!

By the way, had it been me the actual “standing” up would’ve been funnier to see than the rolling around. Funny?  Or sad?

If you’re a believer in evolution (which I am), this pretty much shows the history of everything from being a microbe to the universe. That’s some backyard we have there!

I got to show a buyer a gorgeous home today that had something unique (in that I’ve never seen this before).  The 3rd floor bonus room was the entire floor and the back wall was a glass garage door.   It opened onto a wooden deck that has a gas outdoor fireplace.  Talk about a party yard/room!

Much of the country is experiencing massive snowfall, blizzard conditions, and the resulting pile-up of the white stuff and cold temperatures. But what would it be like to live so high up a mountain that winter could come at any time?   Workers at The Lodge at LeConte - right on the edge of the Smoky Mountains - experience the beauty of winter for a few months more each year.  Luckily the chef at The Lodge is writing all about it and even better … with PICTURES!

When the weather is bad like it is today I keep an eye out for hikers that are coming through for the day or hiking in to stay in the back country shelter.  When the temperatures are extremely cold it can be really hard on the best hikers.  Most hikers are well prepared and in good shape.  But every now and then I come across someone that needs to come in and warm up and dry out for a bit.

I am also available to the National Park Service to assist with any rescues or searches on Mt. LeConte.  I have helped with two searches this winter.

That’s amazing… to have a mountain top as your back yard.  Stay warm, guys. Stay safe.

I’ve talked before about feed wild birds, but because January and February are the most important months to do this for wild birds I wanted to remind everyone again.

… February is designated National Bird Feeding Month because it’s one of the most difficult months in the U.S. for birds to survive in the wild. In mid-Michigan the plants are still dormant and haven’t begun to produce new food for the birds and the bugs are still scarce.

I’m basically a cheap person.  I don’t buy bird seed, sunflower seeds, or other food to feed wild animals.  I’ve always wanted to because it would be as much a treat for me to watch them as it is a food source for the animals.

Instead, I save my leftover bread, the peanuts no one eats from a bag of trail mix, spilled cheerios, crunched up stale crackers … I save all this then throw it on the front lawn during the winter months.  I never throw old apples or pears away either… in the side yard they go for our neighbor’s horses or other wildlife.  Winter is such a hard time for wild animals that every little bit helps.

Do you feed the wildlife in your neighborhood?  This really could be a great time to start that bird feeder you’ve always wanted!

My very favorite part of the front yard is seeing the occasional fox or deer, but also the regular squirrels and rabbits who visit.  Yes, I like taking photos of my flowers during the summer but so enjoy seeing other living creatures munch on the clover.

I haven’t seen a hawk yet like Benjamin over at The Deep Middle,

In the dead of winter I get the fullest, bare-bone understanding of where I am, and how I and my garden and little 1/4 acre homestead are connected to the larger world. A hawk passes over my yard in a second. In one minute how much more has it experienced than me? Whose perspective is deeper and richer? Whose life would suffer more for the lack of the other? The answer to that last question should be obvious.

He says it so much more beautifully than me.

I find the notion that a gardener’s shovel is to an artist’s brush so whimsical! I’ve always dreamed of a lovely walkway surrounded by trees, flowers, and bird feeders that leads to a gazebo sitting next to a weeping willow tree and pond.

The harsh reality is that I have a couple of rose bushes that are doing well, my azaleas are very pretty, but I can’t keep the ants off the Hydrangea long enough for a pretty bloom.  My river rock ground cover has itself been covered… by a creeping, gross vine. And my dreams of a water barrel have never come to fruition.

So when I read such beautiful words about gardening, I get a tad jealous,

A gardener’s shovel is to an artist’s brush. A gardener’s choice of colorful flowers, shrubs and trees is to an artist’s collection of paints, pencils and oils. An artist’s signature is to a gardener’s…hmmm?

The choice of garden decor that is placed throughout the landscape is undoubtedly the signature of a gardener. What does that mean? Simply, a gardener that chooses a sailboat weathervane over a rooster weathervane is more likely to be a water loving individual rather than a country/farm loving individual. It’s how they choose to express themselves in the garden.

My garden decor are some broken seashells that my daughters put down and and a frog statue that the previous owner left behind.  I think one of it’s legs has broken off.

The first time I saw the watering bulbs on tv, I was smitten.  I fell head over heels in love with everything about them - they were pretty AND they watered plants in a timely manner.  I’m not too bad with plants.  In fact I have one that is about 30 years old that I’ve managed to keep alive with regular water and an occasional dose of plant food.

