2017 Dahlia Varieties

I decided I am going to try to keep a running list of all dahlia blooms and their names on this blog. Each time I photograph new blooms I will add them to list instead of creating a new post. Enjoy! Cafe au LaitHolland FestivalNick Sr.Gitty UpAmber QueenAlmost blooming… Jennifer’s Wedding

Sausage and Potato Soup

I am not the biggest fan of cooking, especially in the hot summer months. However, I am obsessed with growing anything and I am on a huge herb kick now. I have found that I will cook so that I can use my fresh herbs. Tonight I made a Sausage and Potato Soup recipe that…

Read More

Mid-July Mixed Bouquet

This is a mixed bouquet featuring everything that is blooming right now in mid-July here in Southwest, Iowa. Dahlias, Gaura, Lisanthus, Larkspur, Rudbeckia with scented Geranium, Honeysuckle, Lemon Balm and Smokebush for foliage.What’s blooming in your yard?

Squash and Corn Saute

I don’t know about you but we have a ton of zucchini right now. I absolutely love vegetables and I am always looking for simple ways to use my garden veggies. I came across this recipe on Pinterest which I made tonight. Excellent! I used canned corn and green zucchini squash and it was still…

Read More

Garden Journal 7/16/2017

It’s hot. I think I forget every year how hot it really gets this time of year. My plants are out in this blazing sun all day every day and I’m not sure how they do it. I do know they need lots of water so I am staying busy trying to keep them watered….

Read More

Garden Journal 7/1/2017

This is a snapshot of what is going on in my yard on this first of July. We have had a few rainstorms that have made everything very happy.

Garden Journal 6/12/2017

This is the time of year that really tests my patience. Everything is planted in the ground and all I have to do is weed, water, weed and water even more.

Yarrow and Bachelors Button

I made a bouquet last night using what I have blooming right now. This bouquet includes yarrow, bachelors buttons, allium, bupleurum, lily and mint. There is also another perennial that I am not sure of the name. This isn’t really my normal color scheme or style of arrangement but I am loving it. I’ve learned that…

Read More

Hummingbirds & Honeysuckle

I noticed that some hummingbirds were attracted to our gorgeous honeysuckle bush right outside our sunroom.

Ranunculus and Roses

As you saw in my last post I attended a workshop at PepperHarrow Farm in Winterset, Iowa last weekend. I thought I would take some more photos of the beautiful bouquet I made. The arrangement includes honeysuckle, mint, oregano, raspberry and lady’s mantle as the foliage along with ranunculus, roses and anemone flowers. \What a…

Read More

For the Birds

Well it all started with a Baltimore Oriole for me (just last week).. and now I am hooked. We had a male Baltimore Oriole right outside of our window last week (looking at itself in the glass) that I had never seen before. I rushed to buy oranges, grape jelly, grapes and several new feeders. I have…

Read More