Sadly my husband has been resistent in buying me one.  It’s one of those things I’d never buy myself, so I keep hinting around.  To no avail.  I think I’m going to have to turn up the heat, though, because a friend of mine just told me how wonderful her watering bulbs are.   PLUS, the Gardening Resources web site even suggests them kind of,

All indoor plants will need water and a watering device is essential. There is the simple watering can to something even more elaborate depending on what you need. You can choose from the expensive glass bulbs to stick into the soil of the house plants to something simple like adding a plastic water bottle to a stake inside the pot or container.

Hellooo husband.  I want them!!

My parents always have a cage of suet that hangs in the tree outside their window.  We see all kinds of wood peckers - from downy to red breasted to every kind in between - chowing down on the suet feeder.  It also attracts nuthatches and tufted titmouse.  When my Dad has sunflower seeds out, however, we’ll see tons of gold and purple finches and cardinals.  He’s backed away from using a lot of sunflower seeds, though, because the squirrels hit it pretty hard, too, and he has no desire to feed squirrels.

I think watching the various birds through the years has given me a real love of these winged creatures.  That’s why when I went outside today to take some photos of the “dusting” of snow we received, I found I took mostly bird pictures.

Okay, so I’m not the best wildlife photographer you can find, but I like the picture!  If you’re interested in setting up a feeder to help wild birds during the winter months, here’s a link that you might find helpful.

From the Fail Blog.

Ha…

Jenna so eloquently describes her Cold Antler Farm in Vermont that it almost makes me want to move there.  But given our own local temperatures (low tomorrow is going to be 9 degrees), I think Vermont can only tempt me right now during the summer months.  Yet her words remain beautiful,

They’d already eaten their morning meal so I went into the garage for some fresh straw instead. I carried it out to them and their eyes got wide and ears perked up. They always think straw might be hay, and thought I was carrying them a giant dinner. They followed me back towards the shed. A small parade of shepherd, a black lamb, an angry ewe, and an old softy. I lined the sheep shed with straw while Joseph and Sal joined me inside it. Instead of leaving them—I plopped down in the corner, sitting with my back to the wood and my legs stretched out into the straw. The shed was wonderful. It was windproof, clean, and dry. I sat on the new straw and watched the snow falling outside just like I imagine my flock does.

Consider Jenna’s site now bookmarked as one of my favorites!  You should bookmark her too!

So here it is… I don’t like to cook much.  Fortunately my mother-in-law used to cook for several restaurants and she lives with me.  She still practices her profession, so it’s not necessary for me to write out menus and follow-through.

I am the person, however, who does all the outdoor grilling during the summer.  Don’t tell my mother-in-law, but apparently you can grill during the winter months too.  From Backyard Fire Pits,

Since its winter, there’s the likelihood that you won’t want to spend a lot of time outdoors cooking meat so it would make sense to grill steaks or pork chops because they cook faster than something large. Place a little more charcoal on the grill than you would use in the spring or summer.

The outside temperature does make a difference in the length of time it takes to cook your meat. Watch your rib eyes or center cut pork chops carefully so that they’re cooked to your specifications when you take them off the grill. Cook the meat a little longer.

Okey dokey. Dont’ tell my mother-in-law!

Photo by Rochelle et al via Flickr Creative Commons.

Elvis Presley’s home - Graceland - is scheduled to get a makeover and there are some people very unhappy about it,

I think that if *they must* spruce up the area, they should build a hotel in the shape of a Cadillac, and put green shag carpeting in all the rooms.

Why didn’t Paul McCartney, Bono and Bruce Springsteen buy Graceland 5 years ago? They would have kept the true spirit of Elvis. (A little trivia: Bruce Springsteen once jumped the gates of Graceland trying to get in to see Elvis)…

It’s not just the house under consideration, but also the surrounding area,

The owners of Graceland are getting serious about plans for a redevelopment project that would rejuvenate the popular Heartbreak Hotel and spruce up 100 acres surrounding Elvis Presley’s home.

When I was outside the gates of Graceland last year, I was amazed at the graffiti on the walls - an ever-changing tribute to The King by fans.  I wonder what will happen to the 100-acre grounds surrounding the mansion.

Gazebo is one of those words that is always on the tip of my brain and/or my tongue, but I can never quite vocalize it.  It is a lovely word for a lovely yard feature, though.  We have a long front yard and have often talked about a gazebo for the very front so our daughter would have a place to sit while she waits for the school bus.  As it is now, I drive her up the driveway so she doesn’t get too cold during the winter months.  I like the idea of a gazebo much better!

Why get a gazebo?

We can conclude that a gazebo can enhance the beauty of your garden and your house. It not only gives a unique look at the region where is your booth, but also provides additional room for your home, you can use as a guesthouse. A garden gazebo provides a space for relaxation, meditation, meetings and other activities.

I can imagine how lovely one would be if you had bird feeders around it, along with a path or a pond. I’m adding it to my “someday” list.

Photo by Hickory Rose via Flickr Creative Commons.